Items tagged with Unlimited
When you’re the last place wireless carrier in the United States, and have a reputation for spotty coverage and service quality, you need to make some noise in order to get noticed. That’s just what Sprint is doing with its latest promotion, which provides one year “free” of unlimited service if you switch from your current wireless carrier. We put free in quotes, because you know that there’s rarely a completely free lunch when it comes to wireless carriers. You will still be responsible for paying for the SIM ($2.99), shipping and handling charges for the SIM (a rather ridiculous $10) plus taxes...
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When you are in fourth place among the America’s top four wireless carriers, you need to do something to stand out from the crowd. If you can’t best your rivals on speed, service quality or coverage, the best target to aim for is pricing. Sprint is doubling down on its “value” positioning today with the announcement of a new promotion that provides five lines of data for just $90 per month. That $90 pricing will get you unlimited data, calling and texting for each line. In order to take advantage of the pricing, you will have to sign-up for AutoPay for the first line, after which you’ll pay $50...
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It's the squeaky wheel that gets the grease, and after Sprint announced a new "All In" unlimited plan that would restrict streaming video to 600Kbps, customers collectively made a squeak that Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure heard "loud and clear." As a result, Sprint has backpedaled on its streaming video cap and announced that it's removed it altogether. "At Sprint, we strive to provide customers a great experience when using our network," said Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure. "We heard you loud and clear, and we are removing the 600 kbps limitation on streaming video." That's a win for consumers, though...
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Sprint is bringing out the big guns to promote its new All-In “unlimited” calling, texting, and data plans. The third-player U.S. wireless carrier has brought out none other than David Beckham to pitch All-In, but there are a lot of “gotchas” that you must take into consideration before you start jumping up and down for joy. For starters, at $80 per month with an included smartphone lease, All-In is actually $10 a month more expensive for iPhone users that were on Sprint’s old iPhone for Life program. But by upping unlimited plan pricing $10 (CEO Marcelo Claure is a man of his word), Sprint is...
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Nobody panic, T-Mobile hasn't said it's planning to yank its unlimited data plan. At the same time, don't get too comfortable thinking that the nation's 4th largest carrier never would make such a move. Mike Sievert, T-Mobile's Chief Marketing Officer, had some interesting things to say about unlimited data, which the company views as a "part of a larger value proposition." Sievert says that even though T-Mobile offers unlimited data, it's not the reason the company exists. The wireless carrier is much more focused on pitching itself as the "Uncarrier," and whether or not unlimited data always...
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Most phone carriers these days are doing everything they can to hop off the unlimited data bandwagon. Both AT&T and Verizon have rolled out penalties for refusing to upgrade to their new shared plans; AT&T won't let you use FaceTime unless you've got a shared data plan, while Verizon is forcing customers to switch over if they want to keep their discounted phone upgrades. Now here comes T-Mobile -- moving in exactly the opposite direction. Starting next month, T-Mobile will offer Unlimited data plans, as opposed to Unlimited* data plans. The asterisk denotes the invisible limitations on...
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Several months ago, AT&T notified customers that it would begin throttling network speeds for users who exceeded a certain threshold, with the definitive throttle point defined as an imprecise "the top 5% of mobile data users." The company has issued a statement clarifying this policy after irate customers with unlimited data plans demanded to know what the cap was and how the company determined who should and shouldn't be throttled. The magic number is 3GB, which conveniently happens to be the maximum amount of tiered bandwidth AT&T will sell you. "Our unlimited plan customers have told...
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Well, it had to happen at some point, right? When things are just too good to be true, they rarely last. That's what has happened with Verizon Wireless' unlimited data plans. At the launch of LTE, it was possible to buy a smartphone and get unlimited 4G for the same price as 3G. Clearly, that was simply an introductory offer. Now, Verizon is planning to do away with that unlimited flat-fee plan for new customers, with the dream ending sometime this summer. A spokesperson for the carrier confirmed that they would be following the lead of other operators in America (they didn't name AT&T, but...
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AT&T managed to ruffle a few feathers when they announced the end of their unlimited data plan. For most customers -- up to 98 percent, according to the wireless carrier -- the new 250MB and 2GB monthly data plans will actually save users money in the long run, but for those who ordered an iPad 3G in hopes of not having to worry about data consumption, some of you are in luck. According to a report in The New York Times, iPad 3G tablets purchased before June 7 are still eligible for the $29.99 unlimited data plan. For everyone else, you'll have to make do with the new 2GB plan for $25/month....
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Unlimited plans seem to be all the rage these days, particularly with wireless carriers. But we've always viewed them as things that should be treated with skepticism. "Unlimited" sounds great in theory, but the high prices that accompany them mean that you best be taking advantage of that "unlimited" allowance.Over a year ago, Sprint shook up the wireless world with their "Simply Everything" plan, which allowed smartphone owners to access unlimited data, texting and calling for a flat $99.99 per month. The great news is that you always know what your bill will be, but the bad news is that you're...
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Recession got you down? Thinking of canceling that cellphone contract? Need a bailout in order to keep that texting habit alive? Virgin Mobile USA is looking to make the most of a bad situation (not to mention rival Boost Mobile's completely attractive $50 unlimited plan) by offering up a $49.99 Unlimited Plan that's sweeter than most similar alternatives. It should be noted that this particular plan doesn't include any data whatsoever, and furthermore, no text or multimedia messages are included. In other words, this plan is strictly for talking, but considering that there's no contract attached...
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I never use up my cell-phone plan minutes, do you? The cheapest plan gives you more than I'll ever need. But it's still always in the back of your mind when you're talking on the phone: Don't go over. Time Warner Cable wants to put "don't go over" in the back of your mind, too, when you're uploading or downloading stuff on your cable Internet connection with them. They're introducing monthly allowances on bandwith use, and will levy fees for going over your limit. Metered usage is common overseas, and other U.S. cable providers are looking at ways to rein in heavy users. Most have download caps,...
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On Monday Skype, announced new subscription plans that allow flat-rate unlimited calling to 34 countries. It should be noted that for Skype defines unlimited as 10,000 minutes / month; after that standard fees apply. Of course, 10,000 minutes equates to about 5 hours a day, so what the heck?The company said it was offering unlimited calls to landline and cell phones in the U.S. and Canada for $2.95 a month.It also offers unlimited calls to phones in 34 countries including Australia, China, Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom, for $9.95 per month, it said.Skype users in Europe can choose...
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Put this in your rumor bucket for now, but the Financial Times says Apple is in discussion with the music industry over a possible "all you can eat" music plan for iTunes.Apple is in discussions with the big music companies about a radical new business model that would give customers free access to its entire iTunes music library in exchange for paying a premium for its iPod and iPhone devices.The “all you can eat” model, a replica of Nokia’s “comes with music” deal with Universal Music last December, could provide the struggling recorded music industry with a much-needed fillip, and drive demand...
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