At Last - Apple Launches The iPhone 4 On Verizon
January 11, 2011
When looking for a partner to launch its revolutionary iPhone, originally Apple turned to Verizon. Unfortunately, that deal didn't work out. Most likely, Verizon didn't want to give in to Apple's demands, which went much further than what was usual at the time. As everyone knows, the iPhone ended up on AT&T.
Four years and two days after launching the iPhone exclusively on AT&T, Apple finally gave in to public demand. At a special Verizon event in New York, Verizon announced that it will be launching the iPhone on its network early next month. More precisely, on the 10th of February with pre-orders for existing customers available on the 3rd.
Verizon is launching essentially the same device. That is, the iPhone 4. The only difference is down at the radio level, as this model only supports CDMA networks. This means that you won't be able to swap out sim cards, nor travel outside the U.S. with it. Also, you can't do data and voice at the same time, just like on the original iPhone.
However, it is still an amazing device, and your experience in major cities might be superior to what you have experienced with AT&T, as the Verizon network is supposed to be more robust. Also, it comes with additional functionality unavailable on the current iPhone; Wi-Fi tethering.
The Verizon iPhone will allow you to share your data connection with up to five devices over Wi-Fi, which is extremely convenient. We don't know if this will require the purchase of an additional plan.
As for pricing, it will retail at the same prices as the iPhone 4 on AT&T, that is $199 for the 16GB, $299 for 32GB.
Yet, you shouldn't buy it. At least, not if you can wait. As you know, new iPhones are generally launched around June, and by purchasing now you'd lock yourself into having an older model for quite a while. Of course, we have no way of really knowing if Apple will launch a new iPhone in June, but the chances are pretty high, so make an informed decision.
What do you think? Happy? Angry that your AT&T iPhone can't share your connection? Tell us in the comments!
[Image Credit: Engadget]
