We all knew this day would come, and for better or worse, that day is here. For Tesla owners who purchased their vehicles on or after July 1, 2018, Tesla is now starting to charge $9.99 per month for data connectivity for a select set of features bundled into what it calls Premium Connectivity at the end of this year.
Owners who purchased their eligible Tesla vehicles before July 1, 2018, are now officially grandfathered into free Premium Connectivity for the life of the vehicle.
For those who do not subscribe to Premium Connectivity, the core Connectivity Packages that depend on the premium data connection will be lost. This includes features like Caraoke, video streaming (available only when parked), music streaming, and internet, among others.
Importantly, the core navigation functionality remains even without the Premium Connectivity subscription.
Owners affected by the change were notified by email today as the start of an ongoing wave of notifications that will go out to people as their free Premium Connectivity trial
period ends. Owners purchasing the Model S and X and the Model 3 with the “premium interior” get a one-year trial of Premium Connectivity after purchasing the car. Owners purchasing a Model 3 with “standard” or “partial premium interior” get a 30-day trial with the purchase of the vehicle.
To subscribe to Premium Connectivity, owners simply need to log into their Tesla account at tesla.com/teslaaccount. Clicking on the Manage button for the vehicle in question reveals a list of options, including the Premium Connectivity option.
It can also be added from the Manage screen by clicking on the View Details button to pull up all of the features of the specific car. Tesla has added a new section here for Premium Connectivity with a convenient little Subscribe button.
Is it worth $9.99 per month for the extra connectivity and features that require it? Are you going to subscribe? Let us know in the comments.
All images captured from Tesla.com
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