carrier
Verizon Kills Unlimited Data Plans
Bad news for Verizon users as the carrier has decided to go ahead and scrap their unlimited data plans which means Sprint is the only carrier left that is offering a true unlimited data plan. Could be a good thing for Sprint as this might attract more customers over in lieu of the impending AT&T acquisition of T-Mobile.
Instead of an unlimited data plan, Verizon will now be offering tiered data plans which aims to penalize those who consume a lot of data. However in an attempt to soften the blow, Verizon will be offering family data plans which will allow families to purchase a set amount of data that can be shared among family members who are part of that plan. This offer was initially only available for tablet plans but it looks like Verizon is now extending that plan for mobile users as well. I guess in a way it’s good that now the data can be shared, as opposed to an entire family with data plans of their own and with some underusing which seems like a waste.
The downside is that there might be a chance of all the family members thinking that the other has underused, therefore making them use more data than necessary and receiving a nice thick phone bill at the end of the month. So are you as a Verizon user now outraged by the removal of the unlimited data plan? After all that’s pretty much the whole point of having a smartphone right? Compare that to owning a sports car but you’re only allowed to drive at 20mph.
It looks like the folks over at Verizon have stepped up to the plate by offering a brand new tablet for the masses which will follow up from their 2013 offering, which was the 7” Ellipsis. This time around, the tablet on offering would be known as the Ellipsis 10, and based on the name alone, it is rather obvious that this is a 10” device.
It will run on Android 5.1 Lollipop however, so forget about Marshmallow at the moment. It will also be accompanied by the likes of 1,920 x 1,200 resolution, where it sports a 5MP camera at the back, with a 2MP front-facing shooter, a 1.5GHz quad-core processor, “angular firing stereo speakers”, 16GB of internal memory, 4G LTE connectivity and a beefy 9,100 mAh battery. It will retail for $199.99 a pop with a new two-year contract, or you can pick it up or $299.99 all-in. [Press Release]
Now here is a handset from the folks over at ZTE which intends to provide a sense of continuity, although this time around you will not be able to pick up the Zmax 2 from T-Mobile, as ZTE has decided on AT&T to be their US partner and mobile carrier for their latest phone. In fact, this device falls under the mid-range segment of things, where it will just cost $149.99 unlocked, now how about that for affordability?
That kind of pricing would see you end up with a 5.5” 720p touchscreen display, an 8MP camera with LED flash at the back, a 2MP front-facing shooter, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of expandable memory, a 1.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, 4G LTE connectivity, Dolby Digital Plus Audio, and a 3,000 mAh removable battery, and Android 5.1 Lollipop as the mobile operating system of choice. [Press Release]
Patience is a virtue, or so it seems. If you have been rocking with T-Mobile all this while, and are in possession of the HTC One M9, then you would be pleased to know that this particular handset is starting to receive the Android 5.1 Lollipop update. Better late than never, especially when you take into consideration how the unlocked HTC One M9, its developer edition, and the AT&T model has already picked up this update.
The update will come in the form of build 2.7.531.6 via Over The Air (OTA), and it will be a rather hefty 833MB download, which means you would be better off connected to a fast Wi-Fi network to get the job done as opposed to relying on your data. If you haven’t yet received Android 5.1 Lollipop, just head on to the About > Software updates menu from time to time until you pick up the download prompt.