iPhone without Voice Plan?

[bpepperman]

Hey there, been reading the forums since January, finally decided to join! Anyways, I am currently on T-mobile and have a Sidekick. I have the Sidekick data plan which gives me unlimited email, texts, IMs, and web browsing, but no phone plan. When i want to use the phone I can, but I do not have a voice plan, and it is 20 cents a minute. Does anybody know if Cingular/Att phones are available without voice plans, and I can only get the plan for data functions, and use the phone when needed? If so, what is the per minute rate? I understand the data plan will most likely be 40 dollars, but does this plan include text messages, if so how many? Thanks for the help, I need it.
Brant from Los Angeles

 

[lexluthor3424]

I really doubt it because
A) AT&T partnered with Apple for a reason, and if you could buy it without a plan AT&T wouldn't get its cut of the deal

and

B) You better believe that theyre working on an "iPhone" esque ipod without the cell capabilites. Apple doesn't want to lose customers just because they don't want to or cant switch to cingular..

 

[ColsTiger]

Hey there, been reading the forums since January, finally decided to join! Anyways, I am currently on T-mobile and have a Sidekick. I have the Sidekick data plan which gives me unlimited email, texts, IMs, and web browsing, but no phone plan. When i want to use the phone I can, but I do not have a voice plan, and it is 20 cents a minute. Does anybody know if Cingular/Att phones are available without voice plans, and I can only get the plan for data functions, and use the phone when needed? If so, what is the per minute rate? I understand the data plan will most likely be 40 dollars, but does this plan include text messages, if so how many? Thanks for the help, I need it.
Brant from Los Angeles

There have been rumors and pics posted of new pre-paid plans which would be very similar to not having a voice plan. But no, I've never seen anyone with a data only plan on Cingular.

 

[Youngbinks]

I had no idea people could actually do that. I wouldn't possibly be able to go without a voiceplan. Like others said, the best bet would be the possibility of a prepaid plan.

 

[bpepperman]

I had no idea people could actually do that. I wouldn't possibly be able to go without a voiceplan. Like others said, the best bet would be the possibility of a prepaid plan.

So what is a prepaid plan, sorry for the dumb question. Is it a plan where I pay a certain amount of money and get another amount of minutes as a result? LIke if it is 20 cents a minute, and I pay 5 dollars I get 25 minutes? I would do that. Anyways, as for the data plan, if i am on a prepaid voice plan, can I still get the regular unlimited data plan?

 

[ColsTiger]

So what is a prepaid plan, sorry for the dumb question. Is it a plan where I pay a certain amount of money and get another amount of minutes as a result? LIke if it is 20 cents a minute, and I pay 5 dollars I get 25 minutes? I would do that. Anyways, as for the data plan, if i am on a prepaid voice plan, can I still get the regular unlimited data plan?

If they do offer the pre-paid plan, then it will have pre-paid voice and pre-paid data and text. You can't pay just $5. You have to buy the increments they offer. I think the lowest is $25 that is good for 90 days. Usually you get charged $.10/minute for voice. I think you can buy $50 for six months and $100 for a year. If you don't renew the minutes before the time period elapses, then you lose any left over minutes. If you renew before the time period runs out, then any leftover minutes rollover to the next time period.

Not certain about the data charges but I know they're working on pre-paid data for the first time. It might just be a huge coincidence, but it seems odd that they would do this right before they introduce the iPHone.

 

[ATTingular]

There have been rumors and pics posted of new pre-paid plans which would be very similar to not having a voice plan. But no, I've never seen anyone with a data only plan on Cingular.

It's offered, and it's 20-30 bucks more than doing voice+data. The people buying these plans are usually Blackberry owners that can't grasp the concept that the little box that feeds them their email can also make phone calls.

 

[ColsTiger]

It's offered, and it's 20-30 bucks more than doing voice+data. The people buying these plans are usually Blackberry owners that can't grasp the concept that the little box that feeds them their email can also make phone calls.

That makes sense, but do those people carry a Blackberry for email and another cell phone for voice?

 

[ATTingular]

Yes. It's hella-dumb and is one of the reasons why they made the BB Pearl, to reemphasize the phone features.

 

[wjp09]

I really doubt it because
A) AT&T partnered with Apple for a reason, and if you could buy it without a plan AT&T wouldn't get its cut of the deal

and

B) You better believe that theyre working on an "iPhone" esque ipod without the cell capabilites. Apple doesn't want to lose customers just because they don't want to or cant switch to cingular..

I dipped into that in another thread. It was a poll asking if you would buy ipod without phone. I was just thinking I wasn't aware that there was a rumor of possible production.