Dudebro Nation

Full Version: $11,000 Data Bill From AT&T
You're currently viewing a stripped down version of our content. View the full version with proper formatting.
Adam Savage, one of the mighty busters of myths on The Discovery Channel's Mythbusters show, is freaking out on Twitter right now. The target of his rage? AT&T (NYSE: T), for slapping him with an $11,000 bill after he surfed the Web in Canada for a few hours.

This has happened before and it will surely happen again. If Tweets are to be believed, Adam apparently took a laptop modem with him on a recent trip to Canada. While there, he claims he spent several hours surfing the Web. Upon his return, he was hit with an $11,000 bill in data roaming fees.

Here is the public timeline of his tweets:

Sorry, bit of explanation: device in question wasn't my phone, it was the AT&T usb connect Mercury modem.
And I got the "data is charged at .015 cents, or a penny and a half, per kb". About to try to explain the difference to them. Sigh.
They're claiming I uploaded/downloaded 9 million kilobytes (9 gigs) while in Canada. Frakking impossible.
@--- you read it right. $11,000.00
Did I mention they've turned off my phone until I pay? #attsucks
Almost forgot: Hey AT&T! I will fight this bulls--t.
Text messaging fees are stupid robbery? (they are), AT&T is attempting to charge me 11k for a few hours of web surfing in Canada. Pls RT!
I thought it was sort of funny to see a celebrity experiencing the same thing that regular unwitting users do (no offense, Adam!), so I re-tweeted (re-posted) his message. A few minutes later, an AT&T spokesperson emailed me and said, "We're helping that guy out you just RTed. Do you know him?" Well, AT&T, I only know him in so much as the fact that he's a celebrity and I watch his show on television every week. He likes to blow things up, and I like to watch him blow things up.

Adam's Twitter page is: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://twitter.com/donttrythis">http://twitter.com/donttrythis</a><!-- m -->
Man I turn off everything but the phone when I travel out of the country for that very reason.
Hondo Wrote:Man I turn off everything but the phone when I travel out of the country for that very reason.

When I go to Russia, I am going to have Verizon turn off Texts, emails and the web on my blackberry until I get back. I will keep the phone on as I have a decent international plan and I will use blackberry messenger, since it is free anywhere anytime.

I am going to take my aircard with me just in case, but I think I will check with verizon on if it works outside the US and if so how much they will charge me.
Pete Nice Wrote:
Hondo Wrote:Man I turn off everything but the phone when I travel out of the country for that very reason.

When I go to Russia, I am going to have Verizon turn off Texts, emails and the web on my blackberry until I get back. I will keep the phone on as I have a decent international plan and I will use blackberry messenger, since it is free anywhere anytime.

I am going to take my aircard with me just in case, but I think I will check with verizon on if it works outside the US and if so how much they will charge me.
I know with AT&T you can call them and tell them you want the plan that covers you when you leave the country. I think it's like $5 a month more. You can remove it from your plan the following month. Verizon has to have the same type of thing.