Yesterday, after reading a post on Howard Forums I wrote that there was the possibility that Straight Talk Wireless was about to increase the amount of data included with one of its cell phone plans. A poster thought he had seen that Walmart was selling Straight Talk SIM's advertising that the $45 plan would come with 10 GB of data which was to have started on August 22nd. Nobody had been able to confirm this.
Today, after a trip to my local Walmart, I am happy to report that this story is true. Straight Talk did increase the amount of data included with the $45 plan. Not only that, the $55 plan got a data bump as well. I'm still not sure if these are Walmart exclusive plans, as Straight Talk has yet to update its website to reflect these changes. (Updated 9/29 - Straight Talk Wireless has updated its website to contain the new plans. They are no longer Walmart exclusive promotional offerings but are now permanent plans from the company that will not expire. )
I tend to think the updated plans are not Walmart exclusive given that it's now possible to get a plan with 10 GB of data from Total Wireless for $45 when you purchase Total Wireless's $35 phone plan in conjunction with a $10 - 5 GB data add on card.
(Updated 9/2/17, I've heard some reports that this will be a Walmart exclusive deal for the time being. If verified, this post will be further updated.
Updated 9/5/17 - Dennis from Prepaid Phone News, has posted a commercial
advertising that the extra data is promotional and will only be available through 11/20/17. Given the current state of mobile and TracFone's other phone plans, I highly doubt the extra data will disappear a that time. )
Total Wireless and Straight Talk are both owned by TracFone, so this is certainly a change that would make sense. However, unlike Total Wireless, which is a Verizon only MVNO, Straight Talk Wireless operates on all 4 major networks in the USA.
Straight Talk Wireless's Updated Phone Plans Summarized
A summary of Straight Talk Wireless's updated phone plans with the changes highlighted are as follows:
- Straight Talk Nationwide 45- $45/month ($44 with auto pay) - unlimited talk, text and data with the first 10 GB at high speeds, previously included 8 GB of high speed data
- Straight Talk Nationwide 55 - $55/month ($54 with auto pay) - unlimited talk, text and data with the first 15 GB at high speeds, previously included 12 GB of high speed data
With the changes, Straight Talk Wireless is now the cheapest place to get an AT&T or Verizon based plan with at least 10 GB of data. (Updated - Net10 has come out with what might even be a better deal.) The Verizon based plan also now comes with full speed LTE data. The Straight Talk T-Mobile and Sprint based plans however aren't as good of a value when compared to other providers that use those 2 networks as unlimited LTE data plans can be purchased at that price point.
|See Also: A comparison of Straight Talk Wireless Phone Plans