Microsoft’s Studio online service–perhaps the only good thing about its ill-fated Kin phones, but it’s pretty darn cool–is going offline on January 31st. The move effectively turns the Kins from smartphones into dumbphones by disabling much of their functionality. Verizon Wireless is offering Kin owners replacement 3G phones of their choice, but the sudden shutdown, less than nine months after the Kin went on sale, still seems like a shabby way to treat people who bought into Microsoft’s short-lived Kin hoopla.
Tag Archives | Verizon Wireless
Verizon LTE: Sip It, Don’t Guzzle
I subscribe to Verizon Wireless’s 3G data service, and never approach my 5GB limit. So I looked at the fact that the company’s new LTE plans are capped as no big deal. But PCMag.com’s Sascha Segan explains why capped LTE is not the same thing as capped 3G.
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Verizon’s 4G Network: The Details
Verizon Wireless officially announced the roll-out plans for its 4G LTE high-speed wireless data network today, and none too soon: The LTE era starts this Sunday in thirty-eight metro areas. All Things Digital’s Ina Fried has more specifics, and Greg Kumparak of MobileCrunch lists the launch cities.
The facts that caught my eye:
- Verizon is charging $50 a month for 5GB of data, and $80 for 10GB; as a current customer of its 3G data service, that strikes me as a decent deal, since I’m paying $60 for 5GB of pokier 3G service.
- Two USB modems will be available, for $99 each on contract after rebates; they’ll double as 3G modems when 4G service isn’t around.
- It sounds like 4G phones won’t show up until mid-2011 (there goes any last remaining possibility of a 4G Verizon iPhone in early 2011).
What I really want is a 4G MiFi mobile router that I can use with a laptop, an iPad, a smartphone, and any other Wi-Fi device; I assume that one is in the works. Hope that it arrives before too long–and that there’s a way for me to upgrade from my 3G MiFi without spending a fortune.
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LTE and the Dawn of Tiered Pricing…Ugh
Leave it up to Verizon to be at the forefront of making your wireless data more expensive. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal published on Thursday, Verizon executives said they see the switch to LTE and 4G as a perfect time to introduce speed caps on data services.
This would be similar to what cable and DSL providers have been doing for a long time, although it wasn’t completely clear whether in exchange for these speed caps — and obviously higher prices — would we see the end of caps in bandwidth.
Verizon may be leaning toward making higher bandwidth plans slower and lower bandwidth plans faster, however. “If you want to pay for less speed, you’ll pay for less speed and consume more, or you can pay for high speed and consume less,” chief financial officer Fran Shammo said. CEO Ivan Seidenberg said that unlimted plans will not go away — the company would see what its customers find “fair” and go from there, whatever that means.
Honestly, I find this news troubling — since wireless services are requiring an ever increasing amount of bandwidth and also faster data speeds. What this means is data costs for consumers are likely to skyrocket. I don’t see how this is in any way good for us at all. It more seems as a method to dig deeper into our pockets and leaving us little choice other than to go along with it.
I’m hoping this isn’t a trend in the industry — but knowing the way the carriers operate, it probably will be.
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Unlimited Smartphone Data: Not Dead Yet!
Verizon Wireless now offers tiered pricing for smartphone data, adding a 150 MB for $15 per month option beneath it’s existing $30 per month unlimited package.
The cheaper plan is a terrible value in terms of price per megabyte, but it’s not unwelcome. I know people who’ve opted for AT&T’s 200 MB for $15 per month package, on the logic that they consume most of their data on home Wi-Fi networks, but still wanted smartphones because, well, they’re cool.
The bigger news here is that Verizon didn’t touch its unlimited plan. AT&T, in the other hand, dropped the limit of it’s most expensive offering to 2 GB per month, and shaved the cost from $30 to $25.
For now, AT&T has the better deal for all but a sliver of smartphone users — the company claims that only 2 percent of its customers use more than 2 GB of data every month — but with a caveat: Smartphone data use is bound to grow, especially as the next generation of wireless networks comes online. Nowhere does AT&T promise that your monthly data allotment will grow accordingly. I’m having premonitions of steep overage charges for all.
Meanwhile, Verizon is sticking with unlimited data, and that’s pretty important coming from the largest wireless carrier in the United States. Of course, nowhere does Verizon promise that it won’t relent and replace the unlimited plan with capped data tiers in a few months (or years). But at the moment, the idea of unlimited wireless data seems safe from peril.
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Verizon’s Galaxy Tab is $599.99
Starting on November 11th, you’ll be able to buy a Samsung Galaxy Tab from Verizon for $599.99, no contract required (or available). That puts it at $100 above the cheapest iPad and $29 below the cheapest 3G model; if you buy a Tab, it’ll be because you prefer its size, features (such as dual cameras), and/or operating system, not because Apple priced the iPad too high.
I’ll be fascinated to see how well the Tab does (and I think it’s pretty obvious that a $499.99 Tab would be about three times more appealing than a $599.99 one). I wonder how long it’ll be until there’s an appealing iPad alternative that’s meaningfully less expensive?
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Apple and Verizon: Together at Last, Kinda-Sorta
It’s not a Verizon iPhone, but could it be a sign of things to come? Starting on October 28th, Verizon Wireless will be selling Apple’s iPad in its stores. No, Apple hasn’t built an iPad that works on Verizon’s network: Instead, Verizon is bundling the Wi-Fi iPad with a MiFi mobile router that can deliver wireless Internet to the iPad via Wi-Fi. The total prices you’ll pay are the same as for AT&T 3G iPads: $629 for a 16GB iPad, $729 for a 32GB model, and $829 for a 64GB model. 1GB of data costs $20 a month, and I don’t see any mention in the announcement of a contract being required.
Using an iPad with a MiFi is a very viable alternative to buying an AT&T 3G model. I think so, anyhow: It’s what I do. (I use mine with a $60/month Verizon plan that provides me with 5GB of data, enough to let me use my laptop and iPad all I want without worrying about overages.)
I’m not going to puzzle out whether there’s any particular significance to the timing of today’s news, but even the most optimistic of predictions don’t involve Verizon having an iPhone until early 2011. By stocking the iPad this month, it gets an Apple goodie in time for the holidays–and an opportunity to buddy up with Apple fans before it has a phone they’ll want to buy.
In related news: AT&T, which has been powering the iPad’s 3G service but not selling the device itself until now, will begin stocking the tablet on the same day that Verizon stores do.
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Verizon and the iPhone: Perfect Together?
The Wall Street Journal’s Spencer Ante says that Verizon’s network is ready for the iPhone, assuming (as Ante does) that a Verizon iPhone is indeed on its way.
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No Verizon iPhone Anytime Soon?
Do these comments by Verizon’s CEO rule out the possibility of a CDMA iPhone being launched on the company’s network anytime soon? Nope. But they’re not a good sign.
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Verizon's Own Android App Store: Good for Google?
Over at Gizmodo, Kyle VanHemert has a unique spin on a report that Verizon Wireless will open its own V-Cast app store for Android: Despite the appearance of competition with the proper Android Market, Google may ultimately be happy with the move.
VanHemert quotes an interview last May with Android boss Andy Rubin, who said the platform is “a numbers game.” Essentially, the more products running Android, the better, so if Verizon finds success with the V-Cast app store, it’ll mean more Verizon phones running Android in the future. And that’s ultimately good for Google (even if Verizon occasionally flirts with Bing for search).