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Comments on news posted 2014-07-08 13:00:53: Insiders tell CNET that Sprint will attempt to counter the company's flagging competitive fortunes by experimenting with a variety of lower-cost options for data. ..


spewak
R.I.P Dadkins
Premium Member
join:2001-08-07
Elk Grove, CA

2 recommendations

spewak

Premium Member

Dazzle them

If you can't dazzle them with substance, dazzle them with B.S.!

mehblahmeh
@70.62.240.x

1 recommendation

mehblahmeh

Anon

Re: Dazzle them

its "baffle them with BS." just say'n
grabacon9
join:2013-08-21
Newark, OH

grabacon9

Member

Rip off

Same Wireless Expensive Capped Plans. Will they ever learn?
78036364 (banned)
join:2014-05-06
USA

78036364 (banned)

Member

Re: Rip off

you want unlimited for free? Yes everyone stream Netflix in super HD I'm sure a mobile data network tower can handle 1000 super HD streams at once /sarcasm. Because mobile data runs on pixie pee and leprechaun turds.

fiosultimate
join:2014-06-09
San Antonio, TX

fiosultimate

Member

Re: Rip off

He probably also wants phone upgrades free every month at no cost
grabacon9
join:2013-08-21
Newark, OH

grabacon9

Member

Re: Rip off

Nope. You're wrong. I am not that big of an idiot.

DaSneaky1D
what's up
MVM
join:2001-03-29
The Lou

1 edit

DaSneaky1D to 78036364

MVM

to 78036364
said by 78036364:

you want unlimited for free?

Yes... That's what Sprint use to offer (using the same 3G and WiMax network they bragged about) and used to lure new customers. They "gave" data usage away for free when the, then, money grab was SMS charges and voice minutes.

Nowadays, Sprint could care less about voice minutes and SMS messaging when the competitive service is data-based messaging, VoIP and streaming content.

Sprint was a darling of the providers when they were acting as the disruptor in the industry. They botched a NexTel integration and had a HORRID network quality, but few cared when they allowed you to use your phone as a you'd like. Today, they're only better than T-Mobile because T-Mobile is still challenged in many areas and moderately cheaper than AT&T/Vz... yet the latter two have vastly superior capacity and expansion (arguably worth the increased expense).

tc1uscg
join:2005-03-09
Gulfport, MS

tc1uscg

Member

Re: Rip off

Sprint couldn't disrupt themselves out of a wet paper bag much less be a threat to anyone in the mobile world (including net10). They have a great track record. One of which they do not complete major projects they start. ION, Nextel, Wimax (just to name 3 big ones). So, they seem to be jumping around more then a one legged man in a azz kicking contest, they are not getting any better at what they provide.

graycorgi
Premium Member
join:2004-02-23

graycorgi

Premium Member

Re: Rip off

They're still significantly better than T-Mobile in some markets (mine included). As long as this is the case and people still hate AT&T and Verizon, Sprint will still have a revenue source.

tc1uscg
join:2005-03-09
Gulfport, MS

tc1uscg

Member

Re: Rip off

With roaming agreements with 20+ carriers, Net10 or Tracfone is still the most reliable cell service

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

MovieLover76

Member

Re: Rip off

I've been on Net10/Straight Talk/Tracfone and while calls and texts were ok, data was awful constant issues. I wouldn't call it reliable, not when talking about data at least.

Cricket is a better alternative in my book if you need broad coverage, though it may miss a few areas, but for the vast majority it's enough coverage.

graycorgi
Premium Member
join:2004-02-23

graycorgi to tc1uscg

Premium Member

to tc1uscg
I definitely agree with you if you're talking about voice coverage

tc uscg
@74.115.237.x

tc uscg

Anon

Re: Rip off

Yep, that's all that matters when the chips are down. Sorry, I should have said voice. But if you have voice, you got text. Take a real GPS/Compass and your good in the back woods.

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

MovieLover76 to graycorgi

Member

to graycorgi
While what you say is true, Sprint will still have a revenue source in a market as long as T-mobile doesn't improve coverage in that area and people continue to hate AT&T and Verizon.

That doesn't make it the best choice for most customers. you can get a pretty good deal on prepaid AT&T towers on cricket for unlimted talk/text and 5gb of data for $60 and it's far more reliable.
And T-mobile is improving by leaps and bounds, while Sprint pokes along. If the merger doesn't go through, the areas where Sprint is significantly better than T-mobile will gradually decrease. As will Sprint's customer base.

graycorgi
Premium Member
join:2004-02-23

graycorgi

Premium Member

Re: Rip off

T-Mobile doesn't have a single LTE tower here, and most are EDGE At least in my market, T-Mobile has deteriorated significantly. The T-Mobile HSPA speeds here (when you can get HSPA anyway) have gotten almost as bad as when Sprint first started selling the iPhone during peak hours.

As far as Cricket, it's definitely a good choice if you want to pay full price for your device. They don't have the HTC One M8 though. When you factor in device cost, it's really not that great of a deal unless you are wanting to go with a low end phone.

BronsCon
join:2003-10-24
Fairfield, CA

BronsCon

Member

Re: Rip off

said by graycorgi:

T-Mobile doesn't have a single LTE tower here, and most are EDGE At least in my market, T-Mobile has deteriorated significantly. The T-Mobile HSPA speeds here (when you can get HSPA anyway) have gotten almost as bad as when Sprint first started selling the iPhone during peak hours.

As far as Cricket, it's definitely a good choice if you want to pay full price for your device. They don't have the HTC One M8 though. When you factor in device cost, it's really not that great of a deal unless you are wanting to go with a low end phone.

They're also growing faster than anyone could have expected over the past year; and they're expanding their network at a decent rate, though I wish they'd pick it up a bit faster. I've been with them for 14 months now and I will say I've seen my LTE speeds halved in that time.

But at the same time, there was no LTE service at my apartment or in my office (there was NO service in my office) when I signed up. 3 months in, I had 1 bar of LTE at my apartment and 2 bars of EDGE in my office. Last week, that became 5 (of 5 on my phone) bars of LTE and 4 bars of HSPA.

Unlimited data for all (unlimited LTE data if you pay for it) and the fact that music streaming services and speed tests no longer count against your LTE quota (not that I have one, I pay for the unlimited), combined with their insane recent growth more than accounts for the drop from 40mbps on average to 20mbps on average; and that's still faster than my home connection, so I'm not gonna complain about it.

You should see LTE there soon, they're building out their network at a decent rate now.

graycorgi
Premium Member
join:2004-02-23

graycorgi

Premium Member

Re: Rip off

If I could get 20mbps I definitely wouldn't complain. Heck I'd be happy with 5mbps. T-Mobile here struggles to get even that, so I hope the upgrades are soon. Sprint is pretty much done upgrading our area and the service here is way better than when I first became a Sprint customer. T-Mobile will probably make the same achievement once they upgrade their towers to LTE in this area.

fiosultimate
join:2014-06-09
San Antonio, TX

fiosultimate to DaSneaky1D

Member

to DaSneaky1D
And back in the day if you owned a certain amount of land the government used to let u have slaves to work the land.......times change

tc1uscg
join:2005-03-09
Gulfport, MS

tc1uscg

Member

Re: Rip off

Yep, and the govt was also known for taking land from those who owned it or lived there for generations. Now, it seems even the reservations are shrinking in the name of mineral rights.

Kuro
@75.151.50.x

Kuro to 78036364

Anon

to 78036364
Its not like they are not getting a profit. Use some of that to invest in new tech so that we can all watch super HD Netflix and not make their network run at a crawl. Seems like most capped plans (mobile and broadband) are just ways to charge the consumer more and not have to make any advances.
AmericanMan
Premium Member
join:2013-12-28
united state

AmericanMan to 78036364

Premium Member

to 78036364
I wouldn't expect unlimited anytime soon but I think lower overage charges would be appreciated.

Our AT&T overage is $15/GB so I watch that like a hawk and we try our hardest to not go over, but if it was something like say $2.50/GB I would probably go 'eh, it's worth it to watch an extra Netflix movie or two' and just pay the additional cost for an extra gigabyte or two.

Imagine the promotional opportunities ("2 gigabytes for just five dollars!").

I mean, the tower is a sunk cost, at some point you think they'd run the risk of losing money if they've got this underutilized tower that's just sitting there because everybody's afraid of going over their monthly bandwidth..

IPPlanMan
Holy Cable Modem Batman
join:2000-09-20
Washington, DC

IPPlanMan

Member

Re: Rip off

Whether you use the data or not, you're already paying for it. Overages are just icing on the cake. Pure profit.

They lost the markup on texts and so had to replace it with data.

The cost structure of this whole industry is a joke. We've been deluded into believing this is what it should cost.
78204168 (banned)
join:2013-02-28

78204168 (banned) to 78036364

Member

to 78036364
another douchebag that automatically assumes that everyone with a smartphone will immediately start watching HD video if they knew they had unlimited data.

I'm willing to bet that if all the carriers just dropped data caps altogether and never made mention of it, most of the slaves would continue on as they always have...

BronsCon
join:2003-10-24
Fairfield, CA

BronsCon

Member

Re: Rip off

said by 78204168:

another douchebag that automatically assumes that everyone with a smartphone will immediately start watching HD video if they knew they had unlimited data.

I'm willing to bet that if all the carriers just dropped data caps altogether and never made mention of it, most of the slaves would continue on as they always have...

Aye! My unlimited data through T-Mobile sees about 90GB/mo of usage and most of that is *upstream*, my dashcam app uploading its videos to my backup server. I guess, technically I'm streaming HD video, but not in the direction grabacon9 is worried about.
BiggA
Premium Member
join:2005-11-23
Central CT

BiggA to 78036364

Premium Member

to 78036364
Your point is completely valid from a network perspective. The problem is that Sprint has nothing else to go on. If the plans are capped, people will just go to AT&T or Verizon. Sprint is desperate.
grabacon9
join:2013-08-21
Newark, OH

grabacon9 to 78036364

Member

to 78036364
No. I want reasonable caps.
wkm001
join:2009-12-14

wkm001 to grabacon9

Member

to grabacon9
Verizon is selling 250MB of data for $15. I think we can all agree 250MB is not enough data for a modern smart phone. 1GB for $20 is at least a better starting place.

tc1uscg
join:2005-03-09
Gulfport, MS

tc1uscg

Member

Re: Rip off

Heck, my phone uses 250mb of data just booting up..
jagged
join:2003-07-01
Boynton Beach, FL

jagged to grabacon9

Member

to grabacon9
well someone has to pay for the cows in Wyoming to be covered with LTE

n2jtx
join:2001-01-13
Glen Head, NY

2 recommendations

n2jtx

Member

Lower Cost Capped Plans on A Throttled Network?

What is the point of this whole thing? I have an unlimited plan that I cannot even use (thank god public WiFi is readily available here or I would be totally disconnected). Now they want to introduce limited plans. Gee, they could put me on a 250MB/month plan and I still probably would not hit the limit unless I really really tried. And they expect to fix the network problems in the next year!?!? Been hearing that since 2011 when my employer switched me to Sprint. I am sure in 2015 it will still be "next year". Not holding my breath...
patt2k
join:2009-01-16

patt2k

Member

Re: Lower Cost Capped Plans on A Throttled Network?

said by n2jtx:

What is the point of this whole thing? I have an unlimited plan that I cannot even use (thank god public WiFi is readily available here or I would be totally disconnected). Now they want to introduce limited plans. Gee, they could put me on a 250MB/month plan and I still probably would not hit the limit unless I really really tried. And they expect to fix the network problems in the next year!?!? Been hearing that since 2011 when my employer switched me to Sprint. I am sure in 2015 it will still be "next year". Not holding my breath...

Question is why are you still with Sprint?

n2jtx
join:2001-01-13
Glen Head, NY

n2jtx

Member

Re: Lower Cost Capped Plans on A Throttled Network?

said by patt2k:

Question is why are you still with Sprint?

The iPhone and service are paid for by my employer. The iPhone is fully paid off and I would go back to T-Mobile, who I had before I was handed the iPhone and paid service with Sprint, but Sprint refuses to remove the domestic SIM lock on my phone. So I am looking at having a brick by moveing the number AND having to buy a new phone to do what my iPhone should be able to do if Sprint wasn't being a bunch of a$$es and refusing to unlock it. Apple says it can be unlocked for use with a T-Mobile SIM but Sprint has to approve. Their response is hell no.
patt2k
join:2009-01-16

patt2k

Member

Re: Lower Cost Capped Plans on A Throttled Network?

said by n2jtx:

said by patt2k:

Question is why are you still with Sprint?

The iPhone and service are paid for by my employer. The iPhone is fully paid off and I would go back to T-Mobile, who I had before I was handed the iPhone and paid service with Sprint, but Sprint refuses to remove the domestic SIM lock on my phone. So I am looking at having a brick by moveing the number AND having to buy a new phone to do what my iPhone should be able to do if Sprint wasn't being a bunch of a$$es and refusing to unlock it. Apple says it can be unlocked for use with a T-Mobile SIM but Sprint has to approve. Their response is hell no.

That sucks man. T-Mobile however could pay your ETF and take that iPhone gladly ;p just convince your employer to pay your T-MO bill hehe
AmericanMan
Premium Member
join:2013-12-28
united state

AmericanMan to n2jtx

Premium Member

to n2jtx
We have an grandfathered unlimited plan which isn't throttled but lately it's been having trouble keeping up with the load.

They tell us our tower is slated to be upgraded to 4G by the end of the year, so we're hoping for that.

Moofaa
@174.47.194.x

Moofaa

Anon

Re: Lower Cost Capped Plans on A Throttled Network?

When they upgraded our local towers to 4g they throttled our 3g device down to 1xrtt (less than dial-up) speeds. They won't let you upgrade without getting a new (capped) 4g plan. Fuck Sprint.

Dest
Bolo
Premium Member
join:2000-03-21
Naperville, IL

Dest to n2jtx

Premium Member

to n2jtx
Probably just your area.... I live in the Metro Chicago area and easily fly past 2GB a month, coverage has also noticeably improved now that B26/800mhz LTE has been turned on for the Chicago area, of course you need a compatible (Spark) device to take advantage. B41/2500mhz TDLTE coverage is still a bit hit or miss though but I've regularly hit 40mbps or even hit 60mbps+ when I had a strong signal on B41.

I know Downtown Chicago was congested/saturated before, but the recent deployment of the second B25/1900mhz LTE channel using the bandwidth acquired from US Cellular have helped ALOT
wkm001
join:2009-12-14

wkm001

Member

I wonder...

If AT&T and Verizon are more threatened by T-Mobile or Sprint? My family of four uses 5-6GB of data per month on the AT&T 10GB plan. It is nice that I would get double the data for the same price, but the difference isn't big enough when taking Sprint's lack of 4G into account.

CDMA 3G is like a 56K modem and LTE is like a cable modem. I just don't see myself going back to either.

AppleDan
@216.145.89.x

-1 recommendation

AppleDan

Anon

Not Bad

Really these plans aren't bad and very few users actually need unlimited, I think we all know that even Sprint and T-Mobile are slowly going to phase out unlimited. T-Mobile has already raised Unlimited by $10 and pushes the capped data plans as well and Sprint has been heading to capped data with Framily offerings and now these plans. That being said these plans aren't bad, $65 a month for Unlimited Talking/Texting plus 4 GB of data on a smart phone is a pretty good deal for a post paid service with a smart phone.
nonymous (banned)
join:2003-09-08
Glendale, AZ

nonymous (banned)

Member

Re: Not Bad

I believe.if you are talking about an individual user they are testing some even better individual plans.
sonicmerlin
join:2009-05-24
Cleveland, OH

sonicmerlin to AppleDan

Member

to AppleDan
I think you're the only one who thinks they'll phase out unlimited. LTE has a 10x capacity upgrade due out over the next few years. Capacity is abundant.
kboxvegas4
join:2001-11-29
Las Vegas, NV

kboxvegas4

Member

crazy pills

Why the hell are they testing this is Las Vegas? They have not even officially launched LTE in Vegas yet...

IPPlanMan
Holy Cable Modem Batman
join:2000-09-20
Washington, DC

IPPlanMan

Member

Price isn't the problem Sprint...

Price isn't the problem Sprint.

Your deployment schedule for 800 MHZ and Spark is much too slow.

Oh, and you haven't updated your coverage maps since June 13th.

••••••••••
tmc8080
join:2004-04-24
Brooklyn, NY

tmc8080

Member

new fancy tv ads, same shell game

disruptive pricing would be more like $20 for 20gb (not 1gb) $30 for 30gb and so on..

I don't see how paying for more furry masked rodents characters dancing on tv is going to budge market share.. I never saw the connection between the marketing of a boxy car for urban hipsters with overpriced wireless service... boggles the mind on who's pulling the ad purse strings..

BTW,
Word on the blogosphere is that the NSA and clandestine agencies are monitoring wireless data more than landline data these days for "CHATTER"... seems worthy of a 2-part southpark episode..

whiteshp
join:2002-03-05
Xenia, OH

whiteshp

Member

Same old-same old

They never want to rock the boat. They want to RAISE their plan structure/prices to match the big 2 (AT&T-Verizon) then just knock a few dollars off and parade like it's the second coming! Then they don't get why they can't "I don't care" gut consumers like the big networks do and have them running to sprint in droves. Profit margins are so high with wireless unless they follow T-mobiles lead and push something with better price+value to lure customers they are are just a "no-value" smaller network copycat.

If you want sprint service for cheap+Verizon coverage combined as well then switch to Ting: »ting.com/rates THIS is something like what sprint would need to do if they really want to shake up the industry.

jchambers28
Premium Member
join:2007-05-12
Peculiar, MO

jchambers28

Premium Member

shit coverage and BS fees included

And shit coverage and Bull shit fees are included.
tabernak4
join:2013-08-10

tabernak4

Member

Not a game changer

The lower GB plans are on par with what you can find with any carrier and the higher GB plans are a bit more than At&t and Verizon's fixed wireless plans ($90 for 20 and $120 for 30). This also sort of smacks of what perhaps former Clearwire users can expect for an alternative once that goes dead at the end of 2015.

For a game changer on smartphones you probably need it to be around $5/GB or less and for fixed wireless around $2/GB or less.

whfsdude
Premium Member
join:2003-04-05
Washington, DC

1 recommendation

whfsdude

Premium Member

Not Really A Bargain

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I can get a 11GB/month internet only plan on T-Mobile for $70/mo. (Technically $60 as I have a voice plan). Once I go over I'm throttled and don't have overages. The network also has IPv6! Why would I bother with these Sprint plans?

This doesn't even compete with T-Mobile's unlimited. If you actually use a phone (no tethering) you'll do a lot more than 10GB/month.

Sprint isn't even trying to compete. They're just looking to buy out the competition and keep the status quo in the wireless industry.

acadiel
Press fire to begin
Premium Member
join:2002-06-22
Atlanta

acadiel

Premium Member

Still trying to figure out how this is a good deal...

Compared to their 7-10 Framily tier, with unlimited everything for $45.
nonymous (banned)
join:2003-09-08
Glendale, AZ

nonymous (banned)

Member

Re: Still trying to figure out how this is a good deal...

They may alao be tweaking framily for the least cost with fewer members also.
DarnellP
join:2004-10-12
Las Vegas, NV

DarnellP

Member

Re: Still trying to figure out how this is a good deal...

said by nonymous:

They may alao be tweaking framily for the least cost with fewer members also.

Yes, though surprisingly, or perhaps not surprisingly, that isn't detailed at all here...Anyway:
quote:
Sprint is also testing out a discounted version of its Framily plan in Buffalo, N.Y.; Philadelphia; and Providence, R.I. The altered plan starts at $45 a month, or $10 less than the official Framily plan. It drops to a bottom of $25 a month at five people, while the official plan doesn't hit $25 until seven people join up under the same friends and family program.

why60loss
Premium Member
join:2012-09-20

why60loss

Premium Member

I was right

Unlimited data on sprint will die. They will now do $10 per GB like the other two.

Kiss low pricing good bye if T-mobile becomes part of sprint. You shall be getting rate jacks for the pure sake of profit and nothing else because they can with T-Mobile getting removed.