After returning from the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last week, where communication was key and AT&T voice and data service was virtually non-existent, I'm more ready than ever to toss my AT&T iPhone. No matter what it costs me. Despite loving the actual phone, three years of data dead zones, more dropped calls than I could ever count, and flat-out false signal strength indicators, I'm very bitter. Verizon iPhone? Yes, please. NOW.
Finally, after years of wondering when it would happen, the iPhone has arrived on Verizon. The CDMA iPhone goes on sale on February 10 at Apple and Verizon stores at $199.99 for 16GB and $299.99 for 32GB. Yippee.
Here's my plan: I sell my iPhone on eBay; I bet there are plenty of overseas users who would love to score a bargain on a gently used iPhone 3GS with a SIM card slot, which could easily be unlocked for use on a foreign carrier. Also, since I signed my contract back in 2009 when the 3GS was released, before AT&T upped its termination fees, I'll only have to pay about $75 to get out of that dreaded contract. What I'd get at auction for the old iPhone will surely cover that.
I could have a new iPhone 4 (which is an upgrade for me)—one that works in my apartment, all along the West Side Highway in Manhattan, and at a convention in Las Vegas—in my hot little hands in a month's time. As tempting as this prospect is, I realize it might not make sense for me, or anyone else in the washed-up AT&T iPhone boat, to jump over to Verizon right away. Here's why:
It has a new carrier, but this isn't a new iPhone. The CDMA iPhone that Verizon announced yesterday is the same iPhone 4 that was released on AT&T back in July. Sure it's on Verizon's 3G network, which can look like the promised land if you're used to AT&T's often-subpar 3G coverage in a lot of places. But Verizon is hard at work on building out its 4G network, and could easily announce an LTE (4G) version of the iPhone soon. History has shown us that every year in early summer, Apple announces a new iPhone and it goes on sale in early July. So there's no reason to believe that will change this year, or that the new handset won't be available on both AT&T and Verizon around the same time.
July will be here before you know it. And the longer you wait, the less you have to pay to break your AT&T contract; the fee is prorated, based on how many months you've fulfilled.
Hey Verizon, how much are the plans? One of the most obvious reasons to wait: Verizon hasn't announced its service plans for the iPhone. It's been rumored that the carrier will roll out a $30 per month unlimited iPhone data plan, but at the press event, Verizon's CEO, Dan Mead, wouldn't utter a peep about plan prices. And there was no indication as to when they would be disclosed. Verizon also announced that you could use its iPhone as a mobile hotspot to get other devices online. Cool. That's something AT&T doesn't offer, but we have no idea how much the privilege will cost.
Also, give AT&T some time to respond. Maybe the carrier will shower you with bonuses to keep you as a customer. Then again, bonuses don't mean much if you can't use your phone to call your friends to tell them of your good fortune.
Let Verizon iron out the network kinks before you get there. No one knows how many people will buy Verizon iPhones next month, but a large influx of new subscribers could mean a compromise in network quality in some areas. Hey, it happened with AT&T. Then again it might also be fine, but why not let the early adopters find out? Plus, if a massive number of AT&T iPhone users jump ship, you might wind up with better AT&T service.
AT&T and Verizon may not be your only choices. Now that the AT&T stranglehold has been broken, it's possible that Sprint or T-Mobile might pick up the iPhone later this year. More carriers mean more plans, more one-upping on features, and more overall choices.
The Android army just keeps getting stronger. I know. I know. If you're like me, you're a diehard iPhone user who wouldn't even consider switching from Apple's beloved overflowing-with-apps smartphone. Still, even I'll admit that there were some really interesting Android handsets unveiled at CES this year. Verizon's massive Motorola Droid Bionic, for example, is packed to the gills with features, and it's an LTE phone. The 2011 smartphone landscape is going to be hotter than ever. Innovation abounds, so you owe it to yourself to at least take a look at what's out there before you leap.