Posted 11/06/09 at 08:26:38 AM by Paul Lilly

Not digging Droid's price tag but are still intrigued by the device? Maybe Droid's little sibling -- the Droid Eris -- is more of what you're looking for.

For starters. Verizon is selling the Droid Eris for a single C-note (after $100 mail-in-rebate) when you sign up for a two-year commitment on a voice plan with an email feature or email plan. Throwing down a Benjamin on the Droid Eris nets you a 3.2-inch capacitive touchscreen and trackball interface, a 5MP auto focus camera, 8GB of memory (via an included microSD card) expandable to 16GB, Bluetooth, WiFi, integrated GPS, full HTML browser with Flash Lite capabilities, and of course Google's Android OS along with a 7-panel home screen.

But the real question is, how does Eris stack up to its bigger brother? It comes clocked at 528MHz, compared to Droid's 550MHz processor, and it ships with Android 1.5 (Donut) instead of 2.0 (Eclair). You'll also sacrifice a physical QWERTY keyboard by stepping down to the Eris.

So what do you think, are the trade offs worth the lower price tag, or is it Droid or bust? Hit the jump and sound off!

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Posted 11/03/09 at 07:33:11 PM by Ryan Whitwam

Verizon thought they were so clever. Big Red’s recent “There’s a map for that” adverts seem to have ruffled some feathers over at AT&T. Now AT&T has filed a federal lawsuit against Verizon for false advertising. The issue comes down to the maps shown in the commercial.

The ad compares 3G coverage areas for the two wireless providers side by side. The red Verizon map, of course, looks much more filled in. AT&T’s map looks sparse by comparison. What many less savvy consumers might not follow is that this is only showing AT&T’s 3G, not EDGE. While Verizon’s entire network is 3G, AT&T still has significant areas covered only by slower EDGE service. AT&T claims that the ad leads people to believe that AT&T does not have coverage at all in the un-highlighted areas.

Indeed, the original version of the ad said that AT&T users outside the highlighted area were “out of touch”. Verizon removed that line and noted that non-3G voice and data were available, but AT&T still wasn’t happy. It’s not really an enviable position for AT&T to be in. They have to argue that Verizon should be making it clear that the AT&T network is available in more places – it’s just very, very slow. Everyone settle in, this might be entertaining.

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Posted 11/02/09 at 07:18:30 PM by Ryan Whitwam

We all rubbed our eyes in disbelief when Verizon announced they would be releasing a fully open handset, the Motorola Droid. Not only did it have WiFi, it had free GPS! This was not the Verizon we all knew. Some of the more pessimistic among us were waiting for the other shoe to drop, and now it has. A Verizon rep has confirmed that using the integrated Microsoft Exchange support in the Droid will mean an extra $15 fee each month.

This boosts the monthly cost of data to $45 instead of the standard $30. Verizon also plans to offer a $50 per month data-only plan for the Droid. Verizon indicated this fee just brings the cost in line with smartphone plans for corporate email seen on Blackberrys. "The Droid is primarily a consumer phone," said Verizon spokesperson Brenda Raney.

All things considered, it may be a fairly minor point. Nevertheless, it seems like a very Verizon thing to do. If you were planning on getting the Droid, does this give you second thoughts? How many of you use Exchange accounts daily?

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Posted 10/28/09 at 12:20:07 PM by Paul Lilly

If we're to believe the hype (and it's awfully convincing), Motorola's upcoming Droid smartphone could be the first handset to truly challenge Apple's iPhone. We'll find out soon enough, as Verizon today confirmed Droid will arrive next Friday, November 6, for $199 with a 2-year contract and $100 mail-in-rebate.

"This is an exciting announcement for Verizon Wireless, as the Droid by Motorola is the first device that we are bringing to market under our ground-breaking strategic partnership with Google," said John Stratton, executive vice president and chief marketing officer for Verizon Wireless. "Droid by Motorola gives customers a lifestyle device with access to more than 12,000 applications that will help them stay in touch, up to date and entertained, using the best 3G network in the country."

 Built around the all new Android 2.0 (Eclair) platform, the slim (0.5 inches thick) smartphone has a lot going for it, including a 3.7-inch, 854x480 capacitive touchscreen, a built-in 5MP camera, DVD-quality video recording, a TI OMAP 3430 processor based on ARM's Cortex-A8 architecture and capable of racing along at up to 600MHz, Microsoft Exchange support, HTML5 support, and a bunch more, all of which will be heavily marketed.

"The marketing campaign that will support the launch of the Droid will be the largest in our history. We're going to put significant energy behind this product," said John Stratton, Verizon's chief marketing officer.

If Droid lives up the hype, the marketing may take care of itself.

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Posted 10/27/09 at 11:00:54 AM by Paul Lilly

Make no mistake - just because Verizon's new Droid handset takes aim at competing against Apple's iPhone, Verizon would rather have the two smartphones fighting the mobile market side by side, not face to face.

"We obviously would be interested at any point in the future that they would be interested in having us as a partner," said Ivan Seidenbert, Verizon's chief executive. "This is a decision that is exclusively in Apple's court."

Obviously nailing down an iPhone contract would be a huge win for Verizon, but even more so when you consider the upcoming Motorola Droid is built on Google's Android platform. And in Verizon's favor, the wireless telco added 1.2 million wireless subscribers during the quarter, which is less than the 2 million AT&T added, but more than analysts were expecting.

Whether or not Apple opens up to Verizon remains to be seen. In the meantime, Verizon has gone on the offensive with an ad campaign targeting AT&T's comparatively sparse network coverage.

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Posted 10/21/09 at 07:50:13 PM by Ryan Whitwam

Verizon is coming out swinging as the FCC is poised to officially adopt new Network Neutrality regulations. The FCC is expected to approve FCC Chair Julius Genachowski’s new policies on October 22nd. The cell carriers contend that the realities of managing their networks are not compatible with the new rules. They have even gone so far as to claim that their mobile networks could be “crippled”.

Verizon CEO, Ivan Seidenberg, didn’t mince words, saying of the proposal, “[It’s] a mistake, pure and simple - an analog idea in a digital universe." He claimed that the regulations may keep Verizon from prioritizing packets for important applications, like emergency communications for first-responders.

Seidenberg indicated that Net Neutrality regulations could damage, or halt, our “progress toward a connected world.” Even as the Verizon chief was making these claims, the FCC received a letter signed by 30 prominent investors in technology businesses that support the proposed regulations. Is Seidenberg overstating his case, or trying desperately to save us all from ourselves?

In a separate joint statement with Google, Verizon clarified that they accept Net Neutrality principals for wireline broadband, just not for their wireless networks. "Verizon and Google might seem unlikely bedfellows in the current debate around network neutrality, or an open Internet. And while it's true we do disagree quite strongly about certain aspects of government policy in this area -- such as whether mobile networks should even be part of the discussion -- there are many issues on which we agree," the companies wrote.

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Posted 10/06/09 at 07:13:41 PM by Jason Barry

The iPhone exclusivity contract with AT&T ends this year and hot on the heels of AT&T’s poor 3G performance reports, and network upgrade promises, Verizon launches a zinger ad campaign directly targeting the shortcomings of their rival.

Debuting on Monday Night Football, Verizon launched its slick response to Apple’s “There’s an app for that” commercials. The new television ad campaign, “There’s a Map for that,” cleverly smacks AT&T’s coverage area in the face as the voiceover talks about streaming video performance and spotty coverage areas (yes they’re talking about you, AT&T).

Verizon will undoubtedly seek a contract with Apple should its exclusivity end with AT&T. As it is, they are locking up a partnership with Google to bring Android phones to their product offerings as well.

Check out the ad after the jump.

Image Credit: TechFlash

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Posted 09/29/09 at 08:37:09 PM by Ryan Whitwam

Verizon’s Chief Technology Officer, Dick Lynch, had some tough words for you heavy downloaders out there. He claimed that in the future, all internet access will be sold based on the amount of data a customer wants to consume. Lynch claims that so-called metered broadband is the only way forward. “We’re going to have to consider pricing structures that allow us to sell packages of bytes, and at the end of the day the concept of a flat-rate infinitely expandable service is unachievable,” said Lynch.

The Verizon CTO further explained that the model would likely be similar to the current model of wireless carriers, and not a specific price per gigabyte used. Verizon has previously decided against instituting caps on their FiOS service, but this could be an indication that all the uncapped internet goodness is about to end.

His statements were made as part of a larger discussion of Network Neutrality. Lynch specifically talked about the rise of high bandwidth applications and services. He said that some services “will not be happy on the public Internet.” Lynch speculated some other method of delivery for these services may be needed.

We’re used to hearing the outcry when a broadband provider tries to institute caps. Does the Internet-using population have the stomach for metered access? Let us know in the comments.

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