Back in November, T-Mobile announced a series of 5G-related commitments that it would follow through with once its merger with Sprint was approved. Among those commitments was the launch of a new plan called Connect, which would offer unlimited talk and text, plus 2GB of data, for just $15 a month. Now, thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic forcing many people to stay home, the company announced that it's launching T-Mobile Connect ahead of time.
As mentioned above, the base T-Mobile Connect plan has unlimited talk, text, and 2GB of data, which supports T-Mobile's 5G network. If you want more data, though, you can pay $25 per month and get 5GB of data. Plus, if you stay on the plan, T-Mobile will add 500MB to the plan each year for the next five years, adding a total of 2.5GB to whichever plan you choose.
John Legere, CEO of T-Mobile, justified the early launch with consumers' need for low-cost connection at this time:
“Right now, having a reliable, low-cost connection is absolutely crucial for Americans, and with many facing financial strain, time is of the essence. We knew we couldn’t wait for the merger to finalize to launch T-Mobile Connect, our lowest priced smartphone plan, so we’re rolling out ahead of schedule(...). With T-Mobile Connect, we’re giving those hardest hit an even more affordable way to stay in touch. Half the price of our lowest-ever priced smartphone plan. So everyone can stay connected.”
In addition to the T-Mobile Connect plan, the carrier is taking a few more steps to help its customers stay connected. Through the Metro by T-Mobile brand, it will offer a similar plan, but the $15 price will only hold up for the next two months. You can also get a free 8-inch tablet if you get an unlimited data plan for $15 per month, and the company's MetroSmart hotspots will be available at half the price. Plus, the $35 hotspot data plan will include 20GB of data, double of what you would usually get for the same price, for the next 60 days.
All T-Mobile and Metro by T-Mobile legacy plans, which don't include unlimited data, will get unlimited data for the next 60 days. Plans that include hotspot data will also add 10GB of hotspot data per month for the next two months, and T-Mobile is also working with Lifeline to add 5GB of extra data per month until May 13. For students covered by the EmpowerED program, the company will offer 20GB of additional data per month, also until May 13.
Finally, T-Mobile has deployed an additional 600MHz spectrum on loan from other companies, doubling the total 600MHz capacity, which should also help everyone stay connected.
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