AT&T To Offer iPhone 3G Without Contract

By Geoff Duncan Published July 1, 2008

AT&T To Offer iPhone 3G Without Contract

AT&T has unveiled its service plan pricing for Apple’s upcoming iPhone 3G, due to splash into the consumer marketplace on July 11 at 8 a.m. local time. Two versions of the iPhone 3G are set to go on sale—an 8 GB version for $199 and a 16 GB version for $299—but the details of AT&T’s service plans had not been announced.

AT&T plans to offer a variety of individual and family plans for the iPhone 3G; as expected, text messaging will be an additional fee on top of voice and data service. A basic plan with 450 “anytime” minutes, 5000 nights and weekend minutes, and a $0.45/minute fee above those limits starts at $69.99; an unlimited voice and data plan will cost $129.99 a month. FamilyTalk plans—which include two lines and can add up to three more for $39.99 each—start at $129.99 a month for 700 minutes and ramp up to $359.99 a month for 6,000 minutes; an unlimited family plan runs $259.99 and $129.99 per additional line.

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Text messaging service is $5 a month for up to 200 messages, $15 a month for up to 1,500 messages, and $20 a month for unlimited texting. Family users can either pay $0.20 per text message or $30 a month for text service.

AT&T requires a two year contract with purchase of an iPhone 3G, which puts the total minimum out-of-pocket cost for an 8 GB iPhone 3G with no text service at $1,878.76—not counting taxes and activation fees. Want a 16 GB iPhone 3G with unlimited voice, data, and text messaging? If you buy it July 11, by uou’ll have spent $3,658.76 by the middle of 2010—again, omitting taxes and fees.

AT&T also says it will offer a “no-commitment option” in for the iPhone 3G, charging $599 for the 8 GB version and $699 for the 16 GB version. Current iPhone customers can also purchase an “early upgrade” to an iPhone 3G, getting the 8 GB version for $399 and the 16 GB version for $499; AT&T will require users to sign a new two-year contract, but it’s a quick way out of an existing iPhone contract for folks who must absolutely have the latest and greatest.

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…

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