AT&T’s New Shared Data Plans Will Be Available On August 23rd

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AT&T announced last month that it would be launching shared plans for pooling monthly data allotments between up to 10 devices per account. Instead of paying for a separate data plan for each smartphone, subscribers would be able to use a 1-20GB shared plan across multiple devices, including tablets and desktop computers. Verizon announced a similar strategy in June.

Today AT&T has confirmed that its shared data plans will be available to new and existing subscribers on Thursday, August 23rd.

“As families prepare to send students back to school, many are looking for a convenient way to connect tablets and laptops or add new smartphones,” said AT&T’s David Christopher. “AT&T Mobile Share plans are a great option.”

Mobile Share Planner tool has been made available on AT&T’s website to show you the various pricing tiers. You have the monthly data cost and $10-$45 device charge to consider on top of voice, SMS, and tethering. Your existing contract will not be reset or lengthened if you wish to switch to one of the new Mobile Share plans. Unlike Verizon, AT&T will continue to offer its existing data plans alongside the new Mobile Share plans. There’s no telling how long that promise will be kept, however.

One major perk of the new Mobile Share plans is that AT&T is throwing in unlimited mobile hotspot functionality, so you can technically share your connection with any Wi-Fi device. But don’t get too excited; AT&T will still throttle you for being a data hog.

This PDF breaks down AT&T’s Mobile Share in a pretty straightforward way. Will you be switching to a shared data plan come August 23rd?

Source: AT&T

Image: Reuters

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