Verizon Wireless just launched its new shared data plans and AT&T shared data plans are set to go live August 23. So just what do these shared data plans entail, and are they worth it? NYTimes writer Brian Chen gave his opinion here, and we offer our own thoughts on the effects of these new shared data plans.

As noted, Verizon has already rolled out their shared data plans, making them mandatory for new customers and optional along with their tiered data plans for existing customers. AT&T rolls their shared data plans out on August 23, but their plans are all optional for new and existing customers. When examining the costs and plans, Brian realized that these shared data plans seem to be aimed at families of data-hungry users with multiple devices, as these are the only people who will see any cost-effectiveness or savings.

As you can see from the tables below, the initial costs of the plans are high. Both Verizon and AT&T charge a fee per smartphone, basic phone or tablet, and then a set amount per month for different tiers of data. AT&T’s cost per smartphone decreases as the amount of data purchased increases, but their data plans cost more per tier than Verizon’s.

So what should we take from these shared data plans from the nation’s two largest mobile carriers? First of all, they seem to be geared to power users or families with a large number of devices on one plan. For most users who just have a smartphone and only occasionally check social media sites or check the weather and search for random things from their phone, the plans won’t be of much use. For existing customers of both carriers, these every day customers won’t have to worry as they aren’t required to change. New customers of Verizon, however, will be required to sign-up for the new shared plans. Then their comes the power users, those that are constantly on the go, those that check social media sites daily, check emails frequently and stream music and video content from the likes of Pandora, Netflix or others. For these power users and for families with many devices all with separate data plans, these shared data plans can either save money or give them more data for their money.

In all, it’s nice to see these shared data plans, as having options is always better, but it would be nice if it would be an option for new customers on Verizon like AT&T is offering. For power users and large families, this could be a huge help, while many single users and small families will continue to use their current plans because the shared plans offer no real benefit. It will be interesting to see some numbers on just how many customers of each carrier decide to take advantage of the shared plans. Let us know if you are a customer of either Verizon or AT&T and if you like the options and if you’ll be making the swap to the new shared data plans.