After being rumored for years, Verizona4‚¬a4„s iPhone is now one step closer to consumers. And early reviews signal that the device is worth the wait.
Verizon last night opened the floodgates to pre-orders from existing customers. Customers can claim their iPhone 4 via Verizona4‚¬a4„s online store or through Applea4‚¬a4„s web store. Verizon is giving its loyal users a head start before it starts taking orders from the masses, and in particular users who desperately want to leave AT&'T, by offering them pre-orders for a full week before new users get their shot on February 10.
Reviews are also beginning to roll in for the device, with the likes of the New York Timea4‚¬a4„s David Pogue and the Wall Street Journala4‚¬a4„s Walt Mossberg praising its call quality and the fact that it doesn&'t drop calls on a dime. Otherwise, the Verizon iPhone is pretty much the same as its AT&'T counterpart. Reviewers point out that data speeds on the Verizon device are indeed slower than AT&'Ta4‚¬a4„s, but speeds are also on the whole more consistent, and reception more readily available.
The Verizon iPhone also sports mobile hotspot capabilities out of the box, which will let users share the devicea4‚¬a4„s internet connection with up to 5 other wireless devices for $20 a month. AT&'T users wona4‚¬a4„t have to wait too much longer for the feature though. According to Mossberga4‚¬a4„s review, its hotspot capabilities will be enabled on February 13, following the release of version 4.3 of the iPhone OS.
In anticipation of heavy data usage from iPhone users, Verizon today will also begin throttling the speeds of its heaviest data users.
Next Story: AT&038'T fights off Verizon iPhone with mobile hotspot, sweetened tethering data plan Previous Story: Peter Thiel: &''Something seems to have gone quite wrong with cleantech&''
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Companies: Apple, AT&'T, Verizon
People: David Pogue, Walt Mossberg
Companies: Apple, AT&'T, Verizon
People: David Pogue, Walt Mossberg
Devindra Hardawar is VentureBeat's lead mobile writer and East Coast correspondent. He studied philosophy at Amherst College, worked in IT support for several years, and has been writing about technology since 2004. He now lives in Brooklyn, New York. You can reach him at devindra@venturebeat.com (all story pitches should also be sent to tips@venturebeat.com), and on Twitter at @Devindra.
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