MetroPCS formally announced today that on October 8th it will officially rebrand as Metro By T-Mobile. Along with the rebranding will come two new unlimited data plans. The new unlimited data plans will be priced the same as before but will come with more features such as Google One and Amazon Prime. Metro's $40 plan has also been updated to include more data than before.
Metro By T-Mobile's New Unlimited Data Plans Explained
Just like before, there is going to be a $50 and a $60 unlimited LTE data plan. Here's how things have changed with the updated plans.
- $50/month - unlimited talk, text and LTE data. $80 for 2 lines, $110 for 3 lines, $140 for 4 lines. New Features: Now includes mobile hotspot with the first 5GB at 4G LTE data speeds. Also comes with the 100GB Google One plan which is normally priced at $1.99/month. Google One offers online storage for your Gmail, photos, videos, documents, and more.
- $60/month - unlimited talk, text and LTE data. $90 for 2 lines, $120 for 3 lines and $150 for 4 lines. New Features: Now includes 15GB of mobile hotspot at 4G LTE data speeds, up from 10GB. Also comes with the 100GB Google One plan and a subscription for Amazon Prime. The Amazon Prime subscription is only for new Amazon Prime subscribers. It is regularly priced at $12.99/month.
With both plans, taxes and fees are included in the prices shown. Video streaming is limited to a maximum resolution of 480p. Data prioritization is applied once more than 35GB of data has been consumed in a month. That means those that go over the data threshold may have their data speeds temporarily slowed down during times that the network gets congested. WiFi calling and texting is included with each plan as is Scam ID.
Other Changes At Metro By T-Mobile
MetroPCS's $40 plan will now include double the data. Previously the plan included unlimited data with the first 5GB at 4G LTE data speeds. Under the new plan structure, subscribers will get 10GB of data at 4G LTE speeds. Additional lines can be added for $30/line. (Update: 9/25/18 - it appears the $40 plan may no longer have mobile hotspot. Previously the plan included 5GB of hotspot at 4G LTE data speeds).
Metro's $30 plan will remain unchanged and will still include unlimited everything with the first 2GB of data at 4G LTE data speeds.
How Will The Changes Affect Current MetroPCS Customers?
If for some reason you want to keep your current MetroPCS plan, you'll be able to when the company switches over to the Metro By T-Mobile plans. If you want one of the new plans, you'll have to opt into them.
The company says the name change was done in part to try and improve the perception that prepaid brands equal subpar quality and service. T-Mobile CEO John Legere wants you to know that whether you subscribe to a postpaid, pay at the end of the month service like you would with T-Mobile, or a pay at the beginning of the month prepaid service such as Metro By T-Mobile, you'll get the same quality of service with either provider.
After giving up on Spectrum BYOD, I switched to the Metro $60 plan.
Things to note:
1. If you already have Amazon Prime, you can still get it free with Metro. Just cancel and reactivate.
2. The free Google One offer requires at least one Android on your plan. Sorry, iPhone users like me.
3. International texting costs $5 more. HINT: Skip it and use WhatsApp or iMessage for free.
4. Visual Voicemail (VV) didn’t work at first. After *much* runaround, they sent a network refresh signal that fixed it.
HINTS: You do *not* need to buy call forwarding for $5 more, use a separate app (VV is built in to iPhones), or visit an Apple Store (Voicemail is a CARRIER issue).
Besides the VV headache, I’ve been happy with the plan. I wish iPhone users could get Google One and Name ID, though.
Is Metro by T-Mobile Launching the Gold Samsung Galaxy J3 star in January of 2019 Yes or No?.
Uh. They doubled the data on the $40 plan but took off the hotspot. So that leaves a huge gap now in their service because one either has to be stuck with $30 and only 2GB of hotspot or spend $50 for 5GB hotspot. Frankly, $30 for 2GB hotspot is a ripoff now but spending +$20/mo. for just 3GB more hotspot is a ripoff as well. I personally would have rather they let the $40 plan alone.
Man, I greatly appreciate this site. I got that unlimited sprint deal, a free iphone SE and maybe even found out about free service through ringplus. haha