Verizon Introduces New EVDO Phone and Data Plans

firedude · EVDO Junkie Joined: 26 Mar 2007 Posts: 421

What's really happening unfortunately is they are starting to lose customers. Myself for one. They had been promising customers broadband here on the central coast for months and months. Sprint beat them to it and many like myself not being able to live with the 1xRTT speeds anymore jumped ship and I must say so far I am impressed with Sprints evdo service.

I don't see any difference above in their data service except maybe offering that 50 MB for $40 a month! They still advertise the 5 GB bandwidth Limit and when I went to Sprint I couldn't find a limit anywhere, not saying there isn't one, but I couldn't find it.

I just know in this area they are losing customers, especially data customers since Sprint launched the evdo.

The phone plan if I read it right sounds good at $99 per month for unlimited calls? That would be pretty good for me. My phones are still with them. Wonder if they'll let me downgrade (in $$$) to the new plan lol?

Alex · Site Admin Joined: 19 Sep 2006 Posts: 1943

For those wondering if Verizon's 50MB a month plan will work for them, you might want to check out this article:

What does 50MB Get me?

Here's a Hint: Its not a lot. Crying or Very sad

Jim_in_VA · Posted: Tue Feb 19, 2008 8:26 am Post subject:

...what a pathetic data plan...both of them
_________________
evdo-tips.com

dario · EVDO Fledgling Joined: 03 Jan 2008 Posts: 12

50mb for $39.99 That is another slap in the face to consumers. Verizon Wireless likes to Nickle and Dime consumers to death. Some excel files I send are 3-5MB!

jrp · EVDO Newbie Joined: 21 Jun 2007 Posts: 9

Dario, it's hardly a slap in the face for the many business customers who's use is infrequent and limited to a few emails and web pages per day. We have 500 Verizon data cards for field staff, primarily to be able to check emails and project web pages. normally less than 50MB per month, except in a few special cases. So reducing my monthly Verizon invoice from 500x$59.99 to 500x$39.99 is very welcome news.

Its also good news to hear that Verizon has not caved in on their 5gig per month limit. We should all encourage the bandwidth hogs using more than 5gig in a month to please go sign up for some other provider. If that provider cares so little about their network performance, speed and latency, that they fail to limit the 5% of abusers who degrade the network performance for everyone else, then you're welcome to it. Bandwidth is a limited & expensive resource.

Jim

firedude · EVDO Junkie Joined: 26 Mar 2007 Posts: 421

Jim,

I have found no problems with latency nor speed with Sprint who does not have the bandwidth restraints that Verizon has. The only evdo we have here is Sprint so it gets banged around a lot pretty hard yet no problems. I believe all that bandwidth stuff is nothing more than a cop out. They should expand and be able to meet the demands of their customers. Just like any business.

I can see where a business like you state would save under this plan, but even the average user would not survive at all. Result? Verizon raking in the bucks for additional time! Alex pretty much described what the average user would get. I'd use that up just in updating my windows, anti-virus and spyware software and a few uploads to my website. Nothing left for anything else. even without the above mentioned I'd eat it up in a couple days!

How do you update all those computers with the lateest updates? VPN? Still uses bandwidth. Just curious or do you not update them?

Alex · Site Admin Joined: 19 Sep 2006 Posts: 1943

Hours after Verizon does it, AT&T reacts with similar unlimited phone plans:

http://www.att.com/gen/press-room?pid=4800&cdvn=news&newsarticleid=25197

firedude · EVDO Junkie Joined: 26 Mar 2007 Posts: 421

LOL and the battle is on!!

On edit... We have the family plan for the phones with Verizon. I called and for the 2 phones it would be $199 per month! No way, I'll stay where I am.! I knew there would be a catch with more than 1 line! Always a catchy somewhere. Gotta love the fine print Laughing

Bigdave · EVDO Addict Joined: 08 Nov 2006 Posts: 1068

I'm with you firedude. I have Alltel as well as Sprint and their unlimited data plans and I seem to get better service than most of my friends with Verizon's limits. I'm fortunate to be in an area with all the major providers and there is simply not much of a comparison between Verizon and either Sprint or Alltel performance wise. Really makes you me wonder if "Big Red" doesn't have quite the resources of their little cousins?

But on the other hand, I can see where, for many casual users of mobile data, the 50G plan might work. I'm thinking about the many folks out there who have cable or DSL at home and just want to be able to take their laptop with them somewhere and not have to pay the ever rising connection fees at Starbucks, airports, hotels, etc. just to check their email and therefore will never come near the 50G limits since they can update Windows, virus programs, etc. while at home. I have to think there are more of these folks who will now sign up with the lower price point especially suiting them. (I just think this price point might work a little better about $10 lower at the $29 mark.)

firedude · EVDO Junkie Joined: 26 Mar 2007 Posts: 421

Dave, I wholeheartedly agree. $29 would be more responsible for such a plan. I think they'd make more that way anyway on a volume thing. I would though caution anyone on one of those plans to really watch their data usage as it can ad up fast like Alex noted above and the next thing you know you're paying premium prices for time over the 50MB! Been there, done that. Rolling Eyes

vpnavy · EVDO User Joined: 29 Jul 2005 Posts: 91

Alex · Site Admin Joined: 19 Sep 2006 Posts: 1943

a few hours after AT&T copied Verizon's move, T-Mobile appears to have now joined the price "war"?

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080219/verizon_wireless_unlimited.html?.v=12&printer=1

J_Walker · EVDO Heavy User Joined: 07 Mar 2007 Posts: 115

jrp · EVDO Newbie Joined: 21 Jun 2007 Posts: 9

"I'm sorry jrp - but I have a MAJOR problem with your thoughtless comment!"

we'll have to agree to disagree. anyone using more than 5 gig a month is doing something that the cellular broadband data system was never intended or designed for, and is using way more than their fair share of the networks shared & limited bandwidth. sometime in the future more bandwidth may be available at the flick of a switch, but right now its very expensive to provide and increase.

"if it means increasing their bandwidth capabilities - they can afford it."

they can afford it by passing the higher costs on to their customers. So you're suggesting we all pay even higher fees to allow 5% of the networks users to download/stream music/movies all day?. I and many others would prefer to only pay for the bandwidth required to satify the other 95% of users, and hope that Verizon finds a way to make the 5% pay all the extra costs or throttle them back to 200bps, like satellite internet providers have always done.
The impact may not be felt in all areas yet, but many towers & switches are overloaded at certain times and the impact of heavy users is obvious and serious. As recreational/personal users come to cellular broadband in place of their cable/dsl/sat service, new rules, new plans and new pricing structures will continue to be experimented with as the service providers adjust to users they never expected to be serving in the way they are. Some of us also remember when our dial up AOL service was billed by the minute, talk about sticker shock at the end of the month Smile

Jim