Smartphone Activation without Data Plan.

one point - and it's a big one - is, wifi is free. Meaning, anywhere there is a wifi connection available, you can use any data features ( web browsing etc. ) FOR FREE. You can always block your 3G (or whatever) data access . The carriers know this, so they lie and say you need a data plan to avoid having people get unexpectedly high data charges when in reality they have found another way to screw the consumer. Don't believe it ? Why do you think there are no non-smartphones with wifi connectivity ?
Where I live, the local phone company is putting wifi hot spots all over the city, and adding more all the time. Many cities will be following suit. Unfortunately, the mobile companies realize they have found a new cash cow, so they are throwing everything they can into the smartphones, and they are much more appealing than the other phones ...

Originally Posted by Unregistered

one point - and it's a big one - is, wifi is free. Meaning, anywhere there is a wifi connection available, you can use any data features ( web browsing etc. ) FOR FREE. You can always block your 3G (or whatever) data access . The carriers know this, so they lie and say you need a data plan to avoid having people get unexpectedly high data charges when in reality they have found another way to screw the consumer. Don't believe it ? Why do you think there are no non-smartphones with wifi connectivity ?
Where I live, the local phone company is putting wifi hot spots all over the city, and adding more all the time. Many cities will be following suit. Unfortunately, the mobile companies realize they have found a new cash cow, so they are throwing everything they can into the smartphones, and they are much more appealing than the other phones ...

Actually this is only true for some of the older smartphones. The newer smartphones are required to have a data plan. You CANNOT activate it without the data plan. THe system automatically adds it when you activate. Some of the older smartphones like some of the Palms don't require the data plan to be activated. You can use the 'pay as you go' data, but this can add up rather quickly. So actually it is not a 'lie.'

Quote:
Originally Posted by Unregistered View Post
one point - and it's a big one - is, wifi is free. Meaning, anywhere there is a wifi connection available, you can use any data features ( web browsing etc. ) FOR FREE. You can always block your 3G (or whatever) data access . The carriers know this, so they lie and say you need a data plan to avoid having people get unexpectedly high data charges when in reality they have found another way to screw the consumer. Don't believe it ? Why do you think there are no non-smartphones with wifi connectivity ?
Where I live, the local phone company is putting wifi hot spots all over the city, and adding more all the time. Many cities will be following suit. Unfortunately, the mobile companies realize they have found a new cash cow, so they are throwing everything they can into the smartphones, and they are much more appealing than the other phones ...
Actually this is only true for some of the older smartphones. The newer smartphones are required to have a data plan. You CANNOT activate it without the data plan. THe system automatically adds it when you activate. Some of the older smartphones like some of the Palms don't require the data plan to be activated. You can use the 'pay as you go' data, but this can add up rather quickly. So actually it is not a 'lie.'

That is my point - they require you to activate a data plan, but it is not necessary for you to have one to use all of the features of the phone. You can't get wifi on a phone that is not a smartphone (so you need a data package of some sort to say surf the web) but all smartphones have wifi - which should make the data plan an option, but they put you over a barrel and say it is required.

[renegade626]

Few things... I see your point with the wifi thing, but that is the manufacturers choice to put wifi on a phone (for the most part at least), and its Verizons choice to purchase and offer these phones to their customers. Yes its a way for Verizon to make extra money, and thats called Business budy.

Oh and wifi is not always free it just depends where you are at. We have city wide (well mostly) wifi and it costs a monthly fee to have access.

And lastly let me ask you this, If Verizon still offered a pay as you go option, would you be willing to spend $350-500 for a phone? Because this is what it would cost (and what they did in the past) without the plan. Verizon can afford to subsodize more of the cost of the phone when you pay the extra data.

Ok, there is a lot *@#holes on this site. A Smartphone is a device not a service, and most have WiFi, so the 3G data package is not always necessary or needed at all which is a service; forcing you to take a service because of the advanced features of a device that does things a regular cell does not is suspect of being unethical and possibly against FCC regulations.
In addition, to suggest that a person unwilling to pay for an unwanted service makes them lazy or somehow poor wanting to look rich is just ignorant. The features that are always mentioned; document editing, PDA, etc... are features that do not need the Data Package to work. Web browsing is not a wonderful experience on Smartphone, but a lot of the extras are...
Also you can just not buy a subsidized phone and put your sim card in an unlocked phone...done deal