Motorola is not ready to say anything about the Moto X+1, its next-gen Moto X version that has only appeared in various leaks so far. However, Droid-Life has now learned from some of its sources that Verizon is “currently expecting the new Moto X by September 25th.” More →
FCC chairman Tom Wheeler is not impressed with Verizon’s reason for throttling users’ LTE data speeds even though they supposedly have grandfathered “unlimited” data plans. Per The Hill, Wheeler ripped into Verizon’s response from earlier this week in which the carrier said that it was justified in throttling customers’ “unlimited” data because, hey, everyone other carrier is doing the same thing. More →
Although T-Mobile’s assorted “Uncarrier” moves have done a lot to undermine the wireless industry’s traditional two-year contract business model, Verizon still thinks two-year contracts are a wonderful thing, mostly because they’re guaranteed revenue for a fixed period of time. Because of this, it’s not surprising to see Verizon is doing its best to keep the two-year contract model alive by shamelessly trying to convince users that signing a two-year deal is in their best interests. However, Droid Life points us to a new Verizon promotion that really takes things to a whole new level of stupid. More →
Rumors have been circulating regarding a Windows Phone variant of the HTC One (M8) for months, but a picture on Verizon’s servers seems to have confirmed the existence of the phone once and for all. Leaked to PCMag, the high quality rendering clearly shows an HTC One (M8) with the iconic Live Tiles of Windows Phone on the display. The URL even reads “HTC_M8_Windows.” More →
Samsung’s latest flagship phone just got even better on two of the biggest U.S. carriers. As SamMobile points out, both Verizon and T-Mobile released updates for the Galaxy S5 this week, fixing several issues and adding additional features to the Android device. On Verizon’s side, Caller Name ID, Message+ and Cloud have all received updates. Streaming music connectivity has also improved, the “Primary Contacts” label now reads “Emergency Contacts” when in Emergency Mode and Visual Voicemail will now work when the S-View flip cover is closed. More →
Remember that classic Simpsons episode where Homer got tossed out of the “all-you-can-eat” seafood restaurant because he ate its entire supply of shrimp and two plastic lobster decorations? Well that’s the sort of situation that Verizon is claiming its in with some of its customers who subscribe to its nominally unlimited data plans. More →
Does anyone actually like the wireless data caps that mobile carriers impose? No, of course not. And now Re/code points out that everyone now has a brand-new reason to hate data caps: Apparently, they’re scaring us into spending more money than we need to spend on our data plans. More →
As we learned from a recent study, Verizon has been remarkably efficient at convincing unlimited wireless data plan holders to switch to newer, more profitable data plans. According to market research firm Consumer Intelligence Research Partners, just 22% of Verizon’s mobile subscribers were still on unlimited data plans as of the end of the second quarter. That still leaves millions of people with unlimited plans though, and we have bad news for all of them: According to a new report, all Verizon Wireless subscribers with unlimited data plans will be subject to throttling beginning October 1st. More →
One of the reasons users passionately hate carriers is the bloatware they fill Android devices with, as in many cases a mobile operator’s app collection that comes preloaded on a new handset may be somewhat difficult to remove for an average user. In some countries, there already are laws that require carriers to let their subscribers delete any apps they want on a handset, but that’s hardly a widespread practice. Luckily for Verizon customers, Big Red is willing to make some changes to its approach to bloatware, Droid-Life reports, starting with the LG G3. More →
Verizon on Tuesday posted second-quarter results that topped Wall Street’s expectations as huge tablet sales offset the continued decline of cell phone contract additions. Verizon posted earnings of $1.01 per share, or $4.34 billion in profit, which is down significantly from the $5.2 billion profit it recorded in the year-ago quarter. Revenue climbed nearly 6% to $31.48 billion, however. The nation’s top carrier only added 304,000 net new cell phone subscribers in the quarter, but 1.15 million new tablet additions certainly helped to bolster the company’s results. More →
Over the past few years, the two top wireless carriers in the United States have been working tirelessly to push subscribers away from unlimited data plans and onto capped plans that provide a certain amount of data each month, after which overages are charged. The reasons for the shift are fairly obvious — as more data hungry mobile services proliferate, carriers make more money. Which carrier has been the best so far when it comes to monetizing data and shifting subscribers over to tiered data plans? According to a new study by Consumer Intelligence Research Partners, Verizon is the leader by a fairly substantial margin. More →
After a last minute extension last week, the FCC has finally stopped taking comments regarding the controversial net neutrality proposal. We don’t know what effect over 1 million comments will have on the decision, but we do know what the public is saying: fast lanes are not acceptable and corporations shouldn’t control access to the Internet. More →
Verizon announced on Monday that it would be initiating a loyalty program dubbed Smart Rewards later this month. With Smart Rewards, Verizon subscribers will be able to earn points by completing various actions, such as logging into their online account, paying their bills, using the Verizon Trade-In program and choosing paperless billing. More →
