04/06/2010 By Dan Frakes ( Source: http://www.computerworld.com )

AT&T pulls a switcheroo on 3G iPad users

AT&T's announcement of new mobile data plans has received mixed reviews around the Internet. Some like the fact that you can now get a data plan for your iPhone or iPad for as little as $15 per month, and that AT&T has finally told us (approximately) when tethering will be available. Others lament the new plans' lower limits on monthly data usage--200MB for the $15 iPhone plan, 2GB for the $25 (iPhone or iPad) plan--and that you must pay $20 to tether data on a plan that's already limited to 2GB of data usage.

Macworld has provided details about what the new plans mean for you, but the gist is that starting June 7, anyone activating new data service on an iPhone or iPad, whether it's a long-term iPhone contract or a month-to-month plan for an iPad, will have to choose one of the new plans.

While I have a few minor beefs with the details of these plans, I think they're generally fair when compared to other mobile-data contracts available in the U.S. What rubs me the wrong way is the fact that AT&T is reneging on at least one of the promises the company made to everyone who purchased a 3G-capable iPad prior to Wednesday's announcement.

You see, back when the iPad was announced, Apple and AT&T made a big deal about the fact that iPad owners would be able to choose either a $15 250MB-per-month plan or a $30 unlimited-data plan. And both companies made an especially big deal about the fact that these would be pre-paid, no-contract plans--you could activate 3G service when needed, paying only for those months you actually use it.

This no-contract aspect of the iPad 3G's data plans was one of the iPad's best surprises, and it was such a breath of fresh mobile-contract air that it provided a compelling reason to purchase the more-expensive 3G-capable. Indeed, I know more than a few people who, given the promise of no-contract, only-when-I-need-it, unlimited-data 3G wireless, stretched their budgets and spent the additional $130 for an iPad that was otherwise identical to the Wi-Fi model. It was a too-tempting deal for people who don't regularly need 3G data, but looked forward to turning it on for, say, the annual family vacation.
So Wednesday's announcement raised a couple questions: If someone already owns a 3G-capable iPad but hasn't yet activated the 3G service, will they continue to be eligible for the promised data plans? And if someone is currently using AT&T's $30 unlimited-data plan for the iPad, do they need to keep that plan continuously active in order to maintain their eligibility for it?