Question What are the best Cellular data plans currently available???

[VTPete]

I'm looking a new cellular plans for my routers so thought I'd post a question about great deals on plans you can use in mobile routers.
This isn't really for plans that no longer can be purchased (like the $29 Mobley), so please refrain from promoting expired deals.

What are the best deals currently running for ATT, Verizon, and T-Mobile?

I'll start with T-Mobile:
T-Mobile, $55/mon postpaid 100GB/mon plan-just covered by Mobile Internet Resource today:

(not on website yet, have to call)
This is a post paid deal based on auto-pay says Mobile Internet Resource Center, and does NOT require other lines-if so, this is a rare value IMHO. They are saying it's a limited time offer.

I am currently auditioning a pretty sweet deal from Ultra Mobile, $39/unlimited pre-paid (International Calling Plans from $14/Month | Ultra Mobile) if you choose auto-renew. Discounts if you refer friends
I heard about this on the Peplink forum. I got it about 10 days, ago, popped it in my Peplink Router, and in 1-2 days pushed about 35GB thru it and there has been absolutely no throttling. If i turn it off for a month I'll pay an extra $10 to recharge it. UltraMobile is an MVNO for T-Mobile. At my house I'm getting over 100MB/s down, WAY faster then ATT or Verizon here. I have read they throttle after 50GB so I'm checking this next. I'm also interested in T-Mobile for Band 71 usage, (2x the range possible vs most other higher freq bands) but haven't been able to test /confirm my setup would support.

Verizon:
I'd next like to find a good deal on a MVNO using Verizon, as I'm solid with ATT (have 2 SIMS from them they never throttlle as I've got many lines on a old plan). I cancelled my postpaid Verizon line at $45/mon as they ALWAYS hard throttled me after 22GB, VERY FRUSTRATING.

I've looked at Visible to get on Verizon but I'm concerned about reports they deprioritze Visible traffic on the Verizon network and increased latency and even throttling after as little as 5GB. But looking for confirmation on any of these rumors..

Please share details about any plans you've tried that are currently available!

 

[AbdRahim]

Was the Verizon plan so-called unlimited? Just switched my Miri to unlimited. I hope it really is.

 

[VTPete]

Was the Verizon plan so-called unlimited? Just switched my Miri to unlimited. I hope it really is.

Yes my plan was Business Unlimited. As I understand, all their plans go to 600k or so after 22GB

 

[redbaron]

When a cellular providers terms say "partial MBs will be rounded up", does that mean if you send a ping, it counts as a full MB? This language leaves a lot to be desired, and allows the provider to really screw you.

In the days of dial up service, a session was clearly defined. Once the carrier signal handshake completed a session was in use until you hung up.

With cellular, you have no control over the session. It is even worse with MIMO.

 

[VTPete]

Valid point. Who’s to say this new 100GB plan from T-Mobile doesn’t have some gotchas like that in the management policies that accelerate usage. That’s why it’s helpful if we can share our user experiences with each other. Let’s hear about plans that keep giving all month long.

 

[VTPete]

I configured my MaxTransit to use Band 71 only on my new T-Mobile SIM (from MVNO Ultra Mobile) and it worked well, but with a speed hit. Dropped from about 60Mb/s down to 17. Pinged about 21ms vs 25. Regardless, it's good to confirm it's an available configuration. Also, I ordered the T-Mobile 100GB/mon for $50 sim today, so I'll compare that with Ultra Mobile in the next week or so. The Ultra Mobile has 50GB on it so far and still doing well. Rumor's say it may throttle after 60GB..

 

["EZ"]

I have nothing to add here but it is good information. Thanks for sharing!

 

[VTPete]

Update-the UltraMobile plan throttled me to <600k after 50GB. I then realized that Mobile Internet Resource center made that abundantly clear had I bothered to read their review from August.. live and learn. I actually would have been somewhat happy with a 50GB cap before T-Mobile announced their 100GB for $50 plan earlier this month. So I'll not be renewing my UltraMobile prepaid T-Mobile plan.

So I ordered the T-Mobile plan last Friday, and the SIM card arrived Tuesday (no charge to ship), and I popped it in the trusty Peplink CAT18 Single and it came up like a champ. Testing it now. I plan to push 100GB thru it and make sure it delivers on the promise. The throughput in my area is great, and band 71 is showing up as a secondary channel from the get go. Funny thing about T-Mobile, I get BIG disparities between Speedtest from Ookla app (shows very fast like 90GB+ down) vs. Speedtest.net (about 60-70GB down) vs Fast.com (15ish down).

Another reason this T-Mobile plan is very exciting is it would appear I can turn off the service and turn it back on without penalty.. just don't recharge the prepaid plan until the month I need it. This significantly improves its value to those of us who are part timers. Or if we're long term in a location where we don't need it.

Soon I'm trying a new Verizon plan from a 3rd party reseller. If that goes well I'll be situated with all 3 major carriers, (ATT/Verizon/T-Mobile). I've added a 8800L to my setup so I am looking at rolling with ATT on my WAN port, T-Mobile as Cellular A on the Peplink, and the 8900L with Verizon via WIFI as WAN on 5,2Ghz. I'll have 2.4Ghz WIFI available for public access. Peplink has says this may tax the CPU-we'll see.

 

[docj]

I just ordered the 100GB/mo T-Mobile plan and a new 5G Inseego M2000 hotspot with a Cat 22 modem. T-Mobile at my home location has, in the past, been slow. We'll see if this new hotspot helps.

 

[VTPete]

That Inseego M2000 is a hot number, Cat22 modem and Wifi6. I think many are overlooking the benefits of Wifi 6, as Apple iPhone 11 and after have implemented and enables up to 40% faster Wi-Fi speeds, up to 4x increase in data throughput per user. I was suggesting this to a friend yesterday also buying the new T-Mobile plan. For the extra $130 vs an 8800L or other Cat18 units I think it's a good way to futureproof your investment in a modem.