Unlimited Plans - National Carriers Fight (Phone Arena News)

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Unlimited Plans - National Carriers Fight

Unlimited Plans - National Carriers Fight

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Published on: 21 February, 2008 by PhoneArena Team

Unlimited Plans - National Carriers Fight

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Everyone has at least once in their lifetime gone over their minutes, which has resulted in a higher than the expected, monthly bill. We would all love to be able to talk and text as much as we want, without having to pay a lot. Well, these thoughts will no longer torment most of the Americans, since on February 19, the major US wireless carriers announced unlimited plans for their customers.

In the beginning of the month (Feb. 05th,2008 if we have to be precise), Helio started the $99 Unlimited plan, which included all services (e.g. voice calling, SMS, MMS etc.). Apparently, that was a time bomb, because two days later (7th) came Sprint’s response - for $119 you get unlimited voice calling, text messaging, web browsing, email and picture mail, but that is only in some areas (San Francisco Bay Area; Upper Central CA; Philadelphia, PA; Minneapolis, MN; Tampa, FL).

The other carriers didn’t stay behind, of course. As early as February 18, 2008 we informed you that Verizon would have similar calling plans as well. A day later, that became a reality, with the price of the lowest service plan at $99.99, including voice calling only. Well there is an unlimited everything one but it goes for $139.99 per month. But that wasn’t all, because the company had announced unlimited plans for families and business customers. Naturally, this caused a chain reaction and a few hours later AT&T also announced unlimited plans, to be available on the 22nd of this month. Similar to Verizon, $99.99 a month will get you unlimited U.S calling with no domestic roaming or long distance charges, but text messages and data traffic will be charged for separately. There still is an option, which includes unlimited data usage, but it will cost you $134.99 a month.

Right after AT&T, T-Mobile jumped into the race, announcing unlimited plan solutions, starting on the 21st. To make its offer competitive, the company introduced a $99 plan, which will include text, picture and instant messages.

Here we give you an easier way to navigate through the different offers. The similar ones are marked in one color.

$99	$119	$134	$139	$149	$169
Voice	Voice, SMS, MMS and Instant messages	Voice, SMS. MMS messages, data (non-smart phone)
Voice	Voice, SMS, MMS and Instant messages		Voice, messages, VCAST Vpak, VZ Navigator, Mobile web and Mobile Email, Data	(1)Voice, messages, Email, Data or(2)Voice, international Email (Business)	Voice, messages, data, international Email (Business)
	Voice, messages, Web and email
Voice, SMS, MMS and Instant messages
Voice, SMS, MMS and Instant messages, GPS-enabled Google Maps and data including 3G

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0
1.

VZW Employee @ 21 February, 2008 12:20:46 PM

WOW! This was a total suprise to me when I heard it myself. I thought Verizon would never offer an unlimited calling plan. But, I guess there was enough Verizon customers who called in and ask about when unlimited calling was going to be offered. I guess in the long run no one can complain such and such company offers this, what can you offer me. The main question then will be "who will offer me the best coverage to use my unlimited minutes?" Hopefully everyone will answer that question with "America's Most Reliable Wireless Network" Verizon Wireless...

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2.

dmancini @ 21 February, 2008 12:22:31 PM

wow! who would think that a little company like helio would have the overall best plan against the giant providers out there. You gotta wonder how long it's going to take for them to either hit it big or die.
If only their service was better nationally.

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3.

DeeBee @ 21 February, 2008 01:36:01 PM

to #2

Actually Helio's offer is for 149.99,and the 99.99 offer is a promotion with few traps: "Limited time offer. Requires new activation of service with 2 year agreement. Promotion only applies to monthly membership fees and does not apply to any other charges. Service and promotion are subject to change at any time. No monetary value and cannot be combined with any other promotion. Not responsible for third party content or service. Some features are dependent on network and device conditions and may not be available at all times or in all locations. Some services may require additional fees."

U feel me?! :)

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4.

dmancini @ 21 February, 2008 02:23:19 PM

you know this is the start of a huge price war. Either the prices will eventually level out to almost equal, or, the providers will keep adding additional features to make their plan more appetizing. Either way, its bound to be interesting

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5.

DeeMan @ 21 February, 2008 10:57:25 PM

To All

So far, only Verizon has this thing covered internationally, even though T-Mobile and AT&T phones work worldwide. They just don't the unlimited international plans. One thing to note about the Verizon unlimited plan ... if you currently have a discount because of who you work for, it will not apply to these plans. Only corporate liable (not employee liable) discounts apply.

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6.

Nicholas @ 22 February, 2008 02:08:21 PM

to #4

That isn't right at all. I just talked to Verizon and was told it's domestic calling only. Plus most of the world uses GSM. In fact so much so that Verizon offers a world phone that uses GSM. Get your facts straight.

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7.

Nicholas @ 22 February, 2008 02:09:39 PM

#5 not #4

that was to #5

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8.

DeeMan @ 22 February, 2008 09:40:36 PM

To Nicholas

Umm Nick, read post thoroughly before you make comments. Take a good look at the chart above. When said "international", I meant ALL their services. Verizon has unlimited calling domestically only but it was nice to see them offer international plans as well that let you have unlimited data and email access. I never said anything about international VOICE being unlimited. So get YOUR facts straight.

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9.

Don Louie @ 23 February, 2008 06:39:36 PM

Price War

With the $60 plan that is speculated to be offered by Sprint will definitely shake things up, hope it's true

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10.

Enema @ 26 February, 2008 02:04:55 PM

nah

sprint is on the outs. i give them under 2 years before they file bankruptcy. its just a ticking clock. verizon rocks. you people sort your life out and switch to verizon.

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