Prepaid Wireless Tracker
- October 2017, Issue #112
Hi,
Prepaid
wireless is a growing and truly exciting industry. At
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They
are simply topics that I deemed interesting, and provide a link for you
to learn more, and I give credit to the source by listing their name
under the title. Enjoy!
DSL Reports
Here's
an interesting topic! I'm not even sure
if the people who
still work
at Boost/Sprint even realize that their Unlimited by Boost plan from
2007/2008 (I can't recall the exact date) actually was an ALL INCLUSIVE
plan. The main competitive advantage of that very
successful plan was to include taxes and fees so that what you see is
what you get. At the time no one else was doing that, so it
was a
massive customer benefit with a great marketing story.
Wireless
competition since then became so fierce and price competitive, that
carriers had to strip out these costs in order to advertise lower base
plan prices. Needless to say, this is highly confusing for
customers
when trying to compare plans, or understand their true monthly
out-of-pocket costs. So now Boost has come full circle.
This is
definitely a
good thing, however, making it sound as though it's some
kind of new innovation, particular for Boost, makes me shake my head.
Android Geeks
If you're looking for an inexpensive smartphone, this is a new option
from ZTE for $80. It's a good size screen at 5", however, the
resolution is quite low. It has a quad-core 1.1GHz processor,
1GB of RAM, 8GB of internal memory, and a microSD card slot.
There's are 5MP and 2MP cameras on the back and front,
respectively. ZTE has
been putting in a lot of effort into
expanding its U.S. market share, primarily competing in the low and
mid-range, so keep your eyes open for even more options later this year.
IT Business
Net
If you want to pay top dollar for iPhone's flagship phone, and get
features that are virtually the same as phones that cost hundreds less,
you'll be happy to know that you can now get it on Boost Mobile ;-).
You can also get some reasonable discounts on older iPhone 7s
and 6s. Unless there's a
feature (or status) that you REALLY
need in the latest generation, I recommend that given how smartphone
evolution has slowed, being a generation behind is definitely worthy of
consideration. The good news is that more options is always
better, and new smartphone launches always drive down prices of older
phones!
Mac Rumors
This news literally made me laugh out loud! The Series 3 LTE
Apple Watch that was supposed to free people from older generations
that only work when your iPhone is in
proximity, actually has so many
restrictions. Not only do you still have to own an iPhone,
but you have to pay an additional $10 per month to use it. In
addition, it doesn't work on prepaid, as the watch requires NumberSync,
which is currently not available on prepaid plans.
Maybe it's worth it to some people that really don't want to have to
pull their phone out of their pocket to use the awesomely large screen,
in favor of using the ultra tiny watch screen ;-). Or perhaps
it's worth the cost to be able to leave your phone at home once every
few months, which is the number of times you might actually forget it
at home. Needless to say, early commentary reveals that even
hardcore Apple fans are disappointed with this new product.
Cellular News
With their unlimited WiFi access in more than 120 countries, including
19 airlines, US Mobile is trying to differentiate itself.
This is particularly intriguing for those who frequently
travel internationally. After chatting with them, US Mobile
clarified that they have partnered with iPass, and offering it as an
add-on for $10 for 30 days. The app is designed to
"seamlessly" transfer you between hotspots by automagically logging you
in.
My personal experience with iPass, however, hasn't been so slick, and I
have never successfully authenticated my account on an aircraft.
Perhaps the app has
improved. Here's a direct link
to this service: www.usmobile.com/wifi.
This is definitely a good way to differentiate their service
without having to worry about any capital expenditure.
Android
Headlines
With the number of people who walk around with cracked and damaged
phones, I'm surprised there aren't more ruggedized smartphones out
there. Perhaps cases
are meant to fill that void, though many
people walk around sans protection. Perhaps those are the
users who are concerned about phone girth? Anyway, for those
that want a more sturdy phone, the LG X Venture actually looks pretty
sleek. For $300, or $12/month for 2.5 years, you get a
mid-tier smartphone with a 5.2" HD screen, 8-core 1.4GHz processor, 2GB
of RAM, 32GB of internal memory, and expandable microSD card slot.
You also get 16MP and 5MP rear and front cameras,
respectively.
This is a military spec phone, with a large battery, as well as USB
Type-C port, thus your old micro USB cables won't work without adapters.
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Cheers!
PrepaidWirelessGuy
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