AT&T Review: Cell Phone Plans, Pros, Cons, and Perks

AT&T Review: AT&T is among the giant top best service provider in the country. They have lots of plans that can suit almost anybody. While there are things we like about them, there are also things we don’t like about them (they can’t have it all right?).

So, this review of AT&T is based on what they’re doing right and what they can and should improve about the services they provide. The perks that AT&T offers fall behind those of its competition (in some cases) but they make up for it with the fastest data speeds in the west.

AT&T Review: AT&T data plans Pros and Cons

Reliable data plans that still leave something to be desired

Pros	Cons
Fast download speeds	Pricey (mostly expensive)
Decent network coverage	Poor streaming quality
Discounts for a certain group of persons	Not the best coverage

Why we like AT&T Cell Phone Data Plans

AT&T still ranks among the top wireless providers in the country and there are good reasons for that.

Solid download speeds

On average, AT&T has a 28.9 Mbps download speed which is quite fast. This means with AT&T, you can download a 3GB file for just about 1 minute and 20 seconds. To be clear, the download speed of AT&T might not be as fast as those of T-Mobile and Verizon but it comes close.

Strong coverage

If you are living in cities, AT&T got you covered. In fact, according to a report, AT&T covers about 58% of the country. Areas not covered in states like California, Nevada, Arizona, and Idaho are mostly rural areas and they make up the other 42% that is uncovered by AT&T. Users of the network confirm that they enjoy reliable 4G coverage of about 88.9% of the time.

Discounts for a certain group of Persons

If you are in the military, or a senior citizen, you get to enjoy some discounts on the AT&T network. With these discounts, you can save up to around $10-$20 every month.

You should consider jumping on an AT&T deal if you are in the military, a senior citizen, or a first responder. The discounts you’ll get are so good that you might just decide to ignore the negative reviews about AT&T.

Other perks offered by AT&T

AT&T recently stripped down its perks, but it still offers a few things that sweeten the deal:

AT&T Next Up: AT&T allows you to upgrade your phone early, even if you haven’t finished paying off your current device.
AT&T Thanks: AT&T occasionally sends out free movie tickets, presale access to big events, and other little bonuses from time to time.
Free overnight shipping: When you get your new device through AT&T, it will be shipped overnight.

What we don’t like about AT&T data plans

With all the perks they offer, you might think AT&T is flawless. Well, we wish we could tell you that but here are a few things we don’t like about AT&T.

Pricey (mostly expensive)

The price of AT&T plans is pretty pricey. While it’s true that they offer fast download speed, they also don’t have the best coverage in the country. So, for an unlimited plan that starts at $65 a month, it’s fair that one would expect better coverage.

Comparing the limited and unlimited data plans of AT&T with those of the competition shows it’s quite expensive considering its coverage. For example, AT&T charges about $60 for 9GB of data, and some other carriers give you an unlimited plan monthly for about $40 which is $20 less.

How do AT&T Unlimited data plans compare with those from other carriers?

For a network that has limited coverage, AT&T unlimited plans are also quite expensive. In fact, unlimited plans from T-Mobile are $5 cheaper than those of AT&T. Keep in mind that T-Mobile has better coverage and faster download speed. No matter how hard you try to paint it, AT&T plans are not just beautiful to most folks.

Poor streaming quality

As far as streaming quality goes, you need to spend more before you get good quality. One can say it’s pretty rough streaming with AT&T plans. For example, both the Unlimited Starter and Extra data plans can only stream standard definition (480p) video quality at Max.

If you need to stream High Definition (720p or 1080p), you’ll have to pay $85 a month for the Unlimited Elite plan.

Low data caps and deprioritization with unlimited plans

If you are a heavy data user then you might find the data caps and deprioritization attached with AT&T plans kinda annoying. Take the typical examples of the data plans below:

Unlimited Starter: During busy times, you’ll get to be placed at the bottom of the data chain. And as a result, you’ll be experiencing slow speed.
Unlimited Extra: The data cap for this plan is a little above 50GB. Once you get close to 50GB, you start experiencing slow speed.
Unlimited Elite: The only complaint here is that if this is an elite plan it does not have a data cap. But, the data cap of this plan is a little above 100GB. Not so elite after all.

Truth be told, if you are not a heavy data user you won’t have problems with data caps. But for the rest of us, it’s an issue, especially deprioritization.

How much data do I use?

Online streaming takes loads of data. So asking how much data you use is a very good question. To put things into perspective, for every one-hour HD video you stream on Netflix or YouTube, you sacrifice about 1GB of your data.

Last month I spent over 70GB of data and online gamers actually use more data. So, you can see why the 50GB of data is not so much of a big deal.

AT&T Review: AT&T family plans

When you compare AT&T family plans to personal unlimited plans, it’s safe to say that the family plans offer better value for money. For each line you add to your family plan, you spend half as much as if you get an individual AT&T unlimited plan.

So, if you are thinking about signing up for AT&T, here is a free advice, call your family members (both near and far) and hop on a family plan. To give you an idea, let’s show you what family plans look like with other providers.

AT&T family plans comparison

The AT&T family plan is not necessarily the cheapest but it’s definitely not the most expensive either. T-Mobile and Metro by T-Mobile provide cheaper family plans but you won’t be enjoying the same coverage and data speed as AT&T.

AT&T family plan will help you save more money compared to when you opt-in for an individual data plan. Should you decide to use AT&T as your service provider, the family plan will give you the most value for your money.

AT&T prepaid plans

AT&T prepaid plans can help you save some money. Available options range from limited data plans to unlimited data that allows you to stream HD. If you are the type of person that spends less time streaming long videos online, then you should be just fine. While AT&T prepaid plans are cheap, there are better deals from other prepaid providers.

AT&T cell phones and devices

When it comes to the latest cell phones, AT&T is spot on. One of the perks of going with a big provider like AT&T is the fact that you can always get the newest devices. Be you a fan of the Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max, Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra, or Pixel 4 XL, you can get it through AT&T.

What’s up with AT&T customer service?

You can get a hold of AT&T pretty easily, but the industry-wide customer care plague still hunts them (sometimes). AT&T wireless has the following ways to get support:

Phone
Live chat
Community forums
Twitter (@ATTCares)
Facebook

Aside from clarity in the bill, there won’t be much reason why you would want to contact AT&T customer care. I mean, if you’re in an area where they have good coverage, it pretty much solves every other problem.

Quick Recap: AT&T Review

There is no excuse for AT&Ts individual data plans high price tag (no valid ones we know of). But, if you want to get the best value for your money in the AT&T network then try their family data plans. Here is a quick recap of AT&T as a service provider.

Plans: AT&T offers a variety of data plans that range from 3 GB a month to unlimited data with a 100 GB data cap (and family plans).
Perks: If you are in the military, a senior citizen, or a first responder, you’ll enjoy lots of perks on the AT&T network.
Coverage: The coverage of AT&T is good and its speed is fast but still falls behind those of Verizon and T-Mobile. However, if you live in cities, you can rely on AT&T coverage.
Overall: AT&T is spot on when it comes to the basics of wireless networks. But, the prices of their individual data plans are rather too expensive but still offer good value for money when you’re on the family plan.

Do you have any thoughts on AT&T wireless? Share your experience with us in the comment section below.