Verizon, just another AT&T
So, the DROID is here, remember the device that was going to save the day against the evil iPhone and AT&T’s horrid service. Engadget has been posting articles all week, along with reviews, etc. In the process of reading these, I stumbled upon an interesting story about DROID tethering plans. Looks like you’re going to have to double your data cost to $60 a month for unlimited tethering, and by unlimited they really mean 10 gigs a month. When are phone companies going to get sued for false advertising. Unlimited means unlimited, not a number they think is too big for most customers. If I told you that you had unlimited access to my house, and then said as long as you don’t leave that 4×4 corner. You’d say I miss understand the word “unlimited,” wouldn’t you?
For all you people that think the iPhone moving to a different provider is going to solve any of your “data” issues or connection problems, you simply don’t understand how much data the iPhone uses per user. Several different sources have reported that iPhone users use about 50x the amount of bandwidth per day of a Blackberry or Windows Mobile user. Think about what that means. Any network that suddenly had a large influx of iPhones would suffer the same issues AT&T is having. Until the cellular infrastructure is rebuilt to handle data consumption at those levels, no network will be as stable or fast as users want.
Infrastructure is key. This smart phone thing is not a fad. Rich data is here to stay.
Here in a few years I think we’ll see the switch from providers being in control from point of sale to termination, and instead see them as infrastructure providers, where users are able to shop around for service providers.
Google is well ahead of the game, already negotiating rates and laying line to use mobile networks and land lines interchangeably, over multiple providers, all seamless to the end user. (See also the future of Google Voice)
At the end of the day, we’re talking mobile internet devices now. Not cell phones. Who cares if you’re on AT&T or Verizon at the moment as long as your web pages load, apps work, and calls go through.
The sooner we reach the separation of infrastructure provider from service provider, the better off we’ll all be. I want my service provider negotiating rates with their infrastructure providers to get ME the best deal they can. I want Google, or Skype, or the next fellow to enter the space, competing against each other for my business, while AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, Cox, and Southwestern Bell fight for theirs.
We’re close. Very close. Just need a few more nudges and this whole Cell Phone extortion thing will work itself it.
I feel you about the whole false advertising thing. And also why do they have to make things like internet and texting so much. If they made their services cheaper they would have more business and in turn that would increase their gross income over a certai period of time. They piss me off with that stuff. I have Tmobile and they even piss me off. But all in all if possible anyone should stick with iphone and the company they have.