Data Plans For Mobile Providers

Wireless carriers assign different levels of access, capabilities, bandwidth limits, throughput limits, and tethering abilities to customers based on the data plan assigned to the account.  Some data features are addons, and others are embedded in calling plans.  This Wiki lists major carriers and the data plans and options available.

AT&T Wireless

(all charges monthly)

Basic Handset Options

• MEdia Max Unlimited - $35 - Unlimited data for more basic non-PDA phones.  Also includes unlimited text messages.
• MEdia Net Unlimited - $15 - Unlimited data with no included messaging.

Blackberry Options

• Blackberry Personal - $35 alone or $30 with a voice plan - Unlimited Data for personal use
• Blackberry Personal + tethering - $65 alone or $60 with a voice plan - Unlimited Data and the ability to tether the device to a computer for internet access

iPhone 3G Options

AT&T requires a data plan in order to activate any iPhone 3G

• Data Plan for iPhone - $30 - unlimited data
• Enterprise Data Plan for iPhone - $45 - for corporate customers using iPhone to access corporate email, VPN, intranet, etc.

iPhone Gen 1 Options

• Data Plan for iPhone Gen 1 - $20 - unlimited data, also includes 200 text messages (cannot be used with a newer model iPhone)

PDA and Smartphone Options

• PDA Personal - $35 alone or $30 with a voice plan - Unlimited Data for personal use
• PDA Personal + tethering - $65 alone or $60 with a voice plan - Unlimited Data and the ability to tether the device to a computer for internet access

Verizon Wireless

(all charges monthly)

PDA and Smartphone Options

• Pay As You Go (PAYG) - $0.015/KB, or $15.36/MB
• 10MB limit - $24.99, $0.005/KB once over limit
• Unlimited Data - $44.99
• Email and Web for Smartphones - $30.  This is an unlimited data option available for some, but not all, Verizon smartphones.  Currently the list is the HTC Touch, the Motorola Q9m, [add more here, there are more]
• Tethering Option - add $15 to data plan

Blackberry Options

A Blackberry data plan is required to activate and use a Blackberry device on Verizon Wireless.

• Blackberry Enterprise Solution (BES) - $45.  Provides unlimited data and BES integration
• Email and Web for Blackberry = $30.  Provides unlimited data but with Blackberry Internet Service (BIS) and no BES.

Feature and Non-Feature Handset Options

Feature handsets, which are defined as Verizon non-PDA/Smartphone handhelds with advanced Web browsing capabilities, require activation on Verizon Nationwide plans.  If a customer is on a legacy plan, that option may be kept as long as a feature phone is not activated.  Pre-Nationwide data plan options are not detailed here.

• Nationwide Mobile Web - included with all Nationwide plans.  This feature allows access to mobile data network services at a cost of $1.99/MB.  This charge is not prorated... a single Web page load in a billing period will incur a $1.99 charge.  The total data access for the month is summed and rounded to the nearest MB.

• VCAST - $15.  The VCAST feature allows unlimited data usage, avoiding the $1.99/MB charge.

Verizon offers many voice/data bundles that more or less combine the above with a comparably-priced voice plan.  The Nationwide Select and Premium plans include tiers of data access, mobile applications, and messaging.

T-Mobile

(all charges monthly)

Blackberry Options

• Blackberry Enterprise Solution (BES), unlimited data and email

        - $70 w/1000 anytime minutes

        - $90 w/1500 antitime minutes

• Blackberry Internet Service (BIS), unlimited data and email

        - $40 w/no anytime minutes

        - $60 w/1000 anytime minutes

        - $80 w/1500 antitime minutes

Tethering and Data Card Options

• $40 for unlimited laptop tethering
• $50 for unlimited data card use

Sidekick Data Options

• $30 for unlimited data, email and text messaging

Basic Handset Options

• $10 for T-MobileWeb

Sprint

(all charges monthly)

Tethering and Data Card Options

• $60 for up to 5 GB per month, or 300 MB per month in  off-network data roaming