HOT of the presses! This promo dropped yesterday, so I wanted to let all of you out there in on the scoop.

T-Mobile has a special going on that promotes their new T-Mobile @ Home add-on plan. Here’s how it works: you will be able to make UNLIMITED domestic calls while at home and at T-Mobile HotSpots. The service uses a special phone and a wireless router in order to access the service. Kinda cool huh?

<<Nokia 6086 & Samsung T409>>

So some will wonder “How in the heck does this benefit me?!” I wondered the same thing, but here’s the benefit: not only can you DOWNGRADE your plan if you have an expensive one (the minimum is $39.99 though, don’t go lower than that), but you will have better reception at home as well! So if you have shotty service in your home, or if the signal is weak because you live in a remote area or high up in a building with thick walls, then this is for you.

Of course, the caveat is that you will have to get T-Mobile service if you don’t already have it, and because it’s an add-on, it costs $9.99 and as stated before, you have to have a plan that is $39.99 or higher. Here are the pros and cons as I see it:

Pros:

• Better reception at home
• UNLIMITED domestic calls
• You can also access this feature at any T-Mobile HotSpot
• Lowers your monthly bill if you have an expensive plan already

Cons:

• You have to be a T-Mobile customer
• You have to purchase a phone ($49.99 or higher) and router ($120 according to the representative I spoke to yesterday)
• There are only two phone options available at launch time (Nokia 6086, above left, and Samsung T409, above right)
• Talking on the phone at a T-Mobile HotSpot is a crazy idea to me, especially since most of them are located in typically QUIET places, like a cafe or bookstore (use your whisper voice I guess)

So since the pros pretty much equal the cons, why did I even bother to make this post? Am I crazy? (don’t answer that, lol)

Well here’s the REAL scoop. Remember in the title when I said you could get free service for a year? I wasn’t joking! In cities all across the U.S., T-Mobile has a promotion where if you go to the selected store at 8 am on Tuesday, July 3rd wearing a bathrobe (to symbolize being “at home”, get it?) and are one of the first 100 people, you can get the phone, the router, and the add-on service FREE for one year! So now not only do you get all the pros, but you can have peace of mind knowing that you don’t have to pay for this stuff for a year. Not bad!

Just make sure you don’t wear your “holy” bathrobe, or the one that you’ve held onto since you were 10. This is NOT a Jerry Springer moment!!

For more information, click here.

For pictures of the event and a run-down of everything that’s included in the package, click here.