It has taken nearly two and a half years, but Dish Network is prepared at long last to challenge the three major forces of the US wireless industry with "superfast 5G" at an unbeatable price. Unfortunately, Boost Infinite is not the product of the company's FCC-mandated efforts of building an entirely new mobile network from scratch, instead relying (at least for the time being) solely on service from... the competition.
We realize that all sounds incredibly convoluted and confusing, and to be perfectly honest, we're not entirely certain ourselves what Dish aims to achieve in the long run and how it plans to compete against T-Mobile and AT&T while using the two's fully developed 5G networks.
So much value for so little money
For now, bargain hunters may want to focus primarily on the unrivaled value proposition of Boost Infinite and largely ignore all the "background", logistical, and technical details of the ultra-affordable wireless service.
There's one plan to rule them all, setting you back a flat 25 bucks a month for life with unlimited data, talk, and text. If that sounds a little too good to be true, you probably won't be surprised to hear that there are a couple of restrictions and "catches" to take into consideration before signing up for the beta program, starting with the obvious fact that you're dealing with a limited public beta program.
That means access is restricted to an unspecified number of members, and of course, that certain kinks may not have been ironed out just yet. When it comes to actual service coverage and 5G speeds, you don't have a lot to worry about, as you're essentially going to connect to the stronger of T-Mobile and AT&T's signals in your area and even automatically switch between them for the best possible experience.
On the not so bright side of things, your speeds "may" be lowered once you exceed 30 gigs of data during any single billing cycle, and there are obviously no special benefits or perks included in your $25 monthly plan beyond the basics.
But $25 is an exceptionally low price to pay for unlimited 5G data (with deprioritization), unlimited talk and text, as well as mobile hotspot, international talk and text, and roaming in Mexico and Canada, substantially undercutting any and all similar offers from T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon.
What's the competition and what's on the horizon?
T-Mobile, for one, which was long considered the industry's value champion, is currently charging $60 a month and up for its cheapest unlimited postpaid plan. Of course, said "Essentials" option does include a more generous 50GB allotment of "premium" data while also allowing families to save big bucks starting with an account's second line of service.
Boost Infinite offers no such family discounts at this time, although Stephen Stokols, the executive vice president for retail wireless at Dish, is quoted by CNET as essentially teasing the arrival of family plans at some point down the line.
Also down the line (but likely closer on the horizon) is the combination of Dish's own 5G network with those of AT&T and T-Mobile for Boost Infinite users to leverage "the power" of three mobile operators.
As Stokols explains it, that should provide a better user experience "in all cases" given that T-Mobile plus AT&T (plus Dish) will always be better than "just T-Mobile, or just AT&T or just Verizon." Of course, we'll have to wait and see how that "math" will translate in real life.
Adrian, a mobile technology enthusiast since the Nokia 3310 era, has been a dynamic presence in the tech journalism field, contributing to Android Authority, Digital Trends, and Pocketnow before joining PhoneArena in 2018. His expertise spans across various platforms, with a particular fondness for the diversity of the Android ecosystem. Despite the challenges of balancing full-time parenthood with his work, Adrian's passion for tech trends, running, and movies keeps him energized. His commitment to mid-range smartphones has led to an eclectic collection of devices, saved from personal bankruptcy by his preference for 'adequate' over 'overpriced'.
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