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Comments on news posted 2008-02-19 12:00:31: As leaks predicted, Verizon today announced that they've started offering customers the option of paying $99.99 for unlimited domestic calling. ..

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hopeflicker
Capitalism breeds greed
Premium Member
join:2003-04-03
Long Beach, CA

hopeflicker

Premium Member

Here we go again!

Unlimited??

What is "their" definition of unlimited?

Dogfather
Premium Member
join:2007-12-26
Laguna Hills, CA

Dogfather

Premium Member

Re: Here we go again!

Depends on what your definition of "is" is.

WeSRT4
join:2000-11-20
Mobile, AL

WeSRT4

Member

Re: Here we go again!

lol

Bill Clinton
@verizon.net

Bill Clinton to Dogfather

Anon

to Dogfather
said by Dogfather:

Depends on what your definition of "is" is.
Depends on what your definition of "definition" is.

N3OGH
Yo Soy Col. "Bat" Guano
Premium Member
join:2003-11-11
Philly burbs

1 recommendation

N3OGH

Premium Member

Re: Here we go again!

Depends?

You mean the adult diaper?

hopeflicker
Capitalism breeds greed
Premium Member
join:2003-04-03
Long Beach, CA

hopeflicker to Dogfather

Premium Member

to Dogfather
said by Dogfather:

Depends on what your definition of "is" is.
The skies the limit

jgkolt
Premium Member
join:2004-02-21
Avon, OH

jgkolt to hopeflicker

Premium Member

to hopeflicker
Many companies have done this deal before, i wait to see if this sticks. last major player to do this besides sprint recently was att wireless before the cingular att transference.

netwire
Premium Member
join:2001-04-27
Dallas, NC

netwire to hopeflicker

Premium Member

to hopeflicker
said by hopeflicker:

Unlimited??

What is "their" definition of unlimited?
I think what they mean by unlimited is that you can stay connected to the service for an unlimited amount of time without them dropping your session - much like what "unlimited" dial-up was at the start.

FFH5
Premium Member
join:2002-03-03
Tavistock NJ

3 recommendations

FFH5

Premium Member

Must talk non-stop to make these prices worthwhile

I wouldn't call these plans a bargain by any stretch of the imagination. You must be on your cell hours per day to make these plans worthwhile.

If you are a salesman always in your car talking to your customers all day long - OK. But for most normal people(freaks who never get off the phone excluded), these plans are twice or 3x as much as you need to pay.

en102
Canadian, eh?
join:2001-01-26
Valencia, CA

en102

Member

Re: Must talk non-stop to make these prices worthwhile

I agree.. these are good for business people, or those wanting to ditch their landlines completely.
I usually hit ~3-5 hours of calls (sometime 8-10) / day on my work Nextel for conference calls.

Jeff
Connoisseur of leisurely things
Premium Member
join:2002-12-24
GMT -5

Jeff to FFH5

Premium Member

to FFH5
said by FFH5:

I wouldn't call these plans a bargain by any stretch of the imagination. You must be on your cell hours per day to make these plans worthwhile.

If you are a salesman always in your car talking to your customers all day long - OK. But for most normal people(freaks who never get off the phone excluded), these plans are twice or 3x as much as you need to pay.
Agreed. It's about time that they have these unlimited cell plans, but that $100 price point is way too high for me, who barely uses 400 minutes a month.

Only people I see this worth-while for are sales or business people always on the go. Although I'm sure Mommy and Daddy someplace will pay the $100/mo for their 15 year old to have unlimited talk time.

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

Matt3 to FFH5

Premium Member

to FFH5
said by FFH5:

I wouldn't call these plans a bargain by any stretch of the imagination. You must be on your cell hours per day to make these plans worthwhile.

If you are a salesman always in your car talking to your customers all day long - OK. But for most normal people(freaks who never get off the phone excluded), these plans are twice or 3x as much as you need to pay.
No kidding. The single line isn't too bad, but the Family Share at approximately $329 for 3 line Select Plan is absolutely ludicrous.

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

n2jtx

Member

I'm Glad To See...

...that Verizon is continuing to work hard at keeping their reputation as one of the priciest providers. I almost got a nosebleed trying to figure out how all the different options tie together. Too bad they could not just say, for $99.95/month you get (truly) unlimited voice, data and SMS/MMS. Easy to figure out.

WeSRT4
join:2000-11-20
Mobile, AL

WeSRT4

Member

Too expensive

This is too expensive for most consumers. Nice try though.
Nightwchtr
join:2001-09-10
Centreville, VA

Nightwchtr

Member

Re: Too expensive

Agreed, I would never pay that much for unlimited no matter what time of the day. I don't think to many business will go with it either seeing as there is a recession going on and everyone is trying to save the btm line.
BuzzDar
join:2006-01-28
West Frankfort, IL

BuzzDar

Member

No Monthly Discounts Apply

*Our surcharges (incl. Fed. Univ. Svc. of 10.2% of interstate & int'l telecom charges [varies quarterly], 7¢ Regulatory & 70¢ Administrative/line/mo.
& others by area) are not taxes (details:1-888-684-1888); gov't taxes and our surcharges could add 4%–35% to your bill. Activation fee/line: $35
($25 for secondary Family SharePlan® lines w/2-yr. Agmts.). IMPORTANT CONSUMER INFORMATION: Subject to Customer Agmt., Calling Plan &
credit approval. Up to $175 early-termination fee and $1.99/MB (including Mobile Web ads). Monthly access discounts not available. Offers &
coverage, varying by service, not available everywhere. Network details & coverage maps at vzw.com. Limited-time offer. © 2008 Verizon Wireless
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned)

Member

Why bother with a family plan?

right now I have a family plan with 3 lines. This pricing scheme 3 seperate lines is the same as family plan with 3 lines. Stupid stupid. It's called BUNDLED DISCOUNT verizon!

karlmarx
join:2006-09-18
Moscow, ID

karlmarx

Member

What a total RIPOFF

Haha, as I predicted, the 'unlimited' isn't unlimited at all. With their rates, and assuming an average 600Kb/sec EDVO, you will run out of data in about 16 hours. If you DID use it at 600Kb/sec for the entire month (i.e. to replace your satellite), you would have a staggering $92,521.00 BILL. That's for 180 GB. Compare that to a satellite, where you get 13GB/month for $99.00, you would only need to buy 13 Plans to get the same 180GB/month, for a total cost of about $13,000.00

As usual, Verizon is LYING about the use of the word 'unlimited' in every aspect that counts.
Nightwchtr
join:2001-09-10
Centreville, VA

Nightwchtr

Member

Re: What a total RIPOFF

you just now figured that out?
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

1 recommendation

88615298 (banned) to karlmarx

Member

to karlmarx
said by karlmarx:

Haha, as I predicted, the 'unlimited' isn't unlimited at all. With their rates, and assuming an average 600Kb/sec EDVO, you will run out of data in about 16 hours. If you DID use it at 600Kb/sec for the entire month (i.e. to replace your satellite), you would have a staggering $92,521.00 BILL. That's for 180 GB. Compare that to a satellite, where you get 13GB/month for $99.00, you would only need to buy 13 Plans to get the same 180GB/month, for a total cost of about $13,000.00

As usual, Verizon is LYING about the use of the word 'unlimited' in every aspect that counts.
"Internet Access
Mobile Office Kits, PC Cards, PDAs or other wireless modem devices may not be used for Internet access without a subscription to select VZEmail or VZAccess plans."

yet the offer clearly says "Mobile web 2.0 OR HTML browsing"

Done_Posting
Shoot to kill
Premium Member
join:2003-08-22
Toledo, OH

Done_Posting

Premium Member

Re: What a total RIPOFF

Simply pathetic, but of course that's what I've come to expect from Verizon "5GB Unlimited" Wireless. I'll stick with my truly unlimited Sprint EVDO, thanks.

- Tate
tenorsaw1
join:2003-07-10
Brooklyn, NY

tenorsaw1

Member

People will sign up...

The thing is, a lot of people don't think the way people here do. Most normal working class people do not need this plan. However, I can guarantee that people will be signing up for this plan in droves. It's just something about the word unlimited that gets people going.

The only people I can imagine needing this plan are people who work outdoors (truckers, real estate agents, etc.).
ggultra2764
join:2007-09-13
Cambridge, NY

ggultra2764

Member

Once again...

Sprint's still the clear choice for unlimited data usage and not so limited use of Internet service. When will Verizon Wireless taka a hint?

HarleyYac
Lee
Premium Member
join:2001-10-13
Allendale, NJ

HarleyYac

Premium Member

No deal

Hi,
While my plan is not unlimited with sprint I have the 1400 Min Shared plan, Free weekends, including texting 7 Pm to 7 AM and pay $109 with tax for 4 phones.Whith hardly a dropped call.
This is with discounts from the "retention department" I never go over Nice try.

AbBaZaBbA
Premium Member
join:2002-07-10
Wildomar, CA

AbBaZaBbA

Premium Member

Re: No deal

sprint sero > *

30$/month for 500 min, unlimited text, unlimited data.

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

Matt3

Premium Member

Re: No deal

said by AbBaZaBbA:

sprint sero > *

30$/month for 500 min, unlimited text, unlimited data.
While that is a great deal, you probably broke the rules to get it, and most people would burn through 500 minutes easily.

I was much happier with my Sprint service (aside from the customer service portion) than my current Verizon service. The calls were clearer and dropped less. I just didn't want to hassle with trying to trick Sprint into giving me a SERO plan ...

N3OGH
Yo Soy Col. "Bat" Guano
Premium Member
join:2003-11-11
Philly burbs

N3OGH

Premium Member

Re: No deal

I never burn though 500 minuets a month.

And I know a lot of folks who don't....

Majestik
World Traveler
Premium Member
join:2001-05-11
Tulsa, OK

Majestik

Premium Member

Re: No deal

I'm barely over 500 minutes a year.

karlmarx
join:2006-09-18
Moscow, ID

karlmarx to N3OGH

Member

to N3OGH
Honestly, I'm suprised MORE people don't use prepaid. I mean, t-mobile (GSM) which I have offers 1000 minutes for $100.00, and it lasts for a year. If you don't use text messaging, spend the $100.00, and let your minutes last as long as you want. My $100.00 fill is almost 5 months old, and I've still got about 500 minutes left (granted, I've only been in the US for about 45 days, and I switch my SIM card to Iraqi number when I am here). But even at home, a 300 minute month is a LOT for me.

In comparison, I was paying sprint almost $55.00 (with all the fees and taxes and surcharges were done) for a 400 minute plan.

Prepaid for a LOT of people just makes more sense, but we've been conditioned to respond to the 'low' advertised price for services we don't need, AND are totally false. Just look at Verizon. The REAL price of the $99.00 plan is ACTUALLY $124.00 a month. (depends on where you live, but that's a rough estimate). I'll bet fully 85% of the people who do sign up for the plan will be paying MORE than they would with prepaid.

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

jchambers28

Premium Member

Re: No deal

I have a cricket phone I pay $53.00 a month with unlimited talk text and picture mess ageing

Majestik
World Traveler
Premium Member
join:2001-05-11
Tulsa, OK

2 edits

Majestik to karlmarx

Premium Member

to karlmarx
I've been paying $100/year for T-mobile prepaid as well and satisfied.

Paying a cellphone bill that is more per month than my gasoline,electric,water,and natural gas bills combined just to talk would bother me.

Vtblues
if you can't get out of it, get in to it
Premium Member
join:2006-05-29
Brookfield, VT

Vtblues to N3OGH

Premium Member

to N3OGH
said by N3OGH:

I never burn though 500 minuets a month.

And I know a lot of folks who don't....
I bet your cute doing the minuet

N3OGH
Yo Soy Col. "Bat" Guano
Premium Member
join:2003-11-11
Philly burbs

N3OGH

Premium Member

Re: No deal

Even with lexdixia....

What the hell, I'm a grammar Nazi. I deserve a bit of my own medicine now and again..

Jerm
join:2000-04-10
Richland, WA
·Ziply Fiber

Jerm to Matt3

Member

to Matt3
Sero also has 1250mins for $50/month.

»www.sprint.com/sero

Enter: savings@sprintemi.com
Use your zip, and order!

See all the info here:
»www.fatwallet.com/forums ··· d=680568


AbBaZaBbA
Premium Member
join:2002-07-10
Wildomar, CA

AbBaZaBbA

Premium Member

Re: No deal

and if you order sero contact a current sero subscriber and get their phone #. Put in their # as a referral (within 14 days or so of activation) and you and the person who "referred" you each get a $25 prepaid visa card.

Any questions you can pm me

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

Matt3

Premium Member

Re: No deal

said by AbBaZaBbA:

and if you order sero contact a current sero subscriber and get their phone #. Put in their # as a referral (within 14 days or so of activation) and you and the person who "referred" you each get a $25 prepaid visa card.

Any questions you can pm me
Unscrupulous thieves, the lot of you.
unoriginal
Premium Member
join:2000-07-12
San Diego, CA

unoriginal to Matt3

Premium Member

to Matt3
What trick? Go to sprint.com/sero and use the email savings@sprintemi.com. I did this about 6 months ago and it was the best decision I have made about wireless service in the past couple years. Before that I suffered through the (old)AT&T wireless sellout to Cingular that made me want to switch to someone else.

•••••••
lvlorpheus
join:2008-02-17
Springdale, AR

lvlorpheus

Member

Even the FCC's definition is better than this.

I think we would all agree that the FCC's definition of of broadband is pretty week. I find all of these unlimited/LIMITED plans to be not just a joke, but in many ways a lie. The FCC says broadband is 200 KB/s as broad band. Now I think my math is correct, but I am sure if I have made a mistake many of you will be happy to correct me. Please do because if I am correct these unlimited/LIMITED plan need to be corrected by the FCC who needs to begin to protect the consumer more and the giant phone co. less. OK, 200 KB x 60 seconds x 60 minutes x 24 hours x 30 days = 51.84 GB. So, is advertising a 5 GB unlimited BROADBAND connection a month really a monthly broadband connection.

••••••

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

Matt3

Premium Member

Email Verizon Your Thoughts

I emailed my displeasure at the pricing on the family plan tier and I urge everyone to do the same.

»www.verizonwireless.com/ ··· mail.jsp

Not that it is likely to do much good, it's worth a shot.

VerizonUser
@comcast.net

VerizonUser

Anon

Re: Email Verizon Your Thoughts

I did the same thing. Emailed them about their family tier offering no cost savings what-so-ever, vs getting 2 single lines (for example). That's not a good deal at all, by any stretch of the immagination. If 99 dollars for the first line, and say, 19 for each additional, or something like that, then o.k. maybe I would consider that (I stress maybe).

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

Matt3

Premium Member

Re: Email Verizon Your Thoughts

Here is the response I received:


Dear XXXX,

Good evening, my name is XXXX, and I will be delighted to assist you with your question concerning the our Unlimited Share plan.

Verizon Wireless values your business and we are sorry to hear that you are not happy with the pricing of our new Unlimited calling plan. Verizon Wireless is always looking for ways to enhance marketing to better meet the needs of our customers. Your comments have been forwarded to our marketing department for review and consideration. Your feedback provides us with the perfect opportunity to hear exactly what you think, and often leads to improvements you will see in the future.

Currently we are still offering our Nationwide calling plans that are non-Unlimited calling for the option to change your calling plan to receive more minutes.

To view our available calling plans, you may click on this direct link to our website, where you will be provided with detailed information such as allowance of minutes and applicable roaming and long-distance charges:

www.verizonwireless.com/plans

It was my pleasure to assist you today.

We appreciate your business. Please contact us at our website for any of your future needs. Again, thank you for using Verizon Wireless products and services.

Sincerely,

XXXX
Verizon Wireless
Customer Service
Prespd
join:2004-03-10
Wyoming, MI

Prespd

Member

And that's why I tried Helio

And this is the reason I tried and have Helio:

$65/month, 500minutes all data and stuff unlimited. I don't use enough minutes for the current promo on $99 in lieu of $145/month or something like that for Unlimited Everything.

Sure they're an MVNO, but until it folds, I'm sticking with it and get all the good from Sprint and being able to use Verizon without roaming.

XPAMD
Premium Member
join:2002-06-08
united state

XPAMD

Premium Member

A RIP OFF!!!

$100 for the first line, I can understand, but $100 ea. additional line is absolutely ridiculuous when the per min plan it's $10 each additoinal line, even on the 6000 min/month plan.

timcuth
Braves Fan
Premium Member
join:2000-09-18
Pelham, AL
Technicolor ET2251

timcuth

Premium Member

Re: A RIP OFF!!!

said by XPAMD:

$100 for the first line, I can understand, but $100 ea. additional line is absolutely ridiculuous when the per min plan it's $10 each additoinal line, even on the 6000 min/month plan.
That is exactly what I was thinking. My at&t Family Plan is 700 prime time minutes per month between three phones. The base price is $80 for all three. Two of the phones have unlimited data and 200 messages per month, each. The total of all of this is $120 per month before taxes and bs un-fees. No, we don't have anything approaching unlimited voice calls, but on the other hand we have never used all of our minutes. Our rollover minutes just keep building up, month by month.

Some people may need or want this new Verizon plan, but I would never even consider it.

Tim
Doug135
join:2008-01-12
Laredo, TX

Doug135

Member

AT&T

just announced that they too have a unlimited plan. I didn't read into it, but i wonder if it'll be any better.
lefty1
join:2002-10-25
Clay, NY

lefty1

Member

Re: AT&T

said by Doug135:

just announced that they too have a unlimited plan.
AT&T's will be essentially the same as Verizon's, and it will be available this Friday. I wonder when Sprint and T-Mobile will announce their plans, and what their price-point will be? I'll bet one or both of them undercuts the $99-a-month.

PolarBear03
The bear formerly known as aaron8301
Premium Member
join:2005-01-03

PolarBear03

Premium Member

Holy Shit

With my service provider, I get unlimited messaging (SMS and MMS) for $10/month for all 4 phones on my account. I also get completely unlimited, NOT-walled-garden internet on my phone, which I can tether to my laptop and use on it, for $20/month. Granted the internet isn't nearly as fast, but slow, unrestricted and unlimited is better than fast, walled, and limited in my book.

TheEndorphin
@comcast.net

TheEndorphin

Anon

VZ going down

So VZ thinks that they can still charge 99/mo for the same thing ATT is offering for the same price? ATT supposedly has a bigger footprint. I love my sprint. The Customer Service is shitty sometimes..not often but coverage is great and I love SERO!
»www.chicagotribune.com/b ··· 83.story
Mr Matt
join:2008-01-29
Eustis, FL

Mr Matt

Member

Do the Math

It looks like the price for Two Line Unlimited Family Plan is the same as the 4000 Minute Family Plan. I wonder if Verizon's strange math considers any usage over 4000 minutes as exceeding the limits of unlimited. I do not understand why the 6000 Minute Family is still on the price list, unless this offer is only temporary. If you sign a Five Year Contract do you get free Brain Tumor removal after you fry your Brain?

Anonymous_
Anonymous
Premium Member
join:2004-06-21
127.0.0.1

Anonymous_

Premium Member

all ready posted

»Verizon Wireless: Unlimited Calling [89] comments

Interestingly, it looks like unlimited customers who sign up for this plan will be free of Verizon's 5GB monthly data plan limit.

Maxxxt
Peculiar Mental Twist
Premium Member
join:2001-06-12
Anchorage, AK

Maxxxt

Premium Member

Still to high

$100 way to high.

Ive been with Cricket for 5 years. They have unlimited local and long distance, voice message and text for around $50 a month. No contracts. Not great..but my bill is always the same.

I have used up to 2000 minutes a month with no problems. They have a decent calling area around the city where I live.

Anyway, I have always wanted to get a cooler phone with a different provider, but at $100 a month, with a 2 year contract it doesn't seem like a deal to me at all. Most of my friends are haunted by sometimes erratic or huge phone bills, I think ill stay where I'm at for now.
Doug135
join:2008-01-12
Laredo, TX

Doug135

Member

Re: Still to high

Yeah, Cricket maybe good in your area, just don't go out of it because they'll kill you with roaming. I say wait and watch, some people will be stupid enough and sign up for it. the price is outrageous, it doesn't cost them that much to send a phone call, text, or data on their network.
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