Unfazed by an avalanche of (formal and informal) complaints over a number of hugely unpopular changes and price hikes rolled out in the last couple of months alone, the mobile network operator that was once hailed as an industry-revolutionizing "Un-carrier" is preparing to infuriate yet another group of customers.
This time, we're talking about those of you who use T-Mobile's relatively young but rapidly expanding Home Internet service. Even more specifically, those who originally registered said service at a certain address and for some reason currently enjoy their ultra-affordable unlimited 5G Home Internet access elsewhere.
Well, that date is reportedly tomorrow, June 20, and something tells us there's no more room left for last-minute revisions or delays. That almost certainly means you'll be notified very soon if you're among the "small group of customers using T-Mobile Home Internet at different or ineligible locations."
T-Mobile seems intent to start alerting customers of its policy change this week.
Once you get that dreaded notification, you have a few courses of action to choose from, but we're afraid that ignoring your operator in the hopes that the problem will go away without you lifting a finger is not really an option.
The best option is clearly to go back to the address where you registered your 5G gateway in the first place, although that may not always be possible for fairly obvious reasons like relocation. If you find yourself in such a sticky situation, you'll have to "confirm unlimited eligibility" at your current address.
Problem solved?
Unfortunately, not necessarily. That's because T-Mobile's unlimited Home Internet service is (technically) not available across the nation... yet, which might be precisely the reason why you registered your account in one place and ended up accessing the network at another address.
If that different address is not officially supported, you're officially out of luck, and you'll either need to leave the network or switch to a much costlier Away plan. That will set you back $110 a month with a data cap of 200GB or $160 a month with no such limits instead of the 40 bucks you're probably paying right now.
These are some of the internal instructions given to employees expected to handle home address verifications.
Making that move is clearly not a viable option for many people, which will likely force most customers directly impacted by T-Mobile's new home address verification policy to cancel their existing HSI lines and either never look back or sign up for a waitlist to receive a notification when the "Un-carrier's" unlimited Home Internet service finally reaches their area.
Even though it's undeniably hard not to view this imminent change as yet another move aimed squarely at squeezing more money out of Magenta's loyal customer base, the wireless service provider seems to suggest its intention is actually to "ensure" all users have a "good network experience." That would definitely be a noble goal... if it were true, which we highly doubt is the case in reality.
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The money-grabbing angle is unsurprisingly highlighted and violently criticized by a number of Redditors who are not happy about the hoops some of them will need to jump through to maybe be able to continue using the service they're currently paying for in the form they're currently getting. As usual, T-Mobile has yet to address the thorny matter in any official way, and if history is any indication, we're probably not going to get a very direct and detailed statement anytime soon.
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Adrian, a mobile technology enthusiast since the Nokia 3310 era, has been a dynamic presence in the tech journalism field, contributing to Android Authority, Digital Trends, and Pocketnow before joining PhoneArena in 2018. His expertise spans across various platforms, with a particular fondness for the diversity of the Android ecosystem. Despite the challenges of balancing full-time parenthood with his work, Adrian's passion for tech trends, running, and movies keeps him energized. His commitment to mid-range smartphones has led to an eclectic collection of devices, saved from personal bankruptcy by his preference for 'adequate' over 'overpriced'.
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