If using a credit/debit card to purchase Android apps on your T-Mobile branded handset was beginning to become a bit much for you, take comfort in knowing that help is on the way. Starting today, T-Mobile USA is rolling out the carrier billing feature for Android smartphones allowing users to bill Android Market purchases to your cellphone bill instead of a credit/debit card. Much like Verizon is doing for the Moto Droid and HTC Eris, the OTA update will be rolled out slowly — much slower than Verizon’s staggered delay — as T-Mobile has stated December 30th as the last day in which the updates will be pushed out.
How much will you really use it? I’m all for consolidating bills so having one less piece of paper or email to keep track of is a god send. Of course it could also cause binge app buying and a stroke once your receive your bill and realize that a few $1.99 apps aren’t expensive. It’s the other 54 $1.99 apps that got you in trouble. Moderation folks. Moderation.
If that slow roll out schedule mentioned above still has you a bit peeved, don’t fret. The Android 2.0.1 update for Verizon was made available for manual update by the ever talented Android community a mere 24 hours after it began rolling out. With T-Mobile customers facing several weeks of waiting themselves, a small thing called “motivation” is no doubt putting several crafty developers to work already — figuring out how they can manually upgrade their phones on their own time if possible.
Sound off below.
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by 
December 10, 2009 at 9:14 pm
Mike, if this new ability to purchase apps through your T-Mobile bill creates an influx of inflated cell bills, as some comments have suggested elsewhere, I wanted to add a tip for seriously cutting your wireless costs; an intuitive but often realistically tough proposition. However, I work in the consumer advocacy division of the Houston-based company Validas, where we electronically audit and subsequently reduce the average cell bill by 22 percent through our website, http://www.fixmycellbill.com (and I’ll add that 22 percent equates to over $450 per year for the average user).
You can find out for free if fixmycellbill.com can modify your plan to better suit your individual needs by going to the website. Check out Validas in the media, most recently on Fox News at http://www.myfoxtampabay.com/dpp/consumer/conlaw/lower_cell_phone_bills_072409 .
Good luck to everyone reading on retaking control over your wireless expenses and potentially freeing up some extra cash this holiday season.
Dylan
Consumer Advocacy, Fixmycellbill.com