Reason Number 167,592 Why I Hate Verizon

Not long ago, I switched my cell phone carrier away from Verizon.  One of my closest friends, who has long been a Verizon fanboy, scoffed at me and even challenged me to find better service somewhere else.  Of course, I did.  And, I quickly grew tired of enumerating the many reasons I felt my time with Verizon had been a complete waste. 

I am not going to enumerate them all here again, but I did want to point out yet another reason why I will never return to Verizon.  A sharp eyed James Kendrick over at JKOnTheRun picked this one up.

It has long been known that Verizon’s unlimited data plan is far from unlimited.  In fact, they have been known to cut people off who use more than 5GB per month.  Well, Verizon is now changing that policy.  Believe it or not, they are actually making it worse.  Read past the jump to learn how.

To begin with, I must give Verizon credit for no longer calling this an unlimited data plan.  They now flat out tell you the limitations on your use of their data plan.  So, Kudos, Verizon.  Now, let’s take a look at what the new plan actually dictates:

If usage exceeds 5 GB per line during any billing period, we reserve the right to reduce throughput speeds of any application that would otherwise exceed such speed to a maximum of approximately 200 Kbps.  These speeds are subject to change, in our reasonable discretion, in order to address network issues.

Wow.  Really, Verizon??  Speed throttles?  Let me just say this again.  If you exceed Verizon’s 5 GB limit, then they have the unlimited discretion to reduce your connection speed to 200 Kbps or lower.  They could essentially "dial" you down all the way to dial up speeds.  Not only that, but by not cutting you off completely, you are still obligated to pay the full rate, even though your access will be severely restricted.

Oh but wait, that is not all.  According to the article at JKOTR, not only is your maximum use limited, but Verizon has also restricted the use of automatic data feeds.  What does this mean?  It means anything that automatically dials into the Internet and downloads content will not be allowed.  This includes RSS feeds, email, sports scores, and any other services which may offer automatic downloads.

All I can say is WOW!  What the heck can you do with a Verizon data plan anymore?  Of course, this all goes along with the severely crippled Bluetooth radio, the mangled operating system, and the limited selection of Windows Mobile devices.  I think my Sprint wireless broadband card and I will have to surf over to Verizon’s site say thank you to Verizon, for showing me yet again why I dropped you like a sack of bad potatoes.  Can you hear me now?  Yes, Verizon.  I can hear you loud and clear!

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