Sprint's early upgrade program to launch on September 20

Sprint is reportedly preparing to launch an early upgrade program for smartphones in the wake of similar offerings from AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon. Known as Sprint One Up, the glorified handset rental service is expected to debut on September 20. Better late than never, right?

One Up is said to allow customers select a smartphone with no money down and spread the cost of the device over 24 monthly payments. For example, a handset that sells for $649.99 would be around $27 each month on top of the monthly rate plan. After one year, the customer can elect to trade in the original device and start making payments on a new phone.

Sprint will allow existing customers that have been on contract for at least a year to sign up for One UP although they will need to trade in their current phone unless they are eligible for a full upgrade. Prepaid customers aren’t eligible for the program.

Sprint’s plan seems more in line with T-Mobile’s Jump plan in that a break is given in exchange for the monthly installment plan. Programs from AT&T and Verizon continue to charge the same monthly rate plan on top of having to also pay extra for a new device.

Of course, once you do the math, you’ll quickly realize that all of these early upgrade plans are a complete sham. Assuming you take the upgrade as often as possible (either once or twice a year), you’re basically renting a phone at a premium and will never have anything to show for it (a phone you own).

Source

Comcast preparing to one-up Verizon with 305 Mbps Internet package

Comcast is reportedly preparing to bolster their broadband Internet offering in an attempt to compete with high-speed rival Verizon Wireless. The cable company recently streamed a live event to employees that hinted at a faster service that would soon be available to customers that already have access to Verizon’s FiOS Internet package, according to reliable sources as reported byBroadband Reports.

Comcast’s boosted Xfinity Internet service would offer download speeds up to 305 Mbps which is conveniently just 5 Mbps more than Verizon’s fastest FiOS offering – certainly good PR for the cable company. There’s no information on pricing but we suspect it would be somewhere in the neighborhood of what Verizon charges if they want to be competitive, or somewhere around $200 per month.

It’s also unclear at this point when the service will be available or what the upstream speeds are. For what it’s worth, Verizon’s top tier package is rated at 65 Mbps upload. Broadband Reports notes that Comcast reached speeds between 75-100 Mbps during private testing last year.

Verizon announced speed increases to virtually all of their FiOS Internet packages in May but it was the top tier services that got the most attention. The company upgraded their fastest offering from 150/35 Mbps to 300/65 Mbps while their 50/20 Mbps plan was boosted to 150/65 Mbps.

Comcast’s current top Internet package is the Extreme 105 Xfinity, offering up 105 Mbps down to over 40 million homes across the country.

Droid Razr Maxx trumps the iPhone as Verizon's best-selling handset

Apple’s iPhone has been overtaken as the best-selling smartphone among the top three wireless carriers in the US, according to analyst Anil Doradla from William Blair & Company. In a note to investors this week, Doradla says that theDroid Razr Maxx has become the most popular handset among Verizon customers.

Doradla suspects the iPhone’s slip on Verizon isn’t related to customers holding out for the next generation modelexpected later this year but rather a heavy marketing campaign by the carrier to sell more 4G LTE devices like the Razr Maxx.

CNET writer Eric Mack said Verizon’s push to get customers to buy LTE products lines up with his own personal experience as he was directed towards the 4G Razr and Galaxy Nexus after asking about the iPhone 4S when calling the carrier earlier this year. The customer service rep was reportedly quick to point out the iPhone’s lack of 4G LTE compatibility.

Despite the slip on Verizon, the analyst isn’t concerned about Apple’s prospects for the future. The new iPhone is expected to ship with a 4G radio, leading Doradla to believe that it will be an important catalyst for Apple. Furthermore, he reiterates his Outperform rating on Apple shares.

For what it’s worth, the iPhone is still the top selling smartphone at both AT&T and Sprint. On Verizon, the Galaxy Nexus ranked third in Doradla’s “checks.” It’s unclear exactly what methods he used to gather sales information for his investor report.

Verizon to charge $2 fee for paying your bill online or by phone

Verizon Wireless will soon begin charging customers a $2 fee for paying their bill online or by phone. The changes are scheduled to go into effect starting January 15, 2012 but there are a few ways that the new fees can be avoided.

Droid-Life obtained a document detailing the pending “convenience fee” which outlines that the charge will be applied to bill payments made by phone (automated or rep-assisted) and online through My Verizon and My Verizon Mobile. Users will be alerted about the $2 fee during the online and over-the-phone payment process and prompted to select from alternate payment methods that waive the fee if so desired.

These alternative payment methods include paying with an electronic check, signing up for AutoPay, going into a retail store and paying in person, using a gift card, rebate card or reward card or mailing a check via the postal service.

It’s a bit ironic that Verizon will begin charging this convenience fee as service providers, regardless of market, have encouraged customers to sign up for paperless billing for years, citing it as a cheaper and more environmentally safe alternative to traditional snail mail billing. Online and automated phone billing eliminates wasted paper and postage fees both ways.

Of course, $2 per month doesn’t sound like much, but that’s $24 extra per year, per customer that pays online or by phone and it’s a safe bet that this is exactly how millions pay their bill each month.

Are you a Verizon customer, and if so, how do you feel about this convenience fee?

Verizon eyeing a potential Netflix buyout

Verizon Wireless has emerged as a potential suitor to take over ailing video streaming service Netflix. Shares in Netflix surged roughly $6 as news of the possible buyout reached investors during trading on Monday.

Less than a week ago, word leaked that Verizon has been in talks with movie studios and television networks regarding licensing content for an online streaming service of their own. At the time, Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam noted that his company was interested in such a venture by admitting that Verizon considered putting in a bid for Hulu.com earlier this summer.

Verizon would stream video over Internet connections in markets where FIOS isn’t yet available. It is believed that if Verizon doesn’t buy Netflix, they could introduce their own video service with more than 3,000 titles at a price of $5 to $10 per month. In contrast, Netflix charges $8 monthly for access to over 30,000 programs.

Such a deal could be the saving grace for Netflix, a company that hasn’t had a favorable 2011. Trouble started in July when the online streaming site announced a restructuring of their DVD and streaming plans. At the time, it cost members $10 a month for unlimited streaming and unlimited DVD rentals by mail. The new plan split those services into two separate packages, resulting in a 60 percent increase if members chose to keep both services. Nearly amillion subscribers left the service over the incident.

Netflix later decided to split the business into two, renaming the DVD-by-mail department to Qwikster. CEO Reed Hastings called off the plans less than a month later.

Both Netflix and Verizon declined to comment on a possible buyout.

Verizon benefits from iPhone more than other carriers combined

With Apple's latest handset now officially in the hands of three major carriers, Verizon currentlyleads AT&T and Sprint with the most new postpaid subscribers (ie. contracts) signing up to get the iPhone 4S. Verizon is expected to add around 1.2 million subscribers this quarter, compared to AT&T's 450,000 newly indentured customers.

While Verizon is enjoying the freshest influx of contractually obligated subscribers, AT&T has sold the most units, shipping over 6 million iPhone 4S handsets this quarter alone. Verizon and Sprint sold 4 million and 2 million, respectively.

The triumvirate of carriers selling the iPhone has left T-Mobile out in the cold though. Analysts predict the company will shed roughly 400,000 customers by the end of the year. Verizon, Sprint and AT&T are expected to pick up most of those defections. Recent times have been rough for T-Mobile.

Sprint has invested a great deal of resources in order to offer Apple's smartphone, but sales of the device have helped to partially reconstitute a once stale Sprint. By the end of the quarter, iPhones will account for nearly a third of Sprint's handset sales and about six percent of its new subscribers. It is said that Sprint still needs more subscribers to justify the deal, but so far the company is off to a good start.

Somewhat ironically, Verizon has been pushing discounted 4G Android phones to its customers with better data plans. However, despite the greater value of competing devices, customers continue to gobble up iPhones. It is thought that Verizon would rather see customers snap up Android handsets because per contract, Apple's cut is nearly double that of Android phones.

Interestingly, Verizon subsidizes "only" $350 for new iPhones sold with a contract, which is the best deal any carrier gets from Apple. AT&T and Sprint cover slightly more per subsidy at $375 and $400 per iPhone, respectively. Android phones cost carriers less at $150-250, per contract.

Verizon Wireless holiday ad shows Galaxy Nexus priced at $199.99

A series of Verizon Wireless holiday ads appearing on various sites across the Internet show the phone will be available for $199.99 with a two year service agreement. The ads were first spotted byAndroid Police and have since shown up on other sites including Phandroid and DroidForums.

The ads are all being served by NetShelter which is a premium advertising network that supplies ads to website owners. NetShelter works directly with carriers and manufacturers so it’s unlikely that the ads are fake.

When a user clicks Learn More on the ad, they are taken to this Black Friday deals page, although the Galaxy Nexus is nowhere to be found. AP notes the following tag in the deals URL “cmp=BAC-OM-111129-HOLIDAYSAMSUNG” which could point to 11/29 as the starting date for the phone’s availability. It could just as easily indicate the final day of the sale, or not have any relevance at all.

Samsung and Google announced the Galaxy Nexus at a press event in Hong Kong last month. The phone features a curved 4.65-inch HD Super AMOLED display running at 1270 x 720 resolution, a 1.2GHz dual core processor, 1GB of RAM, your choice of 16GB or 32GB of internal storage, a 5MP rear camera with zero shutter lag, backlit-illuminated sensor, built-in stabilization and LED flash and a 1.3MP front-facing camera for video chat. The unit is powered by a 1,750mAh battery in a package that weighs 135g and is 8.9mm at its thinnest point.

The Galaxy Nexus will also be the first Android phone to ship with version 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. No release date has been set but we expect the phone to be available sometime before the end of the year on Verizon.