Click here to view the embedded video.

We’ve made it painfully obvious that we hate data caps, tiered data, and any thoughts of sharing that data with someone else. In fact, most of you hate all of that as well. The day that we first jumped onto 4G LTE was something we may never forget, but we’ll also never forget the day that Verizon and AT&T told us that we could no longer use that 4G LTE connection on an unlimited basis and that we were going to be limited and capped. We knew why they were pushing this new scheme, but that doesn’t mean we have to ever agree with it.

So the video we have included above talks all about caps and how horrible they are for the industry, for innovation, and for the world of technology as a whole. It’s a worthwhile watch, even if it is 11+ minutes long. The presenter talks about misinformation when it comes to data speeds and congestion, why cable companies may be the root of it all, and why spectrum is the real issue.

Via:  Gizmodo

Video: Why Data Caps Suck is a post from: Droid Life

Today, Verizon became the “first carrier to offer shared data plans for business” after announcing that Share Everything for businesses will launch on January 24. These new shared data plans are being sold as a way to manage multiple employee accounts on a much simpler level. Rather than managing individual plans, your company can have one big bucket of data to pull from. 

The plans are targeting businesses that need accounts with 25 or less employees. There are options for larger companies, but if you fit the 10 to 25 employee mold, you’ll be able to choose from three specific plans:  30GB for $225, 40GB for $300, and 50GB for $375. These Share Everything plans also come with the same unlimited talk and text that the consumer plans include.

I don’t know about you, but don’t these prices seem semi-reasonable when compared to the non-business plans? Say you have 15 employees and go with the 50GB package for $375 – that’s over 3GB per user. If each individual had their own separate line with unlimited data at $30 per, you’d hit $450, but without the unlimited talk and text. Also, with consumer Share Everything plans, you see prices starting at $50 for 1GB of data, while if you calculate 50GB from $375 you get a price of $7.50 per GB.

Obviously, the price per GB goes down as you up your limit on both consumer and business accounts, but these big 40GB and 50GB plans seem like decent deals depending on the number of employees you plan on attaching. I guess it’s good to be a business client of Big Red.

Full pricing info can be found at Verizon’s site.

Verizon to Launch Share Everything Plans for Small Businesses on January 24 is a post from: Droid Life

It has been a while since we asked the DL community which data bracket they fall under. A year ago, the world was set on doing whatever they had to do to keep unlimited data. But now that shared data plans and individual tiers have been around for a while, and a number of new devices have become available, are you willing to give up unlimited to get the latest and greatest on the cheap? Paying full retail prices for phones is not fun, especially when you can get the same phone for hundreds less, as long as you change your data plan. So, a year after the death of unlimited, what plan do you currently have?

Tuesday Poll: What Kind of Data Plan do You Currently Have? is a post from: Droid Life

Data usage is going to be a hot topic whether you want it to be or not. Now that carriers like Verizon and AT&T have created tiered and shared data plans, it’s obvious that they have realized what their next cash cow will be. Gone are the days of worrying about how many texts you sent or calls you made, in are the times when counting MBs and GBs are a daily task.

To get a good feel for the data landscape around these parts, we thought we would ask how much data you consumed last month. If you are on an individual plan, answer away. If you are on a shared plan, I’d love for you to share how much data your entire family consumed. And in case you were wondering where we got the poll options from, you can thank Verizon’s Share Everything plans for those. We built the poll around them.

Thursday Poll: How Much Data Did You Use Last Month? is a post from: Droid Life

We are not exactly fans of Shared Data plans that AT&T and Verizon have adopted lately, but the other carriers, Sprint and T-Mobile, are not impressed either. Sprint has long been touting they have one of the last true unlimited data plans in the country and to hammer home that fact they are breaking out a new advertising campaign to remind you that you don’t have to share. 

Click here to view the embedded video.

In a press release, Caralene Robinson of Sprint said, “the concept of sharing a monthly data allowance across a family or group of users increases the likelihood for a surprise monthly bill due to data overage charges.”

We’re not entirely sure of the science behind that statement, but sharing data might call for some unnecessary overages down the road. They are softly nudging you away from conforming with these new plans while pointing out the strengths of their unlimited plans. What they don’t mention is how many LTE cities they have up and running right now, which is under 15.

Personally I’m partial to dividing up the data based on most dental work, what do you think?

Sprint Starts Marketing Campaign to Encourage You to “Say No to Sharing” is a post from: Droid Life

Reports are floating around the web today, suggesting that Verizon has had a set of super secret Share Everything tiers for the mega-data hogs out there that they aren’t promoting. The fact is, that these plans have been there since day 1, Big Red has just limited their visibility to make life simpler for those switching to these new shared plans. While DL readers have known about these plans for some time now (we even listed them in our AT&T comparison), we thought it was a good opportunity to remind you about them.

For those on Share Everything that imagine a time where 10GB of data at $100 is not enough, don’t worry, Verizon has more tiers for you to entertain. The next plan after 10GB is 12GB and will run you $110. The chart above details the rest, but as you can tell, there is even a 30GB plan for $200 in case you and your family plans on getting really wild some month.

I would assume that Big Red may even go above and beyond 30GB if you need them to.

To our Share Everything readers, I ask you, how are you liking your plan? Satisfied with tiers, pricing, etc.?

Reminder: Verizon has Mega Share Everything Plans, Ranging From 12GB to 30GB is a post from: Droid Life

The date has been set for AT&T’s Mobile Share plans. On August 23, customers will be able to choose from a new Mobile Share plan, to keep their current plan, or to change to one of AT&T’s existing plans. For now, there will be no forcing new customers onto the Share plans, even when upgrading to a new phone. They have six options in total for “data bucket” sizes at 1GB going all the way up to 20GB. 

To see our current rundown of Shared Data on both, Verizon and AT&T, check out our post here.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Via: AT&T

AT&T’s Mobile Share Plans Go Live August 23 is a post from: Droid Life

We aren’t sure if this is the case for every Verizon customer, but so far this week, we have heard from a handful who used an upgrade over the past few days and were still allowed to keep unlimited data. From what we were told when Share Everything plans went live, unlimited data was only going to be kept if you purchased phones at full retail. We aren’t sure if Verizon is being extra kind this month, if they are temporarily allowing upgrades as they did pre-Share Everything, or if this is some sort of an error in their system. AT&T announced their shared data plans this week and even announced that customers will be able to keep their existing unlimited plans with upgrades for the foreseeable future. Maybe Verizon wants to align themselves with that? 

What we do know is that we have a screenshot below of a customer upgrading this week to a Galaxy S3 and finding that he was able to keep unlimited data. We also just received an email from a reader whose wife is upgrading from a DROID 3 to a 4G phone and was told that she could keep unlimited, but that this was only going to be allowed for a short period of time.

Update:  We are hearing from friends of ours that this is pretty random. Some people are still able to keep unlimited, while others are not. It could have to do with inadvertent canceling of Galaxy S3 pre-orders and those customers are now given a chance to upgrade. It could also be that some are more special than others and simply slipping through the cracks.

If you have yet to use an upgrade, would you mind cruising into your account today, walking through half of the upgrade process on a phone, and then telling us if it is allowing you to keep unlimited data? Afterwards, please let us know in the comments.

Cheers Travis and everyone else!

Verizon Still Letting Upgrades Keep Unlimited Data? is a post from: Droid Life

T-Mobile, never one to hold back from a good war of words, expressed their feelings towards the new shared data plan model that both Verizon and AT&T have introduced. As you can imagine, they are not fans of the approach, calling them “costly, complicated, and punitive.” They strongly feel that consumers will not benefit from them and that they are essentially tricking customers by placing focus on the “value” of the unlimited talk and text, even though today’s consumers use less of these services. 

Here is the full statement:

“Unlike AT&T and Verizon, T-Mobile does not plan on introducing shared family data plans and believes consumers will not benefit from that model. AT&T and Verizon shared family plans are:

• COSTLY – AT&T and Verizon are charging more for what consumers want by raising rates on data, but promoting the “value” by pointing to unlimited talk and text even though today many consumers use less of these services.
• COMPLICATED – both plans force customers to share data when many customers don’t know how much data they’re using, which makes it hard to stay within their limit when trying to balance multiple users.
• PUNITIVE – At the same time that AT&T and Verizon are making it harder for customers to manage overages, they are also charging overage rates of $15/GB for accounts with at least one smartphone.

Conversely, at T-Mobile we believe that:

• Customers who pay more, should get more – Rather than having to account for each device on a shared family data plan, T-Mobile customers can use their existing data plan to power multiple devices, while still saving hundreds of dollars annually.
• Data should be worry-free – With T-Mobile’s unlimited data plans, there is no surprise data cap or bill shock.
• Data plans should be flexible and affordable – At T-Mobile, customers have the option of only paying for the amount of data each member of the family believes they will need.”

– Harry Thomas for T-Mobile

I would tend agree with Mr. Thomas’ statement that selling these as “unlimited talk and text,” but charging high prices for data at set limits that customers do not fully understand is probably the wrong approach. The days of heavy calling and texting are about to be behind us. Clearly AT&T and Verizon understand this and is probably the number 1 reason for this move.

That’s why we have done everything we can to help explain shared data plans. The last thing we want is for anyone to run into an issue or find a surprise charge on their bill at the end of the month. The best thing you can do is research, use calculators and simulations like we have done and then decide if shared plans will benefit you or not. Everyone’s situation is completely different. It’s time to start monitoring your data usage.

Via:  SlashGear

T-Mobile: AT&T and Verizon’s Shared Data Plans are “Costly, Complicated, and Punitive” is a post from: Droid Life

Now that AT&T has unwrapped their version of shared data plans, it made sense to do a comparison to Verizon’s Share Everything plans. Since these are the two biggest carriers in our country and probably hold more customers between the two than all others combined, these will clearly affect many of you. So in the simplest of comparisons, we have two charts that represent your choices for shared data and their costs, followed by a couple of scenarios to see which carrier would be best meet your needs. 

*There is a chance that AT&T will add in other tiers, but these are the 6 that they have announced.

Unlimited Talk and Text

With shared data plans, you get unlimited talk and text on both Verizon and AT&T.

Per Device Cost

For those just learning about shared data, we’ll try to give you the basic breakdown of how this all works. First, you have a per device cost which essentially accounts for the unlimited minute and text plan that accompanies all shared data plans. So in the past, you paid $69.99 for 700 minutes, but now you are paying upwards of $45 to get unlimited talk and text. With Verizon, the fee is $40 for smartphones at all times – with AT&T, that number starts at $45 and goes down depending on how much data you add on. Basic phones are $30 on either carrier. When you add hotspots, laptops or netbooks, they will cost $20 per month on either carrier. Tablets will run you $10. The low prices for each of these have to do with the lack of a minute plan since you can’t make calls on them.

Data Amount

Once you figure out how many devices you are going to attach to your account, you then decide on a data amount. As you can see above, Verizon has more options to choose from than AT&T, but there is a chance that changes in the future. The key thing to remember is that this data amount is shared by all of the phones, tablets, hotspots, and netbooks attached to your account. If you choose the 8GB plan, that doesn’t mean that each device gets to use 8GB – each device gets to pull from one lump some of 8GB.

Examples

Enough info, let’s talk examples for a second.

Example 1:  Your family has 2 smartphones and 1 basic phone, so you decide to buy 4GB of data.

Verizon:  2 smartphones at $40 per, 1 basic phone at $30 per, and a 4GB data plan for $70. Your monthly bill would roughly be $180 before fees and taxes.

AT&T:  2 smartphones at $40 per, 1 basic phone at $30 per, and a 4GB data plan for $70. Your monthly bill would roughly be $180 before fees and taxes.

As you can see, it’s a wash in this example on a numbers front.

Example 2:  You are an individual who uses little data, but needs a smartphone.

Verizon:  1 smartphone at $40 per with a 1GB plan at $50. Your monthly bill would roughly be $90 before fees and taxes.

AT&T:  1 smartphone at $45 per with a 1GB plan at $40. Your monthly bill would roughly be $85 before fees and taxes.

Smartphones owners that use little data, AT&T edges Verizon by a small margin.

Example 3:  Big family with 4 smartphones, a tablet and a hotspot. You go big with a 14GB plan.

Verizon:  4 smartphones at $40 per, plus a tablet at $10 per, and a hotspot at $20 per plus a 14GB data plan for $120.  Your monthly bill will run you around $310 before fees and taxes.

AT&T:  Since AT&T does not have a 14GB plan, we would have to go with the 15GB plan in this scenario. 4 smartphones at $30 per, 1 tablet at $10 per, and a hotspot at $20 per, plus a 15GB data plan for $160. Your monthly bill will run you around $310 before fees and taxes.

On AT&T, you get an extra 1GB of data and will pay the same price that Verizon customers will pay.

Conclusion

While the numbers may look different, especially with AT&T giving you a per device discount as you buy more data, it all comes out the same in the end for the most part. Not only that, but Verizon’s 4G LTE network covers over 300 markets at this point while AT&T’s is in only 47. It would have been surprising to see one to offer a significant discount over the other. In the end, it comes down to carrier preference just like it always has.

Shared Data Plans: Verizon vs. AT&T is a post from: Droid Life

We knew it wouldn’t be long before AT&T stepped into the shared data plan game. You didn’t think it was going to be Verizon only, did you? The mobile landscape started changing years ago when tiered data was first introduced, but now more than ever, you will be paying a premium to take that smartphone of yours onto the web or into an app. Carriers realized that the money they were making from minutes and texts wasn’t going to hold up forever and that data was their new cash cow.

So AT&T’s shared data plans look a lot like Verizon’s in that you pay a flat fee for your phone and then pick from a variety of data options. Their’s differs in that as you buy a bigger data bucket, your per device monthly charge goes down. The first tier of 1GB is cheaper than Big Red’s at $40 and they are also not offering a 2GB plan.

These plans will go into effect in August. For now (or at launch), they will allow you to choose between shared plans and their current plans, however, you have to expect that to change.

The press release is below, but stick with us as we’ll have comparison charts to Verizon’s and also dive into the dirty details. 

AT&T Gives Customers More Choice with New Shared Wireless Data Plans

New Mobile Share Plans Allow Customers to Easily Share Data Across Smartphones, Tablets and Other Devices. New and Current Customers Not Required To Choose or Switch to Shared Plans

AT&T* customers will soon have more options in choosing the plan that’s right for them and their mobile devices. With new AT&T Mobile Share plans, available in late August, new and existing customers can share a single bucket of data across smartphones, tablets, and other compatible devices, plus get unlimited talk and text. AT&T Mobile Share plans make it easy for customers to manage their data, voice minutes and texting, without needing to keep track of multiple plans.

Customers can select one of the new shared data plans or choose one of AT&T’s existing individual or family plans. Current customers are not required to switch to the new plans, but can choose to do so without a contract extension. There are no changes to AT&T’s device upgrade policy, which means customers eligible to upgrade to AT&T’s best device price are not required to switch plans. The new plans will also be available for business customers.

With AT&T Mobile Share plans, customers start by choosing how much data they want each month, then choose up to 10 devices to attach to their shared plan, one of which must be a smartphone. Each plan includes tethering and unlimited domestic calls and texts for smartphones and basic or quick messaging phones. The larger the data bucket you choose, the less you pay per gigabyte and the less you pay for each smartphone added to the shared plan

AT&T Mobile Share allows customers to essentially build a plan to fit their devices and usage. Customers who are more data-centric can choose a larger data bucket. Customers who typically use more voice than data can add multiple smartphones and basic phones and opt for a smaller data bucket.

“We offer customers a broad choice and the best lineup of plans, now enhanced by Mobile Share,” said David Christopher, chief marketing officer, AT&T Mobility. “With these new plans, the more you share, the more you save. They’ll be a good fit for a variety of new and existing customers. But if customers want to stay on their current plan or choose from our existing plans, they can do that, too. It’s their choice.

“Today we think of people’s smartphones and tablets sharing a bucket of data. But in the future we’ll see health care monitors, connected cars, security systems and other devices in the home all connected to the mobile Internet,” said Christopher. “Our Mobile Share plans are simple, easy and a great value for individuals or families with multiple mobile Internet devices.”

Mobile Share plans give customers more control over how, where and on what device they use data — which has become more important as people use more data devices. You can choose to use more of your data bucket on your tablet, for example, or tap into your data bucket only when needed for devices you use occasionally. And by consolidating data plans, you can take advantage of any data you currently have unused each month by efficiently sharing it across devices.

“The ‘more you share, the more you save’ concept is one that will resonate well with customers because of the value provided through the Mobile Share data plans themselves and in smartphone connection fees,” said Roger Entner, Founder and Lead Analyst of Recon Analytics. “AT&T also is providing its customers with flexibility and choice by keeping its existing data plans and not requiring customers to move to Mobile Share unless they want to. It’s a win-win for both AT&T and its customers.”

To help customers track their data usage, AT&T keeps users informed with courtesy alerts as they near their data allowance for the month. Also, customers can check their usage at anytime online, through the myAT&T mobile app, or by calling *DATA# from their mobile phone.

Each data plan also includes access to more than 30,000 AT&T Wi-Fi Hot Spots — the nation’s largest Wi-Fi network** among wireless carriers — at no additional charge. Wi-Fi usage at public hotspots, home or office does not count toward the monthly wireless data plan usage.

Customers can learn more about the new plans and determine which plan is best for them atwww.att.com/mobileshare.

AT&T Announces Their Own Shared Data Plans, Launching in August is a post from: Droid Life

T-Mobile Officially Announces Samsung Galaxy Note, Arriving in “the Coming Weeks”

Late last night, T-Mobile released a short press release letting the world know that they will begin stocking and selling the Galaxy Note sometime soon. It’s been a long time coming, but the 5.3″ phablet will be available sometime in August if rumors are correct. It will sport the Snapdragon S3 processor clocked in at 1.5GHz, but will have no LTE radio, only T-Mo’s HSPA+. It will also feature ICS out of the box, another welcome feature. If you’re anxious to hear more, hit the source link below. 

Via: TmoNews

Sprint Lays Out First Cities To Get LTE Network Airwaves

Sprint’s LTE network is coming, just ask all the owners of the HTC EVO 4G LTE who are waiting for it. We just don’t exactly know when, but when it does get here, we know where it will be going live. Sprint laid out their plans though for 15 cities to go live when their new network is ready to go.

• Atlanta, Ga.
• Athens, Ga.
• Calhoun, Ga.
• Carrollton, Ga.
• Newnan, Ga.
• Rome, Ga.
• Dallas, Tx.
• Fort Worth, Texas
• Granbury-Hood County, Texas
• Houston, Tx
• Huntsville, Texas
• San Antonio, Texas
• Waco, Texas
• Kansas City, Mo.-Kan.
• St. Joseph, Mo.

Lots of love for Georgia, Texas and Missouri in this initial rollout. Let’s hope that they continue their network expansion quickly so that more people can have the benefits of LTE speeds and downloads.

Via: Sprint

Could AT&T Be Working On its Own Shared Data Plans?

After the uproar that occurred when Verizon launched their Share Everything Plans, it’s hard to think another carrier would consider it, but AT&T might be following suit. A screenshot from an AT&T customer detailing his or her billing cycle showed a “Group Data” section that was unused, but was measured in MB anyway. This is far from definitive proof, but it might be a sign that AT&T is looking to cash in on shared data plans just like Verizon has. Time will tell if the two largest national wireless carriers will soon force their customers to switch to these new plans.

Via: Phone Arena

AT&T Galaxy SIII Updated to Take Away Global Search Function as a “Precautionary Measure”

The patent wars rage on with the Galaxy SIII on both Sprint and now AT&T being updated to dumb down their search function. Google and Samsung are looking to avoid more injunctions against Android devices like what happened to the Galaxy Nexus not too long ago. ”Samsung has updated the software for the Galaxy S III as a precautionary measure to ensure that U.S. consumers may enjoy using our innovative products without interruption,” is what Sammy had to say in a statement regarding the updates. It’s good to see that shipments won’t be stopped, but unfortunately Search, one of Google’s greatest strengths, is going to suffer for it.

Via: Phone Scoop

Sprint Announces ICS Upgrades For HTC EVO 3D and EVO Design 4G

Android 4.0 was such an amazing upgrade to the OS that it is news whenever an existing phone is going to receive it. Sprint and HTC are working together to get two of their phones upgraded “sometime next month.” The EVO 3D and EVO Design 4G will be getting OTA updates to ICS whenever the builds finish going through testing. Props to HTC for continuing to update it’s phones to the latest versions of Android time and time again.

Via: Mobileburn

ICS Update For Motorola Atrix 2 Leaks Out, OTA Sometime Within the Coming Months?

The method named “Cheesecake” is basically tricking your phone into pinging servers with test builds of phones and downloading them. We’ve come across many updates using this method and now we can add the Atrix 2 to this list as well. Someone pinging the servers through Cheesecake came across the upgrade to ICS and proceeded to download it. This usually means that the update is in testing, and that we could see it sometime soon.

Via: Phandroid

Android Other: T-Mobile Galaxy Note Official, Sprint Lists Initial LTE Cities, AT&T Shared Data Plans On Their Way? is a post from: Droid Life

Fans of the My Verizon data widget, go hit up the Play store, as Verizon updated it today with an “enhanced widget” to support their new Share Everything plans. The widget had previously been killed off while Big Red worked on a new version that was compatible with shared data, so folks without unlimited plans will surely be glad to see this little guy back in action. We should point out that the widget will also no longer refresh itself in the background – you have to tap to get it to refresh.

Play Link

Cheers jeesung!

My Verizon Mobile App Updated, Widget Returns With Support for Share Everything is a post from: Droid Life

When Verizon killed off the data usage widget from the My Verizon app earlier this week in preparation for the launch of Share Everything plans, many of you shared your concerns. It was understandable that you would be concerned, especially knowing that data limits are shrinking and having on-demand access to your usage will be key.

We suspected that Verizon simply killed it because it would no longer work properly with shared data, but that something else was likely in the works. While they didn’t necessarily say that a new widget will be here any time soon, their corporate PR reached out to let us know that business is as usual in the app aside from the widget. 

The Data Widget was retired in anticipation of the launch of the Share Everything Plans. Customers can continue to use the My Verizon app (available on all Verizon Wireless smartphones) to monitor data, voice and text messages.  Verizon Wireless has added an enhancement to the My Verizon app that will allow customers on Share Everything plans to see and manage their account level data use.  Additionally, customers on all plan types can continue to dial #DATA or visit MyVerizon.com to view their data usage.

I know that the widget was very popular with DL readers, so hopefully they find a solution soon that will work going forward. In the mean time, you will have to open the app from time to time to check on your data usage status. It’s an extra click or two, but at least you can still do it from your mobile.

Verizon: Data Widget May be Gone, But the My Verizon App Still has Everything You Need is a post from: Droid Life

Whether you will benefit from them or not, Share Everything plans are here as of today. For new customers, your only choice is now Share Everything plans. If you are a current customer, and you choose to upgrade at a discounted price, you can choose either a shared plan or go solo with a plan starting at $30 for 2GB of data. If you want to keep unlimited, start saving, because you have to buy phones at full retail going forward.

To learn all there is to know about Share Everything, feel free to start here.

Verizon’s Share Everything Plans are Officially Here is a post from: Droid Life