Cheapest way to get EVDO - tethered?

littleroot · EVDO Newbie Joined: 10 Feb 2006 Posts: 1

I am off contract with Nextel so my options are open.

I would like voice plan with minimal minutes and EVDO for a laptop and can pay around $75 a month.

Is this possible?

Many thanks!
-Bob

xenophon · EVDO Addict Joined: 30 Aug 2005 Posts: 2003

Sprint appears to have the cheapest tethering. There are two options...

- $25/month for 40MB and a per KB charge that caps to $70/month unlimited. It includes unlimited data use within the phone.

- $40/month unlimited tethering. Need to confirm if that also includes data use within phone or if it needs an additional $15 PowerVison plan. Given option above does not, I'd be surprised if this one does.

The downside of tethering is that you cannot talk on phone at same time as using data. For $20 extra, you have a dedicated laptop card that can be configured to be 'always on'.

If you don't need high speed, you can still tether Sprint's slower 1xRTT Vision phones for only $15/month.

Verizon is $60/month for EVDO tethering.

See this thread...
http://www.evdoforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=1235

galenas · EVDO Newbie Joined: 02 Apr 2006 Posts: 3

Ok, I am looking at using a tethered phone to laptop. I am signing up w/ sprint, have a samsung A920 picked out, and see the power vision options. I don't see a $40 option though for an unlimited data. I do see the power vision access pack, $15/mo, which states it includes unlimited data. I am thinking though that is unlimited data surfing the web on the phone itself, no? I don't see any options for the phone as modem...any ideas?

xenophon · EVDO Addict Joined: 30 Aug 2005 Posts: 2003

Yes, the $15/month is only on the phone itself. You have to ask for the $40/month tethering as it is not openly advertised and is not on the website. But it is available if asked for when calling in.

deginde · EVDO Newbie Joined: 27 Aug 2005 Posts: 4

xenophon · EVDO Addict Joined: 30 Aug 2005 Posts: 2003

I think there are two types of $25/month plans... one for PAM that is not unlimited (caps to $70/month) and the other is extra PowerVision content but not PAM. You may have had the latter. But the $40/month PAM is truely unlimited.

I wonder if Sprint has stopped offering the $25/month flex PAM plan?

comcc · EVDO Newbie Joined: 05 Apr 2006 Posts: 5

According to the Sprint PCS Choices SERVICE PLANS & RATES brochure I am looking at, Phone-As-Modem Data Pricing² (middle of page 11) is as follows:

40MB is $39.99/mo.

Unlimited Data is $49.99/mo.

Special Unlimited Data plan is $39.99/mo. (*If combined with a Sprint PCS Voice Plan and a 2-year subscriber agreement)

All include Sprint PCS Vision (Separate Vision plan not required)

Unlimited usage for the first month (after one month, use the MB included in your plan)

Data charges on the 40MB plan capped at $69.99

Additional data usage on the 40MB $0.001 pr KB

One-year subscriber agreement required

No additional discounts apply.

Unless Phone-As-Modem Data Pricing is selected, customers using a Sprint PCS phone as a modem will be charged 2¢ ($0.02) per kilobyte for data usage.

²Unless a Sprint PCS Voice Plan is selected, you will be charged 20¢ ($0.20) per minute for service calls. Domestic off-network roaming calls are 50¢ ($0.50) per minute with an extra 25¢ ($0.25) per minute long-distance charge where applicable.

I hope this is helpful. I copied this direcly from the brochure. When I ordered my Unlimited PAM service plan I was told by the CSR that I did NOT need a PCS Vision plan as it was included in the PAM plan. As far as I can tell, it includes ALL Vision services (Excluding Sprint TV subscriptions) as I have unlimited MB both on the handset and tethered to my laptop. I didn't see anything in the brochure about a $25.00 plan of any kind.

Polaro · Posted: Sat Apr 15, 2006 6:45 pm Post subject:

OK, so I decided to stop bitching about Verizon EVDO and move to Sprint with a Samsung A900 and tethered service for $40. Phone comes as planned. (Samsung A900 is pretty slick for a phone $199 with new 2 year service - ouch.) I am supposed to be without phone service for at most two hours during the switch over. Cingular/ATT phone goes dead this morning at 7AM. 13 hours later and 4 phone calls to some off shore service center for Sprint and still no phone, no EVDO, no answers. Tomorrow is Easter. Want to bet this phone won't be working unitl next week. Want to see if I fire Sprint and go back to Cingular for phone and Verizon for EVDO? And to think I was hyping Sprint for what looked like a better strategy only to find out they can't execute the basics.

How screwed up is Sprint if they can't do a simple nummber transfer and phone turn on? And this is the company I am going to get reliable high speed cellular data service from? sh*t, I should have know this would be another phone company exercise in futility and a waste of my time. And I have probably screwed myself with AT&T. If I go back to them they will probably put me in the Cingular bucket, where the customer service is so much worse than AT&T. And we all know they have not merged their systems, all you have to do is call and make the mistake of not telling them you are AT&T and getting no help from Cingular until they transfer you to AT&T. Whoever is running that merger integration should be fired. But, hell, they will probably promote the moron...it is a phone company, after all.
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Victor