Prepaid iPhone

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Prepaid iPhone

by Chuck

I want a Verizon prepaid iPhone. Is this possible? Although I can afford a postpaid plan, I don't like being locked into a wireless provider, and would like to have the flexibility/freedom of using a prepaid wireless unlimited plan.

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Prepaid iPhone

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Mar 08, 2011

Prepaid Verizon iPhone - Part 1
by: PrepaidWirelessGuy

There are certainly different ways that you can get a prepaid iPhone; that is, an iPhone on a prepaid wireless plan. This topic has gotten a lot more attention in the media recently since the release of Apple’s iPhone 4 on Verizon Wireless’ CDMA network. It was a product on people’s wish list for years, virtually since the initial launch of the iPhone on AT&T, due to the poor call quality and reliability issues that customers experienced.

First, let’s say that people have long since been using AT&T’s GSM iPhone on T-Mobile’s GSM network via a fairly simple unlocking (jailbreaking) process. So the idea of using an iPhone on another (non-AT&T) network isn’t anything new. However, keep in mind that not all features will always work properly. For example, I’ve heard from people who have an unlocked AT&T iPhone and are using it on the T-Mobile network, that although voice calling and SMS work fine, they don’t have 3G data access. i.e. They only have access to data via WiFi. Personally, I think that having any smartphone on a network that doesn’t allow for native network data access is a pretty sad (dare I say pathetic) proposition. But to each their own I suppose…

Now, in terms of the Verizon iPhone 4, there seems to be a lot of interest in using this smartphone on a prepaid plan. Verizon doesn’t currently offer it on its prepaid plans. Almost immediately after launch, Verizon made a statement that its MVNO, Page Plus, wasn’t able (authorized) to support the iPhone 4 either. Personally, I believe that if a customer were to pay full price for the phone (or have completed their contract), there should be no reason to restrict the smartphone from being used on any compatible network, particularly prepaid wireless partners like Page Plus. Given that the Verizon iPhone 4 was only recently launched, no one would have yet had the chance to complete their contract with Verizon; however, it’s entirely possible that someone would be willing to pay full price for the phone. I remember paying $700 for a Treo 700p when it first came out and I was still on contract!

Mar 08, 2011

Prepaid Verizon iPhone - Part 2
by: PrepaidWirelessGuy

The news then turned its attention to people using the Verizon iPhone on Cricket Wireless’ compatible CDMA network, essentially now having a prepaid iPhone in their hands. Cricket released a statement that it doesn’t condone such practices, and that unauthorized dealers are flashing these phones. I found this to be extremely curious, for Cricket has a specific program called “Customer Provided Equipment” (CPE), that specifically supports customers who want to bring non-Cricket phones and use them with Cricket plans on the Cricket network. This program is particularly popular with customers with smartphones. In other words, I don’t see why Cricket would deny that this is a supported practice. Verizon’s iPhone is compatible, and there’s no reason why this phone would not automatically be supported by their CPE program. I believe that Cricket does have a list of non-Cricket phones that can be activated on their plans, though I don’t expect it would be difficult to have a Verizon iPhone activated under a different smartphone’s profile.

Let’s also not forget MetroPCS’ MetroFlash program, which has been around since 2008. The MetroFlash program allows specific compatible (CDMA) phones to be used on the MetroPCS network. My understanding of the difference between Cricket’s program and MetroFlash is that Cricket is less discriminating, though I can’t say that for certain. MetroPCS has stated that they do NOT support flashing over of the Verizon iPhone.

All that said, I feel strongly that so long as the customer is not violating any contractual agreements with Verizon, they should be able to use the phone however they want to (i.e. to get a prepaid iPhone!), and this logic would apply to any carrier and any phone. There are a number of laws that have been discussed recently regarding what consumers should and should not be able to do with phones that they buy. In particular, this was related to whether iPhone customers should be allowed to use unauthorized applications on their phone without having to jailbreak it. I honestly believe that the future of the U.S. wireless market will look like that of other countries (ex. Europe), where customers pay more for their phones, but can freely use them however they want, and on ANY compatible network.

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