AT&T Wifi only, no dataplan

[BenF]

[message has been removed]

 

[Saltine713]

Oh, yes, 'it is completely legal for companies to make whatever rules they want', including those violate federal laws, human and consumer rights and American Constitution.

Also, it is legal to charge for the service (data plan) that customer never subscribed to and unable to use.
What if next day I switch back to my old non-smart phone? Will they recognize my 'new' handheld as non-smart phone and cancel the data plan added on data device detection?

Dude, they don't violate any laws or consumer rights. Like I said, I will spell it out for you in a nice way:

There is no law in owning a cell phone. There is more than one cell phone company to choose from. Each company is located in a free market enterprise system, part of the United States' economy. Therefore, the companies can make certain regulations and rules on how they do business with the customer. If you don't like their practices, you DON'T have to give them your business.

If AT&T was the only cell phone provider and it was a law to own a cell phone, then yes, they would have to observe certain laws and standards set forth by the Department of Commerce.

Complaining to the FCC would do nothing, as they handle the telecommunications part of the operations, not the business aspects.

What part of the Constitution do they break?

According to their Terms and Conditions, if you want their service, you have to agree to certain rules and standards. This being if you put in a SIM card from a non-smartphone into a smartphone, you will have a data plan added on. Not sure if they will cancel your data plan if you reverse those steps.

 

[BenF]

Dude, your generalizations about rights and rules are pointless and useless in this topic context. I don't want to support those anymore and leave the forum.

It's a right of any customer do not to pay for non-existing service or non-delivered merchandise, especially if you didn't order that.

I had a problem and I solved that in my favor, regardless of what some rules and disclaimers might state.

 

[lunatic59]

Dude, your generalizations about rights and rules are pointless and useless in this topic context. I don't want to support those anymore and leave the forum.

It's a right of any customer do not to pay for non-existing service or non-delivered merchandise, especially if you didn't order that.

I had a problem and I solved that in my favor, regardless of what some rules and disclaimers might state.

Please do not delete the content of your posts when it is relevant to the discussion. It makes the subsequent replies and opinions pointless and seem argumentative. You are certainly entitled to express your opinions in accordance with the rules of the forum, as are those members who disagree with you. If you feel another member has stepped out of line, please use the report button in the lower left corner of the post and the staff will deal with it, including posts by other staff members.

 

[electronicbuff]

I'm on att using a Smartphone without a data plan. Bought the device new from a seller out of California. Looks and acts like the HD7 but the model number is not.

Phone arrived in retail box and has ability to have data plan but instructions stated to turn off this option in phone before letting it register with att. I did this and then transferred my SIM card to it. I can use any WIFI service, texting, tele-calls all fine without having the additional cost of a data plan. I figure if choose not to use data then they shouldn't make me pay for it.

If I reactivate the data transmissions in the cell phone options then att will be able to determine it is a smartphone and will charge me for a data plan. I won't make that mistake though. I've heard of others doing this.

Don't try turning on data and using then turning off either. att rep when I called about something else asked me what kind of phone I was using. The read a number but it wasn't one of theirs so they didn't know what it was capable of. Of course I'm not an idiot to tell him what it could do. The other technique they use is auditing the data sent and received.

When you allow your phone to transmit data a lot of stuff is sent without you even knowing. These phones automatically check for updates for email, apps, or any other thing you might not know you have installed. These are red flags to att's sniffing software.

WIFI is great, many places offer free access too. I don't want the extra fees of a data plan so I'll stick with the benefits of a smartphone and just use WIFI for apps.

 

[Saltine713]

I'm on att using a Smartphone without a data plan. Bought the device new from a seller out of California. Looks and acts like the HD7 but the model number is not.

Phone arrived in retail box and has ability to have data plan but instructions stated to turn off this option in phone before letting it register with att. I did this and then transferred my SIM card to it. I can use any WIFI service, texting, tele-calls all fine without having the additional cost of a data plan. I figure if choose not to use data then they shouldn't make me pay for it.

If I reactivate the data transmissions in the cell phone options then att will be able to determine it is a smartphone and will charge me for a data plan. I won't make that mistake though. I've heard of others doing this.

Don't try turning on data and using then turning off either. att rep when I called about something else asked me what kind of phone I was using. The read a number but it wasn't one of theirs so they didn't know what it was capable of. Of course I'm not an idiot to tell him what it could do. The other technique they use is auditing the data sent and received.

When you allow your phone to transmit data a lot of stuff is sent without you even knowing. These phones automatically check for updates for email, apps, or any other thing you might not know you have installed. These are red flags to att's sniffing software.

WIFI is great, many places offer free access too. I don't want the extra fees of a data plan so I'll stick with the benefits of a smartphone and just use WIFI for apps.

Well I don't really understand what you are doing, as AT&T will figure out you are using a smartphone, regardless if data is sent or received. Plus if you are doing something illegal to bypass their system, then that isn't too great either.

 

[Rico ANDROID]

The cool part of wifi is you can use it without a full dataplan.... just tapping into your own network at home or using hotspots around town.

What i "dont" like about the convenience, is that when i am paying an at&T data plan rate but , even when in a strong area, not having had the nations fastest network experience on att juices alone.. ive always had to use wi-fi .

"but" lately, my att services had been upgraded and even without wi-fi my connection is great. I know thats not what this discussion is about.. but all in all. wi-fi is a good thing!

 

[astral trekker]

I have bought an unlocked smartphone before and they did not know that I had it..so they didn't charge me with a data plan, however if it isn't unlocked they can find out what phone you are using..I know that T-mobile and and AT&T use the same bands, so I advise getting a brand from them.

 

[lunatic59]

I have bought an unlocked smartphone before and they did not know that I had it..so they didn't charge me with a data plan, however if it isn't unlocked they can find out what phone you are using..I know that T-mobile and and AT&T use the same bands, so I advise getting a brand from them.

No, actually they don't for data. T-Mobile uses 1700MHz for 3G data and AT&T uses 1900MHz. If you try to use one carriers phone on the other's network, you'll only be able to get 2G/EDGE speeds.

 

[astral trekker]

Sorry, yeah I know that..but the person wasn't worried about data, they just wanted to use WIFI.

 

[duckfeet]

Weirdest thing: I've got a nexus one, and my t-mobile plan ran out, and I went ahead and got an at&t unlimited plan, $50 a month, with the 5$ a month 10mb data plan, just figuring they'd catch the smartphone thing anyway, and if not, I set it up to put $5 a month in automatically, since it rolls over that way...several months ago, and they still haven't charged me for data...

I've used it as a wifi port and browse the web, and all kinds of stuff...so all I've paid is the att gophone $50 a month unlimited, and $5 for data which I don't get charged for...so far...I figured they'd start charging me, and I'd probably have to get more than 10mb a month...but so far, it's a lot cheaper than the mandatory $90 a month unlimited t-mobile plan I had, and the 10mb a month just keeps rolling over....

I kind of want to get a galaxy nexus, but this is too good a deal, so I'll see how long it lasts...signed up here just to let you'all know, maybe if you've got a t-mobile phone that is now unhooked to t-mobile, u might slide by...

I've been reading some of the previous posts, and I think maybe I'm only getting 2g or Edge, but I don't know how to tell: seems to be working fine, and even IHeart streaming is ok--not superspeedy, but fast enough--I wonder if I'm only getting edge...

 

[electronicbuff]

I just keep the data transmission part turned off in the phone and I also have a data block on my account with att. Have been using with WIFI with no problems for about half a year now.

The other day when I was changing a service (texting) att was curious what my IME number was inside the phone since they said they couldn't read it correctly. I wasn't born yesterday so I acted like I was an old schooler and didn't know how to do much with my phone but make calls and send text messages since my someone showed me how to do it.

My theory is, if I don't use att's data then I shouldn't have to pay for it just because I own a phone that is capable. Kinda like being forced to pay for a first class ticket on a plane because my butt would fit in the seat even though I'm flying coach.

Why should I pay for a service I don't use?

 

[Pepe7698]

That is interesting. I have two smart phones w/o data plans. Every time I log onto AT&T to pay my bill; it knows that one is a BlackBerry and the other a Captivate. I have been curious to see how this "family data plan" thing works out; I may just reactivate data to those phones.

 

[arnele]

electronic buff- are you saying that if I have an unlocked android phone (Samsung Captivate), then AT&T wont know that I have a smartphone, and therefore won't charge me for a data plan (even though I don't want one)?

 

[LouCash]

Wow... What a mess.
This is the way it works. "they " check imei numbers on lines in random sweeps. If your are found using an imei of a "known " smartphone without data plan one will be added. If you are using a brand x smartphone model w.e that at& t does not have in their database as a smartphone the plan will not be added. If you use one of these "unknown " devices at&t will not guarantee your service to work.

That's it. No crime. No conspiracy. It's actually a pretty imperfect system I hear.

 

[Rico ANDROID]

Thats EXACTLY how it works. The network will pick up the phone type you are using and it will register the imei. And like the post above, att will auto stick you into a plan and bill you accordingly "if" the imei is one of theirs.

 

[nycnyc]

So now I'm on the same boat. I'll just summarize what I've read so far though then ask my question.

At&t branded phone = data plan, in just about all cases
Unlocked phones(not Att branded) = data plan, but mixed results?

So lets say I got an unlocked phone with the correct 2G bands, but with non working 3G bands, would it still be tracked down by Att's system? Or maybe a better question would be is if anyone knows what IMEI's are on Att's system.

 

[lunatic59]

So now I'm on the same boat. I'll just summarize what I've read so far though then ask my question.

At&t branded phone = data plan, in just about all cases
Unlocked phones(not Att branded) = data plan, but mixed results?

So lets say I got an unlocked phone with the correct 2G bands, but with non working 3G bands, would it still be tracked down by Att's system? Or maybe a better question would be is if anyone knows what IMEI's are on Att's system.

It's not a matter of knowing the IMEI's, but knowing which handsets AT&T can identify as smartphones. Even so, using a smartphone on AT&T's network without the appropriate data plan is a violation of their TOS so if they catch you, they got you. You either pay or they cut you off.

 

[cjgoose]

My son wants a phone that allows wifi access, but no dataplan on AT&T. I've heard that we can buy a phone from someone else, insert his sim card, and then he can use it without a dataplan. Is that possible? What if the phone was originally sold by AT&T, will that still work? Can all the Android configuration be done over Wifi instead of a dataplan?

Thanks.

carbon

AN ANDROID SMARTPHONE WITHOUT A DATA PLAN IS POSSIBLE! In fact im doing it right now! I am on At&t using a Samsung Galaxy ACE. Awesome phone, and att does not recognize its IMEI so its all good! I have been data free for almost 2 months (recently bought the phone from amazon). Weather it will work with any carrier that uses GSM im not sure, although it does work flawlessly on ATT. So it is a perfect option for anyone looking for an awesome android smartphone with full features (wifi, bluetooth, gps, full android market, full hacking capability's) with no data plan. Also, if in the future when you want a data plan, all you need to do is enable att's non smartphone $10 data plan on your line and now you have unlimited data for only $10 a month, i have not tried this yet but plan too. I am also pretty sure any GSM phone with a model number not starting with an "i" for example the Samsung galaxy s2 which is "i9100" will be required to have a data plan by att because they recognize its IMEI number, where as the Galaxy Ace starts with an "s" (s5830) it works. Hope this helps, and remember anything is possible with A LOT of Google searching!

 

[lunatic59]

AN ANDROID SMARTPHONE WITHOUT A DATA PLAN IS POSSIBLE! In fact im doing it right now! I am on At&t using a Samsung Galaxy ACE. Awesome phone, and att does not recognize its IMEI so its all good! I have been data free for almost 2 months (recently bought the phone from amazon).

I will reiterate, using ANY smartphone on AT&T's network without an appropriate data plan is a violation of their terms of service. You do so at your own risk.

 

[Hirg]

I will reiterate, using ANY smartphone on AT&T's network without an appropriate data plan is a violation of their terms of service. You do so at your own risk.

In the context of the thread, this statement was necessary and I can see why you keep saying it, but as an overarching statement for all smartphones used on AT&T's network, it's not entirely true. For contracts, yes, it is a violation to use a smartphone without data on AT&T's network.

Data plans are not required for prepaid smartphones - they are only required if you want to use cellular data. It's entirely possible - and within AT&T's terms of service - to purchase a smartphone, purchase a prepaid plan with no data, and just use Wifi.

 

[Aokusman]

I used my iphone 3GS on att for 9 months without a data plan. The iPhone did show up on my account though. This was in 09/10

 

[Rico ANDROID]

With the way att is cutting things lately, even planning to cut or charge some wifi hotspots, im seeing an end to this option some day. Sadly att is.no longer a compny that strives to provide its customers "more for less" as it were.noe everything will cost you.

 

[gatd]

You can actually have AT&T block mobile data to a phone. I have 2 smartphones on my my plan that do not have a corresponding data plan associated w/ them. The downside is that you will not be able to receive MMS on those phones.

is this still working for you because I was doing that and noticed I was being charged a data plan. They said you cannot block unless I do it every month and there is a 5.00 charge now

 

[Rico ANDROID]

With the way att is cutting things lately, even planning to cut or charge some wifi hotspots, im seeing an end to this option some day. Sadly att is.no longer a compny that strives to provide its customers "more for less" as it were.noe everything will cost you.

I am trying to locate my comment where I said at&t can detect the device you are using if you have the phone registered or not on at&t. I would like to recant that comment. I had to call at&t about a device I have but it doesnt have a bill to my account option in GooglePlay. Found out that at&t have to manually enter your imei
before their system can track your phone thru their system....(sorry if this is posted in the wrong folder)