The Facts about VZW's Share Everything Plans

[Wizard Prang]

Just want to ask a question as the original info in this thread was back in June. I'm currently on an unlimited 4g plan as part of a family line. Tomorrow I plan on getting the Droid DNA, I know by upgrading I will lose the unlimited, I have accepted that. My question is, will VZW force me into a family share plan or can I just change my line to 2GB for $30 like was stated back in June? Anybody done this recently? If I change to the family share plan my monthly bill will actually go up so I'm looking to avoid that.

You need to ask about this before pulling the trigger. I was under the impression that the old individual plans were gone. Verizon's "Choosing a plan" page gives only two options - family share, or pay-as-you-go.

According to this page:

"Unlimited data plan holders are grandfathered in and will be able to retain their bandwidth-based freedoms​

 

[Randino]

I've never heard anyone say that the Shared Plans will raise the bill on a Family Plan. It hits single users who don't have access to Wi-Fi. Call Verizon before you buy the phone.

I have five lines on a family plan, 3 smartphones, a tablet, and a dumbphone. I'm currently at about 250 a month with insurances taxes and all. Share everything would have me at 240 for 6 GB, not counting any taxes or insurance.

 

[bberryhill0]

It looks like the overage charge is now $15/300 MB.

* Do you use 6 GB/month? Most people with Wi-Fi access stay under that.

 

[saptech]

My question is, will VZW force me into a family share plan or can I just change my line to 2GB for $30 like was stated back in June? Anybody done this recently? If I change to the family share plan my monthly bill will actually go up so I'm looking to avoid that.

From my understanding, for a family plan it is $40 for each smartphone, $30 each basic phone and $60 for 2gb shared data plan. This should include unlimted talk & text!

 

[Wizard Prang]

I have five lines on a family plan, 3 smartphones, a tablet, and a dumbphone. I'm currently at about 250 a month with insurances taxes and all. Share everything would have me at 240 for 6 GB, not counting any taxes or insurance.

I'm with you. My plan has four phones

 

[Randino]

It looks like the overage charge is now $15/300 MB.

* Do you use 6 GB/month? Most people with Wi-Fi access stay under that.

Probably don't use that much, so I might could lower that price, even still I think I'm staying with what I currently have aside from the unlimited.

 

[Mohud94]

I currently have a Droid Incredible, but the phone is no longer charging. If I buy a HTC rezound from a third party retailer unlocked at full price, can I get the Sim for free and keep my unlimited data, or will I have to give it up after switching from a 3G phone to a 4G phone. I really need unlimited data, if it is removed I will have to go to Tmobile/Sprint or a pre-paid carrier, how much is the ETA fee? Sorry if this is a really noob question but I'm still confused even after reading the first post

 

[AntimonyER]

I currently have a Droid Incredible, but the phone is no longer charging. If I buy a HTC rezound from a third party retailer unlocked at full price, can I get the Sim for free and keep my unlimited data, or will I have to give it up after switching from a 3G phone to a 4G phone. I really need unlimited data, if it is removed I will have to go to Tmobile/Sprint or a pre-paid carrier, how much is the ETA fee? Sorry if this is a really noob question but I'm still confused even after reading the first post

Hey Mohud, you should be ok, Verizon allows going from 3G to 4G phones without changing plan.

 

[celticscryer]

I was in the process of pre-ordering the Galaxy S4 on the VZW website. Naturally it is forcing me to switch my plan, as I expected. What I didn't expect was for VZW to prompt me to order two separate data plans for the two phones on my plan.

I thought that the Share Everything crap was one pooled data plan for all devices on your account? If that is correct, then why am I being prompted to buy a separate data plan for each device? This is going to cost me more than my current unlimited plan!

 

[nomarsgirl]

I was in the process of pre-ordering the Galaxy S4 on the VZW website. Naturally it is forcing me to switch my plan, as I expected. What I didn't expect was for VZW to prompt me to order two separate data plans for the two phones on my plan.

I thought that the Share Everything crap was one pooled data plan for all devices on your account? If that is correct, then why am I being prompted to buy a separate data plan for each device? This is going to cost me more than my current unlimited plan!

Are you sure they were charging you for two data plans? There is a flat rate per phone of $40 per smart phone and $30 per dumb phone plus the charge for the shared data. The flat rate is for your voice and text which are unlimited. Unfortunately, there is no cheaper voice/text plan available.

 

[AZgl1500]

Looks like it is all going to get shaken up again. The word isn't out though if current plans will be allowed to continue until the contracts are up (grandfathered), or if we all get shuffled around.


Verizon customers will, in fact, be able to choose from four plans. The “small” plan offers 1 Gb of data for $30 a month; the “medium” plan offers 3 Gb of data for $45 a month; the “large” plan offers 6 Gb of data for $60 a month; and the “x-large” plan offers 12 Gb of data for $80 a month.
Of course, all of the data is shared between however many devices the account might have activated.

the above quote taken from this announcement:
http://www.piercepioneer.com/verizon-announces-dramatic-shift-to-mobile-service/44631

 

[kenshell]

interesting,,,,

I'm out of contract but grandfathered in for 700 family plan and unlimited data on 2 lines plus one dummy phone f0r $167 per month
I now buy my phones off of craigslist or eBay to keep my unlimited.
How does this affect me?

Not sure if i should i do a quick upgrade of both my phones and loose my unlimited if im going to lose it anyway.
I generally never use more then 6-7 gigs per month anyway

 

[AZgl1500]

I caught some more info today.... we can keep any plan that we have in effect.

New users will be forced into the new 4 sizes of T-Shirts plans.
it is all about money.... 12 gB max period, no more unlimited plans...
and, it is easier for them to handle the billing, track the DATA only (read cheaper billing services).
no more tracking usage per phone, just one account that has one billing plan, Small, Medium, Large, Extra large and if your device is eligible for that plan, then it can use data. Up to 12 devices IIRC.

Once it all jells out, I am going to take a look to see if it is cheaper for me to order up a T-Shirt plan.
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2 ea. Verizon Galaxy S5, Lollipop

 

[Clementine_3]

Right now, off contract, the lines are $15 depending on the amount of data you buy. The T-shirt plans (I like that, haha) are a flat $20 per line. So that's an increase for some. I won't be switching, I got a great deal a while back and it will probably never make sense for me to change (30GB/$130). I did call the other day and asked if, for sure, I'd never have to change and was told I wouldn't and I can still add lines if I want to. We'll see about that noise later down the road I guess.

I do hope that this eventually means phones will come down in price and be 'carrier free' right out of the box, like the Nexus 6 and new Moto X's. That's a step in the right direction for sure. Here's hoping that Verizon is on the ball with activating non-Verizon phones instead of dragging their feet for months because they aren't allowed in the system. Ugh. I really do love to hate Verizon.

 

[AZgl1500]

I do hope that this eventually means phones will come down in price and be 'carrier free' right out of the box, like the Nexus 6 and new Moto X's. That's a step in the right direction for sure. Here's hoping that Verizon is on the ball with activating non-Verizon phones instead of dragging their feet for months because they aren't allowed in the system. Ugh. I really do love to hate Verizon.

\you and me both.... I would love to ditch Verizon's rigid refusal to be 'nice to their customers', but I can't get away from their coverage area.... I wasted way too much money moving from carrier to carrier only to find out that their service areas were woefully inadequate for me... dropouts, no service at all, horrible roaming charges..... all of this 20 years ago....

2 years ago, I met the Demon Head On.... do I keep my Unlimited plan for me only, and add on 2 more lines separately and both are smartphones and will be billed the $60 fee/line...... or do I swallow my pride, and release my Unlimited plan and put all of us on a Family Share Plan.... the latter is what I finally had to do....

After the fact, with today's smart phones seeking out WiFi as a preference, that has not hurt me at all. 3 phones, and we never use more than 1 gB per month on a 3 gB/month plan.

I'm thinking that I might go for the new T-Shirt plan. That would allow me to reactivate a Verizon MyFi adapter so my laptop could acquire the internet when WiFi is not available.

Will have to look at the current costs/month and see what the new T-Shirt plan might end up costing me per/month.

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2 ea. Verizon Galaxy S5, Lollipop

 

[bberryhill0]

I'm currently paying $30 for 6 GB. $78 total for one line.

 

[AZgl1500]

I'm currently paying $30 for 6 GB. $78 total for one line.

I just looked at my Quicken checkbook program, and see that I am paying $189.78 per month for 3 gB and 3 smartphones. That is $60+ per phone....

I'm thinking the T-Shirt plan just might be a lot better for me. Oops! I still have 2 phones on contract.... gotta see how much of that 189.78 is actually a phone payment. 1 S5 will expire April next year, the 2nd S5 will expire in 18 months.... sheesh!

My S5 was $99 18 months back, the wife's S5 was 99 cents this last spring... so on hers, I am paying a big chunk on that one per month.

 

[CharlieD]

I had unlimited data on my phone for a long time. My wife had a 2 GB plan and typically used way under 1 GB/month. I probably used a bit over 1 GB/month. Was paying over $140/month with a 700 minute plan. Finally changed the plan last year to unlimited talk and text with 2 GB shared data. Now it's $25/phone + $40 for data. That's $90 before my employer's discount and taxes and surcharges. Looks like with the new T-Shirt plan I can get $20/phone + $45 for 3 GB. That's $85/month before discount, taxes and surcharges. So I'll save about another $5/month and get an additional GB of data. My math must be off somewhere. Why would I save more money with Verizon's new plan? That is not the Verizon I've come to know and hate!

 

[Clementine_3]

Your math matches my math for the new T-shirt plans so something must be wrong somewhere if Verizon is offering a savings! haha. Jump on it before they change their minds

 

[AZgl1500]

I am currently looking at my Verizon account:
15 days on cycle, data used: 0.23 gB

Wifi is doing us a great job.​

3 smartphones:.... Bill Due 08/20/15 @ $189.39​

There is a comment on the Bill: VERIZON SMART REWARDS : 153,320 Points
I have no clue as to what that means, or what it is good for?

I think that come next Monday, after the CS reps have a chance to learn something about the new offerings, that I will inquire about the 3 gB T-Shirt Plan.... I want to compare Apples to Oranges and see how it really jells out.

I am taking a 3 week long trip on my Goldwing m/c in September and adding the old MyFi device to the account "for free" just might be the Sugar That Makes It Worth It. That would allow my laptop to work, and not interfere with my smartphone being used at the same time. Stop for a lunch break at a rest stop on the side of the road, pop out the laptop, plug in the MyFi adapter, and check my emails or my bank account.... ( I keep most of my money in Savings just in case my debit card gets Hacked... limits my exposure. ) if my phone beeps at me and says "Balance below $800" then I can transfer a few bucks from Savings to Checking. going thru a lot of states, and a lot of strange places where I don't know the counter clerks... I try to always watch my debit cards, but they can get your info in 2 seconds if your eyes get diverted briefly.


____________________________________
2 ea. Verizon Galaxy S5, Lollipop

 

[CharlieD]

I had unlimited data on my phone for a long time. My wife had a 2 GB plan and typically used way under 1 GB/month. I probably used a bit over 1 GB/month. Was paying over $140/month with a 700 minute plan. Finally changed the plan last year to unlimited talk and text with 2 GB shared data. Now it's $25/phone + $40 for data. That's $90 before my employer's discount and taxes and surcharges. Looks like with the new T-Shirt plan I can get $20/phone + $45 for 3 GB. That's $85/month before discount, taxes and surcharges. So I'll save about another $5/month and get an additional GB of data. My math must be off somewhere. Why would I save more money with Verizon's new plan? That is not the Verizon I've come to know and hate!

Well, today is the first day of the new T-Shirt plans. I just went on line and switched. Old plan was 2 GB data plus 2 phones. VZW thinks that $112 (2 phones @ $40 each + $40 for data - $8 for my employer's 20% discount) because they don't count the $15/line discount for being off contract. So that discount included it's really $82/month Now it is $76 ( 2 phones @ $20 each + 45 for 3 GB of data - $9 for my employer's 20% discount.) I'm still nervous. Verizon saving me money and giving me more data at the same time? Seems too good to be true.

 

[AZgl1500]

I just took a look to see how it would work for me, seems that I go from 3 gB to 6 gB and it reduces my bill by $10.00


hmmmm.... I'm going to watch this for a few days, my cycle changes on the 20th so if I do it right now, it will really screw up the billing.... I hate it when that happens, takes 3 months to get it straightened out.... so, on the 19th, I will look again, and probably go for it.... double the data, with a ten spot back in my wallet? how can I loose?

wish my results were as good as your were.... but, I suspect it is because I have two phones still on contract. 1 is 6 months to go, the other has 18 months to go.

 

[bberryhill0]

I'm still nervous. Verizon saving me money and giving me more data at the same time? Seems too good to be true.

Single line customers are still being punished. My bill would go up $30. But that's $10 less than it would have gone up with the original Share plan so that's good, right?

 

[CharlieD]

I just took a look to see how it would work for me, seems that I go from 3 gB to 6 gB and it reduces my bill by $10.00

hmmmm.... I'm going to watch this for a few days, my cycle changes on the 20th so if I do it right now, it will really screw up the billing

You can change now and select to have it take effect at the start of your next billing cycle. That's what I did. My next cycle starts on the 22nd. (Other choices for me were to have it start retroactively to the start of the current cycle (7/22), or have it start immediately.

 

[AZgl1500]

Looks like VZW has started a "Revolution" in T-Shirt Plans.

http://www.wirelessweek.com/news/20...cture?et_cid=4742077&et_rid=54162356&type=cta



I'm in the midst of fixing my m/c and tag-along trailer for it. Much work to be sure everything is ready for a 4,000 mile trip in two weeks.

Will give VZW a call next week when I have time to devote to just them.
If I can save a buck, and triple my DATA allowance, hey! that's alright by me.
I will want to reactivate my old MyFi adapter too, I think having my laptop access the world from a city park would be kind of neat again.... wonder if it can handle 4g? it is 4 years old now.


EDIT: I lucked out, I found it in the closet and it is labeled 4G MiFi LTE,
alright.... looks like I will be in the T-Shirt business plan