The Verizon Wireless Megathread: Tears for tiers

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Inspect Your Gadgets > The Verizon Wireless Megathread: Tears for tiers

notwithoutmyanus: Mar 17, 2009

re:Maxx discount, I'm happy to have gotten the concast discount out of it. I'm completely amazed how fast the price dropped. It makes me wonder how much the new Nexus will drop to and how fast.

# ? Oct 28, 2013 16:55

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# ? May 17, 2024 01:37

SeaborneClink: Aug 27, 2010; MAWP... MAWP!

notwithoutmyanus posted:

re:Maxx discount, I'm happy to have gotten the concast discount out of it. I'm completely amazed how fast the price dropped. It makes me wonder how much the new Nexus will drop to and how fast.

It won't, and it won't. They we're $199/$249 from the day they launched until the day they were sold out. Price drops are a contract/subsidized phone thing, which the Nexus was not sold as, unless you were completely incapable of doing math and for some reason bought one subsidized from T-Mobile.

# ? Oct 28, 2013 18:15

kitten smoothie: Dec 29, 2001

Is Verizon LTE in the Bay Area just overloaded to hell? Was out there last weekend and my phone was pretty useless for data in a lot of places.

5 bars LTE in SF, San Jose, and Palo Alto, but the data service was bad enough it was giving me flashbacks to AT&T circa 2008-2009.

# ? Oct 29, 2013 20:49

Shadowhand00: Jan 23, 2006; Golden Bear is ever watching; day by day he prowls, and when he hears the tread of lowly Stanfurd red,from his Lair he fiercely growls.; Toilet Rascal

Its pretty bad out in the Bay Area. We might get 5 bars or what not but speed is ridiculously bad ever since almost everyone switched to Verizon LTE once it came out.

# ? Oct 29, 2013 22:35

tonic: Jan 4, 2003

kitten smoothie posted:

Is Verizon LTE in the Bay Area just overloaded to hell? Was out there last weekend and my phone was pretty useless for data in a lot of places.

5 bars LTE in SF, San Jose, and Palo Alto, but the data service was bad enough it was giving me flashbacks to AT&T circa 2008-2009.

Yup, generally <5mbit down in most places or worse. Both AT&T and T-Mobile are much faster.

EDIT: Just saw this: http://qz.com/140511/philadelphia-has-the-slowest-4g-mobile-broadband-sprint-at-fault/

tonic fucked around with this message at 18:42 on Oct 30, 2013

# ? Oct 30, 2013 05:57

JayKay: Sep 11, 2001; And you thought they were cute and cuddly.

Would there be any issues in adding tethering to my unlimited plan for a day and then removing it?

Edit: I'm assuming it'd be pro-rated so like $2ish?

# ? Oct 31, 2013 03:15

kitten smoothie: Dec 29, 2001

JayKay posted:

Would there be any issues in adding tethering to my unlimited plan for a day and then removing it?

Edit: I'm assuming it'd be pro-rated so like $2ish?

I didn't think they let you add the unlimited tethering on a prorated basis. I tried adding it for my wife a couple months ago and I didn't have any choice but to make it retro to the start of my current bill cycle and charge me the full $30.

# ? Oct 31, 2013 03:21

BJA: Apr 11, 2006; It has to start somewhere
It has to start sometime
What better place than here
What better time than now

Don't know how far behind the curve I am but my s4 just updated to 4.3

# ? Oct 31, 2013 03:24

WithoutTheFezOn: Aug 28, 2005; Oh no

JayKay posted:

Would there be any issues in adding tethering to my unlimited plan for a day and then removing it?

Edit: I'm assuming it'd be pro-rated so like $2ish?

I've done it often, as recently as August. It was prorated at roughly $1/day. Pretty sure it only works with a 4G phone, though (I.e. the $30/mo tethering feature and not the $20/mo feature).

# ? Oct 31, 2013 03:41

Don Lapre: Mar 28, 2001; If you're having problems you're either holding the phone wrong or you have tiny girl hands.

JayKay posted:

Would there be any issues in adding tethering to my unlimited plan for a day and then removing it?

Edit: I'm assuming it'd be pro-rated so like $2ish?

As long as you are LTE this works fine. Its $1/day.

# ? Oct 31, 2013 03:51

GUYS STOP: Jun 7, 2003; Grimey Drawer

kitten smoothie posted:

I didn't think they let you add the unlimited tethering on a prorated basis. I tried adding it for my wife a couple months ago and I didn't have any choice but to make it retro to the start of my current bill cycle and charge me the full $30.

It can be done but pro-rating anything is severely discouraged with a feature that has an allowance because of the chaos it tends to generate. IIRC 3G devices have a $20 / month add on feature that gives you 2 GB tethering usage. Assuming a 30 day bill cycle that would give you 68 and a bit megabytes of tether before your incur overage. 4G smartphones have unlimited tethering for $30 / month (if you are still on unlimited data) so it could be added an removed on-demand without issue since the allowance is unlimited you cannot get overage.

For hotspotting tiered data plans the general rule is add 2 GB and add $20 to the cost of your data plan. If you are on 2 GB for $30 the hotspot variant is 4 GB for $50 and you can use the data either on the phone or on whatever else.

Or you could just get FoxFi or or whatever is the modern version of that. VZW got FCC fined for restricting tethering apps so they are OK to use just don't expect tech support if it doesn't work.

# ? Oct 31, 2013 03:57

GreenBuckanneer: Sep 15, 2007

FordPRefectLL posted:

Do you have any enterprise software on your phone that allows someone (like an employer) to remotely wipe a device?

The fact this is potentially a thing is scary. Unless it's a work provided phone then I'd never use it for anything.

# ? Oct 31, 2013 03:58

JayKay: Sep 11, 2001; And you thought they were cute and cuddly.

Don Lapre posted:

As long as you are LTE this works fine. Its $1/day.

Yup I'm on a iPhone 5 so it looks like I should be good to go. I'll give it a shot tomorrow. Thanks everyone.

JayKay fucked around with this message at 04:00 on Oct 31, 2013

# ? Oct 31, 2013 03:58

THF13: Sep 26, 2007; Keep an adversary in the dark about what you're capable of, and he has to assume the worst.

Looks like google worked around Verizon blocking google wallet in 4.4.

quote:

Tap to pay, built a new way

Android 4.4 introduces a new, open architecture for NFC payments that works with any mobile carrier, and lets apps manage your payment information in the cloud or on your device. Now you can tap to pay with Google Wallet or other apps at more than a million stores.

For a more technical dev description

quote:

Kit Kat also brings new platform support for NFC-based transactions through �Host Card Emulation.� This can be used for payments, loyalty programs, transit passes, and other services.

Android 4.4 introduces new platform support for secure NFC-based transactions through Host Card Emulation (HCE), for payments, loyalty programs, card access, transit passes, and other custom services. With HCE, any app on an Android device can emulate an NFC smart card, letting users tap to initiate transactions with an app of their choice � no provisioned secure element (SE) in the device is needed. Apps can also use a new Reader Mode to act as readers for HCE cards and other NFC-based transactions.

# ? Oct 31, 2013 21:15

doctor thodt: Apr 2, 2004; by Jeffrey of YOSPOS

So....does anyone have any recommendations for a shattered screen on an uninsured Droid Ultra? :sigh:

# ? Nov 1, 2013 05:14

bull3964: Nov 18, 2000; DO YOU HEAR THAT? THAT'S THE SOUND OF ME PATTING MYSELF ON THE BACK.

Motorola, usually replaces screens for about $180. It's about a week turnaround.

# ? Nov 1, 2013 05:20

THF13: Sep 26, 2007; Keep an adversary in the dark about what you're capable of, and he has to assume the worst.

doctor thodt posted:

So....does anyone have any recommendations for a shattered screen on an uninsured Droid Ultra?

It's not still within the 14 day return window is it? I think you can exchange it for a $35 restocking fee no questions asked if it is.

# ? Nov 1, 2013 05:26

Cozmosis: Feb 16, 2003; 2006... YEAR OF THE BURNITZ, BITCHES

doctor thodt posted:

So....does anyone have any recommendations for a shattered screen on an uninsured Droid Ultra?

Is Verizon still doing open enrollment with Asurion? Check into that.

# ? Nov 1, 2013 05:44

doctor thodt: Apr 2, 2004; by Jeffrey of YOSPOS

Cozmosis posted:

Is Verizon still doing open enrollment with Asurion? Check into that.

Ooh, good call. Just signed up, but they say it takes about a week to process. $99 deductible sounds a lot better than $180 though.

Thanks for the suggestions all!

# ? Nov 1, 2013 07:23

Mighty Horse: Jul 24, 2007; Speed, Class, Bankruptcy.

THF13 posted:

It's not still within the 14 day return window is it? I think you can exchange it for a $35 restocking fee no questions asked if it is.

not with a cracked screen.

# ? Nov 1, 2013 12:35

Pudgygiant: Apr 8, 2004; Garnet and black? More like gold and blue or whatever the fuck colors these are

GreenBuckanneer posted:

The fact this is potentially a thing is scary. Unless it's a work provided phone then I'd never use it for anything.

Welcome to the joys of having a clearance, using your phone for work, and working for a penny pinching multi hundred billion dollar company.

# ? Nov 1, 2013 13:03

notwithoutmyanus: Mar 17, 2009

So beyond verizon being willing to be a part of the Nexus 5 thing, it only appeared like one of the two verizon LTE frequencies are supported. Does that more or less mean that the current nexus 5 is not going to be available on Verizon?

# ? Nov 1, 2013 19:15

kitten smoothie: Dec 29, 2001

notwithoutmyanus posted:

So beyond verizon being willing to be a part of the Nexus 5 thing, it only appeared like one of the two verizon LTE frequencies are supported. Does that more or less mean that the current nexus 5 is not going to be available on Verizon?

It does not support the main band used for LTE nationwide so you wouldn't want to use it anyway.

# ? Nov 1, 2013 19:26

Mighty Horse: Jul 24, 2007; Speed, Class, Bankruptcy.

notwithoutmyanus posted:

So beyond verizon being willing to be a part of the Nexus 5 thing, it only appeared like one of the two verizon LTE frequencies are supported. Does that more or less mean that the current nexus 5 is not going to be available on Verizon?

I kind of know how VZW corporate works in this regard....

"Why would we have the nexus 5, when we have the LG G2 already?"

# ? Nov 1, 2013 20:16

bull3964: Nov 18, 2000; DO YOU HEAR THAT? THAT'S THE SOUND OF ME PATTING MYSELF ON THE BACK.

Mighty Horse posted:

I kind of know how VZW corporate works in this regard....

"Why would we have the nexus 5, when we have the LG G2 already?"

Yet the same brain-trust green-lit the X and Ultra at the same time.

# ? Nov 1, 2013 20:37

FunOne: Aug 20, 2000; I am a slimey vat of concentrated stupidity; Fun Shoe

On my family plan my wifes line is out of contract and my line is under contract. Is there any way to end up with my wifes line under contract and avoid an early termination fee when I leave ?

# ? Nov 2, 2013 00:19

Bing the Noize: Dec 21, 2008; by The Finn

Okay. My unlimited line is on a family plan still, I want to break it off to be my own line under my own name since the rest of my family is going to switch to a shared plan.

Just to be totally clear, am I going to be effectively signing a new contract when I break it off? I ask because I'm ready to go back to iOS any day now but gently caress if I'll pay retail on a 5 much less a 5S.

# ? Nov 2, 2013 14:04

Pudgygiant: Apr 8, 2004; Garnet and black? More like gold and blue or whatever the fuck colors these are

Got the 4.3 sgs4 update earlier today. It broke Tasker's reply to SMS functionality and %LOC/%LOCN. Nicely done Verizon, nicely done.

# ? Nov 3, 2013 01:35

chocolateTHUNDER: Jul 19, 2008; GIVE ME ALL YOUR FREE AGENTS

ALL OF THEM

Pudgygiant posted:

Got the 4.3 sgs4 update earlier today. It broke Tasker's reply to SMS functionality and %LOC/%LOCN. Nicely done Verizon, nicely done.

Why do you feel like this is Verizon's fault?

# ? Nov 3, 2013 02:38

Pudgygiant: Apr 8, 2004; Garnet and black? More like gold and blue or whatever the fuck colors these are

chocolateTHUNDER posted:

Why do you feel like this is Verizon's fault?

Everything is Verizon's fault, just like whenever anything goes wrong with my internet it's CenturyLink's fault.

The GPS is poo poo now too, I can't lock with better than 20m accuracy.

# ? Nov 3, 2013 02:48

sudo rm -rf: Aug 2, 2011; $ mv fullcommunism.sh /america $ cd /america $ ./fullcommunism.sh

bam thwok posted:

I thought this phone was a slight but worthwhile premium at $299 when I bought it. Then it became a steal at $199. Now it's a cruel joke on me at $99.

God drat it. How are sales of this phone so bad that the price has dropped down by 66% in one month? It's so good.

Yes. Here's what happened; As context, my line is one of three on an old-school family share plan. Three lines; two smartphones (my GNEX, an iphone 4s), and one blackberry. My line is the only one with unlimited data, the others have the 2GB plan. I was up for an upgrade. We transferred my upgrade to the iPhone line, and cashed it in on a MAXX, activating it, and temporarily casting aside the iPhone.

So at this point, we have successfully used my line's upgrade to get a subsidized phone, and the plans have not changed. That was the tricky part. Next is the part that Verizon reps will hesitate to do for you, specifically swapping the phones between the lines. But can be done using the website on one of the consoles in-store, and they may help you with it.

We logged into our account, and used "Activate or Switch a Device" to swap my GNex for the Maxx. To accomplish this, we needed a new sim card because the sizes didn't line up. Our store rep was happy to do this. Then we activate the iPhone back on its original line, replacing the Gnex.

We then complimented the sales rep to his manager, and went our merry way.

This is basically what I want to do.

I'm on a family plan with three devices - two have unlimited data (iPhone 4s and my GS3) and one (Droid X2) is the 2gb. I want to take the upgrade available on the iPhone 4s line, and replace my GS3 with a 5s, but I don't either of these lines to lost their unlimited data. Can I transfer the upgrade from the 4s to the X2, upgrade and activate on that line, then do a phone swap between my GS3 and the iPhone 5s without issue? The only caveat is that the X2 is three hours away at college. Does that device have to present for the upgrade to work?

# ? Nov 3, 2013 05:49

ProjektorBoy: Jun 18, 2002; I FUCK LINEN IN MY SPARE TIME!; Grimey Drawer

chocolateTHUNDER posted:

Why do you feel like this is Verizon's fault?

Because Verizon is notorious for being the last to get OTA's for devices due to their alleged rigorous testing. A lot of HTC One's have Android 4.3 + Sense 5.5. Guess whose HTC Ones are going to have a delay on the OTA? Verizon, of course.

# ? Nov 3, 2013 06:48

Big Bowie Bonanza: Dec 30, 2007; please tell me where i can date this cute boy

ProjektorBoy posted:

Because Verizon is notorious for being the last to get OTA's for devices due to their alleged rigorous testing. A lot of HTC One's have Android 4.3 + Sense 5.5. Guess whose HTC Ones are going to have a delay on the OTA? Verizon, of course.

So if they are the last one to get the update it's not the Tasker dev's fault for not having full 4.3 compatability by now because

# ? Nov 3, 2013 07:20

chocolateTHUNDER: Jul 19, 2008; GIVE ME ALL YOUR FREE AGENTS

ALL OF THEM

ProjektorBoy posted:

Because Verizon is notorious for being the last to get OTA's for devices due to their alleged rigorous testing. A lot of HTC One's have Android 4.3 + Sense 5.5. Guess whose HTC Ones are going to have a delay on the OTA? Verizon, of course.

The Verizon S4 was one of the first US variants to get 4.3, I believe.

Also, that has nothing to do with why tasker doesent work with 4.3

# ? Nov 3, 2013 17:58

Cicero: Dec 17, 2003; Jumpjet, melta, jumpjet. Repeat for ten minutes or until victory is assured.

Does anyone know about transferring unlimited data plans between people? I want to sell mine soon, would probably follow these instructions: http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?p=1040082322

My main concerns are that a) the instructions talk about transferring the liability of the contract, and I don't currently have a contract per se (it's been over 2 years since I bought my Droid Bionic), and b) we have a family plan, my wife is currently on the account, not sure if I have to kick her off or something. If anyone has any insight into or knowledge about this process, I'd appreciate it.

# ? Nov 3, 2013 21:38

FunOne: Aug 20, 2000; I am a slimey vat of concentrated stupidity; Fun Shoe

Cicero posted:

Does anyone know about transferring unlimited data plans between people? I want to sell mine soon, would probably follow these instructions: http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?p=1040082322

My main concerns are that a) the instructions talk about transferring the liability of the contract, and I don't currently have a contract per se (it's been over 2 years since I bought my Droid Bionic), and b) we have a family plan, my wife is currently on the account, not sure if I have to kick her off or something. If anyone has any insight into or knowledge about this process, I'd appreciate it.

I too would like to know how/if this still works. My biggest concern is that I need to be able to keep my number, I've had it for a while and DO NOT want to lose it.

# ? Nov 3, 2013 21:51

ProjektorBoy: Jun 18, 2002; I FUCK LINEN IN MY SPARE TIME!; Grimey Drawer

Cicero posted:

b) we have a family plan, my wife is currently on the account, not sure if I have to kick her off or something. If anyone has any insight into or knowledge about this process, I'd appreciate it.

Verizon can break off your line into its own separate entity if you're no a family plan. However you'd want to be careful, as things might change for your Wife's line if you only had a 2-line family plan.

Also the instructions on that process are pretty straight-forward. You just have to be willing to put in the time and effort to buddy up with the line recipient and say the correct words to a Verizon representative so they'll press the right buttons that let you keep your phone number.

# ? Nov 4, 2013 09:09

bam thwok: Sep 20, 2005; I sure hope I don't get banned

What's the latest on wifi tethering using root on an unlimited plan? I've heard that Verizon can and does monitor this type of usage, and can crack down. But has anyone heard of that happening as of late?

# ? Nov 5, 2013 18:07

kitten smoothie: Dec 29, 2001

Do they really crack down? I wasn't aware of anything, certainly not the dragnets that AT&T had been doing where they would forcibly change you to a capped plan if you got caught tethering.

# ? Nov 5, 2013 18:59

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# ? May 17, 2024 01:37

AlexDeGruven: Jun 29, 2007; Watch me pull my dongle out of this tiny box

bam thwok posted:

What's the latest on wifi tethering using root on an unlimited plan? I've heard that Verizon can and does monitor this type of usage, and can crack down. But has anyone heard of that happening as of late?

They don't really crack down at this point, and IIRC the only ones who have gotten taken to task for it are the ones who are really abusive about it.

Essentially, tethering on the 700MHz spectrum (which is Verizon's LTE) cannot be restricted due to the deal that Verizon signed in order to get their grubby mitts on it. They were granted a concession in that they could come down on unlimited users for tethering, but they're not allowed to discriminate between regular and tethering data on tiered plans. This includes blocking 3rd party tethering apps, which circumvent the pay-to-play tethering app on Verizon phones.

# ? Nov 5, 2013 19:28

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