One of the many concessions T-Mobile promised if it were allowed to merge with Sprint was that it would offer super-cheap wireless plans starting at $15 per month. Since then, however, the novel coronavirus has forced many customers out of work. While ISPs are accepting deferred payments for monthly bills, that may not be enough for people whose budgets continue to shrink. So, T-Mobile and Metro by T-Mobile have decided to roll out those new rate plans starting this Wednesday, March 25.

The plans, dubbed T-Mobile Connect, include a $15 per month (plus tax) rate for unlimited talk and text plus 2GB of data at up to 5G speeds. There's also a $25 tier for 5GB of high-speed data. Customers who stick with their plans can get a 500MB bump in their monthly high-speed data allowance every year for the next 5 years.

Metro by T-Mobile is also adopting the same $15 rate for unlimited talk and text plus 2GB of high-speed data. However, that rate will only be offered for the next two months and subscribers who sign on to the plan will only receive it for two billing cycles before they begin to pay the usual rate of $30 per month.

Metro customers (except in Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Miami-Dade County in Florida) can also get a tablet for free with a data plan. Unlimited data and 480p streaming costs $15 per month; HD streaming brings the price up to $30 per month. Also, a MetroSmart Hotspot will be half-price ($40) for the time being and the $35 hotspot data plan will include a 20GB monthly allowance — double the usual amount — for the next 60 days.

T-Mobile already upgraded applicable customers to unlimited high-speed data and boosted allowances of those with hotspot data by 20GB. It's also giving away 2-month subscriptions to YouTube Premium.

Source: T-Mobile