Worried AT&T Will Start Charging Extra For Video Chat? Sprint Reminds You They Got Your Back

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Leave it to Sprint, to be “that guy” who, whenever a rival carrier receives bad press, swoops in and reminds you of just how awesome they are. Yesterday, the subject boo’s and hisses was AT&T, after a leaked developer build of iOS 6 revealed could soon begin charging their customers a “premium” fee for video chatting over a cellular connection. Not cool. A Sprint spokesperson took a minute today to remind AT&T customers and the press of their unlimited, unthrottled nationwide data saying,

“We are committed to our unlimited data and that means not charging for data consumption based on the application.”

This, all while AT&T is admittedly mulling over the idea of charging their iPhone customers for using FaceTime on a 3G/4G connection, a decision that should make Android users very wary. Of course, on the other side of the coin — a data network is only as good as its download speeds. Unlimited is great and all, but not when it’s barely a hair over your competitors throttled speeds. Let’s hope for a speedy LTE rollout.

[Wall Street Journal | MacRumors]

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Chris Chavez
I've been obsessed with consumer technology for about as long as I can remember, be it video games, photography, or mobile devices. If you can plug it in, I have to own it. Preparing for the day when Android finally becomes self-aware and I get to welcome our new robot overlords.

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45 Comments

  1. Net neutrality violation

  2. Lol nice move Sprint, nice move.

  3. how do they know if we video chat through tango, skype, or other video apps?

  4. Yeah, I almost jumped ship to sprint pcs in Miami but not after hearing all the negative reception from friends & Co-workers. With TMobile my only issue slow data in my house unless near a window. Wifi helps. For calls I just switch to 2G & I’m good.wifi calling gets on my nerves as I go out the house.

  5. Take a look at Sprint’s LTE 4G coverage map.
    Little to none.

    1. considering the new network launched 3 days ago, its quite a bit.

    2. i dont understand why people keep bitching and moaning.. networks like the ones that are being put up take time.. so that ‘PEOPLE’ dont complain about the crappy speeds ect.. personally i use my evo 4g lte with 3g and its fine.. when im home i use wifi.. the same thing i did when i had the original evo 4g.. with that being said.. are u really going to be using the 7mb download speed on ur phone.. NO what do u need it for? its nice to have it if ur looking up a video or somehting but seriously.. calm down its not that serious..

      1. And no one needs a car that can go 180 down a freeway either, so what’s your point?

  6. We’ll likely delete your comment due to your uncanny ability to tarnish an acceptable complaint with vulgar and misdirected insult slinging. I’ll at least let it ride for a couple moments so you can hopefully read this response:

    (1) Please don’t lump us into “you android sites”

    (2) Each author has their own preferences and personal tastes and opinions as do all of the readers out there. There is no conspiracy theory against your favorite carrier or any other carrier.

    (3) If you consider the heart of the article, it’s pretty darn balanced. He calls out AT&T. He calls out Sprint. He lets the readers make up their mind in the comments. Not sure how much more balanced someone can be.

    1. humm… looked like a pretty even battle btw you (“mod”) and a user in regards to +1’s and -1’s. Why the delete? If the votes are in favor of the original post, sounds like an abuse of power to me… just sayin. Don’t let it ruin your night as you dish out bans to those that disagree with you.

      1. People disagree with us all the time. In fact, we like to encourage discussions with our readers who have opinions other than our own.

        But when people can’t talk like mature human beings and treat each other with respect (by not insulting)? Instant ban. This will always be the case.

        1. understood and agreed. however, when the +1’s of viewers outweigh the -1’s of the mods, I cant help but wonder…..
          (no disrespect CC… just saying… right before the comment was banned… the banned comment had far more votes than the “mod” who banned the comment.) Just seems a bit hypocritical.

          1. I’ve seen people use profanity, derogatory language, insults, etc and have way more upvotes than down. Happens a lot around here unfortunately. However, viewer votes has no impact on whether a comment stays or goes — merely conduct.

            You do bring up some good points though. I think it’s time we prepare a “code of conduct” post for those who leave comments on the site. Just so people know what is okay and what isn’t. :)

          2. I’m all in for that! That is one thing I like about some other forums/blogs… they have no tolerance for “trolls” that post random BS.

          3. Yes, +1.

          4. Disqus marks the writers as mods automatically.

            Actually, I was the one who removed it. Rob said it would stay up for a moment, it stayed up for hours.

            Every day, mod staff leaves well enough alone posts that are critical of the site, the authors, the stories, the spelling, the grammar, the titles and Chris’ hair.

            So long as it doesn’t cross over into vulgar profanity, we tend to leave well enough alone.

            Regardless of votes, common courtesy is not a popularity contest, and we don’t mod that way. We simply don’t find cause to have constant f-bombs or references to immature sexual hostility or racism or slams against people with disabilities to remain up.

          5. Derailed @chris’ hair lol

  7. Sprint before you have anyones back outside of the Now Network you should work on keeping your Now Network customers happy. I know your just trying to get new customers but for the one you get your losing 2.

    1. For every 1 way ATT tries to “save” you money, they have 2 ways to charge you more. The network Sprint is completely rebuilding is looking pretty darn good. Sprint is replacing every piece of equipment on each of their 38,000+ towers, in addition to adding Microwave, Fiber, or AAV back-haul. The planning is done and work is in motion on over 22,000 Sprint towers as we speak.

    2. I been with Sprint 10 years and I have no complain, I drove a big truck in the 48 state and Canada, even I took my phone to overseas, I never lost a call or, .05Mbps downloads or uploads. I tried all the other three carriers, the different is they`re charging more money for almost the same service. One area has good service to Sprint and bad for VZW. Just depend on your area and location, but if you`re happy with what you have stick with it and stop complaining.

      1. well said.. I’m a pilot, I’ve hit multiple cities in multiple states in a single day. I’ve always been able to rely on Sprints network for my weather updates. I’ve had FO’s (co-pilots) on ATT, who have always had trouble with their coverage. Not to mention, its a fact Sprints 3G coverage is far better than ATT’s (thats fact).

        1. I have a hard time believing that. AT&T’s HSPA+21 network is bigger than Sprint’s native 3G network, much less AT&T’s normal 3G. So if you’re getting better coverage than someone on AT&T, send a thank you note to Verizon for their roaming agreement.

          1. Doesn’t matter what you believe. Sprint has a larger 3G footprint than ATT (thats a native footprint, too… not including roaming).

          2. Yeah… but they don’t. AT&T 3G is immensely larger than Sprint’s tiny network. And their HSPA+21 network is too. All one needs to do is pull up a Sprint prepaid carrier map to illustrate… say, like Virgin Mobile or Boost. As you will see, they have no coverage in all of Montana… AT&T is blanketed… they have almost no coverage in ND, SD, Nebraska, Wyoming, Idaho, Nevada, Oklahoma, Maine, Utah, Oregon and Washington…. yet AT&T has far more 3G in each state, with ND and SD being totally covered.

            Sprint’s native network… is smaller than T-Mobile. And that’s a fact. Without Verizon roaming… Sprint is nothing.

          3. You took the bait.. hook, line, and sinker

          4. OK… what bait is that? Is the bait saying something that’s incredibly incorrect? And me providing you with provable facts the line being reeled in? Where are we going here? Sprint has a tiny network.

  8. Ha! I’ve been using Sprint for the past 7 years or so. My network speeds are HORRIBLE. I would trade my unlimited .03 mbps download speeds for a capped Verizon or ATT plan in a heart beat. Id probably go to tmobile first. i never even have the chance to reach 1 gb of data because everything takes so long to do. So consider your self one of the lucky ones… or maybe you have just never used a phone on a different carrier lately.

    1. if thats what youve dealt with for 7 years, youre the stupid one. im on sprint in phx and my speeds are pretty solid.

      1. Speak for yourself; I’m in North Phoenix, with 5 towers in a mile radius and the best I ever got was .05 mbps. For 6 six straight months I heard, there’s a tower down in your area. Not sure which is worse their speed or customer service.

        1. interesting… I live at I-17 and the 101. I’ve been getting about 700kbs up and down. I work in Tempe.. there I get even better speeds… about 1.2 mbps each way.

          1. When I had Sprint, I approached those speeds a handful of times in my two years with them, always very late at night, or early in the morning.

      2. No they weren’t always this bad, for one 7 years ago I want really using my Nextel or treo for any heavy data, but sprint speeds were good for me when I first got my evo 4T.j they just have gradually deteriorated over the past 2 years to this nothingness. and its not just me, in 3rd party nationwide tests, sprint is known as the slowest of them all, by far.

    2. It used to be worth it dealing with Sprint because they were cheaper and allowed you to upgrade every year and they just had more perks. Now, they cost more than Verizon, their insurance is more, their deductible is more, their network is slower, they don’t have reliable 4G… I just left sprint and now I’m with Verizon and i haven’t looked back. Sprints CEO is a clown and an idiot IMO…. he bet the entire house on apple, blatantly lied and said he would not charge for 4g because it was actually cheaper to provide customers with 4G… the list goes on. I’m HAPPY with VERIZON. At least I get what i pay for. Unlimited doesn’t mean nothing if you cant use the network.

      1. Yea but i consider this LTE business a worthy gamble, if it flops i’ll just jump to tmobile. Verizon is still almost $40 more per month. I really have no interestin in paying that and possibly an extra $100 for phones (if they are still pulling that crap).

  9. If only they’e data speeds were faster… I’ve been with Sprint from when I got my first phone till now.. I guess I’m used to Sprint’s crappy speeds

  10. AT&T is a net neutrality lawsuit waiting to happen…

  11. Don’t forget that Sprint charges a $10.00 fee for smartphone use that is supposed to cover the cost of 4G.

    1. it’s just a $10 smartphone fee. it doesn’t cover 4G, it just covers “smartphone users consume more data” or something…


  12. based on the application.”

    except when that application is something like android-wifi-tether

  13. The reality is any iPhone 4/iPhone 4s customer on Sprint does not have the ability to practically video chat on EVDO RevA whatever PERIOD.

  14. Sprint has like 2 towers in my entire state. I don’t think so.

  15. Can we just stick to the best news about android? Why distraction from a good cause? This goes to both mod’s (I like Phandroid) or I wouldn’t take time to write this or any other comments. to the Mod’s please start with deleting or blocking the guys who’s sister made $1000 in 2 hours. People are going to say things that other’s don’t like. Even if don’t like a story that you are reporting or comments I don’t like, I just skip right past it because it’s not worth the time and effort it takes to make a big deal about it.

    1. We couldn’t agree more about the scam and spam posts.

      Those are software generated by a few determined organizations. We delete and ban them as quickly as possible, and they move to another server address and attack against, so the cycle repeats, sometimes several times a day.

      We have been working with Disqus management to see if they can block them before they show up on our pages.

      We apologize for the inconvenience they create and appreciate your patience while we work to get rid of them.

  16. Can you even do video chat on Sprint? I barely get 200kbs down on the wonderful sprint network these days.

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