AT&T (T) smartphone users on a tight budget will have a new prepaid option starting October 7th. AT&T on Monday said that it would launch a new prepaid GoPhone plan next month that will include unlimited talk and text and 1GB of data, and will cost just $65 a month. AT&T currently offers prepaid data plans that start at $50 a month for unlimited text and talk, with the option of adding data plans starting at $5 (50MB), $15 (200MB) and $25 (1GB). AT&T’s new $65 prepaid GoPhone plan will provide $10 in savings for the same unlimited talk and text plus 1GB of data per month. The carrier said it will not be discontinuing existing prepaid plans, and added that the $65 is simply another option. AT&T is also launching the $99 Fusion 2 Android smartphone alongside the new prepaid plan. The company’s full press release follows below.
AT&T LAUNCHES NEW, AFFORDABLE PREPAID SMARTPHONE RATE PLAN
DALLAS, Oct. 1, 2012 – Beginning Oct. 7, AT&T* GoPhone® smartphone customers will have a new rate plan option. The new Monthly Unlimited Plan with Data offers unlimited talk and text, with 1 GB of data for $65 per month. Unlimited text messaging to Mexico, Canada and over 100 other countries is also included.
This new plan is specially designed for smartphone users, and saves them $10 per month compared to previously available options.
The $50 monthly plan with unlimited talk and text and the $25 monthly plan with 250 minutes and unlimited nationwide text with optional data packages will continue to be available to smartphone customers.
Launching in conjunction with this new smartphone rate plan is AT&T GoPhone’s newest Android device, AT&T Fusion™ 2, which lets customers enjoy the convenience of a smartphone with email, apps and web access for only $99.
“As more of our prepaid customers choose smartphones, we wanted to offer them a rate plan that meets their needs while still being an excellent value,” said Judy Cavalieri, vice president – Voice and Prepaid Products, AT&T. “We’re excited to offer this new option to our growing base of smartphone customers to give them a better smartphone experience while keeping their budget in check.”
AT&T operates the nation’s largest Wi-Fi network** including more than 30,000 AT&T Wi-Fi Hot Spots at popular restaurants, hotels, bookstores and retailers, and provides access to more than 220,000 hotspots globally through roaming agreements. Most AT&T smartphone customers, including Fusion 2 customers, get access to our entire national Wi-Fi network at no additional cost, and Wi-Fi usage doesn’t count against customers’ monthly wireless data plans.
More information on AT&T GoPhone prepaid rate plans can be found at http://www.att.com/shop/wireless/plans/prepaidplans.html.