I wonder if this changes anything for those of us who are grandfathered into the old unlimited plan...

Verizon brings back unlimited data plan on 4G network
Javier E. David
CNBC.com

Verizon announced on Sunday that it would begin offering unlimited data plans for subscribers, several years after it joined competitors in backing away from bottomless data packages.

In a statement, the company said that with Verizon Unlimited, cellular users would get unlimited data use on smartphones and tablets, in addition to video streaming, hotspot and calls to both Mexico and Canada.The plan, which will launch on Monday and Verizon called a "great value," will cost $80 for unlimited data, calls and texting; or $45 per line for four separate lines carrying the same features.

There was a catch, however: Verizon added that after 22 GB of data usage on any one line, the company might "prioritize usage behind other customers in the event of network congestion." Verizon added that it would maintain its existing data plans for those who didn't want unlimited data.


In 2011, Verizon Wireless ceased offering unlimited plans to new smartphone subscribers, and recently announced that unlimited customers using more than 200GB of data per month would have to downgrade to limited plans, or get disconnected.

The announcement was significant, as carriers have gradually made it costlier for subscribers to use unlimited data plans. Usage has spiked as smartphones and tablets became increasingly ubiquitous, with users moving away from consuming media and Web surfing on traditional computers.

AT&T still offers bottomless data, but has hiked the cost for grandfathered plans, making it increasingly costly for data junkies. Starting in March, AT&T subscribers using unlimited data plans will pay $40 per month.

http://www.cnbc.com/2017/02/12...n-on-4g-network.html

So $80+tax for single line.

$180+tax for 4 lines.

What about 2 or 3 lines?

I sent them an email asking to compare costs to what I currently pay. The kicker that always gripes me is they offer deals for groups of four phones, with this "new" unlimited data plan being no different. The available info shows $80.00 per line or $45.00 per line for groups of four. We have three lines.

I've been going to switch from Verizon due to the costs, but it's the only reliable service where I live.

quote:

Originally posted by SIG228:
I sent them an email asking to compare costs to what I currently pay. The kicker that always gripes me is they offer deals for groups of four phones, with this "new" unlimited data plan being no different. The available info shows $80.00 per line or $45.00 per line for groups of four. We have three lines.

I've been going to switch from Verizon due to the costs, but it's the only reliable service where I live.

You might want to get four lines and see if a trusted relative wants to move to your account. They don't have to even live in the same state with you.

I have a relative in another state on my AT&T Wireless account. It saves us both money.

I guess at this point we have a number of younger members who never paid for landline long distance by the minute. I remember have Sprint long distance when they charged ten cents a minute to anywhere in the U.S. Then they started offering a credit which I never completely used in a month. Then unlimited long distance was just included at a flat rate each month for the phone line.

Then they moved to mobile minutes and pay per text. Then those went unlimited.

T-mobile and Sprint have already started offering unlimited data. I wonder if the days of limited data are numbered. Perhaps millennials who are concentrated in urban areas who rather have unlimited data rather than coverage in rural areas that they never travel.

I will be looking for a new plan in May. Hopefully this will get the ball rolling and other companies will have something better then.

quote:

There was a catch, however: Verizon added that after 22 GB of data usage on any one line, the company might "prioritize usage behind other customers in the event of network congestion." Verizon added that it would maintain its existing data plans for those who didn't want unlimited data.

AT&T and TMobile have been doing this for years. It's nothing new, Verizon is late to the party like always.

How anyone csn use 200 gig in a month is beyond me. I have a hard time useing 3 and once I made it to 5. The $80.00 plan might have taxes and fees added. Along with the purchase of a new phone and you're likely to be right at $120.00, give or take a few dollars.

quote:

Originally posted by David Lee:
How anyone csn use 200 gig in a month is beyond me. I have a hard time useing 3 and once I made it to 5. The $80.00 plan might have taxes and fees added. Along with the purchase of a new phone and you're likely to be right at $120.00, give or take a few dollars.

Streaming music and video are the biggest culprits, with most services using auto-adjusting quality mechanisms they can eat data like no tomorrow.

I'm on wifi everywhere I go so I use nothing. Fiancee started streaming music in the car a while back and would easily smoke through our 10GB a month until we made some adjustments.

Wow 10 GB would be a monster plan by my usage. At least as much as I use a cell phone.

I'm paying $140 for three lines on T-Mobile for unlimited.
They do throttle as well once a line hits 28gb (found this out during Christmas break when my daughter hit 26gb in a week)

So for me to add one more kid would be the same as Verizon so it looks like most companies are going to be the same, it's just what coverage you can get in your area.

 
I believe I read that the $80 is just the data charge. You still have your device charges on top of that, such as $20 per smartphone, $10 per tablet, and the usual array of taxes and fees.
 

quote:

Originally posted by David Lee:
Wow 10 GB would be a monster plan by my usage. At least as much as I use a cell phone.

I don't think I've ever been under 10 gigs a month on my phone. I also have to be incredibly vigilant to stay under my 300 GB cap on my home internet. Streaming eats data fast, and since I cut the cord I stream quite a bit.

quote:

Originally posted by jcat:

quote:

Originally posted by David Lee:
How anyone csn use 200 gig in a month is beyond me. I have a hard time useing 3 and once I made it to 5. The $80.00 plan might have taxes and fees added. Along with the purchase of a new phone and you're likely to be right at $120.00, give or take a few dollars.

Streaming music and video are the biggest culprits, with most services using auto-adjusting quality mechanisms they can eat data like no tomorrow.

I'm on wifi everywhere I go so I use nothing. Fiancee started streaming music in the car a while back and would easily smoke through our 10GB a month until we made some adjustments.

I was curious about this too. I've been tempted to stream music in the car but didn't know how much it would cost.

Let's assume I have 1GB of data allocation per month. Assuming 5MB per song, allows for 200 songs. At 5 minutes per song, that is about 1000 minutes or 16 hours worth of music. If my commute is 1 hour per day, that's only about 2 weeks; the other two weeks is over my allocation.

And I'm guessing that music sights aren't just streaming music but also advertisements (including video ads). So, I'd probably hit my allocation limit even sooner.


In any case, I'm never going back to Verizon. The cell coverage is good but the people are rat bastards. They took away my unlimited coverage before, among other things. I have one phone left. As soon as that phone dies / needs to be replaced, I'm gone. Verizon can piss off.

Sadly not only is the data limited to 22 gigs at 4G speed, but tethering is limited to 10 gigs of data. Not useful for me.

Interesting, looks like they may offer unlimited for use at home too...

Wonder what the slow down rate is after your 22GB's... Is it only a knock down from 4G speed to say 5MB/s?

Because even if it is that might damn well be worth it for me since the fastest I can currently get is 4Mb/s of high latency internet at $189 a quarter... combine that with throwing unlimited at my cell line, gf's line, house line, and the best friend who's on my plan and that might actually be worth it...

quote:

Originally posted by saigonsmuggler:
So $80+tax for single line.

$180+tax for 4 lines.

What about 2 or 3 lines?

Plus access fees/state regulatory fees/protection plan/yadi-yada on and on... This will come to at least $30-40/line.

I have google fiber at home and only use my phone when out. My wife and I share 4GB on data and have no issues going over. We pay $102 total a month.

quote:

Originally posted by logrusmaster:
Interesting, looks like they may offer unlimited for use at home too...

Wonder what the slow down rate is after your 22GB's... Is it only a knock down from 4G speed to say 5MB/s?

Because even if it is that might damn well be worth it for me since the fastest I can currently get is 4Mb/s of high latency internet at $189 a quarter... combine that with throwing unlimited at my cell line, gf's line, house line, and the best friend who's on my plan and that might actually be worth it...

It's much, much slower than 4Mb/s. I want to say it was somewhere in the couple hundred kbps range.

Ok got more pricing info off of the Verge:

1 line - $80+tax+fees
2 lines - $140+tax+fees
3 lines - $160+tax+fees
4 lines - $180+tax+fees

quote:

Originally posted by jcat:

quote:

Originally posted by logrusmaster:
Interesting, looks like they may offer unlimited for use at home too...

Wonder what the slow down rate is after your 22GB's... Is it only a knock down from 4G speed to say 5MB/s?

Because even if it is that might damn well be worth it for me since the fastest I can currently get is 4Mb/s of high latency internet at $189 a quarter... combine that with throwing unlimited at my cell line, gf's line, house line, and the best friend who's on my plan and that might actually be worth it...

It's much, much slower than 4Mb/s. I want to say it was somewhere in the couple hundred kbps range.

Im on Verizon pre-paid, once i reach my allotted GB's of "high speed" it gets throttled back to 128kbps, unless I buy more data.

I live in a rural area. Verizon Wireless is pretty much the only reliable option for not only cell coverage, but home internet also. There's no wired broadband available, no cable or dsl. If you want cable TV or high speed internet, the only options are satellite or Verizon.