Phonebabe69 said:

Rollover is useful for some ppl (like those who can't correctly pick a plan with the right number of minutes for themselves)

You must be a Verizon sales rep LOL Thats what they told me!

I don't work for Verizon. It just kind of makes sense.

I have a friend, for example, who when she first went wireless, would've been a perfect candidate for Rollover. When she was with ATTW, she managed to rack up a 2300+ minute month on something like a 1200 minute plan. Needless to say, her bill was spectacular. I think she managed to argue/beg it down a little to something almost manageable, like under $300, but still... oww.

There's a lot of things that could've helped ...
(continues)

I use the data portion of my use on my Cingular phone as it does not take from minutes (although with the roll over bank I have I would rather now it did).

I would not pay more then what Broadband cable costs for High Speed Internet. There is enough WiFI around to get great extensive internet on my Sony TR2 which is quite small. I use the data for quick email reads and sometimes for Ebay bidding. Like yourself I would not use the Vcast for visual phone calls.

The screen is to small for any major phone use and using the PCMIA card solution for the Wireless Internet service is much to expensive considering the alternatives available, Some cities may even have paid for OTA Wifi which is a good thing and a great public service for those ...
(continues)

Well, that's an awful lot of "I" statements there, PhoneB. We've established that you yourself do not have much use for 3G or VCAST, but that doesn't mean that others will feel similarly.

And that's the beauty of the marketplace... everyone gets to choose for themselves what they do and do not need. 🙂

Um the vcast pack is not just about retarded brittany spears videos, you also get news and even your local weather, but the reason i love it is high speed unlimited mobile web 2.0. That thing flies and if you want to check your email away from home and don't want to buy a pda you can't beat it. Another thing is duke nukem! and Need for speed underground! These games are reaching levels i never thought i would see in a cell phone and without vcast they wouldn't be possible becasue you need the broadband to download maps and levels. The vcast pack gives you unlited data minutes so i browse ringtones and games all day long without burning up minutes and surf mobile web when i am bored without using minutes as well so I love it. At first i thoug...
(continues)

.......if you want to check your email away from home and don't want to buy a pda you can't beat it.........The vcast pack gives you unlited data minutes so i browse ringtones and games all day long without burning up minutes and surf mobile web when i am bored without using minutes as well so I love it.

Welcome to Cingular data. Maybe not as fast but the rest the same for years. And can do it during a call.This is new for Verizon.

The gaming thing escapes me. I guess if you are a "gamer" type. Its great as well.

Phonebabe69 said:
Welcome to Cingular data. Maybe not as fast but the rest the same for years.

Streaming video clips on EDGE for years? Really? Is it fast enough? And could it support video calling going forward?

Reason I ask is because Cingy's EDGE is so much slower than EVDO/VCAST... like 100 kbps real-world vs 500 kbps for EVDO. Even if EDGE could do it, I doubt the quality would be similar.

No not as fast but fast enough. I get my emails in less then 5 seconds. I can browse on Ebay, get scores etc all while on the phone and without using air time and have been able to do so for a long time. Thats all I'm saying. I would not use a phone for HS Internet browsing or watching video clips.

I am saying its fast enough and for the money I can get much more then I can on my Verizon phone already without paying a lot more for speed. It's plenty fast for email and basic movie browsing or even map-quest directions.

Ok, a lot more "I" statements there. I guess I'm just going to assume that EDGE either can't do video, or can't do it well.

But for email... sure, what's not to love about EDGE, or CDMA's 1xRTT?

I don't know about video. I have no use for video on my phone. Screen to small to enjoy it and sound is terrible as well. Watching video on a phone is worse then those little Casio color TV's that never sold. It's just a gimmick people will tire of quickly.

People can make video calls from their PCs FREE and many don't bother. I don't see the WOW there at all. Slow Email and Internet browsing when there is no other choice is enough. I can do it all while on a call so the wait is not an issue and I already have the phone out, Thats usually when I browse the net. On a call. LOL

Phonebabe69 said:
Watching video on a phone is worse then those little Casio color TV's that never sold. It's just a gimmick people will tire of quickly.

We shall see soon, won't we? Either way, Verizon is gonna get first crack at selling it, as Cingy is about a year or year and a half behind VZW in their 3G rollout, at best 🙂

I myself don't have much use for video on a phone (ok, maybe for the NFL during the playoffs if I'm stuck at work, but that's it), but I could see it having a strong appeal within a limited market, primarily younger ppl.

I don't think it'll ever be huge here the way it is in South Korea and Japan (some things are cultural I guess), but it should be a tidy source of additional ...
(continues)

You have to remember this is the first wave of goodies. Verizon will adapt and create even cooler ideas for the evdo in the future.

yeahright said:
You have to remember this is the first wave of goodies. Verizon will adapt and create even cooler ideas for the evdo in the future.

They had better. Because a tool as visual as the Internet and Video being displayed on a 2 inch screen is akin to cutting down a Redwood with a pocket knife.

How in the world can you watch a football game on a 2" screen? Tiny little men moving around and all.
If those Casio TVs did not become all the rage I do not see how a much more limited video source will. But time will tell. People buy first, show their friends then ask questions in today's quick fix world according to my father! I am realizing he has been right about a lot of things!

Phonebabe69 said:
How in the world can you watch a football game on a 2" screen? Tiny little men moving around and all.

Ask the South Koreans that. They had a TV-on-cellphones service that proved so popular that the carrier had to raise prices greatly, because I guess they didn't have the bandwidth.

Or ask an iPod Photo owner... they view photos on a 2" screen.

I personally don't think it's ideal at all, but some ppl are willing to accept those compromises in order to be 'mobile'.

The Koreans are gadget freaks. Not much practicality in a lot of gadgetry.Buts its fun for awhile. I am sure there are a lot of things Korean that won't appear here en mass. Looking at a still photo on a 2" screen is painful enough.

I think in the end some people seek the "WOW" from other people. Then when everybody has it they all wonder together what was the big deal! The Razor on the GSM side went there. I know a few people who had them and sold them for more functional phones after their friends all got them LOL. Now the same furor is going on in the Verizon world with the Razor. Sometimes just being different or first on the block is worth paying up to for many.

Skepticism noted. Though I would have to disagree with the 'viewing a still photo on a 2" screen is painful' part. I used to think so as well, but after having checked out a friend's iPod Photo, I was suprised at how good the photos looked on the iPod's screen.

Much less painful than I thought it'd be. 🙂

Awe noted. I guess all those great pictures on the phones will make the wallet thinner. I mean many are carrying around 2X2 pictures in their wallets!

Perhaps Verizon IS on to something! 😉

It's all about the porno.

This is why we have $40 vcr's and $40 dvd players.

The economy of scale we enjoy has nothing to do with people wanting to spend $1000 on a vcr when they were introduced, then paying $80/tape for family movies.

It has everything to do with folks paying that kind of money to view porn at $80/tape.

I predict video on phones will become popular largely as a means of broadcasting one's genitalia about the globe - much like webcams.

zombywoof said:
It's all about the porno.

This is why we have $40 vcr's and $40 dvd players.

The economy of scale we enjoy has nothing to do with people wanting to spend $1000 on a vcr when they were introduced, then paying $80/tape for family movies.

It has everything to do with folks paying that kind of money to view porn at $80/tape.

I predict video on phones will become popular largely as a means of broadcasting one's genitalia about the globe - much like webcams.

Somebody is very frustrated..... 😉