yeah, I refuse to do it. I did the math, it was cheaper to buy a OnePlus 12 and pay $35/mo than to get a 'subsidized' phone but be required to have a $80+ a month plan AND pay monthly for a phone on top of that.
Its probably like how we used to get charged for text messages up here. Which is why almost no one used texts for years, everyone used whatsapp/telegram/whatever.