What you are missing is that AT&T lowers your monthy bill if you buy the phone. If you pay $20-25 more per month for your service, you will pay $480-600 more overall and you won't be able to update or get a new phone until you reach the end of your contract or pay off the additional amount (what they started out calling the penalty for eary cancellation). You pay for the phont either way -- the older 2 year contract way is lee candid about what you are paying for. Oh, if you keep that phone longer than 2 years, you pay a LOT more -- 3 years would be $720-900 more.

I'm not sure that's correct, about paying monthly no matter how long you have the phone. Sprint does the same thing and you only pay X months, then the phone is yours. About 2 years ago, I switched from an iPhone to Android (per DH) and hated every. single. moment. I owned it. After 18 months, I switched to iPhone 6+. They took back Android, gave me a credit and I'm paying less per month now than then. Phone is mine after X months.

What happened to 2-year contracts = get a free (or discount) on phone!? I miss those days!

lascatx, thank you. I hadn't considered that. However, right now I'm out of my last two-year contract and no longer paying for my phone. I just checked my account online.

Here's what I don't get. I pay $30 for voice, $30 for data (unlimited), $5 for text. That $65 is what I've been paying for the past two years, while under contract. I can't figure out where they were getting the balance for the phone.

Allison is right. When the contract's over (in my case 24 months), the phone is mine and I don't continue to pay for it. But I can't figure out how I ever paid for it anyway since the amount was never higher.

I paid a discounted lump sum at the beginning of the 2 year contract. The package price stayed the same and the phone was mine immediately. If I left the carrier within the two year period, I would have to pay the difference between the full amount and the discounted amount of the phone.

LInelle, $65/mo for unlimited data, talk and text is really good.

I have Verizon. If you have a 2 yr contract and don't upgrade your phone at the end of two years, then they begin giving you credit on your monthly bill. I've had the 4s for a long time but get a credit on my bill every month b/c I haven't updated it since my contract expired.

I am with ATT and feel they are taking me to the cleaners but I don't know how....I have a 5s which does seems adequate but I do get a nagging feeling I'm missing out by not having a 6 or 6s. The only reason I stay w/ATT is b/c I think they have way more cell towers than Verizon or Sprint. Up to now I've had contracts but DH said no more. Yet, I have no idea how to compare contract vs no contract. Sorry, I'm being no help but I just wanted to say you are not alone in not being able to decipher what makes economic sense. I feel like this helpless LOL who doesn't have a clue. I don't see or hear the young adults in my family giving this issue once single thought. Is it b/c they don't care. or b/c they have figured it out, or they're confused but just not admitting???

Marlene, I think that's it. If I opted out before the end of my 2-year contract, I'd have had to pay the difference. AT&T still offers this deal, but I have to buy the phone from them.

My plan is old, hence the unlimited data. I have 400 minutes/month (not counting free nights and weekends) and 200 texts/month. Since most of my friends/family have iPhones, our texts don't count against us. I basically hate talking on the phone so I'm not likely to exceed 400 minutes. It's an old plan and one that many wouldn't like, but it's perfect for me. $65/mo for all of it is dandy.

I'll visit the AT&T store and chat with someone IRL.

bossy, I'm actually happy with AT&T. It has really good coverage in my area and my bill seems quite reasonable. I have no desire to switch carriers.

I like having a landline. Recently my internet provider teamed up with AT&T for this thing called Fusion. Internet 10x faster than I had before, plus voice with long distance and some free international calling = $53/mo for the whole shebang.

All carriers are confusing and, imo, contradict themselves. I didn't have to pay the Android off and no penalty when I traded it in early. DH changed his over last week, complained about the monthly price, so they cut it $20 a month "for a long term customer."

DD1 has AT&T unlimited internet, grandfathered in from a long time ago. She uses it all the time so changing plans/carriers would be hurtful or she'd have to change her ways. Cell service has been around so long now, prices ought to be dropping more, imo, but they have us where they want us so I don't really see that happening.

I just went through this same scenario but with Verizon. I was told my bill would stay the same if I continued with a new contract, or it would drop by 15.00 if I kept my phone and stayed out of contract. They said the bill would be lowered because my old phone was paid off or if I wanted to I could buy the phone up front and pay cash for it. I ended up changing our plan which gave us more for less, selling my old phone to them for 400.00 and paying the balance for my phone separately. I stayed out of contract so they reduced my line by 15/mo and they also had to reduce my husbands line by 15/mo we went from paying 128.00/mo for two lines to 85.00/mo!

My husband has had his phone paid off for years and they never offered to lower the bill before so I ask why. They couldn't give me an answer but agreed to lower his line as well.

Personally, I think they want contracts to go away so they have the freedom to up costs and change plans at will so they're using the phone credit as a way to entice people to keep their current plan and phone. When you're under contract they can't change anything but when you're not I think it's a different story. And should that happen and you don't like it, tough because if you change carriers, you have to go through the expense of buying another phone.

Forgot to add that if you like your plan Linelle and it's no longer offered you should probably keep your contract or they will eventually force you into a newer plan. That happened years ago to my Mom, she hardly uses her phone and was happy with what she had but they made her change when she was out of contract for a while.

I'd really like to keep my plan as it seems relatively low and meets my phone needs and usage. I'll have a chat with AT&T in person. I'll ask a lot of questions.

I gotta have a smartphone. There's no going back as long as I still have my wits about me.

Carriers are now dropping rates after you pay off a phone but that is a relatively new thing. My point was that one way or another, they figure out a way for you to pay for the phone. You pay a lot less for older phones and second tier phones. You can even get an iphone 5 free on AT&T -- as well as a few others. But the phone is going to get paid for -- fully, at least once. You aren't going to get a newest model iPhone for less than half price and not be making up for it somewhere else.

I've been researching this because it's time for me to replace my iPhone 4(!). The bottom line from what I've read is that because the use of cell/smart phones has now reached market saturation, the carriers are no longer subsidizing the cost of the units themselves. Which means those days of signing up for 2-year contracts and getting the $800 phone for 'only' $299 are over, although the cost of the phone was somewhat bundled in back then. Now the pricing reflects how the carriers have uncoupled hardware and service, so you are either paying for the phone over time with the ubiquitous 'value pricing' schemes, or bring your own phone and pay only for the services you use.

You can surf around and get good comparison evaluations complete with cost breakdowns. Since I am the opposite of a first adopter or tech maven (ahem, iPhone 4 I'm looking at YOU), buying a phone outright is the best option for me. For those who replace phones frequently, or like having the newest model, the monthly lease plans might be a good idea.

But basically, if you haven't shopped phones and plans for awhile, the market has changed enormously.

I'm also buying my unlocked iPhone from Apple directly, then transferring my AT&T service. I don't want the two connected in any way, and I'm also planning to take advantage of the free classes from Apple. I never figured out how to fully use my iPhone and darn it, if I'm spending the amount I plan to on this phone--I want to take FULL advantage of it.

It's confusing and it varies throughout the country. Today, Allison is right I think you can negotiate. Or try to. The full price thing has never made sense to me.

I got the 6+ a year ago for $399. If I keep it 2 years or 4 years I still paid that best fixed price. Usually I keep a phone 2 years and I have a 2 year contract. I'm using 2 G of data/month as I mostly use the phone at home with WiFi so I actually lowered my bill after the purchase (with 4G of data monthly). Why pay more?

I have Verizon as they are best in this area. It's very hard to negotiate with them but I still try. What I have found is once your contract expires you have way more leverage than if you are re-enrolling. You can at least ask for them to waive any extras. DD1 had an expired plan and they gave her a free 6 when it launched.

Last year, f.ex. when I reupped, I was told I had to wait for the expiration date of my contract which was January. But I went by the store around this time. They said they are running specials and I can re-up earlier -- after previously telling me there was no way to do that early. This month is pretty much the best time to change anything I've observed over the past few years. I was looking out because with the January re-up I was missing the Christmas "deals."

I personally would not pay full price for anything today, especially not before Christmas. The economy is set up for discounting and good deals are a matter of pre-shopping, nagging them, timing, and getting a sharp person in the store.

I really appreciate everyone's input.

I have been happy with my 5s, including the size. Most of my friends have gotten a 6s Plus when upgrading. My daughter was here for Thanksgiving with her 6s Plus. Also, she's a tech reporter and is immersed in this stuff all day long. She initially had a tough time adjusting to the larger phone, esp. with her small hands. She loves it now. I asked her, for me, 6s or 6s Plus? She said, do you use your iPad a lot? At home I do. When I'm on the couch watching tv, it's my go-to device for quick emails and generally looking stuff up. She said it makes a difference, since the 6s Plus for her is an iPad substitute. I'm still undecided.

When the 6s Plus came out, DS got one. I thought "no way am I getting one. They are huge!" But then I was on the phone so much my 5 was just too small. Battery was dying and it was old, so it made sense to get a new phone. That's when I switched to the HTC M8 One - it was larger than my 5 and DH had one the same size and liked it, so I thought I would. Wrong. Going to the 6s Plus was a no brainer for me, especially after I found out it was going to be less than keeping the HTC I loathed. The phone doesn't feel too big or even big to me and I like having the larger screen. Many days I am gone more than home, so it was a better choice for me. I use laptop at home, but if watching TV I can check in here and actually read. It still fits in my back pocket when I'm around the house doing things.

I have huge hands. The + is the only phone large enough for me to type comfortably. Also i like the size though on Thanks it didnt fit into my small evening bag so i had to change. Dd1 has tiny fingers and Knew the 6 was right fit. Id go by the store snd play with each one.

I also dont have a smart phone but a pay as you go flip phone for emergencies only. Unless someone is in business like for example a real estate agent, I dont see the need to be available 24/7 or have use of the internet all the time. I'm like dedtired, I just dont get it either. Those are huge monthly bills!

I like having a computer in my back pocket or purse. I don't have GPS in my car and I don't worry about getting lost when I'm in a new place. Earlier this year 3 of us were on business in Virginia in a rented car without GPS. We left Charlottesville and plugged in Union Station, DC. Siri or the Google Maps gal talked us right to our destination, all on my iPhone. Showed us our lane changes.

I'm a constant researcher. If I hear a word or name or concept I'm not familiar with, I look it up. I fully admit I'm addicted to the internet.

Wait, actually the best part is the camera always in my pocket. That is the one thing I can't live without.

I just came from a Verizon store. It is not a company store - one of their authorized retailers.

Yes, my bill will go down by $15 a month now that I am out of contract, but it is not automatic - so if any of you are in the same position, I thought I would pass this along. You have to tell them to do it.

I have a Samsung Galaxy III. To upgrade to the IV, she told me it would just be another $!0 a month, which is correct, $10 more than I am currently paying, but $25 more than I am really needing to pay. I would not have a contract, but would have to pay for 24 months to come to the $600, so basically the same thing as having a contract.

Lukki, you in effect said that you gave them your old phone and paid $200 for a new one - so you are still realizing the $15 deduction each month. Was yours at a company store or an authorized retailer??

We have ATT and have a similar, grandfathered plan too. We got it through work with a discount plan for state employees. We have good service with ATT, never dropped calls, etc. I am not one to buy a new phone each time the newest model comes out, and don't like contracts. I do not like the 6+, (or 6s+) I would have been fine with the size of even the 6 staying smaller. I don't carry a phone in my pocket, I don't use it in place of a laptop or ipad (unless out somewhere say a dr's office waiting LOL, so smaller is better for me.

I'm off to Apple to hold and compare the 6s and 6s+. Then will shoot upstairs to AT&T and talk plans. I've done nothing but 2-year contracts with them since I got my first cell phone so I'm not averse to getting another one.

Update. I visited both the Apple Store (to hold iPhones) and the AT&T store to discuss upfront costs and plans. The jury's still out on whether to get a 6s or 6s Plus.

I was annoyed at first when I had to sign up and wait to be seen by someone in the AT&T store. I almost left in a polite huff and decided that would be foolish, so I hunkered down and waited. I'm glad I did because a very very knowledgeable young woman answered all my questions. She actually gave me way more info than I needed, but here's the deal:

In my case, lascatx is wrong about them charging me monthly for the balance of the phone and not stopping until I bring it to their attention. In the past, I have opted for 2-year contracts at a lower, subsidized price. All I paid monthly was for my plan, i.e., voice, data, text. That was/is one of the benefits of locking into a contract.

The salesperson told me that AT&T is one of the few carriers still doing this and soon, within a year, they will cease altogether. The option is still available to me to do this, but it would be the last time.

My $70/mo total bill, which includes an unlimited data plan, is still mine to keep. I can buy the phone at the lesser amount and agree to a 2-year contract, or I can buy the phone for the full price. I'm not interested in paying over time and having it added to my monthly bill. If I decided to break my contract at any point, I will have to pony up the balance. So, really no risk at all for me to do the contract, as it's a savings of $450.

She mentioned $40 here or there if I do one or the other, but at that point, I had reached my saturation point and I'm not gonna fuss over that amount.

I hope this has been helpful. I have an existing plan I'd like to keep; I seem to do well with phones for two years; paying less is also nice.

I luv updates! I hv bookmarked the info you shared. Something I learned long ago is that you can make an appt using your phone to see an apple person, it saves you the wait. Those kids know So much and share so much more than you asked that I always leave with my head spinning. Thank goodness there is a cheesecake factory where I can get a reinvigorating sip of wine

Everyone who has the larger iphone, say they love it. I'm leaning toward the plus when I upgrade purely for the size. I'm holding off till after the new year...unless my phone dies before. I know a lot of people complain about the contracts, but if you are happy with the plan you have with your carrier and plan to stay with them then what does it matter. Plus you get the phone for cheaper, so it's a win-win. I've been with sprint for along time, they may not be the BEST carrier, but it works for my family needs. We have an unlimited data plan that I know we wouldn't be able to get matched any where else.

I just edited my Update. I clarified that my total monthly bill is $70, which includes unlimited data.

Always1, for my needs, my plan is perfect. I don't see that changing in the next two years. And if something happens, I'll just pay the balance later instead of upfront. Seems like a total no-brainer to me.

I don't know anyone who regrets the larger phone after the initial adjustment period. It's always with me. It's gotta fit in my back pocket.

I'm concerned that its thinness, coupled with the larger size, will be more difficult to grip securely. Of course a case will give it a better grip.

Green Thumb, yes my bill was reduced 15 x 2 because we have two lines. I paid over 200 out of pocket because of the size memory I got but more than half of the phone was paid for with the money I got from my trade in. I always go to our local Verizon owned store the other privately run stores are essentially useless. You're right, the savings won't automatically kick in (which I think it should) but the information was given to me voluntarily by a rep I was speaking to in their customer service dept. I had called to inquire about the options of getting a new phone and that's when I first learned about the savings if I didn't continue in a contract. She also advised me that my husbands line was eligible as well as a change in data costs. I was shocked really, $I28.00/mo down to 85.00/mo is a big drop!

when I first got my phone i bought a clear case. I got the gold phone so it looked great. Couldnt keep hold of it. Too slippery. Returned it for a jelly style which are much easier to hold onto, at least for me. But it's an accessory, no biggie.

If you go with a phone and dont like it i believe there is a grace period where it can be changed. i would just check on the carrier policy before to see if that carries a fee.

Some talked about waiting until after Christmas. i did that but the better deals are before the holiday. Weird but true.

I had a 6 and now have the 6S and am still not happy with the larger size which can be really uncomfortable to hold after a while. I didn't even consider the plus because I have small hands and it was just too big. If my hands were bigger I would have considered it because I do like the larger screen. The perfect phone size for my hands was the 5S sometimes I regret trading it in.

I also had to call Apple tonight because my 6S keeps freezing when I make a call and the screen goes black. Nothing works when it happens, I can't even turn the phone off; I'm just stuck until the line is disconnected from the other end. They're sending a new one, but it's not the first time, I'm super careful with it and I've only had it a month so I'm pretty annoyed. I also use it for work all day and it's going to take several days for them to get the phone to me.

The same thing happened when I got my 6; I had to ship it back and trade it for a new one. According to the rep it's the sensors in the screen failing. The fact that it's happened with 2 phones one in each generation is worrisome to me. I never had a problem until the 6 generation.

Thanks, Lukki. I am going to go to my local company-owned store. I did some looking and I can get a refurbished S5 for about $179 --- so no way am I going to pay $600 for a new one. My husband has a flip phone and when it broke, Verizon wanted about $200 to replace it. I bought one on Ebay for $25.00. It has been working for nearly a year. I know not all refurbished phones are going to have that longevity - but still I think $600 for a phone that has already been replaced by the S6 is ridiculous.

I'm locked into Gazelle for $110 for my 5s. It's been a great phone. One of the main reasons I'm upgrading is the improved camera. I take a lot of photos and believe the axiom that the best camera is the one you have with you. I don't find the 6s to be *that* much larger than the 5s. The 6s Plus is a whole other beast. I always keep my phone in a case, so the color never really is seen. When I got my new iPad I got gold with a midnight blue case. Should be awesome looking, right? All you see is the dark blue case. I can never find it on my dark gray kitchen counter. :p

You're welcome. My husband is the only IT guy I know of that hates smartphones and has had the same flip phone for at least 4 years. It's selling for about 45.00 on Verizon. LOL

The one thing you may want to consider before you invest in a 5S is how much memory you're going to buy it with and how you're going to use it. If you don't need it for work, take a lot of pics or store a lot of video in it, a 5S is going to suffice, but just barely with 16 gigs of memory. That's what my daughter has and she's having a lot of problems because IOS 9 (.1) uses a ton of memory and many of it's functions won't work with a 5S. Yes, 600 is a lot of money, however if you upgrade to a phone that works perfectly with IOS 9(.1) like a used iphone 6 with 32 mg of memory, you're going to pay a little bit more, I've seen them for about 400, but that phone is going to be a lot more functional and last a lot longer than a 5S.