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Best Buy offering free mobile hotspots with iPad purchase
Planning to pay Verizon an extra $130 for an iPad + MiFi 2200 bundle? Hold on a sec, because Best Buy's planning to give away hotspots free of charge when you purchase Apple's tablet. This advertisement, obtained by 9to5 Mac, does mention that you'll need to shackle yourself to a carrier for two years to qualify -- unlike Verizon's original arrangement -- but in exchange you get a free Verizon FiveSpot, AT&T MiFi, or perhaps most excitingly, a WiMax-capable Sprint Overdrive. Fine print in the lower-right hand corner suggests that the promo will begin immediately and run through January 2nd. What better way to spend your leftover Hanukkah gelt than on gigabytes of wireless data?
Verizon gets official with Wireless Fivespot mobile hotspot, touts awful global roaming plans
Really, Verizon? Play up the global roaming features of your new-but-not-unexpected Wireless Fivespot, only to strangle it with GlobalAccess plans that top out with 200MB of international data? Thanks, but no thanks. For those still interested in the new WWAN modem for domestic use (psst... the MiFi 2200 is a better deal), this ZTE-built device is the first in VZW's stable to offer global data access. That's due to having both a SIM card slot (for GSM roaming) and a CDMA radio inside, and as with the aforesaid MiFi, it'll handle up to five simultaneous WiFi connections. The unit itself will run $99.99 after a $100 mail-in rebate and a two-year agreement, and Verizon's providing both postpaid and prepaid domestic data plan options: $39.99 per month gets you 250MB with a $0.10 overage, while $59.99 nets you 5GB and a $0.05/MB overage (the prepaid details reside after the break). Where it really gets ludicrous is GlobalAccess -- customers traveling abroad have the choice of two plans, a $129.99/month option with 5GB in the US / Canada and 100MB elsewhere, or a $219.99/month alternative that simply adds an extra 100MB on the international end. That's $90 for an extra 100MB. We'll spare you the chore of stressing over all of this and point you to Xcom Global -- trust us, if you're touching down in a foreign land for over an hour, you'll need close to 100MB just to digest the inbox explosion from being in the air 14 hours.
Verizon scoop extravaganza: Motorola Venus with portrait QWERTY, Stingray LTE tablet, and more?
We've been tipped by multiple sources today on some interesting developments in Verizon's roadmap over the next couple quarters, and if you're a BlackBerry fan, an Android fan, or a fan of exceptionally fast data, you're probably going to want to tune in. Let's get right into the meat of it, shall we? Follow the break!
Verizon Fivespot mobile hotspot launch materials hitting stores
Well well, what's this? We haven't heard much about the Verizon Fivespot global mobile hotspot since we saw it hit the FCC after first leaking out in July, but it certainly seems like it's about to get official -- we just got this shot of Verizon's "launch kit" for retail outlets. No word on when it'll actually hit, but it's bound to be soon -- and if Verizon sells this thing cheap with some of those new prepaid data plans it's going to be awfully hard to resist. [Thanks, Wildkat]
Verizon's Fivespot gets FCC approval by way of ZTE
This actually happened a few days ago, but since we admittedly weren't on the lookout for hot filings from Chinese manufacturer ZTE, we totally missed it until we circled back for our FCC Fridays roundup this week. That's right: what you're looking at above is a non-carrier-branded version of the Fivespot global mobile hotspot for Verizon that we'd broke the news on last month -- and if you sift through the user's manual in the FCC filing, you'll see that this is indeed the same thing as the Verizon device. As a refresher, this puppy is supposed to replace the aging MiFi and offer support for triband HSPA alongside EV-DO in the event you're dying for some 3G coverage outside the States. We've heard rumors that it's been canceled recently to make room for Big Red's LTE plans, but we're not sure we buy it since widespread LTE coverage is still a long way out -- especially in a tiny, sexy, global mobile hotspot form factor like this. And hey, with FCC approval behind 'em, why not go ahead and release it?
Verizon launching $80 5GB prepaid data plan next month, FiveSpot too?
At present, Verizon only offers prepaid mobile broadband in buckets ranging from 100MB up to 1GB at prices from $15 to $50. Problem is, 1GB goes by in about two seconds if you're YouTubin' your way through a layover in Atlanta, enjoying a little too much Hulu and Pandora, or torrenting a few ISOs (perfectly legal ones, of course) -- so to that end, we're hearing that a 5GB option will be launching on August 23 for a breathtaking $80. Presumably, it'd be good for 30 days from the date of purchase the same as the current 1GB plan, though we don't know that from the information we have. Sounds a little ridiculous to us, but we suppose that's the price of contract freedom on a top-tier network these days. On a related note, we're now hearing that the FiveSpot mobile hotspot we told you about is lined up for a late August launch as well, though we don't have an exact day, and it'll be officially replacing the MiFi -- makes sense. If you already have a MiFi and you don't do much international travel, it doesn't seem like there's a compelling reason to upgrade, but globetrotters are definitely going to want to check this out. [Thanks, RBF]
Verizon FiveSpot CDMA / GSM mobile WiFi hotspot leaks out
Looks like Verizon's about to take its mobile data game worldwide -- we just got this snap of the "FiveSpot," a "global ready" mobile WiFi hotspot . That certainly sounds like a hybrid CDMA / UMTS mobile hotspot to us, which makes sense -- Verizon already sells a bunch of world phones with dual CDMA and GSM radios, so a globetrotting riff on the MiFi fits right in. Based on the name, we'd guess this supports five simultaneous users, but that's a guess. No idea when this will hit or how much it might cost, but we'll keep our eyes open -- check the box shot after the break. [Thanks, RWN]
