Verizon Wireless, in a commercial they've been running recently to promote a $55 per month for 5GB of data per month plan, says that most people, two out of three even, only use around that amount of data per month. The ad is pretty obvious in its effort: The Big Red carrier wants you to know that maybe, just maybe, you don't need to worry about unlimited data plans. Verizon's the only major wireless carrier that doesn't offer unlimited data at this point (AT&T offers it with a DirecTV subscription), and it doesn't sound like they plan on changing that game plan anytime soon.
So it isn't all that surprising that Verizon would want to start advertising that "most people" don't need an unlimited data plan. After all, why pay for it if you're not going to use it, right? That's Verizon's line of questioning at this point.
I checked Verizon's, Sprint's, and T-Mobile's websites as I wrote this, checking up on prices. Verizon offers 4GB of data per month for $50 per month. Meanwhile, T-Mobile's offering unlimited data for $70 per month with its T-Mobile ONE plan, and Sprint's $60 per month plan offers unlimited data, too. In the case of Sprint and T-Mobile, you'll have to fork over extra if you want HD video content while you stream from the network, but that's an entirely different conversation to have.
Just looking at the pricing there, I'm not sure that Verizon has a leg to stand on. It's not like these customers on T-Mobile's and Sprint's networks are paying that much more -- and they get unlimited (optimized) data. Telling customers that they should immediately limit themselves, just because they might not use a ton of data, while at the same time automatically making sure they can't use any additional data without paying extra every month in overages, or changing their bill, is silly.
I saw someone ask, "If most people don't use more than 5GB of data, why not just offer unlimited data?" and that's a good question. Because no matter how you shake it, a carrier that offers unlimited data, versus one that doesn't, but charges the same amount? I know which one looks better to me.
There are a ton of factors to consider, of course. Network capability, device availability, all that jazz. But that's not really what I'm asking at this point. I want to know if Verizon's right when it comes to your personal usage with your smartphone.
Are you on your phone all the time? Using a variety of different apps that consume data? If you are, how much data do you use every month? What's the most you've ever used? Let me know!
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