Why Walmart's Straight Talk unlimited iPhone 5 plan may not be such a good deal
Earlier this month, Walmart announced that the iPhone 5 would be available on its Straight Talk Wireless service. While the promise of US$45 monthly unlimited data, text and voice service sounds wonderful, TechNewsDaily is reporting that the plan has restrictions.
Once you've used 2 GB of your "unlimited" data plan, your throughput is throttled so downloads will be quite slow. As we mentioned in our previous post, an unlocked iPhone 5 is available from Walmart in a 16 GB version for $649. So, the phone comes with a higher initial cost than a locked iPhone 5 available from other US carriers and the unlimited plan really isn't unless you're fine with dial-up speeds.
If, on the other hand, you rarely use more than 2 GB of data and use your phone primarily for voice and texting, then the Straight Talk plan might be worth your while. The $450 more you'll pay up front for the phone does give you an unlocked phone, and in many cases would be recovered within about eight months on Walmart's plan.
Buyers of iPhones and iPads should always do the math when considering the ins and outs of discounted cellular packages.
[via BGR]
