Sprint says ‘me too’; will include Wi-Fi on all future major devices
CDMA lovers rejoice — it looks like the last piece of the Wi-Fi puzzle has finally fallen into place. We know cost was one of the major barriers preventing Wi-Fi from finding its way to most CDMA handsets in the past as CDMA handsets are significantly more expensive for carriers compared to similar GSM models due to demand. Back in May we scooped the fact that all BlackBerry devices released by Verizon after the Tour would include Wi-Fi — the Storm 2, the Aries, etc. To add to that, we’ve now been told that earlier this year VZW apparently began including Wi-Fi in requirement docs sent to OEMs with regards to future smartphones. With this in mind, it makes sense that we’re now learning Sprint has done the same and is now “embracing Wi-Fi in all its major devices going forward” according to FierceWireless. The site even claims that Sprint “will offer a version of the BlackBerry Tour starting next year that will include WiFi.”
It makes perfect sense of course — Sprint can’t very well let Verizon hang Wi-Fi over its head. In the end as far as consumers are concerned, the bottom line is everyone wins and AT&T/T-Mobile have one less leg up on Verizon and Sprint in terms of handsets. Were Sprint and Verizon able to negotiate better pricing from OEMs? Have both companies decided to trim margins rather than continue dealing with Wi-Fi hungry subscribers? Whatever the case, both major CDMA carriers have come around and smartphone customers will have one less thing to complain about in the near future.
Thanks, Verizon Guy!
I think the CDMA carriers are including wifi in their handsets because they already have a guaranteed revenue stream via mandatory data plans; for the most part, GSM phones with wifi do not require a data plan.
Quint, if it’s a smartphone it does (data plan that is) but some of you bypass it by activating a dumbphone and switching SIM’s
^Would you like some cheese with your whine?
CDMA-Sukaz
The _only_ time when a data plan is required on GSM smartphones is when there is a mail-in-rebate involved. Even then, if the data plan remains in service through generally the first 6 mos of the contract, it can then be discontinued without any penalty. It’s the real-world reality.
Back to the topic: Why would a carrier, ANY carrier, want to add WiFi to a handset that’s already been out for 6+ months? This is one truly stupid decision.
Simple. It’s cheaper to add wifi then build out data capacity.
Posted from BGR Mobile (iPhone) at: Batavia United States
Sprint’s announcement trumps vzw because they say it’s for all smartphones, not just RIM
To those of you who say you dont need Wi-Fi, think about this one… Would you buy a netbook if it didn’t support wi-fi? Exactly. So I would like to have that amenity at my disposal whther i choose to use it or not.