The big winner in the wireless data wars is Sprint/Clearwire

By on Jul 22, 2010 at 6:21 PM
General July 22, 2010

sprint_logo

With the #1 and #2 wireless carriers scrambling to beef up their network and limit data usage by instituting tiered data plans, Sprint/Clearwire is sitting pretty on to a treasure trove of 100-120 MHz of spectrum across much of its coverage area. In this dawning age of data hungry devices, Sprint/Clearwire has three to four times the spectrum resources of its closest, upcoming competitor Verizon Wireless and could theoretically build out a network capable of supporting 540Mbps of capacity per cell. With all that available capacity, Sprint/Clearwire is in a prime position to buck the the trend of tiering data and offer a competively priced, unlimited data plan that provides consumers with the best price per bit. If given a choice, what would you chose – unlimited WiMax/LTE data from Sprint or capped LTE data from a competitor?

Read

Tags:
, , , , , ,
144 Comments

Related Articles

  • Eric

    You Verizon fanboys crack me up. You like to brag about the number of subscribers they have which means nothing. Sure they have great coverage and for those that travel, that is very important. I happen to be in a strong T-Mobile market with HSPA+ and my Vibrant consistently gets over 5mbps. Very rarely do I drop below 5GB of data so their unlimited data plan is great for me. It makes no sense at all for anyone to pay more for their cell service than they have to unless it makes them feel better being with the biggest and most expensive out there. Being with small company actually has it’s privileges. Lastly, you Verizon guys will finally have a phone to brag about when you get the Galaxy S.

    • destardi

      If Verizon keeps up the high fees and switches to tiered data, they can kiss my butt goodbye.

  • Bic

    Love Sprint. I’ve been with them 10 years and rarely get dropped calls in LA, when I travel to SF, NYC, New Mexico, etc. Best rates, good call quality, and now unlimited everything with my EVO. Love the phone, love the Android apps, love the monthly cost. Thanks SPrint.

  • jerry

    Sprint is the shizzt .. and I dont know why they dont get more subscribers.. but ppl are missing out..

  • Swagger

    Don’t forget that on Sprint you can upgrade every year. That would come in handy on VZ since a new Droid is released every three months.

    • Dream

      Ah we can do that its called annual upgrade.

    • mradd

      Verizon allows for annual upgrades on the primary line.

  • fetus

    They also need the money to buy and install all that equipment. Before Clearwire kicked in, their construction was completely cut.

  • http://netgeek.me protrex

    Using my EVO 4G to get online right now. Good strong 4G signal too.

    Thank god since I just moved and the comcast guy isn’t coming until Monday to install my internet.

    -Jamie

    • Dave NC

      Well, I will tell you, I have had Verizon for the past 5 years! Before that, I was a Sprint customers on 2 different occasions. Oddly enough, I signed up with Verizon because I was having trouble with my reception inside buildings on my Sprint phone (Sprint uses 1900 Mhz, where as Verizon uses 859 Mhz; the lower the frequency of the signal, the more easier it is to pick up inside buildings). I had been eying the Samsung Moment since it was released and I was getting sick & tired of Big Red’s bleeding me dry over every little thing, like data! To add insult to injury, Big Red restricts those Friends & Family numbers to the higher allowance/higher costing plans. If I have 1,000 minutes of anytime usage a month, then why would I need the Friends & Family??????????
      So I got a great deal on a Samsung Moment at Radio Shack with a 20 day trial. And you know what; I still got it! One thing I didn’t know that makes a Sprint phone MORE USABLE than Big Red’s phones is the software. You see, Big Red evidently programs their phones to not automatically go into roaming mode sometimes, until a period of time lapses in which Big Red is hoping you come back into a Big Red coverage area so the phone won’t roam and Red won’t have to pay roaming charges. Not so with Sprint! When I drop a Sprint signal, then I almost always immediately pick up on a roaming tower. So yeah, Big Red does have better coverage with their towers, but don’t you just hate having to wait on Red’s phones to pick up a roaming signal?

      • ted

        @Dave NC, You know that sprint roams VERY heavily on Verizon towers….You know that right?

      • https://jaycen.com/ Jaycen

        Yeah the do roam heavily, but they don’t charge you for it! Love it! Verizon towers at a Sprint price, what’s not to like? I’ll stay with Sprint and continue to enjoy my unlimited data plan. ;-p

      • cheech

        sometimes roaming yes, heavily no. don’t pat urslef in the back. Sprint doesn’t charge for roaming either so who cares.

      • Dave NC

        Yeah, but this fact makes it even sweeter:

        “You see, Big Red evidently programs their phones to not automatically go into roaming mode sometimes, until a period of time lapses in which Big Red is hoping you come back into a Big Red coverage area so the phone won’t roam and Red won’t have to pay roaming charges.”

        I will gladly use Big Red’s bandwidth at no charge going from me to them. After all the money they got from me, it is about time I got a free ride from them in some sorts!

      • RC

        Heck if Verizon is on 859 mhz, they are interfering with public safety frequencies which are between 852 mhz to 861 mhz and then from 866 mhz to 869 mhz with a +/- 45 mhz for repeater splits

    • ted

      don’t mind the Bloatware that SPRINT installed on that thing. Don’t go to far from a usb charger either.—pass

      • Roach

        Yeah Ted I can’t get more than 14 to 18 hours away from my charger with my EVO. Life sucks it’s like I have to go back to my home, my office, car, or hotel room once a day for at least 6 hours, I wish I had something I had to do every day that took up 6 or more hours so I could charge my phone while I’m not using it. /s

      • Gator

        Sounds like you have a defective unit, Roach. I can pop my Evo on the charger for about 45 mins and get a full bump out of it. As far as the battery life goes, this thing does pretty much everything my laptop does, but my laptop battery only lasts two hours. I’m HAPPY with the Evo’s 6-10 hour battery life.

  • T

    Given the choice, I’ll take my capped data at frequencies that penetrate walls, thank you. You can have all the spectrum in the world, but not only is it at the absolute worst frequency yet for mobile, but it’s shared with all the cable companies that bought in and will be using it for their broadband internet service. Roadrunner Mobile, for example. Terrible signal strength and high latency… that’s the story of that spectrum.

    • Eric

      What, do you work at the Pentagon? You’d seriously pay $30 more a month just to penetrate walls? Sprint will have to put CDMA on 800Mhz soon (what else are they going to use it for since iDen is dead). If you don’t see why Sprint is the clear winner in the spectrum battle then you’re blind.

      • mradd

        IDEN is far from being dead, case in point the company known as SouthernLINC Wireless, there network supports nothing else.

    • Wes

      What are you talking about? Unless you’re in the depths of some huge compound I don’t think wall penetration is going to be an issue for most people. My 4G reception has been comparable to CDMA reception so far.

      As far as latency goes, both with Sprint 4G and Clearwire at home I’m normally getting between 40-80 ms latency and less than 10 ms jitter. Not spectacular, but comparable to DSL. VNC and Skype work just fine.

  • Yo

    I had sprint for a couple years and never had any problems. I just didn’t like their selection of phones. I’d like to switch back for the evo but I like the features of a jb’d 3gs (and I’m stuck with AT&T til next July).

    • ginny

      Nobody is stuck if you consider the savings you achieve every month by switch. That astronomical ETF from ATT and Verizon will be paid off before you know and you’ll be saving money. The EVO is hands down the best phne on the market. The droid X no good and it’s silly screen shape distorts everything because it’s too long. ATT is not even worth talking about.

      • Celz

        I agree with you some what.. The average person on an unlimited VZW or AT&T plan can be on the 450 min Sprint plan. Once you add up nights starting at 7pm and mobile to mobile with any carrier 450 is alot..

        The Evo is great but you can easily argue the iPhone 4 or the Droid X.. Personally I’m waiting on the Epic 4G I think the Galaxy S series is the tops with the Evo a close second..

  • Mike

    Sprint truly is the king.

  • cman

    Love Sprint, been with them 10+ years. I can’t think of any time I’ve dropped a call. They use to have horrible customer service, but they’ve pretty much fixed that, and with the new plans, my whole family has unlimited almost everything for under $175. Sprint FTW!!

  • Beenyweenies

    The Evo on its own is a near iPhone killer, with Sprint I think it goes all the way. I for one don’t miss the iPhone at all.

    Great service, not one dropped call, way more responsive 3G (AT&T’s 3G claims notwithstanding), upgrades every year, change your plan without having to sign a new contract, better pricing, unlimited data etc. etc. the list goes on…

  • J

    Give me a call when Sprint makes money (or even comes close to it) and then I’ll start believing any rumors of them becoming an actual leader in anything other than going bankrupt or selling their company.

    Posted from BGR Mobile (iPhone) at: Las Vegas Americas

    • ginny

      What does that have to do with anything? Sprint is a profitable company. Apparently reading is a second language for you. Keep you IPhone Sprint likes it when you walk around and complain about the crap everything you get with your plan and service.

  • inichira

    If sprint is beggin to get customers to stay. They can bearly stop the bleeding. T-mobile usa is not making money. At&t doesn’t know what they are going to do when they lose their iphone exclusivity. And vzw is trying to hit the 100 million customer mark, wich has never been done. So, for all of you fanboys of any carrier. All.carriers are the same and they don’t have your best intrest in hand. They are for profit corporations, not nonprofit. It’s like thinking that a stripped really likes you, while your getting a lap dance. Get real!

    • gee

      china mobile 500 million subs.
      china unicom 135 million subs.

      • ginny

        Thats because there are 500 people per square foot of land…how could they not be that big

    • ginny

      Does anyone on this forum have a clue. Please name a company that operates without trying to make money and be successful. This isn’t about how big you are or how much money you make. Product, service and coverage are what sell phones and in that order. I mean look at the douche bags that carry around a great phone(or used to be IPhone4…crap) on a network that doesn’t even come close to supporting it’s features. Great phone in WiFi and ATT had to start offering Starbucks WiFi for free to entice the idiots that actually keep the phones and that crap service…

  • stalker2k

    I have been with Verzion for 4 years now.I have the Motorola Droid on day 1 and iam using about between 8-10 gb of data a month,use my phone as a laptop for everything but as I hear about about cap plans I cannot be with Verizon no more I need the data so i will switch to sprint as they have unlimited data..and besides I have 4 lines on my Verizon plan,2smartphones and 2 regular phones. I pay 230 a month with the 1400 min plan..I called sprint ask some questions and I can get the 1500 min plan which includes mobile to any mobile free and unlimited data and text for 180 thats a 50 dollar savings..but I love my Droid if I switch can I use it on sprint. .

    • mradd

      Nope

    • ginny

      No please leave that Droid with Verizon Sprint doesn’t want it. Just get the Evo with HotSpot activated and you can surf the web with through the router in your phone.

  • jt

    Lol…is Sprint still considered a carrier?

    Sprint is cheap bc their coverage sucks and everyone knows it.

    I just played with the droid x and i have to admit it’s freakin awesome

    • Devon2000

      JT u r an IDIOT……sprint coverage is awesome, there prices are awesome, have u ever been with sprint? no so what r basing your argument off of, ive been with att, verizon and sprint, and i know that sprint doesnt lead in every category but in over all satifactory its the best out there

    • ginny

      Ha, is JT actually a name. Sprint is cheaper because they know customers are looking for reasonable plans that offer a lot. Why is everyone mad at Sprint because they’ve figured out how to be successful while undercutting the competition handsomely Your just pissed off because you played with the Droid X and in all reality hate it but are stuck on Big Red because they have a $350 ETF but need to feel good about yourself so you promote it. The EVO is 100% better than the Droid X and and it’s not Motorola which is puke. HTC has figured it out and you would agree with me if you went and “played” with the EVO.

  • burnet

    I live in the DC area and sprints coverage is great however when i go to rural places in NC it sux. I think coverage is all relative.

  • D-man

    Sprint’s my choice. I moved to them from ATT and wouldn’t look back. The tiered pricing is going to result in subscriber losses for VZW and ATT and gains for Sprint.

    I hope Sprint stays the course with its unlimited plans, delivers even more advanced phones, and just makes a steady climb from #3 to #2 over the next few years.

  • Walt

    I LOVE SPRINT!!!. I had verizon and i thought they were really good… but just to expensive… I switched and i havent looked back… and i get a sweet 27% discount!!!! I cant go wrong!!!!

  • Bar

    It all comes down to which carrier has best wireless coverage in your area. I have been a Sprint customer for several years as they have great coverage in my area and great family plans that save you $$$ over AT&T and Verizon. The big advantage Sprint and Verizon customers have is that combined they have 5x more 3G coverage than AT&T/T-Mobile combined and they roam on each others networks. I was driving thru Missouri and Arkansas and went from having 5 bars of EVO A Sprint coverage to 5 bars of Roaming coverage via Verizon seemlessly and never dropped a call. So if you travel around throughout the US, you are much better off going with Sprint or Verizon. If you are in an area where Sprint, Verizon and AT&T coverage is about the same, you should go with Sprint to save $$$, unless you are an iPhone fan boy and then you only have one choice. Sprint’s new HTC EVO 4G and the new Samsung Epic are better than Verizon’s Adroid phone selection. If you look at top phone reviews on YouTube, the EVO comes out on top in most of these reviews when compared to Droid X, Incredible and iPhone 4.

  • Neo

    If given a choice, what would you chose – unlimited WiMax/LTE data from Sprint or capped LTE data from a competitor? The IPhone.

  • cheech

    4 times more spectrum than Verizon. and big red is going tiered pricing. HA i am glad i am with Sprint, love my unlimited.

  • Magilla Gorilla

    Sprint is for noobs

    • Celz

      Overpriced and sometimes under performing service is for L337 H4X0RS right lol

  • Nitpicky

    WTH is going on here? Sprint and Verizon fanboys fighting? Everybody knows these forums are for one thing and one thing only, banning together and mocking Apple and AT&T fanboys…

    Luckily somebody here is looking at the big picture.

  • Aaron

    I am a verizon customer. If they switch to a tiered data plan, I am outta there. Sprint here I come……

    • ginny

      Ummmm…they just switched to capped data plans one in the same as far as I am concerned.

1 2 3
blog comments powered by Disqus