Carriers
Switching to Verizon for Droid will cost you, but it won’t break the bank
October 28, 2009 | by Andrew Kameka
Verizon
Now that the Droid has officially been let out of the bag, it’s time to start considering which Verizon calling plan is the best option. Verizon has a history of being one of the more expensive carriers in the United States, and the company justifies it by being – in their view – the most available and most dependable service in the country. Verizon argues that a top-notch product is worth the extra money subscribers spend in comparison to other carriers.
You, the consumer, probably don’t give two craps about that; you want a deal. However, anyone who wants the Droid next week will have to bite the bullet and sign-on to Verizon’s service. I just returned from speaking with a local Verizon store employee who told me about plan options and a temporary discount. I can’t confirm this for any market other than Miami, but Verizon is offering a $30 bill credit to anyone who signs a 2-year agreement and ports a number from another carrier. Contact your local Verizon retailer to see if a similar deal is available in your area.
The Verizon store employee also recommended that people visit their local retailer and attempt to reserve a Droid. There’s no guarantee that all stores or authorized dealers will maintain a list, but a high-profile device like this has the potential to sell out very quickly. It’s worth making an attempt to get on the list in case early morning campout lines prove too long.
CALLING PLANS
While browsing the Verizon website, I saw a $39.99 per month plan for 450 minutes of talk time, unlimited mobile to mobile minutes, and unlimited night & weekend minutes that was perfect for me. At least it was until I saw that data costs $1.99 per MB and text messaging 20 cents per message. My monthly bill would be more than my car payment under those terms. Next!
I asked the store employee to help me find the cheapest solution that offers something comparable to what I have on T-Mobile – at least 300 minutes, free nights and weekends, and unlimited data/texting for $60 before local fees/taxes. The best he could do was $79.99 for 450 minutes, unlimited mobile-to-mobile minutes, unlimited texting, and unlimited data.
That’s a $20 per month increase from my current plan, which isn’t that bad considering that Verizon throws in mobile-to-mobile minutes and has significantly better 3G coverage. I often visit places where T-Mobile 3G is non-existent, so I can almost warrant that extra money.
I’m not ready to pull the trigger on a switch to Verizon just yet. I’m still on the hook for an ETF with T-Mobile and will have to pay more for the Droid since I refuse to sign a 2-year contract any longer. But from a monthly perspective, switching to Verizon won’t put as much drain on my monthly budget as I suspected. You may be in the same boat depending on your current calling plan.
UPDATE: Jeff brings up an important point in the comments – ask for a corporate discount! Employees of several companies are eligible for getting a break on monthly contracts.
Note: the Verizon employee explained to me that a $29.99 unlimited data plan does not include text messaging or instant messaging, so I would have to get a Select, Connect, or Premium plan to get unlimited messaging. Verizon offers a $5 add-on that allows up to 250 messages per month.
$80, and it doesn't include texting?!? Ha…maybe I won't be getting that Droid next Friday.
The $80 plan mentioned in the post DOES include unlimited texting.
Oh, ok…I thought your note at the bottom was saying that it didn't. Thanks for clarifying!
Then it's different than VZW here. I have the $79 plan with 450 minutes and unlimited data for my BB and the rep said it will be the same for the Droid. HOWEVER, I have to pay extra for text messages. I have the $5/250 plan but any of the text messages plans are add-ons here (large VZW store).
If you happen to work for a large employer, check to see if they offer corporate discounts with Verizon. I just found out that I'm eligible for a discount on my personal plan, so that will take some of the bite out of switching. Always worth looking around to see what kind of deals you can get!
I called my local Verizon store and they'll have a shiny new Droid waiting for me when I get out of work next Friday!
Yeah, Go to business employee discounts link and see if you are eligible for any discounts. I found out I can get the $80 plan for $69 which is same with sprints price.
Sprint would offer a discount for your corporation as well so it would'nt be the same as Sprint!
It is interesting to see that, if you select a plan first (say connect with 450minutes), it does not allow you to select any smartphones. They are somehow blocking you from buying a good data/voice plan with a good phone. They either give you crap plan/good phone, or crap phone/good plan!
Most companies have employee discounts with all of the major cell providers. Through my work I get 15% off on T-mobile, AT&T, and Verizon. Sprint kicks in an extra 3% bumping it to 18%.
I get a 19% employee discount through my work on Verizon. I believe you can get free SMS using Google Voice.
That's what I was about to say! And since it's pretty much interwoven in the OS, that would be the better way to go! (And save $10 a month!)
The only problem I see is if the person you text does not have google voice, then they will get charged unless they have unlimited messaging. Kinda messes up the verizon "mobile-to-mobile" free messaging.
If you already have verizon and have a regular nationwide plan will the droid be an extra 30 bucks a month or what?
I'm not sure how you have a $60/mo plan with T-Mobile. My G1 has the cheapest plan they would tell me about with unlimited texting and it's about $90/month. If the VZW plan includes texting it will probably be cheaper than T-Mo (though being tied to a contract again won't be nice). Does anyone know whether applications bought on the Market are tied to the device? If I get a new android and use the same google account will the app license transfer?
I called tmobile and asked for a cheaper plan. They gave me 300 minutes and unlimited data for 60. You can probably get better than 90 with the new rates. And yes, paid apps are linked to your acct so you can use them on the ?roid. Theonly apps that wont are tmo exclusives like sherpa.
Can a Verizon subscriber comment on Exchange email? Does Verizon charge an additional monthly fee to enable Exchange support?
No. Since when? I have my blackberry pulling email from an exchange server and i just have the regular data plan. If you are referring to enterprise data, then every carrier charges more. Enterprise data allows push mail rather then pull, as well as calendar and contacts syncing. BUT!!! Here is the big but, android devices don't do exchange contacts and calendar syncing. They only pull mail from exchange. That you do via your google account.
I'm not a customer, but looking over their plans, I don't see anything specifically naming charges for Exchange support. Android 2.0 makes Exchange a standard feature so there shouldn't be any charge from Verizon to connect to an Exchange server. I'm 90% it will be part of your data plan