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Yeah, AT&T is requiring messaging plans with feature phones

Published Jan 29th, 2010 8:21AM EST
BGR

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att-messaging

After we whispered that AT&T might be requiring messaging plans when you purchase select feature phones, we were hit up by a flood of connects. Long story short, it’s true, and here’s the break down:

  • Phones that require a messaging plan at time of purchase include: Pantech Reveal, Pantech Impact, Motorola Karma, Samsung Flight, Samsung Impression, Samsung Magnet, Samsung Solstice, Samsung Mythic, Samsung Propel, LG Xenon, LG Neon, and the LG Vu.
  • It looks like the minimum monthly cost when buying a “Quick Messaging” phone is around $20. That’s a $5 200 SMS/MMS plan and a $15/month unlimited data plan. It doesn’t look like you can walk out of the door without paying less than $20/mo in features in addition to your voice plan.
  • There are slightly different requirements if you have a family plan, so check those out in detail with your AT&T liaison.
  • If you have an existing “Quick Messaging” device, you don’t have to do a thing. But, if you want to ever upgrade to a new device, you’d then be hit with the messaging feature requirement.

Not exactly the best news for those looking to keep their wireless bill pretty low (and straight forward). Catherine Zeta Jones, where you at?

Thanks, to all our connects that broke this down for us!

Jonathan S. Geller
Jonathan Geller Founder, President & Editor-in-chief

Jonathan S. Geller founded Boy Genius Report, now known as BGR, in 2006. It became the biggest mobile news destination in the world by the end of 2009, and BGR was acquired by leading digital media company PMC in April 2010.

Jonathan is President of BGR Media, LLC., and Editor-in-chief of the BGR website.

What started as a side project at the age of 16, quickly transpired into 24-hour days and nights of sharing exclusive and breaking news about the mobile communications industry. BGR now reaches up to 100 million readers a month through the website, syndication partners, and additional channels.