AT&T finally has a network test drive program

T-Mobile and Verizon person been offering escaped web trials for a mates of years astatine this point; now, AT&T has yet introduced a proceedings programme of its own. It’s a no-commitment mode to springiness the AT&T web a effort portion inactive holding connected to your existent carrier, number, and device. Pretty cool! But you’ll request an unlocked phone, which mightiness disqualify a batch of radical who are inactive paying disconnected their existent instrumentality — though the FCC is trying to bash something astir that.

AT&T calls its programme Try AT&T, and astatine the moment, it’s iOS only; the carrier’s blog station states that Android enactment volition beryllium introduced successful 2025. The proceedings makes usage of eSIM, which allows you to usage a secondary enactment connected your telephone without ditching your superior number. Likewise, you’ll request an eSIM-compatible instrumentality — iPhone XR oregon newer — to instrumentality part.

There’s nary recognition paper oregon committedness required, you conscionable request to caput to the Try AT&T website oregon download the myAT&T app to get started. The programme runs for 30 days and includes 100GB of information positive 25GB of hotspot data. Oh, and you can’t beryllium a existent AT&T customer, but that 1 seems obvious.

T-Mobile was offering a proceedings programme of immoderate benignant agelong earlier eSIM was a thing: previously, the institution would springiness you a escaped mobile hotspot and adjacent loan you a full phone truthful you could effort its network. These days, it’s overmuch much straightforward with a 3-month proceedings period initiated by downloading an app. Verizon’s program, introduced successful 2022, provides 30 days free. AT&T has offered a web trial thrust through its Cricket Wireless brand for the past mates of years, but contiguous marks the archetypal clip you tin commencement a proceedings done AT&T proper.

To instrumentality vantage of immoderate of these programs, you’ll request 1 important thing: an unlocked phone. If your telephone is financed done a bearer installment program past it mightiness beryllium locked to your existent carrier. T-Mobile and AT&T won’t unlock a telephone until it’s paid off; lone Verizon volition unlock a phone with an outstanding balance. It’s confusing astatine the precise least, but the FCC introduced a proposal this twelvemonth to simplify things by requiring each carriers to automatically unlock a instrumentality 60 days aft it’s been activated. That connection is inactive a agelong mode from becoming law, but if that does happen, past examination buying betwixt carriers could go a batch easier.