T-Mobile announces GoSmart Mobile unlimited prepaid service

T-Mobile has announced a new service that gives users access to inexpensive unlimited prepaid plans. Call the GoSmart Mobile plans, they start at $30 a month, and are aimed at those who don't want to be locked into a contract, and who want to avoid high monthly costs without sacrificing in their mobile usage. According to the Seattle Times, this is the first time T-Mobile has unveiled its own separately-branded service.

The service is aimed at consumers who make annually between $30k and $40k, as well as the younger consumer crowd that spends most of their mobile usage texting and checking Facebook. GoSmart's marketing director Shailendra Gujarati said regarding the service, "We are looking at customers whose predominant needs when it comes to wireless are talking, texting or entry level data services."

The service was already launched in nine markets in December, during which time it was tested. Today, however, the carrier has launched the service nationwide. Needless to say, it runs on T-Mobile's own network, and two handsets are being offered under the service – a $49 cell phone and a $99 Android smartphone, in addition to an $8 activation kit and SIM.

The cheapest plan is $30 per month, which offers unlimited text and talk but no mobile data, while the best plan is arguably the $35 plan, which offers text, talk and unlimited data access at slower speeds for things like checking email. The most expensive plan is $45 per month, and is the same as the $35, except that web access is high speed for those who want to watch videos and stream music on the go. There's a 5GB cap, at which point the speeds are throttled.

[via Seattle Times]