Updated Rogers Data Plans Coming March 18th

By Gary Ng on February 21st, 2008 124

For all you users on Rogers and you want a data plan for your iPhone, it’s going to cost ya. Even though Rogers recently came out with an “unlimited mobile browsing” plan for $7, it does not apply to non-Rogers cellphones!

If you are using a data plan with Rogers, it can get VERY expensive. Take a look at the following example posted by a reader of iPhone in Canada:

  • Just got off the phone with Rogers “Customer Service”. I traveled to Germany and used my iPhone for just two days. Rogers charged me for 22 MB on these two days $1148. In my opinion this is ridiculous! If I wouldn’t have stopped using my Rogers phone after two days and used it for the rest of my stay (14 days) my phone bill would be $8036… just for data usage. At Rogers they think this is a valid price. I am recommending everybody with a similar experience to call Customer Service and be tough! Don’t speak to normal call center staff. Ask for a supervisor. I got a 50% discount on the data bill. That’s still more than $25 per megabyte. Compared to the $3 per megabyte for over plan usage a total rip-off. If I would treat my customers that way… I would be bankrupt within no time.

Yes, that’s right…roaming overseas with Rogers and using your data can be costly! The above works out to $52.18/megabyte! That is just absolute craziness! I was shocked when I read this, but not surprised. iPhone users in Canada are longing for a change in pricing plans…which looks like it could be coming on March 18th according to O_ssie from HowardForums. He posted the following information yesterday:

Effective March 18th 2008 (Preliminary updates:
————————-
Unlim WAP = $7
Unlim Vision WAP = $7 – 3 yr term with DECF (Data Early Cancellation Fee)

Non-Rogers & WM Data & Tethering – 3 yr term with DECF
$15 – 20MB ~ Tier 1
$30 – 20MB to 60MB ~ Tier 2
$50 – 60MB to 500MB ~ Tier 3
$65 – 500MB to 1GB ~ Tier 4
$75 – 1GB to 2GB ~ Tier 5
$85 – 2GB to 3GB ~ Tier 6
$100 – 3GB to 5GB ~ Tier 7
$0.03 per additional MB
*Note: Everyone starts off at the $15 plan and based on usage, you move up the tiers

ALL OLD PLANS GRANDFATHERED – ALL PLANS WILL NOT CONFLICT WITH $20 COMM PACK

So there you have it…the last time O_ssie posted about upcoming changes to data plans, he was correct. So right now we’re assuming that hopefully this post will also come true! By all means, these prices are not great at all–but they are a start in the right direction. I’m still dreaming of a $15 unlimited data plan, like all you lucky Telus users out there. Could you imagine having that on your iPhone? Now that would be incredible!

What data plan are you guys using on your iPhones?

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  • cmonspike

    Rogers now has what is called unlimited on device browsing for $7/month, meaning unlimited internet access for the iphone.

    This is cheaper than anything on the continent.

    I can confirm the following;
    I have an iphone and can access all of the following services;
    Web browsing with safari
    Youtube (Painfully slow…)
    Google maps, with GPS locator feature with iphone firmware 1.14
    E-mail (yahoo,gmail, and corporate imap account)
    Send/Receive e-mail from all accounts.

    I gotta give credit where credit is due, I am a very happy iphone user now with this addon to my plan

    With this in place, it is just a matter of time before the iphone officially arrives in Canada

  • cmonspike

    Rogers now has what is called unlimited on device browsing for $7/month, meaning unlimited internet access for the iphone.

    This is cheaper than anything on the continent.

    I can confirm the following;
    I have an iphone and can access all of the following services;
    Web browsing with safari
    Youtube (Painfully slow…)
    Google maps, with GPS locator feature with iphone firmware 1.14
    E-mail (yahoo,gmail, and corporate imap account)
    Send/Receive e-mail from all accounts.

    I gotta give credit where credit is due, I am a very happy iphone user now with this addon to my plan

    With this in place, it is just a matter of time before the iphone officially arrives in Canada

  • plamen

    cmonspike,the plan you are talking about has limitation and does not include any of the things you do.. so – do not be surprise when you get your bill this month.. it will be HUGE…

  • plamen

    cmonspike,the plan you are talking about has limitation and does not include any of the things you do.. so – do not be surprise when you get your bill this month.. it will be HUGE…

  • monsterr

    plamen are you sure that plan dosnt work for the iphone? i saw it earlier, was thinking of getting it but decided to do alittle research first, if you’re right i guess i wont get it

  • monsterr

    plamen are you sure that plan dosnt work for the iphone? i saw it earlier, was thinking of getting it but decided to do alittle research first, if you’re right i guess i wont get it

  • Scott

    I have a Rogers provided Smartphone phone, the HTC TyTN (don’t boo me). Got setup with the $7 unlimited browsing plan about 3 months ago and it was going great… same access that cmonspike has and no data charges. In was talking to Rogers customer service reps several times early on to find out if I should be getting access to everything (the plan suggested browsing only) and was repeatedly told that I had an unlimited data plan… yippee! Today I get a text message telling me that I’ve just passed a $75 threshold for data usage. I called right away and this time their story changed. I was not supposed to get all the other stuff yet I was. I asked the rep to reverse the charges and she did. I then cancelled the service. Interestingly if you call Rogers to ask what your current usage is, to avoid overages, they will tell you they have no way of tracking that yet they had the courtesy of telling me when I hit the $75 mark. They want you to go over. They want you to get hooked on the extra services. Get ready for the bad news cmonspike… it’s coming.

  • Scott

    I have a Rogers provided Smartphone phone, the HTC TyTN (don’t boo me). Got setup with the $7 unlimited browsing plan about 3 months ago and it was going great… same access that cmonspike has and no data charges. In was talking to Rogers customer service reps several times early on to find out if I should be getting access to everything (the plan suggested browsing only) and was repeatedly told that I had an unlimited data plan… yippee! Today I get a text message telling me that I’ve just passed a $75 threshold for data usage. I called right away and this time their story changed. I was not supposed to get all the other stuff yet I was. I asked the rep to reverse the charges and she did. I then cancelled the service. Interestingly if you call Rogers to ask what your current usage is, to avoid overages, they will tell you they have no way of tracking that yet they had the courtesy of telling me when I hit the $75 mark. They want you to go over. They want you to get hooked on the extra services. Get ready for the bad news cmonspike… it’s coming.

  • Mark

    I have the 16GB iPhone from Rogers. When I ordered it, I asked if they could shut off the data portion and just use it as a cell phone and use the data free in hotspots. They said “yes, you can”. So I ordered one, and I got my first bill, and it had about $500 in data charges. So I called to ask why they are charging me for data when they said they would block the data. The first level person said they had no way to block the data, and the iPhone is a data device so you must have data. He then proceeded to tell me that they are ALL so well trained that they would never say that they could block the data, and they would never sell a phone without explaining the huge bills you would have without the data.

    So I escalated it to the next level, and this person said – “Sure we can block the data”. Then he apologized for their mistake and credited the whole data charge. He then blocked the data, as they said they were going to do in the first place.

    So now I have my normal cell phone bill, with all the bells and whistles of the iPhone, and I can use the internet and all internet applications for free at home, at work, most restaurants, most stores, etc. that all have hotspots.

    Don’t let them tell you that you cannot use an iPhone without the data. I, and other people are doing it now.

    The $30 per month plan gives you 6GB of traffic – then you are into higher costs for anything over that.

    If you don’t get the data plan and use 6GB of traffic it would cost you $50,000!

    Yes FIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS.

    I ‘d call that gauging.

  • Mark

    I have the 16GB iPhone from Rogers. When I ordered it, I asked if they could shut off the data portion and just use it as a cell phone and use the data free in hotspots. They said “yes, you can”. So I ordered one, and I got my first bill, and it had about $500 in data charges. So I called to ask why they are charging me for data when they said they would block the data. The first level person said they had no way to block the data, and the iPhone is a data device so you must have data. He then proceeded to tell me that they are ALL so well trained that they would never say that they could block the data, and they would never sell a phone without explaining the huge bills you would have without the data.

    So I escalated it to the next level, and this person said – “Sure we can block the data”. Then he apologized for their mistake and credited the whole data charge. He then blocked the data, as they said they were going to do in the first place.

    So now I have my normal cell phone bill, with all the bells and whistles of the iPhone, and I can use the internet and all internet applications for free at home, at work, most restaurants, most stores, etc. that all have hotspots.

    Don’t let them tell you that you cannot use an iPhone without the data. I, and other people are doing it now.

    The $30 per month plan gives you 6GB of traffic – then you are into higher costs for anything over that.

    If you don’t get the data plan and use 6GB of traffic it would cost you $50,000!

    Yes FIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS.

    I ‘d call that gauging.

  • Flavius

    Actually,

    .05 per k for 6GB is:

    .05 x 6,000,000k = $300,000.

  • Flavius

    Actually,

    .05 per k for 6GB is:

    .05 x 6,000,000k = $300,000.

  • adam

    Maybe you got free unlimited data for 3 months. I got that when I bought the iphone.

  • adam

    Maybe you got free unlimited data for 3 months. I got that when I bought the iphone.

  • joi

    So if i want to get the iphone and use the wifi to access the web, opting out of a data plan, would the phone still cost $199?

  • joi

    So if i want to get the iphone and use the wifi to access the web, opting out of a data plan, would the phone still cost $199?

  • onthefence

    Hello iPhone Fan,

    Im trying to upgrade my cell to an iPhone. I plan to use my current rogers plan with no data plan – I want to use the wifi only route like yourself. After reading about all the horror stories of ppl with no data plans who ended up with $3,000-$4,000 monthly charges – I want to get this right before jumping in.

    People have said to simply call rogers and ask to turn edge and 3g off or Door 177 whatever that is) –
    Heres the question, what did you do/request from Rogers to “turn off” in order to ensure the iPhone was not accessing or being accessed by the internet? (in the way that it was not free)

    please and thanks

  • onthefence

    Hello iPhone Fan,

    Im trying to upgrade my cell to an iPhone. I plan to use my current rogers plan with no data plan – I want to use the wifi only route like yourself. After reading about all the horror stories of ppl with no data plans who ended up with $3,000-$4,000 monthly charges – I want to get this right before jumping in.

    People have said to simply call rogers and ask to turn edge and 3g off or Door 177 whatever that is) –
    Heres the question, what did you do/request from Rogers to “turn off” in order to ensure the iPhone was not accessing or being accessed by the internet? (in the way that it was not free)

    please and thanks

  • http://www.iphoneincanada.ca Gary

    Hey, I am now using the iPhone 3G with the 6GB plan. All you need to do is call Rogers a few times and ensure that data is turned off. Most CSR’s don’t have a clue, so keep calling until you find someone that will do it for you!

  • http://www.iphoneincanada.ca iPhone Fan

    Hey, I am now using the iPhone 3G with the 6GB plan. All you need to do is call Rogers a few times and ensure that data is turned off. Most CSR’s don’t have a clue, so keep calling until you find someone that will do it for you!

  • onthefence

    hey, thanks for the reply

    state specifically to turn the data off, got it

    thanks again :)

  • onthefence

    hey, thanks for the reply

    state specifically to turn the data off, got it

    thanks again :)

  • melanie

    I know it’s crazy what they charge on phones. i mean to give someone 50 percent off a thousands dollars phone bills means that they know that they are charging you too much. When is this going to change?

  • melanie

    I know it’s crazy what they charge on phones. i mean to give someone 50 percent off a thousands dollars phone bills means that they know that they are charging you too much. When is this going to change?

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