Get ready to bend over for Verizon [again...]

[Earth_First]

Verizon to drop unlimited data plans for upgrades from 3G to 4G LTE

Verizon Wireless announced Wednesday plans to drop their $30-a-month unlimited data plan for a tiered data model for customers who want to upgrade from the 3G network to 4G LTE.

Fran Shammo, Verizon Communications chief financial officer, told investors at the J.P. Morgan Technology Media and Telecom conference Wednesday that the company would drop unlimited plans for long-time customers who were able to keep their original 3G data plans.

When asked if customer with unlimited 3G data plans would be grandfathered in, or be able to keep their plans, a spokeswoman for Verizon told CBS News customers who don't upgrade their plans won't be affected and sent an official statement via email.

Of course, Verizon's rhetoric only addresses customers who don't upgrade their plans. As smartphones evolve, the move from the 3G network to 4G LTE will likely be on the rise.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-501465_162-57436307-501465/verizon-to-drop-unlimited-data-plans-for-upgrades-from-3g-to-4g-lte/

First off, Verizon's LTE network just.plain.sucks.

The connectivity that I have in a metropolitan market is laughable at best. Often I am forced to use a 3G signal on a device which was their flagship 4G LTE smartphone. When I confronted Verizon customer service about this issue, I was simply told that it was "network capacity" to which I responded, "not my problem."

I would caution anyone who plans to upgrade to Verizon 4G service and lose their unlimited data packages. Their technology is not keeping pace with the pace of handset technology, yet they want to charge their customers as though they are rolling out the greatest network service upgrades in the industry. Bullsh*t.

Buyer beware...

[onehandle]

1. Sadly, all over the air data providers suck.

I've sampled them all. I currently have an AT&T iPhone and a Verizon iPad. I also have a Clear Hotspot.

Sometimes they're golden, sometimes they suck.

The average for all, is suck.

[TheWraith]

3. All data plans are local.

The problem with comparisons between providers is that once you get beyond the limits of a specific form of technology--for instance, EVDO being slower than LTE, HSPA being faster than EVDO, etcetera--almost everything is up in the air. For instance, each tower can have a different amount of "backhaul," the connection which hooks that tower up to the larger internet. That connection is shared between everyone on that tower, so all other things being equal, one tower which has 50 people on it will perform great, while another that has 500 on it at the time will slow to a crawl. Or you might have a situation where a tower in the city is given priority enough to have a lot of backhaul, while one out in the country is given almost none. Thus the city tower can handle a lot of people constantly at a moderate speed of service, while the country tower will perform great with just a few people on it--faster than the city tower--but slow to a crawl if it gets a dozen or two.

There's also issues of "spectrum," the amount of radio frequencies available. One carrier might have a great surplus of spectrum in one city, letting them put up lots of towers with lots of speed, and only the bare minimum in another city. That, for instance, is part of why AT&T's service in New York City is generally considered to be terrible, while in Buffalo it's actually superior to Verizon.

[onehandle]

19. All true.

In Atlanta, AT&T is stellar. In Philadelphia, it limps along.

I still say the national average is pure suck.

[shanti]

5. and there's not

a damn thing we can do about it....

[TheWraith]

2. Verizon's "unlimited" plans were never actually "unlimited."

Even back in the days before they had an official cap, there was always a "soft" cap of 5 GB beyond which they would charge you out the ears for overage.

That said, your experience with Verizon's network isn't exactly typical. 4G isn't very available, but where it is I've gotten pretty good results. Just yesterday in the Buffalo suburbs I ran a few tests while waiting for a friend, and clocked 8 megabits on both of my available test devices.

[2on2u]

4. When they bought out our LSP I bought a 14 dollar Tracfone,

buy a 30 dollar card every couple of months.

[underpants]

6. Republic Wireless $20/month unlimited everything

I get an Android "sometime this summer" for $200 and then $20 a month no contract

[bloomington-lib]

7. I haven't heard and I've been dreaming of an alternative phone company

Are you using it now? Pro/Cons?

[underpants]

13. No not using it now

they save money (their money) by using WiFi whenever possible. You have to have Wifi in your house. The system is on the Sprint towers but the phone knows if you have WiFi available and uses that. It really won' t save us much but I like supporting a new idea like this.

[Skip Intro]

10. There are "catches" to that company, tho.

From what I understand, you can only use x amount of minutes/data "on network" and the majority of your usage must come from wifi. They've figured out how to make the handsets seek out and use wifi whenever it is available. But if x amount of your usage is non-wifi they will either end your service or put you on some different plan.

It's been a while since I've looked into these guys, but that is they set up as I remember it. And even at that, it's not a bad deal if it works for you. Just need to be aware of those stipulations.

[underpants]

15. Yes WiFi supported

they save money (their money) by using WiFi whenever possible. You have to have Wifi in your house. The system is on the Sprint towers but the phone knows if you have WiFi available and uses that. It really won' t save us much but I like supporting a new idea like this.

[Skip Intro]

16. Oh yeah, awesome idea. Might end up with one myself.

How can you go wrong with $19 mo?

[kayakjohnny]

8. Reminds me of....

[jp11]

14. Impressive sir.

[kayakjohnny]

18. !

[Skip Intro]

9. They bring it on themselves by promising more than they can deliver.

These carriers' ads show the best possible experience and lead consumers to expect a problem-free, beyond-awesome experience consistently. In reality, it just doesn't work that way.

There are network capacity issues. There are all sorts of other issues. There are "bursts" of speed that are not consistent. There are hardware and software issues on the network end and on the handset/user end. That is the reality.

The carriers (and by proxy the phone manufacturers) promise the moon and often can only deliver a moon pie. They set expectations too high. And they know this, they have huge departments of agents to deal with the backlash.

In the end, providing what the promise isn't their driving concern. They don't really care that your experience was "sub-par" based on their promises. Providing a product which turns a nice profit, even with the self-created backlash, is what they are all about.

[Go Vols]

11. .

I have unlimited data on a 4g grandfathered in from 3g and sometimes use 20gb+ a month.Wonder if they are gonna try to screw me outta that.

[TheWraith]

17. Frankly, you're ridiculously lucky already.

Most people on "unlimited" plans would receive warnings from Verizon if they ever went over 5 GB, and a second infraction usually resulted in Verizon charging for overage. Maybe your luck will hold out.

[jp11]

12. I got fios and a virgin mobile flip phone, I think it gets internet but I never use it.

VZW sucks they overcharge for everything.

[Selatius]

20. It's like Verizon is in a race with AT&T to see which one of them sucks worse. nt