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Verizon Viewing iPad as Opportunity to Push MiFi Service

Keys 3 P's to victory for Verizon:

1.) Price it at $30/mo.
2.) Provide free duct tape iPad to MiFi mounting kits
3.) Profit


// Sorry I'm bored at work!
 
I'm pretty sure I'm going to go this route.

Great or the iPad, good to have it for the laptop always by my side. 5gb cap isn't an issue at all.

I'm thinking just buy the device, verizon has it listed at about $250 and then you're month to month. Not a bad deal all around.
 
jav6454 said:
1. What good is Mi-Fi is it is capped at 5GB? It won't do much good if multiple devices are gnawing on those 5GB. I can bet at two devices you'll eat through those 5GB in less than a month.

2. Better access is relative to your needs & location. If you travel a lot then it might make sense; however, with AT&T you get EDGE all over which is also reliable since it's been around since 2003.

3. iPhone on Verizon? Something that we won't see until 2014 or later... Verizon's recent ads featuring the iPhone in there have led me to push back the date when AT&T's exclusivity ends.

4. I hear ya, but like I said, service varies in accordance to your area.
Click to expand...

MiFi is good because I can go from my MacBook to an iPad, and still have 3 other devices to use. I understand the cap, and the fact that this is a true downside.

All the other comments you made are about AT&T's service... Or, lack thereof...

I need a reliable phone with great service, so I will always choose Verizon over AT&T, and so do my sales reps/consultants in the field. I can't have a dropped call or poor communication for work! Verizon has never dropped a call for me, and I travel all throughout the states for medical conventions & meetings. Now, when it comes to downloading sites for internet use, on the whole, I choose AT&T as they have faster download speeds. And what makes the iPhone the fastest download speed for a smartphone - has a lot to do with the advancement of the Safari Mobile Browser coming from Apple.

I will be happy with my iPad 3G coming from AT&T because I live in Philly & travel to the southern Jersey Shore for the summer. Those areas are pretty good with AT&T. And, I mean pretty good, because my Verizon 3G service kill's my IT Director's iPhone all throughout the Philadelphia area in service. And, even right now, in the office while I sit next to him. But, when we both have solid 3G connections - the iPhone outperforms in downloading speed.

I'll stick with Verizon for a phone, and buy a 32GB 3G iPad when they come out... :cool:
 
All I have to say is, we sure are spoiled nowadays.

Who else remembers paying up to hundreds of dollars a month for 9600 baud CompuServe landline access?

Who else remembers the days of CDPD 14Kbps mobile internet access, where we were charged like fifteen cents per MINUTE of connection, so just browsing slowly from a handheld was painfully expensive?

Now we pay one or two dollars a day for mobile 5GB a month, and we complain about it. Someday we'll be complaining here about the difference between ten and twenty cents per day, and how it's double the rate. :)

Everything is relative. For example, to some people and most companies, $60 a month for a reliable connection is chump change.
 
jav6454 said:
Enjoy paying extra service
Click to expand...

It's not extra service to me. It's mobile internet for the laptop, for the iPad, for all my devices, while at the same time, it's on a separate network for redundancy between ATT and Verizon.

$60 a month is pretty cheap.
 
jav6454 said:
Because the Mi-Fi doesn't have an unlimited plan, it has a data plan with determined data. Notice Verizon doesn't say unlimited. You yourself said that.


At any rate, I'll be sure to tell anyone who wonders "is it good to have Verizon?", how AT&T will be cheaper and how at the end of a 1 year span they'll be able to have $560 in their bank accounts, that and AT&T's iPad plan is unlimited; no 5GB cap.

Math doesn't lie...

1 year AT&T = $360 + $130 (3G added cost) = $490 (first year) and $360 after that

1 year Verizon = $720 + $50 (Mi-Fi device) = $770 (first year) and $720 after that

No brainer who has it best....
Click to expand...


It really depends where you are to make this a no-brainer...
 
kdarling said:
All I have to say is, we sure are spoiled nowadays.

Who else remembers paying up to hundreds of dollars a month for 9600 baud CompuServe landline access?

Who else remembers the days of CDPD 14Kbps mobile internet access, where we were charged like fifteen cents per MINUTE of connection, so just browsing slowly from a handheld was painfully expensive?

Now we pay one or two dollars a day for mobile 5GB a month, and we complain about it. Someday we'll be complaining here about the difference between ten and twenty cents per day, and how it's double the rate. :)

Everything is relative. For example, to some people and most companies, $60 a month for a reliable connection is chump change.
Click to expand...

Yes indeed... It's the world we live in. :eek:
 
jav6454 said:
So you are happy they are over charging you? And on top of that capping you?
Click to expand...

You're being close-minded about this. I don't even have Verizon, I'm talking about for the consumer, choice is always good. So many people complain that the iPhone is a closed system like the Macintosh. Now that Apple has opened up an opportunity for people to use other carriers without jailbreaking the iPad, this is a good thing.
 
neuregulin said:
iPad is mainly for home use, where WiFi is usually there (considering you already by an iPad....)

Though people may carry it otherwhere, I doubt it would be used like an iPhone (which you want to be connected all the time)...


And THe $$$$$$$ Verizon is waving right in front of my eye really pissed me.....
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's why they're selling a version with 3G. WTH are you talking about? The device is all about portability. Whether you want to use it by the pool at home or on top of a mountain is the difference between wifi and 3G version. It's definitely about being used at the coffee shop and anywhere else you would nomally see a clunky laptop dragged around plus some.
 
I have one of these devices that I use with my current iPod Touch. Great option, and much better coverage in my area than AT&T. I purchased mine without contract, and can bail at anytime. So not too bad. ;) .
 
RalfTheDog said:
Excuse me if I am wrong, you can get an unlocked MiFi 2372 that will run on ATT for less than $300.

http://www.amazon.com/Novatel-Wirel...2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1268243141&sr=8-2
Click to expand...

Just to clarify things, that was not a statement, that was a question. If this device will work with ATT (I am not sure) I think I will purchase one today. I was hoping to pull the SIM out of my ATT USB stick.

If anyone does have the answer, cool. If not, I understand.

Thanks!
 
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HLdan said:
Some of you guys here are not seeing the big picture. The biggest complaint about the iPhone is that it's tied to AT&T. The iPad changes all of this and gives us choice. Sure, Verizon is more expensive, but it's great to have choice. You certainly can't blame Verizon for taking advantage of this.
Click to expand...

Bingo

jav6454 said:
So you are happy they are over charging you? And on top of that capping you?
Click to expand...

How is it overcharging?

You buy a service from Verizon rather than ATT because for some it works better. If ATT cannot provide equally desirable service they HAVE to charge less.

Apple charges a premium that some don't find worthwhile. It's not necessarily overpriced for the people who value it. Some argue the iPad is overpriced.

Perfect example would be using ATT's data card on the Acela from NYC to D.C. ATT is actually overcharging for lackluster service along this route. Switched to verizon for the same costs and no drop signals like ATT. Who is getting fleeced here?
 
I just want it all I guess. Great phone quality and reliability and great surfing etc. I guess until some company figures it out we have to choose one or the other. I still can't understand why Apple continues to pair the best phone out there to the carrier with the worst "phone" reliability. Surfing the web and apps are second to having a reliable phone. That is what Apple doesn't get apparently. It is about money and back door deals, not caring about your customer base. What a shame. AT&T needs to stop spending the millions and millions on advertising about how great their "service" is (notice they don't talk about call quality anymore) and start spending that money on updating and making their system better. Sadly, it is the average American business model at work. Apple doesn't use this model but they paired up with a company who does so it doesn't matter.
 
spazzcat said:
But they are going to market this to iPad users. If you don't need 5 things looked to the MiFi, why would you want to pay so much more? Their coverage is not $500+ better. I used VZW for years.
Click to expand...

You can not put a general cost on it. It is $500 more, but to the contrary, you would still have to do a cost-benefit analysis primarily pending on your location. Some parts of the states still receive very bad service from AT&T, so for those cases, the consumer needs to get Verizon inorder for him/her to even utilize what the iPad can offer in 3G service...
 
seedster2 said:
Bingo



How is it overcharging?

You buy a service from Verizon rather than ATT because for some it works better. If ATT cannot provide equally desirable service they HAVE to charge less.

Apple charges a premium that some don't find worthwhile. It's not necessarily overpriced for the people who value it. Some argue the iPad is overpriced.

Perfect example would be using ATT's data card on the Acela from NYC to D.C. ATT is actually overcharging for lackluster service along this route. Switched to verizon for the same costs and no drop signals like ATT. Who is getting fleeced here?
Click to expand...

No doubt... good post. :cool:
 
crackbookpro said:
You can not put a general cost on it. It is $500 more, but to the contrary, you would still have to do a cost-benefit analysis primarily pending on your location. Some parts of the states still receive very bad service from AT&T, so for those cases, the consumer needs to get Verizon inorder for him/her to even utilize what the iPad can offer in 3G service...
Click to expand...

In the four years I have had ATT, I have not had any service issues.
 
wow verizion really sucks

so i need a contract which the lowest price model is more than atts most contract free.


still have to pay 50 bucks up front

slow 3g network

have to carry the damn thing with me.


this just shows how much of a joke verizion is.

and the 5 person thing is pointless. when 5 things on a wireless doongle will just make verzion already slow speeds 5x slower.

useless
 
spazzcat said:
In the four years I have had ATT, I have not had any service issues.
Click to expand...

It depends on your location... If you have been on MacRumors for quite awhile, or if you read WSJ, or watch CNN, or any news of that matter - you will find some startling news about AT&T's service throughout the country. :eek:

There are thousands (maybe millions) of AT&T customers whom would tell you the exact opposite of what you state...

I used to be one them... ;)
 
More than one person touched on it but multiple devices and the MiFi is not really that advantages considering there is a HARD 5GB limit. I'm about 8 days into my monthly AT&T service with my iPhone and I've got about 1.5GB on just the iPhone. I certainly wouldn't be hitting the MiFi with a laptop, iPhone, and iPad or I would really be hurting. AT&T unlimited is definitely at a very good price until or if they start changing the bar. I recognize that I'm not the normal iPhone data user but we are talking about listening to Pandora and watching a handful of Video Podcasts per day getting me to that number. What are you going to do with a laptop and iPad. You see AT&T needs to make a device like this with $30 unlimited. YES!!!!
 
feamster said:
I agree that the price ($60 a month) is painful but I travel and picked up a mifi as soon as they were available last summer. I use it with my iphone, macbook pro, and other laptops in the household. Granted if it wasn't a business expense I wouldn't consider it but it does provide maximum flexibility. And legal tethering costs about the same on ATT. And the performance is acceptable and you can have multiple devices accessing the access point at the same time. Plus it's not much bigger than a thumb drive and will sit in your shirt pocket while you use it. Down side is when not plugged into AC I doubt it will last as long as the Ipad. Of course if you can plug it in it won't be draining your Ipad batteries.

I already had a usb dongle so I was already paying the $60. The cost was about $240 (full price).
Click to expand...

When you bought the mifi, you didn't have the option of the iPad pricing. You had no choice but to pay ~$60 per month, if you wanted mobile broadband.

People who buy an iPad will have a much cheaper alternative, so they will not be faced with the same choice as you.
 
I've been thinking about getting the MiFi to use with my iPod touch. However now that AT&T is implementing the no-contract model, it seems silly for Verizon not to do the same thing. I've already extended my contract once, and for a phone with an awful web browser (BB 9630). Hence the need for MiFi + mobile Safari.
 
crackbookpro said:
It depends on your location... If you have been on MacRumors for quite awhile, or if you read WSJ, or watch CNN, or any news of that matter - you will find some startling news about AT&T's service throughout the country. :eek:

There are thousands (maybe millions) of AT&T customers whom would tell you the exact opposite of what you state...

I used to be one them... ;)
Click to expand...


I have a friend who just drove from Kansas City to Atlanta. He has an iPhone and for most of the trip his travel buddy laughed that he had to borrow his Verizon phone to make calls. AT&T is horrible. I had them and they suck...period. It is a shame that such an awesome phone is on such a crappy carrier.
 
Crazy idea...

I hate AT&T. I personally have two phones. A Verizon phone for business and the iPhone for email, Apps and because I love the iPhone. I drop way too many calls to consider using it for business, that is why I have the Verizon phone.

Here is my idea. Maybe you guys can help me out.

The Verizon MiFi 2200 is a pretty small WiFi hotspot. iPhone now allows Wifi applications such as Skype on their network.

Would it be too crazy to somehow piggyback the MiFi onto the back of the iPhone and just use the Verizon service from the MiFi through Skype for phone and data coverage for emails etc?

I would take the extra inch on the back of the phone to actually be able to make calls and get service...

The MiFi is $60 a month.

You would no longer need AT&T voice/data service. Correct?

All of the Apps and WiFi Phone service should work etc.. Correct?

If Verizon would make the MiFi "unlimited", then people could essentially have Verizon iPhone..

Just an idea.. please chime in and let me know what you think..
 
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