Verizon Customers: Say So Long To Unlimited Data

BogenDorpher writes "Verizon will be eliminating its unlimited smartphone data plan this summer. No longer will one be able to pay $30 a month to have unlimited data. This move is designed to 'force heavy data users to pay more for mobile data.'"

Re:Heavy users?

[kthreadd]

It varies. Some are going down but overall most carriers have the same problem where their network just isn't designed to handle the amount of data traffic going on these days.

I would like to remind everyone

[assemblerex]

That virgin mobile has unlimited internet plans starting at $25 a month, plus you can carry over your existing number.

Re:Heavy users?

[Anonymous Coward]

In Finland, I have the slowest dataplan of about 500kbps, unlimited, in my phone, 4,99 €/month, going down. Unlimited unlimited is now about 10 € / month, or 14€ / month including an USB modem...

Re:I would like to remind everyone

[Anonymous Coward]

And by unlimited, they mean unlimited connectivity to up to 5GB per month, just like sprint, their parent company.

Re:This is why communications should be socialized

[phantomfive]

I trust the hard-working government more than I trust lazy private companies.

This is a false dilemma. You shouldn't trust either. The fact is when you give too much power to one person or group of people, they will eventually abuse that power.

The advantage of corporations is you can switch to another one if you are dissatisfied. There's only one government, but the advantage there is if you want to change something, you can convince enough other people that it should be changed, and then change it.

Each has its advantage and disadvantage in different situations, don't make the mistake of assuming one is better than the other. They are both bad.

Re:Heavy users?

[AmiMoJo]

I don't think most users understand this at all. When it says "unlimited" they take that to mean they can watch as many YouTube videos as they like, not "as many as you like so long as it isn't too many and there are not too many other people nearby using their phones and we have enough backend bandwidth and Jupiter is in ascendancy".

I can give you a real world example. Virgin Media claims that their broadband is "unlimited" but actually the package I am on (10 meg) is max 1.5GB between 4PM and 9PM. Go over that and you are punished with massive speed reductions that makes iPlayer and YouTube unwatchable. There are four of us in the house and we hit that limit every other day. All it needs is for a couple of people to watch HD iPlayer streams or someone to download a game demo from XBOX Live and we reach the limit of our "unlimited" connection.

10MB/sec speed is fine, 1.5GB of data during peek times is not.

Re:I'd just like to remind everyone...

[d3ac0n]

Be careful, the Sprint Unlimited Plan is only on their 4G service. If 4G service is not available, the phone silently downshifts to 3g where the 5gig caps still apply.

Sprint has the smallest 4g network of all the major carriers.

This is not true AT ALL. I don't know where you got that info, but it is absolutely wrong, as even a cursory glance over their plans (easily available online at Sprint.com) would show.