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T-Mobile adds new Magenta Max plan with no smartphone throttling even when on 5G

No matter how much smartphone data you use, T-Mobile says it won't throttle this plan.

Eli Blumenthal Senior Editor
Eli Blumenthal is a senior editor at CNET with a particular focus on covering the latest in the ever-changing worlds of telecom, streaming and sports. He previously worked as a technology reporter at USA Today.
Expertise 5G, mobile networks, wireless carriers, phones, tablets, streaming devices, streaming platforms, mobile and console gaming,
Eli Blumenthal
2 min read
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T-Mobile is adding a new plan to its lineup, this time designed for its most demanding data users. Called Magenta Max, the new plan will replace the existing Magenta Plus offering and become available starting on Feb. 24. The new Max offering notably features no smartphone data throttling regardless of how much 4G or 5G data you use in a month. 

Mobile hotspot data, however, will be slowed to "3G speeds" if you exceed 40GB in a month. The Magenta Plus plan previously limited high-speed mobile hotspot data to 20GB in a month. 

T-Mobile says the new plan will launch at a "limited time" price of $47 per line per month for three lines with automatic payments, a $10 discount from its normal $57-per-line-per-month rate. A single line is $85 per month with autopay, with all plans including taxes and fees in the pricing. 

Other features for Max include a subscription to Netflix's Standard plan (normally $14 per month), which allows for HD streaming if you have two or more lines, while a subscription to Netflix's non-HD Basic plan ($9 per month) will be included for single Max lines. Those with the new plan will have access to unlimited GoGo in-flight Wi-Fi and texting and be able to take advantage of the same faster international data speeds that were offered on Magenta Plus when traveling abroad (though speeds are still capped at 256kbps). 

You also will be able to stream on your phone in 4K UHD (as opposed to HD), so long as you have the proper content and a phone with a high-resolution display. 

While it is replacing the Magenta Plus option, T-Mobile Chief Marketing Officer Matt Staneff tells CNET that the company won't automatically switch those with Plus onto the new Max plan. "They'll have to choose to get it," he says, "and that's been a long-standing policy of ours [...] we don't change your plan, only you can change your plan."

To try and lure customers from Verizon and AT&T the carrier will be offering a "zero cost to switch" promotion that will allow those who are financing a phone to switch to T-Mobile and have it cover up to $650 per line off of the remaining installment plan while letting you keep the phone. Like the discounted rate the switcher offer is a "limited time" deal, but Staneff wouldn't disclose how long the time period would last, saying only that it will be around "until we change it going forward." 

Beyond the Max change, those with T-Mobile's main Magenta plan will also see some improvements without needing to adjust their plan, including having up to 100GB of high-speed monthly data on their phone and 5GB of high-speed mobile hotspot data per month.

See also: Best T-Mobile phones of 2021

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