Laptop data plans: comparing LTE, WiMAX, and HSPA+ by speed, price, and value
Now that Verizon's gone official with its LTE pricing for an initial launch in some 38 markets this Sunday, we wanted to take a quick look at how it compares to the other players in the laptop data market — after all, how much you're paying month to month can be just as big of a determining factor (if not a bigger one) in choosing a carrier than the speeds you're seeing. So how do Sprint, T-Mobile, AT&T, Clear, and Rover stack up? Let's break it down.
| Verizon (LTE) | Verizon (EV-DO) | Sprint (WiMAX) | Sprint (EV-DO) | Clear (WiMAX) | Rover (WiMAX) | AT&T (HSPA+) |
T-Mobile (HSPA+) |
|
| Max speed (claimed, Mbps down / up) |
12 / 5 | 1.4 / 0.8 | 10 / 6 | 3.1 / 1.8 | 10 / 6 | 10 / 6 | "More than" 14.4Mbps down1 | 21 / 5.71 |
| Speed throttling? | No | No | No | Yes | Yes2 | No | No | Yes |
| Launched markets |
38 | 264 | 68 | Not disclosed3 | 68 | 68 | Not disclosed4 | 2825 |
| Mobile hotspot (e.g., MiFi)? |
No | Yes | Yes | No6 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Phones available? |
No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Largest data plan | 10GB | 10GB | Unlimited | 5GB | Unlimited | Unlimited | 5GB | Unlimited |
| Available contract plans (per month) |
$50/5GB $80/10GB |
$20/1GB $35/3GB $50/5GB $80/10GB |
$49.99 unlimited | $59.99/5GB | $45 unlimited |
N/A (prepaid only; $50 unlimited) |
$35/ 200MB $60/5GB |
$25/ 200MB $39.99 unlimited |
| Contract required? | Yes7 | No | Yes | Yes8 | No | No | No | No |
| Cheapest overage (per GB) |
$10 | $10 | N/A | $50 | N/A | N/A | $50 | N/A |
| Minimum price per GB | $8 | $8 | N/A | $12 | N/A | N/A | $12 | N/A |
| Maximum price per GB9 | $10 | $20 | N/A | $12 | N/A | N/A | $175 | $124.95 |
| 1These are theoretical speeds; the carrier doesn't offer "real-world" numbers. |
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2Only when using the iSpot, which is limited to 6Mbps down. |
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3Though Sprint won't provide a market figure, it says that roughly 266 million people are covered. |
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4Though AT&T won't provide a market figure, it says that roughly 250 million people are covered. |
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5Includes both HSPA and HSPA+ markets.. |
| 6Though the 3G-only MiFi can no longer be purchased in the consumer channel, the Overdrive can be used on EV-DO. |
| 7Verizon has not clarified if no-contract pricing will be available, but currently, none has been announced. |
| 8Sprint subsidiary Virgin Mobile offers no-contract data. |
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9Does not include overage charges. |
Click here for an image of the chart that's viewable on your mobile device.
So as you can see, there isn't a clear-cut winner by any stretch of the imagination — it really depends on what you're looking for — and considering that Verizon is launching with just two USB sticks (that lack Mac compatibility) in 38 markets total, it'll be a while before they become a mass-market option. More importantly, judging from the disparity in pricing from left to right, it'll be a while yet before data plans stabilize; question is, is 10GB enough of a bucket when your network's capable of delivering real-world, low-latency speeds of 10Mbps?
Ross Miller contributed to this report.