I just got an email that republic wireless is introducing 3.0 plans, and they sound like a huge step backwards to me. I was on the $10 plan with no data, and then they introduced the refund plan so I paid $17, and then get a refund so I effectively pay close to $10/mo since I use almost no data. It was nice to only be paying $10/mo, but also have access to data when I needed it.
The new plans are going to be $15/mo for talk/text and $20/mo for talk/text/1GB data. My cell phone bill is going to jump 50% and I will lose access to data. Or it will jump 100% and I will have about 1GB more data than I need.
I know I will be grand fathered in to paying my current price structure for as long as I have this phone (at least that what it seems like from a cursory glance at the new plans), but I don't know how much longer this phone will last. Part of the appeal to me was that I could get a reasonably priced smart phone with no contract and have a low bill for my needs (low cell usage, almost no data usage). I really don't care that my options are limited to 2 phones or so, as long as those phones are reasonable (and I would say my Moto G is satisfactory), so I really don't care about them adding access to the newest and best smart phones.
It does seem a little weird that they basically came right out and said customers who use little to no data are subsidizing those who take advantage of unlimited data, and it's not fair, so here is a pay-what-you-use price structure to refund the data so you literally only pay for what you use. And now they seem to be screwing over those same customers that use little to no data by jacking their prices up.
There seems to be mixed reviews over on the RW community with some people praising the new plan, and some criticizing it. I really don't understand the view of anyone praising the new structure though. With my phone being over 2 years old and starting to show signs of needing to be replaced, I'm not very happy with the new 3.0 plans that I may eventually be sucked into. I want my simple phone and my $10/mo plan with the option to use 5MB worth of data per month at cost. Anyone else have any thoughts on the issue?