Mobile devices: Are data-only plans the future?

The future of the cell phone is unknown territory. Whether the next generation of smart phones comes in the form of a Jetsons watch (as in Android Wear) or a device worn like eyeglasses (like Google Glass), it’s intriguing to estimate how technology will turn out. But there hasn’t been a lot of thought put into the future of your cell phone plan. The way we communicate has changed dramatically in even the past five years, so it stands to reason that the way you pay for that communication is sure to need some updating as well. We’ve compiled a list of what we think the future of cell plans look like; how does it stack up to yours.

Data Only SIM Cards – Let’s face it. If you’re a millennial (or really anyone with a smartphone) you probably don’t do a whole lot of calling on your cell. Instead, you probably text, email and Facebook to keep in touch with your family and friends. With WhatsApp being purchased by Facebook, it’s nearly impossible to deny the future of cell phones lies more in data plans than it does in minutes. Mobi-data has been offering free SIM cards with their data broadband plans, indicating that the future of your cell phone plan may have more to do with smaller companies with more coverage than the cell phone giants leading the game right now. But really, why pay for a voice plan if it’s not something you use? More and more people are likely to start asking themselves this very question.

Voice Plan Premiums – Voice messaging has really taken a nose-dive as of lately. Many of the major cell phone companies are reconsidering their current structures (like AT&T did when it revised it’s minutes structure). The future of cell phones is likely to see customers opting into voice plans instead of it being the standard offered. What does that mean for your cell phone bill? It could wind up costing you more to make a phone call. Data plans are likely to increase in price as well as they take up more and more connection. Luckily for the public, there seems to be a surplus of apps that will allow you to communicate for little or nothing.

Prepaid Plans – This may seem like a stretch but customers are getting more and more fed up with the monopoly that cell phone providers hold over them. Whether it’s being coerced into a costly contract with no end in sight in order to get an affordable phone or having to shrug your shoulders in defeat when it’s announced that a price increase is on its way, prepaid phones are looking like a more viable option. You probably won’t see prepaid plans the way they have been in the past but in short-term contracts. Some of the cell phone giants have already started leaning this way, forgoing the hefty cancellation fees to ensure business stays afloat.

Regardless of what the future actually holds, there’s sure to be some changes on the horizon. Let’s just hope they all come as an improvement.

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