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Comments on news posted 2011-11-07 12:42:37: To coincide with Verizon Wireless's launch of the new LTE Droid Razr on 11/11/11 at 11:11 AM (clever!), Verizon is running a new promotion allowing LTE users to double their tier's usage cap -- for the same price. ..


motoracer
join:2003-09-15
united state

motoracer

Member

Verizon

$100+/month per person and they say there is a need for caps - they just need to invest more in their infrastructure.
NeoandGeo
join:2003-05-10
Harrison, TN

1 recommendation

NeoandGeo

Member

Re: Verizon

Hmm. Can't double my unlimited data.

ptrowski
Got Helix?
Premium Member
join:2005-03-14
Woodstock, CT

ptrowski

Premium Member

Re: Verizon

said by NeoandGeo:

Hmm. Can't double my unlimited data.

Sure, double secret unlimited!
25139889 (banned)
join:2011-10-25
Toledo, OH

25139889 (banned) to motoracer

Member

to motoracer
VZ doesn't invest in the network; CellCo does.
CXM_Splicer
Looking at the bigger picture
Premium Member
join:2011-08-11
NYC

CXM_Splicer

Premium Member

Re: Verizon

And who is Cellco?

whateva
@charter.com

whateva

Anon

Re: Verizon

Cellco Partnership. Verizon Wireless.

VZ + Vodafone = Verizon Wireless not Verizon
CXM_Splicer
Looking at the bigger picture
Premium Member
join:2011-08-11
NYC

CXM_Splicer

Premium Member

Re: Verizon

Hmmm, so where did they get their money to build the infrastructure from?
openbox9
Premium Member
join:2004-01-26
71144

1 recommendation

openbox9 to motoracer

Premium Member

to motoracer
said by motoracer:

they just need to invest more in their infrastructure.

Here we go again. What about the billions of dollars VZW is investing in its LTE network? No matter what, there will always be those that are never satisfied quite enough.
OwlSaver
OwlSaver
Premium Member
join:2005-01-30
Berwyn, PA

OwlSaver

Premium Member

Will this make Family Data Plans less likely?

We have four phones, one of which is a Droid II with grandfathered unlimited data. I would like to get all smart phones but do not want to pay for data for each device. A promotion like this will, I think, make it harder for Verizon to offer the Family Data plan that I am waiting for.
openbox9
Premium Member
join:2004-01-26
71144

openbox9

Premium Member

Re: Will this make Family Data Plans less likely?

Not really. I have no doubt that VZW will launch family data plans at some point to hang the carrot on a stick for those grandfathered with "unlimited" data plans. Family data plans and/or price decreases are a couple of the limited options the company really has to motivate customers to willingly give up their grandfathered plans.

thegeek
Premium Member
join:2008-02-21
right here

thegeek to OwlSaver

Premium Member

to OwlSaver
I have 3 lines and need to add of forth soon. The 3 current lines are unlimited data. I'm holding out on the 4th line to see what family data is like. We only use about 5-8GB right now so if I could get a family plan of 10GB or so for less than the cost of 4 individual lines then I'd give up my unlimited for it. Unlimited will be forced out eventually anyway.
BiggA
Premium Member
join:2005-11-23
Central CT

BiggA

Premium Member

4GB

Since when is the $30 plan 4GB? It's been 2GB AFAIK. Thus, it would double to 4GB...
BiggA

BiggA

Premium Member

Re: 4GB

It's also not very useful, other than as a buffer, as there's no reason to be using that much data, and you'd be murdering your battery life anyways. Even at 1.5GB/mo, battery life is horrendous.
NeoandGeo
join:2003-05-10
Harrison, TN

NeoandGeo

Member

Re: 4GB

I use 8GB a month and my battery life is great!

south1178
Premium Member
join:2001-12-17
Cleveland, OH

south1178 to BiggA

Premium Member

to BiggA
said by BiggA:

It's also not very useful, other than as a buffer, as there's no reason to be using that much data, and you'd be murdering your battery life anyways. Even at 1.5GB/mo, battery life is horrendous.

Do you actually own a smartphone using VZW's LTE? I downloaded over 5GB's last month so tell me what I shouldn't be doing with my phone? Watching videos on youtube, checking email, surfing websites, etc. And my bionic's battery is doing just fine. I get over a day and a half with heavy usage.

Matt3
All noise, no signal.
Premium Member
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC

Matt3

Premium Member

Re: 4GB

said by south1178:

And my bionic's battery is doing just fine. I get over a day and a half with heavy usage.

You must mean half a day. I own a Bionic and you do not get a day and a half with heavy usage, I don't care what you disable. The phone only gets 10 hours of 3G talk time, half that when using data heavy applications.

south1178
Premium Member
join:2001-12-17
Cleveland, OH

south1178

Premium Member

Re: 4GB

said by Matt3:

said by south1178:

And my bionic's battery is doing just fine. I get over a day and a half with heavy usage.

You must mean half a day. I own a Bionic and you do not get a day and a half with heavy usage, I don't care what you disable. The phone only gets 10 hours of 3G talk time, half that when using data heavy applications.

I find it humorous to know what my phone can and can't do.

Here is one screen shot after work one day. I have the extended battery. I get an easy 20+ hours out of it. Never happened though because your phone doesn't do it, right?
NeoandGeo
join:2003-05-10
Harrison, TN

1 recommendation

NeoandGeo

Member

Re: 4GB

My phone lasts for days as well if I don't use it as is evidenced by that screenshot.

Matt3
All noise, no signal.
Premium Member
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC

Matt3 to south1178

Premium Member

to south1178
said by south1178:

said by Matt3:

said by south1178:

And my bionic's battery is doing just fine. I get over a day and a half with heavy usage.

You must mean half a day. I own a Bionic and you do not get a day and a half with heavy usage, I don't care what you disable. The phone only gets 10 hours of 3G talk time, half that when using data heavy applications.

I find it humorous to know what my phone can and can't do.

Here is one screen shot after work one day. I have the extended battery. I get an easy 20+ hours out of it. Never happened though because your phone doesn't do it, right?

Your phone was idle 42% of that time. That is not "a day and a half of heavy usage." That is, at best, 3/4th of a day of heavy usage ... on an extended battery.
BiggA
Premium Member
join:2005-11-23
Central CT

BiggA

Premium Member

Re: 4GB

lol... Android battery life. One of the reasons I ended up switching to the iPhone. Even the iPhone can't do two days of heavy usage...

south1178
Premium Member
join:2001-12-17
Cleveland, OH

south1178 to Matt3

Premium Member

to Matt3
said by Matt3:

Your phone was idle 42% of that time. That is not "a day and a half of heavy usage." That is, at best, 3/4th of a day of heavy usage ... on an extended battery.

The bionic idle stats are off, known issue with Gingerbread.

Matt3
All noise, no signal.
Premium Member
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC

Matt3

Premium Member

Re: 4GB

said by south1178:

said by Matt3:

Your phone was idle 42% of that time. That is not "a day and a half of heavy usage." That is, at best, 3/4th of a day of heavy usage ... on an extended battery.

The bionic idle stats are off, known issue with Gingerbread.

I own a Bionic. I know how much time I get on the standard battery. I have also read reviews of the extended battery. At most, you get 20 hours of heavy usage. Nowhere near a day and a half.

Hush fanboy, hush.
BiggA
Premium Member
join:2005-11-23
Central CT
·Frontier FiberOp..
Asus RT-AC68

1 recommendation

BiggA

Premium Member

Re: 4GB

Anyone who's getting more than a day of heavy usage is either not actually using the phone much, or they're lying. Even with iPhone. My friend showed me his Vibrant 4G that hadn't been charged in two days, and it was at 70% or so, and I was shocked until I found that he basically doesn't use his phone.

Bill Neilson
Premium Member
join:2009-07-08
Alexandria, VA

Bill Neilson to BiggA

Premium Member

to BiggA
said by BiggA:

It's also not very useful, other than as a buffer, as there's no reason to be using that much data, and you'd be murdering your battery life anyways. Even at 1.5GB/mo, battery life is horrendous.

Are you trying to tell people what they can and cant do with their phones?

Why would you think everyone has the same needs or wants as you?

MovieLover76
join:2009-09-11
Cherry Hill, NJ
(Software) pfSense
Asus RT-AC68
Asus RT-AC66

MovieLover76 to BiggA

Member

to BiggA
I use 3-6 gb a month and I only charge my phone once a day and I have a thunderbolt lol, I have unlimited so this doesn't affect me.
I'm holding on to the grandfathered unlimited as long as possible, they aren't going to trick me into switching to tiered data.

DataRiker
Premium Member
join:2002-05-19
00000

DataRiker to BiggA

Premium Member

to BiggA
said by BiggA:

It's also not very useful, other than as a buffer, as there's no reason to be using that much data.

Go away.

buddahbless
join:2005-03-21
Premium

buddahbless

Member

Re: 4GB

said by DataRiker:

said by BiggA:

It's also not very useful, other than as a buffer, as there's no reason to be using that much data.

Go away.

LOL...GO AWAY...AGREED !!

I use 1-3 GB just streaming slacker and pandora a month.
BiggA
Premium Member
join:2005-11-23
Central CT
·Frontier FiberOp..
Asus RT-AC68

BiggA

Premium Member

Oh my, more of the entitled-to-waste-vast-quantities-of-bandwidth crowd. What are you people doing with your phones? And yes, I did have an Android phone, and it wasn't even on Verizon's power sucking LTE network, it was an AT&T phone on HSPA, and that was bad enough. LTE is great for dense areas, and weak signal areas, but it's still amazing to me how people come out of the woodwork saying they want to be able to use GIGABYTES of data on a mobile device.

So, the original question, isn't it 2GB going to 4GB, not 4 to 8?

Bill Neilson
Premium Member
join:2009-07-08
Alexandria, VA

Bill Neilson

Premium Member

Re: 4GB

said by BiggA:

Oh my, more of the entitled-to-waste-vast-quantities-of-bandwidth crowd. What are you people doing with your phones?

Again, you didn't even come close to actually answering anyones questions.

Why are you trying to dictate what others can and can't do?

If others need 3g streaming for work or family or whatever....why exactly is that "shocking"....because you don't?

Do you understand what an absolute moron you come off as when you try to tell people that since you don't use a lot...others shouldnt?
BiggA
Premium Member
join:2005-11-23
Central CT
·Frontier FiberOp..
Asus RT-AC68

BiggA

Premium Member

Re: 4GB

My point was that upping that cap isn't really that useful since a heavy smartphone user uses around 1GB-1.5GB. People who are blatantly wasting bandwidth should stop, because they are negatively impacting the network for others. I wish that Verizon, AT&T, and all the rest would throttle at 2GB for EVERYONE and call it a day. That being said, it is funny that Verizon offers bigger packages, anyone who is moronic enough to buy one deserves to get ripped off!

Bill Neilson
Premium Member
join:2009-07-08
Alexandria, VA

Bill Neilson

Premium Member

Re: 4GB

said by BiggA:

People who are blatantly wasting bandwidth should stop, because they are negatively impacting the network for others.

1) Explain to me...what does "blatantly wasting bandwidth" mean? What is and isn't wasting bandwidth....I am sure some apps and sites are "wasting" while others are not? Lets delve into your opinion a little deeper.

2) You have any proof of those using multiple GB negatively hurting the network?
BiggA
Premium Member
join:2005-11-23
Central CT
·Frontier FiberOp..
Asus RT-AC68

BiggA

Premium Member

Re: 4GB

Because you're running apps that aren't made to be run on licensed, cellular bandwidth (Netflix, streaming sports, Slingplayer, etc), and using data in ways that is not as efficient as possible (i.e. high bitrate audio), or in ways that could be replaced by local storage (Google Music, Spotify streaming, large file downloads, etc). Pandora is one of the few streaming apps that is bandwidth responsible, as it uses 32kbps AAC+ when streaming over a cell network, and will work just fine on EDGE or 1xRTT. It also saves battery to be able to use a utilize the cellular radio less when streaming.

If it wasn't the networks would be consistently running close to their theoretical maximum, yet we see places where cell networks completely come to a halt because of high traffic- so yes, congestion is an issue. Maybe LTE isn't right now, but it will get saturated eventually...

MovieLover76
join:2009-09-11
Cherry Hill, NJ
(Software) pfSense
Asus RT-AC68
Asus RT-AC66

MovieLover76

Member

Re: 4GB

and Pandora sounds like crap out of the box compared to other streaming apps.
Its bearable when you enable high quality audio.
3G was meant for data, not specific apps, it's application agnostic.
Unless we're installing apps from third party sources, it's meant for cellular networks, even apples highly controlled market allows for the apps your describing.
mogamer
join:2011-04-20
Royal Oak, MI

mogamer to BiggA

Member

to BiggA
said by BiggA:

My point was that upping that cap isn't really that useful since a heavy smartphone user uses around 1GB-1.5GB. People who are blatantly wasting bandwidth should stop, because they are negatively impacting the network for others. I wish that Verizon, AT&T, and all the rest would throttle at 2GB for EVERYONE and call it a day. That being said, it is funny that Verizon offers bigger packages, anyone who is moronic enough to buy one deserves to get ripped off!

If the wireless providers need to throttle they will and actually do. If Verizion feels that their 4G network can handle customers using up to 20gb per month, then who are you in saying that people should be throttled?

MovieLover76
join:2009-09-11
Cherry Hill, NJ
(Software) pfSense
Asus RT-AC68
Asus RT-AC66

1 edit

MovieLover76 to BiggA

Member

to BiggA
I use 2 -3gb a month even on light months when I don't travel.
and all that is is email, web, facebook and streaming rhapsody which I pay for $10 a month through Verizon.

I understand that many people get by on less than a gig and generally they don't stream any audio or video.
But how is using a service that Verizon promotes wasting bandwidth?
They also released an LG phone with netflix installed, you can't promote an app more that that.
Obviously they intend for it to be used on there wireless network.
BiggA
Premium Member
join:2005-11-23
Central CT

BiggA

Premium Member

For reference, I am a heavy, high-bandwidth smartphone user, and my monthly usage was 300-500MB on Android. I'm in the first month with my new 4S, but next month should give me a much better gauge on my usage with this device.
BiggA

BiggA

Premium Member

Verizon sells the higher packages because it's a numbers game. If a noticeable percentage of their customers subscribed to the higher packages, they would be in trouble bigtime. I think that the carriers should be required to throttle by default, however, so that people don't end up with unexpected domestic data charges on their bill.

The marketing and engineering departments of the carriers are out of whack, and the engineering departments need to reign in marketing departments who show streaming video and the like over 3G/4G networks. Some of the ads they come up with is appalling, and very ignorant of the limited nature of spectrum on mobile networks. Did they intend for that Netflix app to be used over licensed spectrum, however? You can use it with Wifi with ground-based backhaul. The math on Netflix OTA makes no sense, as you'd end up running over your cap in a few hours. That's why the cap is there: to discourage network abuse. If I were in Verizon's place, however, I wouldn't be putting Netflix on there be default, as people will somehow get the brilliant idea to stream OTA. Why people have the desire to stream OTA in the first place to a tiny little screen is a whole different issue.

Pandora sounds pretty good, even at 32kbps. It's a lot more than "bearable". It also is decent on the battery running at 32kbps. 3G was meant for data, but it can't support large quantities of streaming. That's what unlicensed wifi, and wired connectivity, is for. Those apps are intended to be used over wifi, not over 3G. There's also a reason why they limit the size of app downloads over 3G.
xenophon
join:2007-09-17

xenophon

Member

Is doubling for the life of 2 year contract?

Is not clear. Do you get the doubling for a month or 3 or for the life of the 2 year contract?

mushmouth
join:2001-12-13
Earth

mushmouth

Member

Re: Is doubling for the life of 2 year contract?

said by xenophon:

Is not clear. Do you get the doubling for a month or 3 or for the life of the 2 year contract?

I agree we need more info.I just re uped and am waiting for delivery of a 3g phone.If this offer is for life of contract I might switch to a 4g.

Bill Neilson
Premium Member
join:2009-07-08
Alexandria, VA

Bill Neilson

Premium Member

But, But...I thought Verizon couldnt do this

without severely damaging their system!!!!

Remember, anyone using the 2gb cap MUST stay under or else everyone elses internet will slow down!

MovieLover76
join:2009-09-11
Cherry Hill, NJ
(Software) pfSense
Asus RT-AC68
Asus RT-AC66

MovieLover76

Member

Re: But, But...I thought Verizon couldnt do this

They have plenty of unused 4G bandwidth, that's why 4G users aren't affected by 3G throttling practices, for the time being at least.
the numbers they give out are arbitrary against the backdrop of their network ability. The only meaning they have is that they are the numbers and quota verizon deemed would make them the most money without losing customers to AT&T.
tmc8080
join:2004-04-24
Brooklyn, NY

tmc8080

Member

sounds like

I was going to post a video of dog poop blowing up twice.. but you can find it for yourself on youtube.. or you can feed on VZW's new promotion. Same basic idea..
elray
join:2000-12-16
Santa Monica, CA

elray

Member

As predicted

While Karl does his best to rain on the parade, VZW's latest move affirms what I've been saying for years - we need not fear UBB; carriers will adjust bucket sizes to accommodate the masses and growth in average consumption.

•••••••

MxxCon
join:1999-11-19
Brooklyn, NY
ARRIS TM822
Actiontec MI424WR Rev. I

MxxCon

Member

But Verizon is losing money now!!

But Verizon was claiming that bandwidth isn't cheap, and they weren't scamming their customers, and they were charging normal market rates, how can they suddenly offer twice as much data for the same mount of money?!?!
They must be losing huge amounts of money!!!

(Or they are greedy fucks trying to squeeze every dollar from consumers and in reality they have no network bandwidth problems whatsoever...You decide).

The Limit
Premium Member
join:2007-09-25
Denver, CO

1 edit

The Limit

Premium Member

This is fishy...

What was the point in the original cap in the first place? The fact that Verizon Wireless is even running this promotion rules out the "congestion" excuse of having caps in the first place. Yes, increase the cap, and lengthen the contract by TWO YEARS! Who would do this? I mean, we are talking about double the cap, whoopdeedoo! Why would any "normal" consumer be interested in this deal if only the top 1% of said users consume 80% of available capacity? The normal consumer doesn't care...did I miss something here?
biochemistry
Premium Member
join:2003-05-09
92361

biochemistry

Premium Member

Verizon Fraud

What good is all this increased or unlimited data when Verizon still refuses to acknowledge a problem that exists on every single one of their smartphones? Namely, that the internet connection turns on and off all the live long day. Leave your internet on all night? I can guarantee you come morning time that you'll have to switch it off and on again to get internet. I can't watch Netflix because my connection will last about 5 minutes before needing to be restarted. I'm on my 4th Verizon LTE phone and they are all like that. I should state that I am well within the LTE coverage area and I rarely even use the internet outside my house. I had a Samsung LTE mobile hotspot device that never had this problem but for some reason all of Verizon's phones do, even the Samsung branded Charge.
biochemistry

biochemistry

Premium Member

Re: Verizon Fraud

Dear Karl Bode,

Could you please give this issue more press and perhaps force Verizon's hand? Thank you. I'm tired of resetting my internet connection every 5 seconds just to even post on dslreports.
ISurfTooMuch
join:2007-04-23
Tuscaloosa, AL

ISurfTooMuch

Member

This makes no sense for many folks

This plan really doesn't make sense for many people. After all, if you're eligible for an upgrade on an existing line, and you already have a smartphone, then you would have gotten your last upgrade nearly two years ago, so you already have unlimited data, which you ought to be able to keep after an upgrade.

This deal only makes sense for:

1. New customers
2. Existing customers adding a new line
3. Existing customers upgrading from a dumbphone

IowaCowboy
Lost in the Supermarket
Premium Member
join:2010-10-16
Springfield, MA

IowaCowboy

Premium Member

My iPhone data is unlimited

At least I am grandfathered, although my MiFi 4510L has a 5GB cap but I only use 1-2 GB per month. They would not let me keep my $35/3GB plan when I went to 4G on my MiFi. My voice minutes are unlimited as well as I have the $69 plan but I only get 250 text messages per month which is $5.
ShellMMG
join:2009-04-16
Grass Lake, MI

ShellMMG

Member

Tempting.

Ooooh...now that I have DSL and am no longer dependent on VZW for internet access at home, I'd *LOVE* to switch over to an LTE aircard for use with my iPad. I have no interest in a smartphone, but an LTE Mifi would be wonderful to have when shopping, traveling, etc.

I have a grandfathered Alltel aircard account...that's right, NO 5Gb cap. The contract ends next August but it's currently being used by a family friend suffering with an extended emergency (he pays me for it, of course). LTE also isn't available in my area yet -- it missed me by 10 miles!! -- but I'm sure it's coming.

It would be very nice if this plan was around next fall. The $30/4GB plan would be awesome, especially now that we're nearly empty nesters.
zeddlar
join:2007-04-09
Jay, OK

zeddlar

Member

Rip-off

A rip off is a rip off is a rip off and no matter how much you dress it up to look like a cute bunny these caps are still a rip off. I have unlimited and nope I don't even use a GB most months and I don't thing I have ever used 2GB but it is still a rip off to cap service this low with prices that high. Feel sorry for all the newer customers and for us with unlimited when that plan gets yanked.
mogamer
join:2011-04-20
Royal Oak, MI

1 edit

mogamer

Member

Re: Rip-off

said by zeddlar:

A rip off is a rip off is a rip off and no matter how much you dress it up to look like a cute bunny these caps are still a rip off. I have unlimited and nope I don't even use a GB most months and I don't thing I have ever used 2GB but it is still a rip off to cap service this low with prices that high. Feel sorry for all the newer customers and for us with unlimited when that plan gets yanked.

A satellite internet customer complaining about another services caps? That's pretty funny!
ShellMMG
join:2009-04-16
Grass Lake, MI

ShellMMG to zeddlar

Member

to zeddlar
Jay, I definitely sympathize with your current situation re: satellite internet access. I was with Wildblue for two years and it worked well until they got greedy: 1) they oversold the beams, 2) cut 25% download limits off all tiers, 3) didn't make a price adjustment, and 4) implemented traffic-shaping that murdered latency times (1100ms).

We jumped to Alltel when it became available and it worked *great* until Verizon Wireless took over. I have to say, Alltel's customer service and value was exceptional, as was their policy of true unlimited bandwidth. We depended on that aircard account until two weeks ago, when DSL *FINALLY* became available. VZW, however, has been very good at not forcing us to terminate our contract. When I had to make a choice last year they were happy to lock us in on the grandfathered plan, so we still have a 3G aircard with no cap. Regular money is regular money, and as much as they tease and tempt with shiny new phones and networks they're not going to cut you off your current service if you decide to re-up.

Our family use on the VZW aircard was about 20Gb a month, but that went down when they refused to deal with a tower issue and our maximum d/l speed was 30-40Kb. Even with the Install From Hell inflicted by Frontier, DSL is sheer heaven compared to what we've put up with.

I'd love an LTE aircard. We'd need our finances to loosen up a bit between now and next fall IF the deal stays available a long time, but mobile broadband has spoiled us rotten during extended trips.

Seriously, I hope a better ISP comes your way soon.
decifal7
join:2007-03-10
Bon Aqua, TN

decifal7

Member

ca

The caps at this low size is total bs. If people going over 2 gigs hurts their network than maybe a network inspection is in order.. They are in the business to deliver data and lots of it.. T1 lines supplying a tower covering hundreds of homes was a misuse of funds and should be corrected immediately. In theory 4g should be cheaper than 3g for users.. But we've yet to see this happen ::cough::cha ching ::cough::.

2 gigs for smart phones.... Try 5g verizon (if they must cap that is).. And 20 gigs for home use at the least... And god forbid, try to be reasonable. 80 for ten gigs (20gigs with the promotion) is still way to freaking expensive! Don't even get me started on the overages... Retarded.

mm2kay
@mchsi.com

mm2kay

Anon

Sprint

I regularly use 18-22GB a month on my sprint 4g network. 3-5GB maybe on the 3g network.

It's mostly netflix bandwidth since I work overnights at work, and silverlight isn't installed on the pc's

buddahbless
join:2005-03-21
Premium

buddahbless

Member

A pyramid scheme and magic trick

well the definition of a pyramid scheme ....is a non-sustainable business model that involves promising participants services, primarily for enrolling other people or themselves, and rather than supplying any real investment or sale of products or services to the public.

Not to mention Verizon stated months ago that LTE was there way of providing low cost broadband to everyone nationwide to keep up with the national broadband plan. However until Verizon offers LTE for the same price and amount of data usage as there FIOS "Unlimited"... this is just a magic trick.