Verizon to ‘Unleash’ $50 unlimited prepaid plan this week

By on Sep 13, 2011 at 4:40 PM
mobile September 13, 2011

In an effort to edge in on MetroPCS and Sprint-owned Boost and Virgin Mobile, Verizon Wireless will introduce a brand new $50 monthly prepaid this week that includes unlimited text, talk and web, The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday. The new plan, which first launched back in April as “Unleashed” in limited markets, will be available to customers in Verizon stores, Walmart, Target and Best Buy. The new plan is much cheaper than Verizon’s current unlimited talk and text prepaid option, which currently costs $94.99 per month. “This is a very competitive market, and we want to make sure we have a price portfolio to fit a greater number of customers,” Verizon Wireless spokeswoman Brenda Raney said. “In these times there are some people who would prefer living on a prepaid plan.” Read on for more.

Here’s what Verizon’s competitors charge: AT&T’s GoPhone service offers the same unlimited options and costs $50 per month. Virgin Mobile’s service costs $55 per month although there are cheaper options for customers who want fewer minutes. MetroPCS offers a nationwide unlimited plan for $45 per month but customers can also opt for more expensive 4G prepaid packages. Boost Mobile’s service costs $50 per month but can drop as low as $35 per month as part of its “monthly shrinkage” perk for making on-time payments.

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  • Lechero

    now if they would only allow you to use good smartphones on the prepaid plans all would be gravy

    • Maschwar77

      It’ll never happen.  Verizon won’t cannibalize it’s bread and butter postpaid

  • Anonymous

    Can anyone enlighten me on what the difference is between the ‘Prepaid’ plan and a regular plan besides ‘pre paying’?  What’s the drawback? 

    • 100

      Crappy phones

    • Anonymous

      The name prepaid made more sense when you didn’t have all these unlimited plans. Basically, you pay ahead of time (i.e., prepay) for a certain amount of minutes/texts/data. Once the minutes/texts/data runs out, you don’t have anymore until you put more money on it. In this era of unlimited everything with prepaid plans, it basically means that you’re not on a contract and don’t have to sign a contract at any point. You get to avoid the fluff and get the meat, basically.

      Like @73585aad1df41c26b4cab7f6137aeeb3:disqus says, though, this will only really be interesting if you can get access to the full suite of VZW goodness, like the smartphones and the 4G. I doubt it very much.

      • Anonymous

        I very seriously doubt there will be any 4g phones on this plan and at best only mid range Android phones.

    • Anonymous

      Well now.. there is none. Generally the 3 drawbacks were a higher monthly rate (since it’s not subsidized with the requirement of a contract) a limited pool of minutes, and higher upfront handset cost since that too isn’t subsidized w/ a contract.

      Now, you can get a phone, and pay 50/mo for unlimited everything while never signing a contract? How does that even begin to make sense for a lot of people NOT to do this? I guess maybe just withholding the nice phones from this plan?

      • Maschwar77

        If you want a better phone with more gizmos, you sign a contract and go post-paid.  If you are comfortable with the basics, pre-paid is a much better way of going.

    • serpentor

      you don’t get the phone discount, but if people do the math they would save enough money with the prepaid plan to buy a new phone full retail every year, plus no $350 ETF to worry about.

      • Neill Smith

        You’re probably still right even accounting for this factor but it’s worth noting that money paid later is worth less than money paid up front even if the nominal values are the same for a number of reasons not the least of which is inflation.

      • Cer

        No, it’s really not worth noting that.

    • GinaDee

      Wallgardened internet where you can only go to certain Verizon approved sites and can only download Verizon pay for apps. Not a full feature open web browser or OS supported by developers

  • Anonymous

    Yeeeeee haw. First.

    • Yo Mama Voodo Juju

      failure…..

      you sir are a waste of space

  • Anonymous

    Cant use the web option in this plan with Smart Phones (iPhone or Android) ..

    • Cer

      Following are the 3G Smartphones and Multimedia phones eligible for the new data packages:

      3G Smartphones

      BlackBerry® Curve™ 8330BlackBerry® Curve™ 8530BlackBerry® Storm™ 9530BlackBerry® Storm2™ 9550BlackBerry® Tour™ 9630BlackBerry® Bold™ 9650Palm® Pre™ PlusPalm Pixi™ PlusDROID by MotorolaMotorola DEVOUR™DROID X by MotorolaDROID 2 by MotorolaDROID Eris™ by HTCDROID Incredible by HTCLG Ally™
       

      • Anonymous

        These phones [i.e. Droid X, Droid 2] are there to wipe out inventory and make room for new 4g/LTE phones, that NO WAY IN HELL will be part of prepay. Once the supplies of the DX and D2 are gone, they are gone. [Watch for "while supplies last"]. VZW has a very special variety of rape and molestation of customers that supersedes all other carriers…
                                                     
        Come on, don’t you want a Pixi?

      • Cer

        I don’t want a Pixi. I’ve already got two! Bam!

        But to be serious, good reply. There’s no way any 4G phone will be prepaid anytime soon. Maybe in 2014.

      • jaymiah

        nope…….no smartphones on this.  Only about 5 prepackaged prepaid basic phones are eligible.

      • Cer

        I was copying and pasting from the Verizon press release.

  • Anonymous

    Boost has smartphone (yes entry level cheap things) Virgin has a mid-range Android. So, can I rock a full price iPhone 4 or Droid whatever?  It doesn’t compete with them if you can’t rock a smartphone with this plan.

  • Dogeatdog

    Wow Verizon is so expensive. the $50 unlimited Plan is ONLY for Feature or DUMB phones. For their 1 smartphone you can buy you have to choose from their existing voice and text plans which start at $64.99,and THEN you have to add Unlimited data for the extra $30. At least with their competitor AT&T all other smartphones except Iphone can be used on their prepaid option of the $50 unlimited plan, but you do have to pay for the highest available smartphone data plan with is an extra $25 for 500 mbs, which then also gives you free access to all of their 24,000 Unlimited wifi hotspots like in Starbucks and Mcdonalds. At&t only sells 1 smartphone for prepaid too, but at least one can buy an unlocked gsm phone worldwide alot easier as spoofed to a locked CDMA Verizon phone.

    • Anonymous

      Even if you could get top tier phones as prepay, you would pay more for less…

  • Wirelessmodz

    Well if you can live with out data ur good but the cost for data will make this useless I looked in to these before I use 6 gb amonth

  • Dadames4104

    So can I use my old Droid phone on this new $50 plan. I’m off contract with them right now.

    • H.

      No,you can only activate 4 phones models that will in pre-destined for this offer ….

  • http://about.me/brandonmccall brandonmccall

    I’m not sure about this plan, but I’m 100% you can activate any smartphone on the existing prepaid plans. Unlimited  Data will run you $30/month though.

    • Wirelessmodz

      No u can’t check ur facts

      • http://about.me/brandonmccall brandonmccall

        Check your spelling.

  • Yoyo

    Pre paids have that “im cheap and can’t afford to be on a plan” feel to them that make me feel dirty also its 2011 if you don’t have a smart phone and are still using a crappy flip phone which is pretty much all you can get on this, well maybe its time you fix that and get with the times. I sometimes wonder if people who still use flip phones also keep black and white TVs, rotary phones, Beta tape players, record players and avoid any and all latest and greatest tech

    • Anonymous

      Plenty of people in Europe do prepaid. But they’re all cheap and poor, right? Anyway, this might be hard for you to believe, but not everyone needs a smartphone.

      Once they get a couple of phones on there that are worth a shit, I’d see no problem putting my parents on that. It’s everything that they need, and nothing they don’t.

    • http://twitter.com/bootgras Das Bootgras

      What a pathetic and ignorant statement.  You realize that not everyone desires to get locked into a contract and permanently tethered to bullshit like social networks.  Those of us that do not work at grocery stores don’t really see as much need to have smart phones, since we can actually do stuff like travel, spend time with our families, go to track days.  Just shut up, you sound ridiculous.

      • Yoyo

        grocery stores o_O

        dude you do realize many business employees have smart phones one of them being myself, everything i need i can do on a smart phone and somehow manage to spend time with family and travel all while having a smart phone. Before calling someone ignorant you should make sure what you post doesn’t make you ignorant as well.

  • Anonymous

    Postpaid coverage is way better the prepaid coverage sucks but you get what you pay for.

    • Anonymous

      What, exactly, is going to be the difference in VZW’s coverage between prepaid and postpaid? Where did you see anything indicating you’d get less coverage?

      • Anonymous

        The voice and data coverage are different for pre pay

  • RH

    Here is what the “big two” will do.  They will offer some sort of SUPER low rate, which will drive the metro-boost-virgin etc players out of the market.  When it’s just AT&T & Verizon, THEN they will start raising prices and limiting choice & features. 

    • Hoonti

      So it is a bad thing that VZW is stoping the price? Are you just looking for things to complain about?

      It is a super competitive move even though it does not match other offerings out there. It is up to the competitors to position their products and services better.

  • John

    If these companies offer ‘prepaid’ unlimited plans for less money than post paid, what is the difference?  Is the only reason to go wit postpaid and sign a 2 year contract, the option of getting a better featured phone or an iPhone..or a ‘subsidized’ phone.  Because otherwise, it would be stupid to pay the high fees so Im confused as to what the difference is.  I know I priced ATT and unlimited calls were 69.99, another 20.00 for unlimited text, and then just 200 mb of data put you over $100/mos which is ridiculous.  Tmobile has the same postpaid option for only 69.99.  And it seems all the prepaid options – whether from the majors – or from Boost, MetroPCS are a lot cheaper – so is it just that you have to buy the phone and you get a crummy selection of phones- and you can’t get an iPhone! 

  • J Dub

    Sounds like VZW is trying to get the jump on the next gen mobile market. With LTE lighting up, their 3G network can still make money on prepaid users.

  • http://twitter.com/NICKVALENTIN0 Nick Valentino

    The Bold 9930 is eligible for prepaid plans.

  • Jay

    If they want to “compete” with Metro PCS and Boost Mobile in the prepaid market, Verizon needs mid level Android devices as both of the aforementioned prepaid carriers offer Androids.

  • Joe12304

    CAME BUKKETS!

  • Anonymous

    my advice to everyone,,, wait till apples fall presentation,,, this whole lower prepaid plan will all fall into place…Verizon and att both have an unlimited 50.00 plan just weeks apart,, the timing,, the rumors,, think about it,, a prepaid iphone is coming!

  • Anonymous

    The thing with Prepaid that most people tend to not understand are a that 1) Most of the time you can not use a smartphone on any of these “unlimited everything” plans. If you can, you won’t be able to connect to the web. 2) They’re only good for 30 days, not a month. So, if you only get paid on the 1st, you probably won’t be able to make it in when your phone get’s turned off. There is no grace period. None. 3) The coverage is not quite as good as the postpaid side. This is changing though.

    Prepaid is a good deal for people who just can not get on a contract, though. Also for people who rarely use their phone. While this plan may not be good for all of them, I know AT&T offers a 10 cents a minute plan and I know people who can buy $25 and make it last 90 days! So it’s great for some people. Most of the people that post on tech sites like this, though? Not so much.

  • http://www.facebook.com/michaeljmcgrath Michael McGrath

    besides your monthly plan, do cell phone providers have any other significant revenue streams?

  • Anonymous

    Yeah, but the phones Vz offers are just crap, crap, crap.  They delibertley carry these crappy phones imo to drive their customers into data plans when they are forced to upgrade to get something decent.

    • Whutupyo2k1

      VZ prepaid option is perfectly inline with market conditions.  However, you can flash almost any phone to Boost for less and stay on Sprints network.  B or S it’s the same network no BS.  “Make me feel dirty” you can’t be serious?  So, you would rather line the pockets of corporate millionaires than save money?  Where is the logic in that?  Let’s apply that logic for arguments sake to home mortgages. 

      If my current rate is 5.2% 30y fixed, but I can refinance at 3.9% (hypothetical people I have equity in my home) should I stay at the current to avoid feeling dirty or refinance?  Chew on that for a second.  

      • Yoyo

        I don’t care if someone else benefits from my plan, i need and want a good phone i benefit from having a smart phone and i need a good plan on a great network which is what Verizon is, nothing tops their network. And yes i am serious about the “make me feel dirty” comment, companies like boost, cricket and metro are aimed at low income people and have crappy phone selection with crappy network, well outside of the crappy network and selection i rather not come off as low income and am perfectly happy with staying with VZW, don’t agree well good thing you’re not paying my bill isn’t it

  • Philip Hughes

    Sorry Verizon but I can use any Sprint phone on my Boostmobile account.
    Sure I go without 4G, but my Epic is 10 times better than any crap phone you are offering pre-paid, oh and by the way my bill is going to be down to $40 per month in 2 months on it’s way to $35 per month for unlimited everything.
    So to sum it up… too little too late and no thanks.

    From: Former Verizon customer

  • rob44

    see people prepaid is jump 50% now buy 2015 it will 90% in US 

  • Godoggo022

    this is for multimedia phones only. prepaid on smartphones is 74.99 for unlimited talk only, not including text which is 20 extra and web which is 30 extra. so not really helpful for anyone and not going to do much for smartphone users that are sick of getting hosed every month

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