FMCA Tech Connect+ Data Plan Transitioning from T-Mobile to AT&T – $59.99/mo Unlimited Hotspot

Back in 2017 the FMCA - Family Motor Coach Association - a non-profit RV membership club, stepped into the role of offering cellular data plans to its members. 

Over the years they've offered both a Verizon based plan (which disappeared without notification at the end of 2020), and a Sprint based plan as part of their optional Tech Connect+ membership, and that plan recently transitioned to T-Mobile as part of the Sprint / T-Mobile merger. 

Today, Tech Connect+ members received notification from the FMCA that this T-Mobile plan will be going away, but the FMCA has secured a new plan that will now be available running on AT&T's network. 

FMCA AT&T Tech Connect+ Video

 

New FMCA Tech Connect+ AT&T Plan

The Tech Connect+ membership details on the FMCA's website have been updated as of this morning to reflect the that the included data plan benefit is now on the AT&T network.

Also new - the monthly membership fee has increased from $49.99 to $59.99. 

Here are the details of the new plan:

• • Price: $59.99/month, plus a one-time $39.99 rental fee for the hotspot. All fees will be paid directly to the FMCA as part of their Tech Connect+ membership, and the plan is administered directly by the FMCA, not AT&T.

• Speed: Full un-throttled and uncapped speeds, subject to network management after 75GB of use in a month - which means after this point you might experience slower speeds when on congested towers. 

June 22, 2022 Update:
We are currently monitoring numerous reports of no one seeing speeds over 12Mbps.
Indicating this plan may indeed be hard throttled all of the time.
June 28 Update:
FMCA has confirmed this plan does indeed have a 12 Mbps speed cap.

• Qualifications: No contract, the plan is month-to-month and can be cancelled at anytime. Requires at least 1 year remaining on a FMCA membership to qualify, which is currently $50/year (with a $10 initiation fee for the first year). The FMCA reserves the right to modify the plan at anytime. There is a limit of two three devices per member number.
• Device: Tech Connect+ now includes AT&T's low end Moxee Mobile Hotspot device, rented for a one-time fee of $39.99 - regardless of how long you keep the plan.  The hotspot must be returned within 15 days if the plan is cancelled - failure to return the hotspot results in a $200 administrative fee.  However, the FMCA does state that the SIM card can be used in other AT&T compatible devices, and is even provisioned for 5G service. 
• Coverage: All of AT&T's domestic coverage is included, and the plan offers up to 300MB a month of domestic roaming.  No international coverage is included.
• Month-to-Month: This is a month-to-month no contract data plan, and can be canceled at anytime. Members can also suspend service twice a year for up to 60-days at a time, with the membership fee reduced to $13.99/month. 

All and all, this is an incredible and currently unequaled data plan option on the AT&T network.

Starting today, FMCA members can sign up for this plan on their website. 

T-Mobile to AT&T Transition

FMCA members who already had the T-Mobile based Tech Connect+ membership should be receiving an e-mail explaining this transition. 

There is no option to keep the T-Mobile based plan, it will be de-activated in 30-45 days if no action is taken. There is no requirement to return current T-Mobile devices. 

For members who would like to switch to the AT&T offer, they simply need to log into their FMCA account online and go to their Tech Connect+ Dashboard to migrate to the new plan. Members will need to agree to the $59.99/month new rate, and provide a shipping address to receive the new hotspot device. 

Concluding Thoughts

This move by the FMCA is a pretty major and unexpected transition, especially so soon after the FMCA went through so much effort to transition all the Tech Connect+ members from Sprint to T-Mobile.

In their letter to current members, the FMCA states that this was a decision made by T-Mobile:

T-Mobile, the current provider for the optional mobile internet plan that is included in the Tech Connect+ benefit, has chosen not to move forward with FMCA in a way that would keep the benefit in its current form.

The loss of an attractive T-Mobile plan is disappointing, however there still remains a similarly priced plan through various non-profits like Calyx Institute that can be considered as an alternative. 

The new AT&T FMCA data plan offered however is a very enticing option at $59.99/mo for unlimited data (just subject to network management after 75GB of usage), and we love that the plan has authorization to use the SIM card in any AT&T compatible device. 

We know of no other data equivalent unlimited data plans offered to consumers at this price point on the AT&T network, making this new plan seem almost too good to be true.

Only time will tell if this plan survives longer term, as we have seen AT&T pull similar plans in the past (recall the $360/month unlimited Togo plan they pulled out from RVers a couple years back?). We encourage all to keep in mind that any non-carrier direct data plan can have extra volatility, just as shown in this unexpected development. 

We are going to continue to grant the FMCA Tech Connect+ a Top Pick Status, but with hesitancy until there are long term reports of success with the plan. 

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