iPhone Comparison: Verizon Vs AT&T

Within the past year or so, there has been a great deal of talk about the iPhone switching from AT&T to Verizon. Individuals have spread a number of rumors about the iPhone. Along with these rumors, there has been a lot of speculation concerning the phone. Some feel that the phone will work exactly the same. Individuals who feel this way feel that Verizon will offer GSM along with CDMA, which is the technology their network currently uses. Others feel that the Verizon iPhone will be CDMA, and GSM will not be offered on the Verizon network. There is also speculation concerning how the phone will work. Some feel that the CDMA will limit the phone's capabilities, while others feel that this type of network will not. Then, there are the rumors about the data plans for the Verizon iPhone. There are a number of individuals who feel that Verizon will offer much better data plans than AT&T. To sort out all of the rumors and speculation, it is fitting that we discuss the differences between the Verizon iPhone and the iPhone offered by AT&T.

iPhone Comparison: the Network

Concerning the network that the Verizon iPhone will use, it has been determined that these iPhones will be CDMA, whereas the iPhones offered by AT&T are GSM. It has not been reported that Verizon will have a GSM network, nor will Verizon have any GSM phones (Lee, 2011).

iPhone Comparison: the Capabilities

Due to the fact that the Verizon iPhone will run on a CDMA network rather than GSM, there will be some changes in the capabilities. For instance, the Verizon iPhone will not allow you to use voice and data at the same time, being that the CDMA network does not support this type of usage. The GSM network, however, does offer the technology that will facilitate using both services at the same time. While this does seem pretty disappointing, the Verizon iPhone does have a capability that the AT&T iPhone does not have. The Verizon iPhone will be able to serve as a hot spot for up to five devices (Lee, 2011).

iPhone Comparison: Data Plans

Information about the data plans for the Verizon iPhone has not yet been released; however, there is enough information to determine that these companies' plans are, indeed, different from one another. The data plans offered by AT&T are quite restrictive. AT&T offers $15 for 200MB of data usage, $25 for 2GB data usage, and $45 for 2GB along with the tethering feature. As you can see here, one does not have a whole lot of data to use before an overage will occur. Verizon, on the other hand, offers $15 for 150MB, $29.99 for unlimited data usage, $49.99 for unlimited data usage along with the tethering feature. Based on the information that we have thus far, it is fair to conclude that the data plans offered by Verizon for the iPhone will definitely be better than those offered by AT&T (Lee, 2011).

Now that the rumors and speculation are cleared up regarding the Verizon iPhone and the AT&T iPhone, consumers can make informed decisions concerning what they will do with their phone service. They can best determine which iPhone will work better for them.

Sources

Lee, N. (2011, January 11). iPhone 4 on AT&T vs. Verizon (comparison chart). Retrieved from
http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-19512_7-20028154-233.html