Apple's iPhone 5 headed to Virgin Mobile USA next week for $550 off-contract
Virgin Mobile will be the next U.S. carrier to receive Apple's iPhone 5 next Friday, when the base-level 16-gigabyte model will become available for $549.99 without a service contract.
When it launches on June 28, the iPhone 5 will be compatible with the carrier's "Beyond Talk" plans, which can be purchased for as little as $30 per month. The 32-gigabyte iPhone 5 will be available for $649.99, while the high-end 64-gigabyte capacity will be $749.99.
A Virgin Mobile Beyond Talk plan includes 2.5 gigabytes per month of full-speed data at 3G and 4G speeds. Data is throttled after users reach the maximum monthly limit.
The plan is available for $35 per month with 300 anytime minutes, but Virgin offers customers a $5-per-month plan discount if they sign up for automatic monthly payments with a credit card, debit card, or PayPal account. That means Virgin Mobile subscribers can obtain a new plan with unlimited messaging and data for $30 per month.
A jump to 1,200 anytime minutes is $45 per month, while unlimited calling runs $55 per month. Both are also qualified for the $5-per-month discount, bringing their prices down to $40 and $50, respectively.
Virgin Mobile began offering a 15 percent discount on iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S handsets a month ago. The company first started sales of Apple's iPhone a year ago, in June of 2012.
When it launches on June 28, the iPhone 5 will be compatible with the carrier's "Beyond Talk" plans, which can be purchased for as little as $30 per month. The 32-gigabyte iPhone 5 will be available for $649.99, while the high-end 64-gigabyte capacity will be $749.99.
A Virgin Mobile Beyond Talk plan includes 2.5 gigabytes per month of full-speed data at 3G and 4G speeds. Data is throttled after users reach the maximum monthly limit.
The plan is available for $35 per month with 300 anytime minutes, but Virgin offers customers a $5-per-month plan discount if they sign up for automatic monthly payments with a credit card, debit card, or PayPal account. That means Virgin Mobile subscribers can obtain a new plan with unlimited messaging and data for $30 per month.
A jump to 1,200 anytime minutes is $45 per month, while unlimited calling runs $55 per month. Both are also qualified for the $5-per-month discount, bringing their prices down to $40 and $50, respectively.
Virgin Mobile began offering a 15 percent discount on iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S handsets a month ago. The company first started sales of Apple's iPhone a year ago, in June of 2012.
Comments
It's un-everything: it's a virgin.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wurm5150
Is it unlocked?
It darn-well better be unlocked, since you're paying retail for the phone without subsidies!
Quote:
Originally Posted by TeaEarleGreyHot
It darn-well better be unlocked, since you're paying retail for the phone without subsidies!
this looks $100 off retail prices to me, unless I am missing something. The way virgin works in canada is you get a "balance" on the phone that is reduce each month by 10% of the amount of youre plan. So if you take a $40 plan, each month the "balance" will be reduce by $4. In the US, its possible the $550 will come with a $100 balance (someone should check this out)
My wife iphone (unlock) is on Virgin in Canada, they have by far the best prices here. Has soon as my iphone contract if done, I will only buy unlock phones from now on, you can save a truck load of money doing this. A lot of people here have unlock Nexus 4 phones paid only $350 and they are all with virgins variable data plan. Those will pay about 1/4th of the total cost of someone buying an iphone 5 on a 2 years contract. To top it off, with unlock phones you can change providers on the fly, depending on prices and promotions.
My wife iphone is only $20/month + variable data rate plan that adjust to what you consume each months. It so beats of crap out of all other contracts its unreal. If Apple release a $300-$400 dollar iphone with a bigger screen I will buy it in a hearbeat, take a vingin contract and cancel my Bell contract
is tethering/hotspot included in their data plans?
If you care about your sanity, and actually want a service that works, don't get the iPhone from Virgin. The service is awful (at least in Chicago).
I wonder who they partner with for their coverage. I don't think Virgin Mobile in the US has their own cell network, do they?Quote:
Originally Posted by Wiggin
I wonder who they partner with for their coverage. I don't think Virgin Mobile in the US has their own cell network, do they?In Canada they are on the Bell network, so coverage is great.
In the USA its on the Sprint network.
Man, is AAPL going down, or is AAPL going down???
Whose network do they piggyback? Sprint, was it? If Sprint or Verizon, it's unlocked.
Virgin Mobile along with Boost are fully owned subsidiaries of Sprint. Sprint pays the Virgin group a licensing fee to use the name. They are not a MVNO for Sprint like Ting Mobile since they are owned by Sprint and are simply their pre-paid brand.
Quote:
Originally Posted by gwmac
Virgin Mobile along with Boost are fully owned subsidiaries of Sprint. Sprint pays the Virgin group a licensing fee to use the name. They are not a MVNO for Sprint like Ting Mobile since they are owned by Sprint and are simply their pre-paid brand.
gwmac is right. Virgin uses Sprint network, but at least here in Seattle, the speed is terrible. Almost to the point of not worth owning a smartphone. flip phone internet will be tolerable, but for smartphone such as iPhone, it's agonizing.
Read about it here. http://www.pcmag.com/Fastest-Mobile-Networks/
Edit: I should mention I'm talking about places where LTE isn't available.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Yuniverse
gwmac is right. Virgin uses Sprint network, but at least here in Seattle, the speed is terrible. Almost to the point of not worth owning a smartphone. flip phone internet will be tolerable, but for smartphone such as iPhone, it's agonizing.
Read about it here. http://www.pcmag.com/Fastest-Mobile-Networks/
Edit: I should mention I'm talking about places where LTE isn't available.
Sprint is doing something radically different with their network than what AT&T or Verizon are doing. Their network vision is turning their entire network into a multi-modal one. They are essentially rolling out an entire new network with new equipment while maintaining the old equipment until the new network is complete. An advantage of a multi-modal infrastructure is that it is more efficient and subscribers will get to hop on the right band depending if they’re indoors or outdoors. It is also far more future proof with growth in demand for data and will give Sprint roughly about a 20 X 20 channel for LTE, which is double the 10 X 10 channel that Verizon has for its LTE deployment and far more than the 5 X 5 channel that AT&T is limited to in many markets. So yes until their upgrade is complete there will some growing pains and slow speeds but once it is completed it will be a very robust network able to continue to continue to offer unlimited LTE and Verizon and AT&T will eventually have to roll out the same multi-mode technology as their LTE channels are saturated to keep pace with the growth and suffer the same problems Sprint is going through now.
Verizon and AT&T essentially slapped on a new coat of paint and bought some new furniture. Sprint did a complete overhaul and tore down walls and are completely rebuilding their house. It will take a lot more time and money but it should pay off big when complete which should happen by this time next year.
These two links explain it in far better detail
http://s4gru.com/index.php?/topic/32-network-vision-explained/
http://www.gottabemobile.com/2013/04/18/sprint-chooses-radically-different-approach-for-lte-network-and-it-may-pay-off/
@gwmac
If that's the case, that's something to look forward to. I'll hop back to Sprint (which I've been on for 10 years) from AT&T.
Thanks for the info.
I have another question regarding Network Vision and Virgin Mobile. Would Virgin customer with LTE capable phone be able to take advantage of the upgraded Sprint network?
Is there any web link to see how the Network Vision is progressing?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Yuniverse
@gwmac
If that's the case, that's something to look forward to. I'll hop back to Sprint (which I've been on for 10 years) from AT&T.
Thanks for the info.
Since you are in Seattle the network vision update shouldn't take that much longer. It appears they are about 1/3 done now and might finish as soon as September. Go to this thread for more specific Seattle info
http://s4gru.com/index.php?/topic/1269-network-visionlte-west-washington-market-seattlepuget-sound-region/page-32
Quote:
Originally Posted by Yuniverse
I have another question regarding Network Vision and Virgin Mobile. Would Virgin customer with LTE capable phone be able to take advantage of the upgraded Sprint network?
Is there any web link to see how the Network Vision is progressing?
Yes network vision will benefit Virgin Mobile and Boost and any other MVNO that uses Sprint. I gave you a link above. That site is dedicated to nothing but network vision information and is a great site to see the progress in your city or ask questions.
Thank you again for the info