Starting March 2021! What are the benefits of Docomo's new rate "ahamo"? Check with [5 points]

In December 2020, NTT Docomo announced a new rate plan for smartphones, "ahamo."

What kind of communication plan is ahamo, which has appeared in the midst of rumors of "smartphone fee reductions"? Let's check the features of the plan in 5 points.

The biggest feature of DOCOMO's new rate plan "ahamo" is that it starts at 2,980 yen per month (excluding tax, same below).

While the price has been lowered, you can't sign up or change plans at docomo shops in town, and you can only apply online, so the contact for support and service is completely different from other plans.

Also, ahamo is not a “sub-brand” of DoCoMo, but is provided as one of the company's charges. Therefore, no procedures for number portability (MNP) are required.

In addition, when ahamo was first announced, it was said that it was necessary to follow the same procedure as MNP until May 2021 in order to make the system compatible. However, after that, it was explained that the system renovation was brought forward and that such procedures were no longer necessary from the timing of the start of service provision in March.

The amount of data that can be used with ahamo, which costs 2,980 yen per month, is up to 20 GB per month. If you run out of data capacity, you can recharge for 500 yen per 1GB.

Also, even if the monthly data capacity is exhausted, data communication can be used at a maximum communication speed of 1 Mbps. And there is no two-year contract or cancellation fee.

The same DoCoMo 4G smartphone "Gigalight" is 1GB per month and costs 2980 yen per month (for a 2-year contract), so the amount of data that can be used for the same price has increased significantly. In addition, the voice call charges, which will be described later, are also quite profitable.

For voice calls, the standard is unlimited calls within 5 minutes per call (excluding some exceptions), and if the call exceeds 5 minutes, a call charge of 20 yen / 30 seconds will be charged. occurs.

In addition, there is also the “Unlimited Calling Option,” which allows you to make unlimited domestic calls for 1,000 yen per month.

It can be said that the fact that you can use all-you-can-eat for 5 minutes from the beginning is unique to the rate plans provided by major carriers.

Since ahamo is considered to be one of DoCoMo's plans, DoCoMo's 4G and 5G lines can be used. The communication quality is the same as that of NTT DoCoMo.

5G coverage is still limited. Even if you are currently using a 5G smartphone, it may be an attractive option if you want to reduce communication costs as much as possible.

Also, ahamo is unique in that it allows you to communicate within the range of 20GB per month without additional charges when visiting 82 countries and regions overseas. However, if the number of days used overseas exceeds 15 days, the communication speed will be restricted, so it will not be possible to use it for medium- to long-term study abroad or business trips.

It is difficult for the general public to travel abroad for the time being, but if you plan to travel abroad or go on a business trip in the near future, it is something you should consider.

There are three points I would like to draw your attention to.

First, to make a new contract for ahamo, you cannot apply at a physical docomo shop, and you must apply online from a dedicated site. You can also check data usage and charges through the dedicated app. There is no telephone contact point except for emergencies, and various procedures are online. The payment method is bank transfer or credit card.

Second, only users over the age of 20 who have a d account can subscribe to this plan. If the intended user is under the age of 20, a parent or guardian must sign a contract and register the intended user as a user. In addition, if you use it with your family, please also check that ahamo subscribers are not counted for family discounts (family discount, everyone docomo discount).

The third is that carrier mail is not available on ahamo. If you use carrier mail as a means of daily communication, or if you use a carrier mail address as an account for web services, etc., you will need to change your registration for each service before switching. , you have to be careful.

ahamo will be available from March 2021. Currently, advance entries (reservation applications) are being accepted, and if you make a contract by May 31, you will receive 3000 d points for a limited time and use. In terms of d points, even if you subscribe to ahamo, you will earn 10 points for every 1,000 yen spent.