This morning Verizon Wireless announced that they would be launching new rate plans on June 28, 2012. The rate plans are centered around everything shared, including data. A few changes have been made to the plans that differ from your standard wireless agreement. First of all you can share up to 10 devices, generally wireless has kept your “family plan” items limited to 5. Also you are able to share any type of device, this applies to a data card, tablet, basic phone, or a smart phone, with price adjustments as you tier up.
Here’s how it works, it confused me at first until I played with their rate plan calculator a few times.
First each device has a connect cost. A smart phone runs you $40.00, basic phone $30.00, a netbook, usb, or mifi is $20.00, and a tablet is $10.00. You can pile these in any pattern up to 10 devices. The connection fee gives you unlimited talk and text. The charge is per device, so 3 smart phones will equal $120.00 before data, 1 tablet and 2 smart phones would equal $90.00 etc.
You then pick a data plan to go along with your helpings, the data plan is an allotment of data shared between those devices. The choices available are
- 1 Gig Shared: $50.00
- 2 Gigs Shared: $60.00
- 4 Gigs Shared: $70.00
- 6 Gigs Shared: $80.00
- 8 Gigs Shared: $90.00
- 10 Gig Shared: $100.00
To compare what I have now I spend about $85.00 on my service. I have 2 gigs of data Unlimited Text, and 450 minutes that I never use. On their new set up, I would pay an additional $15.00 a month for the same set up, and be forced to have the option to share.
Family plans do become a touch cheaper, but even that comparison does increase the overall cost of their service. The new plans seem to focus on their stock holders for sure, I was hoping shared Data would help consumers reduce the cost of their family plans, and move more folks into smart phones, this still may do that, but currently all signs point to higher phone bills.
What do you folks think? Is it worth paying the extra? Will you be switching to the new set up or riding your old phone on the grandfathered waves of adventure?