SAN JOSE, Calif. — The iPhone is finally coming to Verizon Wireless.
Verizon confirmed the
long-rumored move on Tuesday, announcing it will begin selling Apple’s
iPhone 4, the latest version of the device, Feb. 10. Existing Verizon customers can start pre-ordering the device Feb. 3.
The Verizon version of the iPhone has few differences from the one that AT&T began selling last summer. The most notable differences are that it works on Verizon’s network, which is incompatible with AT&T’s wireless technology, and that Verizon
iPhone users will be able to use the device as a Wi-Fi hot spot to
connect up to five other gadgets to the Internet. The other chief
difference is that, because of a limitation with the technology Verizon uses, users of the Verizon iPhone, unlike users of the AT&T version, won’t be able to talk on the phone and surf the Web at the same time over Verizon’s network.
Verizon will be selling the iPhone for $200 for the 16-gigabyte version and $300 for the 32-gigabyte model with a two-year contract. Those are the same prices that AT&T charges. Unlike AT&T, though, Verizon apparently won’t be carrying the older iPhone 3GS.
The carrier declined to say what data plans it will
offer to iPhone customers, saying only that it would provide those
details “at a later date.” The company did say it plans to charge
customers an extra $20 a month to use the hot-spot feature, which would allow them to transfer up to 2 gigabytes of data.
The Verizon version of the iPhone will connect with its older 3G network, not its newer, faster 4G one. Verizon launched its 4G network late last year, and at last week’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, it touted some 10 different devices that are going to run on that network.
Some analysts are concerned, though, that the 4G
antennas will require a lot of power, meaning that the first 4G devices
will offer relatively short usage times before their batteries will
need to be recharged, which could be why Apple didn’t immediately
choose to support the technology. Apple officials cited similar reasons
for not supporting 3G technology with the first version of the iPhone. Verizon has not specified what kind of battery life users of 4G devices should expect.
The announcement could come as a blow to AT&T, which has been the exclusive U.S. carrier for the iPhone since the first one launched in 2007. The iPhone has helped to boost AT&T’s subscriber base and the revenue it gets from selling data plans. But users of the device have stressed AT&T’s network and forced the company to spend billions of dollars to upgrade it.
AT&T’s official reaction to the announcement was muted and simply emphasized what it sees as the benefits of its network.
“For iPhone users who want the fastest speeds, the
ability to talk and use apps at the same time, and unsurpassed global
coverage, the only choice is AT&T,” the company said in a statement.
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