Technological advancements are supposed to reduce the cost of living while improving on the standards, but this is not always the case, especially with advancements in smartphone technology.

Over the recent past, we’ve seen smart moves like having multiple (albeit better) cameras, support for wireless charging, and even IP6X rating in the smartphone industry making devices more expensive than ever before. And apparently, the latest innovation, support for 5G connectivity, is set to make the cost of owning and using a smartphone even more expensive.

This is according to AT&T, the second biggest telco in the U.S. The carrier, like T-Mobile that has promised only to revise its 5G pricing upwards after three or so years, says that with time the use of 5G on the network will come at a higher cost.

During its earnings call, CEO Randall Stephenson said that prices of using 5G will be revised upwards after 2-3 years, this time based on speeds. Yes, this means that AT&T will cap data speeds depending on the package you pay for, implying that plans offered will be tier-based.

Apparently, 5G pricing could end up like that of home internet, where the more you pay, the better your internet speeds. From experience, this is never a good thing for customers because ultimately, it means for the best and most complete package, you’ll have to pay more, even if the package includes things you wouldn’t mind shedding off.

It will be interesting to see how things turn out once 5G takes off, but then again, Stephenson is quite clear that this could be after 2-3 years.

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