VZW to start throttling unlimited users on LTE

Good news. Vzw is the only viable isp at my house. I'd be screwed without it.

Used about 40gb yesterday dling Shadow of Mordor alone.
 
Dimethyltryptamine said:
Or maybe my phone comes with built-in WIFI from the manufacturer and I should be able to actually use it (not have my phone gimped out of greed). Yeah, that.
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Hey, I use wifi tethering too on my unlimited LTE plan. I don't abuse it to the level you do, but I do realize that the TOS very clearly state that WIFI tethering is an additional $30 a month option on the Unlimited Data plan. Your unlimited data plan simply does not cover you tethering your phone and Verizon would be well within their rights under the TOS you agreed to if they were to throttle or even completely cut you off for tethering.
 
Erasmus354 said:
Hey, I use wifi tethering too on my unlimited LTE plan. I don't abuse it to the level you do, but I do realize that the TOS very clearly state that WIFI tethering is an additional $30 a month option on the Unlimited Data plan. Your unlimited data plan simply does not cover you tethering your phone and Verizon would be well within their rights under the TOS you agreed to if they were to throttle or even completely cut you off for tethering.
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Indeed, but if you are on unlimited data on your phone, you do have the option of adding unlimited hotspot/tethering to your plan for another $30 or so. Not a tiered tethering plan or something, unlimited. So if he did that and actually paid for it, then he could actually call and complain about it to see if he was getting throttled and potentially fix it.
 
Erasmus354 said:
Hey, I use wifi tethering too on my unlimited LTE plan. I don't abuse it to the level you do, but I do realize that the TOS very clearly state that WIFI tethering is an additional $30 a month option on the Unlimited Data plan. Your unlimited data plan simply does not cover you tethering your phone and Verizon would be well within their rights under the TOS you agreed to if they were to throttle or even completely cut you off for tethering.
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The TOS does state that, but again, my phone comes with the ability to do a mobile Hotspot built into it, by default, it's a feature of the phone. Verizon just blocks its ability to do that out of greed (gimps all smartphones to ripoff its customers). Also last time I checked Verizon (or any other wireless carrier) won't let me use my smartphone with just a normal phone plan either (no mandatory data plan) so I could just use free WIFI everywhere I go and save myself $30+ a month (I can get FIOS 25/25 with that savings).They shouldn't be able to have it both ways in my opinion, which is the only opinion that matters to me.

Either I should be able to have no data plan at all on my phone service or I should be able to use my unlimited data on my smartphone, unlimitedly, the way my phone allows me to from the manufacturer. What I'm saying is fuck their shitty TOS. I don't care.
 
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T4rd said:
Indeed, but if you are on unlimited data on your phone, you do have the option of adding unlimited hotspot/tethering to your plan for another $30 or so. Not a tiered tethering plan or something, unlimited. So if he did that and actually paid for it, then he could actually call and complain about it to see if he was getting throttled and potentially fix it.
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Then I'd just be giving away $30 a month for something my phone did directly from the manufacturer. Seems unreasonable.
 
Very good news... Unlimited and rooted, google's wifi tether app is a great app. On long road trips providing a hotspot for the car is a great feature. Verizon seems to have good coverage too. Traveling from Illinois to Missouri later this month with a car full of people and wifi iPads. Good news indeed!
 
Good news they canceled the throttling. FCC must have told them that thing will happen if you proceed.
 
Does this mean the FCC told Verizon they couldn't legally do this? How do we know they won't just pay them off and get it through down the road?
 
You won't be able to keep unlimited forever. The trick is to keep being a burden onto their network and to incentivize them to make a deal with you. Quite frankly I was very close to accepting a 6gb deal + having my subsidized phone back. I have no problem going to an iPhone. As long as I can use a VPN and have my macbook pro with me I'll be fine ultimately.
 
Dimethyltryptamine said:
Then I'd just be giving away $30 a month for something my phone did directly from the manufacturer. Seems unreasonable.
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I'd normally agree, but I think it becomes much less unreasonable if you're really using it as your main ISP at home (where you'd normaly pay much more than $30/month for) and don't want to worry about Verizon throttling or taking any action against you. :p
 
T4rd said:
I'd normally agree, but I think it becomes much less unreasonable if you're really using it as your main ISP at home (where you'd normally pay much more than $30/month for) and don't want to worry about Verizon throttling or taking any action against you. :p
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A smarter move would be to just get FIOS 25/25 service for $39 a month instead of paying for mobile hotspot (something I shouldn't have to pay for anyway). I just haven't had to up until this point as I don't game anymore and the pings were important back then. Then again, I have been doing this for almost two years....lol. Maybe I'll just build a new gaming PC this winter and get FIOS 25/25 and give my Verizon UDP a rest. :p

However I'd still be using the mobile hotspot on the go anyway, just 91% less of it. :D
 
Dimethyltryptamine said:
A smarter move would be to just get FIOS 25/25 service for $39 a month instead of paying for mobile hotspot (something I shouldn't have to pay for anyway). I just haven't had to up until this point as I don't game anymore and the pings were important back then. Then again, I have been doing this for almost two years....lol. Maybe I'll just build a new gaming PC this winter and get FIOS 25/25 and give my Verizon UDP a rest. :p

However I'd still be using the mobile hotspot on the go anyway, just 91% less of it. :D
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Lol, well yeah.. I assumed you were stealing from Verizon only because there were no other broadband providers in your area. I would rather have a dedicated connection for my house, esp. considering I have 10+ devices on my network at any one time and wouldn't like burning my phone up constantly while I'm at home..
 
T4rd said:
Lol, well yeah.. I assumed you were stealing from Verizon only because there were no other broadband providers in your area.
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Nope, mostly because it saves me money and their TOS is offensive.

I would rather have a dedicated connection for my house, esp. considering I have 10+ devices on my network at any one time and wouldn't like burning my phone up constantly while I'm at home..
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For the last two years I'd rather steal from Verizon. :p That's actually why I was wondering if I actually can burn up (degrade) my phones NIC because either they're throttling me, the tower I most connect to has became overly saturated, or I've degraded my phones NIC overusing it. Just not sure which one.

The only way to know for sure if it's just my phone would be to buy one of those routers you can throw a SIM card in and see if my speeds go way up. Which reminds me, someone asked earlier where to get one and I think I linked him to the wrong one. Does anyone know (for sure) what routers allow you to throw in a Verizon SIM card for internet?


Thanks
 
Optik said:
You won't be able to keep unlimited forever. The trick is to keep being a burden onto their network and to incentivize them to make a deal with you. Quite frankly I was very close to accepting a 6gb deal + having my subsidized phone back. I have no problem going to an iPhone. As long as I can use a VPN and have my macbook pro with me I'll be fine ultimately.
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weak sauce
 
I have a couple of unlimited lines but I wouldn't dream of using them as primary internet connections, they aren't intended or marketed that way and clearly aren't meant to be used in that fashion. People doing so are just digging an early grave for legitimate unlimited line users :(.

I did read in the Wall Street Journal that Verizon has reneged on throttling the lines for the time being, due to pressure from the FCC, however (yes, the print edition, I know, such a dinosaur ;)!).

EDIT: Doh, just noticed this was mentioned above. :p
 
GoldenTiger said:
I have a couple of unlimited lines but I wouldn't dream of using them as primary internet connections, they aren't intended or marketed that way and clearly aren't meant to be used in that fashion. People doing so are just digging an early grave for legitimate unlimited line users :(.
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1. My phone does mobile hotspot from the factory. 2. Verizon sold me unlimited data, not limited, unlimited data is what I use through my phone, that again, came working this way from the manufacturer. 3. Their TOS should be illegal and so should gimping phones functionality in the name of profit. 4. Right > Might, in my book.


Unlimited > 201GB on my worst month ever.
 
RagingSamster said:
Very good news... Unlimited and rooted, google's wifi tether app is a great app. On long road trips providing a hotspot for the car is a great feature. Verizon seems to have good coverage too. Traveling from Illinois to Missouri later this month with a car full of people and wifi iPads. Good news indeed!
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which is the google wifi tether app?
 
Dimethyltryptamine said:
1. My phone does mobile hotspot from the factory. 2. Verizon sold me unlimited data, not limited, unlimited data is what I use through my phone, that again, came working this way from the manufacturer. 3. Their TOS should be illegal and so should gimping phones functionality in the name of profit. 4. Right > Might, in my book.


Unlimited > 201GB on my worst month ever.
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While I am normally anti-carrier, they literally can't support a large number of users pushing 200GB of data a month and saturating the connections. It just shits on the network quality for everyone else. They should really just terminate the contracts of anyone pushing that much data on an old Unlimited plan. Nothing in Verizon's contract says they are guaranteed to provide you with that level of service forever.
 
ocellaris said:
While I am normally anti-carrier, they literally can't support a large number of users pushing 200GB of data a month and saturating the connections. It just shits on the network quality for everyone else. They should really just terminate the contracts of anyone pushing that much data on an old Unlimited plan. Nothing in Verizon's contract says they are guaranteed to provide you with that level of service forever.
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They can do that, they can also lose a customer for life, too. It's their choice (their TOS).
 
ocellaris said:
While I am normally anti-carrier, they literally can't support a large number of users pushing 200GB of data a month and saturating the connections. It just shits on the network quality for everyone else. They should really just terminate the contracts of anyone pushing that much data on an old Unlimited plan. Nothing in Verizon's contract says they are guaranteed to provide you with that level of service forever.
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ROFL sour grapes much?

and do you even know the purpose of a contract?

so, when a company agrees to provide you a service, and then get's greedy later on, they can't change what they are doing just because they think "YOU GOT TOO GOOD OF A DEAL ZOMG!!! 99% of our other customers are paying out the asshole like a whore on a friday night! HOW DARE YOU USE YOUR UDP WITHOUT LIMITS RAWWWWRRRR!!!"
 
FiveFig said:
ROFL sour grapes much?

and do you even know the purpose of a contract?

so, when a company agrees to provide you a service, and then get's greedy later on, they can't change what they are doing just because they think "YOU GOT TOO GOOD OF A DEAL ZOMG!!! 99% of our other customers are paying out the asshole like a whore on a friday night! HOW DARE YOU USE YOUR UDP WITHOUT LIMITS RAWWWWRRRR!!!"
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But I dont think anyone with unlimited data are on a contract now. Its month to month now isnt it?
 
///AMG said:
But I dont think anyone with unlimited data are on a contract now. Its month to month now isnt it?
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I am still under contract, until 10/1015. Unlimited data. Average 6-8GB month. Work has crappiest wifi ever, gym has no wifi, 40 minute commute to work. Most I have used is 12GB, but I was on vacation & tethering a lot.
 
DriZzLe said:
I am still under contract, until 10/1015. Unlimited data. Average 6-8GB month. Work has crappiest wifi ever, gym has no wifi, 40 minute commute to work. Most I have used is 12GB, but I was on vacation & tethering a lot.
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What loophole did you use?
 
Optik said:
What loophole did you use?
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I transfer my upgrades to another line that's already on a 2gb plan. It renews my contract while getting me a new subsidized phone on another line, so it doesn't affect my unlimited data plan. I'm still on contract with unlimited until May 2016 right now.
 
T4rd said:
I transfer my upgrades to another line that's already on a 2gb plan. It renews my contract while getting me a new subsidized phone on another line, so it doesn't affect my unlimited data plan. I'm still on contract with unlimited until May 2016 right now.
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I could easily be mistaken but I thought I read on slickdeals this was also ending on 10/1 or something like that. This may have been your last time doing it. That thread on slickdeals was hundreds of pages long though so I'm too lazy to go back and find it.
 
You could push 10TB of data, Verizon won't kick you off UDP. They might offer you something under the guise of a NDA, but it would set a precedent that would be a horrible public relations fiasco. People are just warming up to the fact that they are paying way too much for what they receive, and companies like T-Mobile with their aggressive marketing demonstrate that. The last thing you want is to further alienate the public by letting them know that you can get banned from their network if they feel like it.

The only way to get people fully off UDP is to incentivize it. You can't offer them 10gb because that smacks the face of 95% of the rest of your customers, so its even more -EV for them. So there's nothing they can do but to continue to clamp down on how people upgrade UDP lines, which they do a horrible job with in general anyway.

For us with UDP, the clear answer is to continue drinking that Unlimited fountain of data. Push as much data through as possible.
 
T4rd said:
vhpy.gif
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This is great.
 
Dimethyltryptamine said:
They can do that, they can also lose a customer for life, too. It's their choice (their TOS).
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Although I don't use much data, I can see how tethering is a burden on the carrier. They should explicitly state that tethering isn't covered if they don't already.
 
T4rd said:
I transfer my upgrades to another line that's already on a 2gb plan. It renews my contract while getting me a new subsidized phone on another line, so it doesn't affect my unlimited data plan. I'm still on contract with unlimited until May 2016 right now.
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Im confused, you moved the upgrade on your unlimited data line to the 2gb line or from the 2gb line to the unlimited data line? Because I could have sworn unlimited data lines stop getting subsidized upgrades in 2012. Also I believe just because you signed a contract with the 2GB line to get the upgrade does not mean they set the unlimited line into a 2 year contract as well. The unlimited line is still m2m I believe. I know you can buy phones outright or transfer an upgrade TO the line but not from the line right?
 
///AMG said:
Im confused, you moved the upgrade on your unlimited data line to the 2gb line or from the 2gb line to the unlimited data line? Because I could have sworn unlimited data lines stop getting subsidized upgrades in 2012. Also I believe just because you signed a contract with the 2GB line to get the upgrade does not mean they set the unlimited line into a 2 year contract as well. The unlimited line is still m2m I believe. I know you can buy phones outright or transfer an upgrade TO the line but not from the line right?
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Dont worry about it, Verizon closed this loophole last month. Now when you get a subsidized phone it has the data plan tied to it for the full contract period. You can no longer upgrade a phone on another line and then transfer the phone to the UDP because the data plan follows the phone.
 
Dimethyltryptamine said:
I could easily be mistaken but I thought I read on slickdeals this was also ending on 10/1 or something like that. This may have been your last time doing it. That thread on slickdeals was hundreds of pages long though so I'm too lazy to go back and find it.
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No, what they recently changed was that you can no longer transfer upgrades to another line without a smart phone plan already on it and when you get the phone, activate it on your unlimited line and then drop the smart phone plan on the line you transferred the upgrade to.

What they changed is now you can't drop the smart phone plan on a line you used to get a subsidized smart phone on. You can still transfer the upgrade to another line, but you'll be forced to pay for the (2GB minimum) smart phone plan on that line for the length of the contract.

///AMG said:
Im confused, you moved the upgrade on your unlimited data line to the 2gb line or from the 2gb line to the unlimited data line? Because I could have sworn unlimited data lines stop getting subsidized upgrades in 2012. Also I believe just because you signed a contract with the 2GB line to get the upgrade does not mean they set the unlimited line into a 2 year contract as well. The unlimited line is still m2m I believe. I know you can buy phones outright or transfer an upgrade TO the line but not from the line right?
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I transfer my upgrades from my unlimited data lines to a 3rd line that I have with an existing 2GB plan that' already active (this line is actually used by another family member who isn't affected by any of this too). That way I get a new phone at subsidized pricing and it does indeed still renew the contract on the line I'm transferring the upgrade FROM (my unlimited lines).

But your belief is wrong as I've done it three times now and the contract is renewed for the line the upgrade comes from, not the line I transferred the upgrade to. The changes Verzion made recently about transferring an upgrade to a dumb phone line do not affect this method of upgrading at all and it will still work as long as Verizon allows you to transfer upgrades between lines. When I log into my Verizon account, it actually says my contract ends on 5/4/16 and I have unlimited data on that line.

Erasmus354 said:
Dont worry about it, Verizon closed this loophole last month. Now when you get a subsidized phone it has the data plan tied to it for the full contract period. You can no longer upgrade a phone on another line and then transfer the phone to the UDP because the data plan follows the phone.
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No, the data plan doesn't follow the phone. When you transfer the upgrade to another line and get the new phone, you don't activate it at all on the line you transferred the upgrade to. You don't have to do anything on the line you transferred the upgrade to. All you have to do is take the SIM (tied to your unlimited data line) out of your current phone and put it in the new phone. Done. The changes Verizon made about stealing or transferring upgrades to dumb phone lines doesn't affect this upgrade method whatsoever.

For more info on how this works, see this article. I used method 2 in that article, and what you all are confused about is method 3 (stealing an upgrade from a non-smartphone line). Method 2 still works perfectly as of right now.
 
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T4rd said:
I transfer my upgrades from my unlimited data lines to a 3rd line that I have with an existing 2GB plan that' already active (this line is actually used by another family member who isn't affected by any of this too). That way I get a new phone at subsidized pricing and it does indeed still renew the contract on the line I'm transferring the upgrade FROM (my unlimited lines).

But your belief is wrong as I've done it three times now and the contract is renewed for the line the upgrade comes from, not the line I transferred the upgrade to. The changes Verzion made recently about transferring an upgrade to a dumb phone line do not affect this method of upgrading at all and it will still work as long as Verizon allows you to transfer upgrades between lines. When I log into my Verizon account, it actually says my contract ends on 5/4/16 and I have unlimited data on that line.
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Ah I see I didnt realize verizon still gave unlimited data plan upgrade options without screwing the plan or at all. I left them 2 years ago and really havent looked back because there is no appreciable difference in quality between T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon here now. Good that some people can still get phones at discounted rates.
 
There are a couple other 'loopholes' if you want to call them that, which only work at huge national chains.
A little research, an attention span longer than a goldfish, and dropping the jelly hate and you too can enjoy the [H]ard life rofl
 
///AMG said:
Ah I see I didnt realize verizon still gave unlimited data plan upgrade options without screwing the plan or at all.
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They don't offer it, its just a loophole that can be easily worked around with a secondary line
 
For those still with unlimited data, keep it up! Keep burning through all that data. Burn through 1 TB a month. That would be awesome.
 
CHANG3D said:
For those still with unlimited data, keep it up! Keep burning through all that data. Burn through 1 TB a month. That would be awesome.
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Lol, I think my record is only like 30 GBs or so. I average anywhere between 5-10 GBs normally. The only reason I keep it is because occasionally I travel for work and LTE is significantly better than any Hotel WiFi, plus I just like having the comfort of not having to worry about reaching any cap and can use my phone any way I want to. I'm also only paying $135/month for unlimited everything but 1400 mins/month (with unlimited calls to 10 numbers I specify) on two lines, so I don't think I'd really be saving much, if anything by switching to T-Mobile while getting much less coverage when I travel.
 
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Like I said many times before, only if you switch from Verizon would they reduce their pricing. So is AT&T's coverage good enough? If so, Straight Talk, Cricket, etc... If not, then yes, Verizon is your only choice, sorry. Not the blue deathstar is any less evil, but let those two fight it out on pricing.
 
T4rd said:
Lol, I think my record is only like 30 GBs or so. I average anywhere between 5-10 GBs normally. The only reason I keep it is because occasionally I travel for work and LTE is significantly better than any Hotel WiFi, plus I just like having the comfort of not having to worry about reaching any cap and can use my phone any way I want to. I'm also only paying $135/month for unlimited everything but 1400 mins/month (with unlimited calls to 10 numbers I specify), so I don't think I'd really be saving much, if anything by switching to T-Mobile while getting much less coverage when I travel.
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For me I keep my unlimited data for two reasons, first like you I like the peace of mind in knowing I don't have to worry about that one month I use a ton of data. I am normally under 5GB, but some months I go on trips and stream a lot of Slingbox TV or whatnot and will use significantly more.

The other reason for me is I simply can't get a comparable plan these days to what I have. I am paying about $60 a month for Unlimited LTE, 450 Minutes, 400 texts. I don't use lots of minutes or texts. I have a really old grandfathered texting plan that is 400 texts for a few bucks a month. All of the plans these days have mostly moved to unlimited minutes and limited data, which is backwards of my usage. So I would be going to either a more expensive plan to get something I don't need or stick with what I have.
 
Erasmus354 said:
For me I keep my unlimited data for two reasons, first like you I like the peace of mind in knowing I don't have to worry about that one month I use a ton of data. I am normally under 5GB, but some months I go on trips and stream a lot of Slingbox TV or whatnot and will use significantly more.

The other reason for me is I simply can't get a comparable plan these days to what I have. I am paying about $60 a month for Unlimited LTE, 450 Minutes, 400 texts. I don't use lots of minutes or texts. I have a really old grandfathered texting plan that is 400 texts for a few bucks a month. All of the plans these days have mostly moved to unlimited minutes and limited data, which is backwards of my usage. So I would be going to either a more expensive plan to get something I don't need or stick with what I have.
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Indeed. I forgot to specify that my $135/month is for two lines (wife and I), both on unlimited data. I brought my mom onto my account a couple years ago just to save her money from having a single-line account elsewhere and so I could transfer my upgrades to her (2GB) line so I can still upgrade and keep our data plans. That brings our total bill up to about $190/month, but of course she pays her portion, so I wasn't counting that.

AT&T screwed her over hard by allowing someone else to open a line on her account without her consent or even acknowledgement, then fighting her on the additional bill for months on end. Then one time she called to get them to fix it and the rep put her on hold for like 90 mins, so she left the phone on hold and called them from a 2nd phone in order to get them to pick up the 1st line that's still on hold, lol. So that fueled her to cancel with them and jump to my Verizon account.
 
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