Qik charging $5 monthly for EVO 4G video chat (updated)
By Ross Miller 
posted May 27th 2010 9:41PM
posted May 27th 2010 9:41PM
Update: We're now privy to the official May 26th edition of the Evo 4G launch guide and can confirm the $4.99 fee. While Sprint hasn't said anything publicly, it's looking like that fee will stick saving a last minute call from the governor.
Update 2: Qik has come out and clarified that the $5 fee will be for "advanced premium features," and two-way video calling will be completely and utterly free. That's what we like to hear.
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Ok I'm all for choice and I'm all for competition. I think that Apple and Google fighting each other tooth and nail will only help consumers win in the end. With that being said Google is great about bringing 'features' to their phones and lots and lots of hardware revisions but something is missing here; and this is just my opinion. It's not a feature if it's just random hardware thrown into a device and you are leaving it up to 3rd parties to make it useful... This is ludicrous to me. You're bloody Google for goodness sakes you should have made an application that comes as a part of the OS to take advantage of the hardware you pack into your device. If it's one thing I can say about Apple at least so far (I own an iPhone and 2 Androids) is that, sure they don't give you as many new 'features' as Android does but when they do introduce features they think them through and come up with ways to make them practically useful for the end user. The reason I keep putting quotations around features is because I don't think it can even be counted as a feature until the company that produces the device makes it useful for the person buying it. The front facing camera and video conferencing should have never been left up to another company to to utilize in the first place. Google should have built the functionality for this into the OS using their own developers to give us a standard app and then let 3rd parties develop other competitive apps. Throwing things in your phone and waiting for others to make them useful isn't considered giving features, it's considered lazy... In my book at least.
As long as their are free choices, I don't see the point of using Qik. Ahh the beauty of open source :)
Wow I just noticed this $5 fee is payable via pay pal. This is so funny... Open source is fine and I support several open source projects but when I start paying for devices and services for those devices, I'd think they'd be thought through properly and not just slapped together and held together with a bandaid... this is just so unprofessional to me. Create a device with new features but you yourself don't develop native apps for those features... you have a 3rd party do it and then I have to pay that 3rd party a feat a part from my phone bill fee through pay pal? How unprofessional can you get? This is Google and Sprint I'm dealing with here, not some random open source project I found on the net asking for donations through pay pal... Companies like this should package offerings together in a professional way. I know others might not agree with me and don't care but this is a discussion thread so it's just my 2 cents.
The nickel and diming begins (or continues). I just wish Sprint had gone ahead and released the Nexus One as well. I would get that over the Evo now it seems. First it's the mandatory $10 fist-job-with-no-lube, and now this.
Well... Fringe it is.
The costs of having a smart phone is just going up and up. I got on the bandwagon a couple of years ago when they came with GPS. But now that it's costing me more for having a phone than cable television, I am going back to the basic plan of just phone and text.
I was excited to see the EVO come out, but as they reveal the price plan, that's just outrageous.
The costs of having a smart phone is just going up and up. I got on the bandwagon a couple of years ago when they came with GPS. But now that it's costing me more for having a phone than cable television, I am going back to the basic plan of just phone and text.
I was excited to see the EVO come out, but as they reveal the price plan, that's just outrageous.
so are they going to some how lock that camera from use for anyone other tahn Qik? odd.
I emailed sprint about the $10 fee and received this statement among others.
"To ensure that our customers enjoy all the features of the phone to the fullest, they need to opt for Sprint Everything Data or Business
Advantage Messaging and Data Plans. These service plans include
unlimited web/data access and all other features. They also ensure that one does not have to pay any extra charges for additional features on the device.
$10 per month premium data add-on needed to enable all the features of HTC EVO 4G."
Apparently not all the features if the $4.99 fee applies.
@hayj nice, so without that 10 bucks they couldnt possibly the phone to make calls, or surf the web or use gps, because all the features wouldnt be enabled. i want to see what a evo looks like without the 10 dollar fee. shit why even make it a fee, if you cant have the phone without the fee just make a seperate EVO plan and include the damn charge since its not optional and you HAVE to get it.
looks like its from Qik to me, since its through Paypal and not just part of your sprint bill.
Qik way to lose potential buyers.
Wow, qik's exit from mass appeal will almost be a fast as their entrance. I had never heard of qik before the EVO and will likely forget them in the near future. This was a great opportunity for them to build a user base and try to position themselves to compete before skype makes their move in to the android market.
http://www.androidcentral.com/qik-responds-video-chat-free-advanced-premium-features-will-cost-extra
thank god it aint true! free for 2-way video chat, pay for premium
Way to ruin a great phone sprint.