Sprint EVO 4G Pricing vs. AT&T and Verizon

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Sprint EVO 4G Pricing vs. AT&T and Verizon

I've gotten a lot of questions on Twitter and via email tonight about the pricing for the just announced Sprint EVO 4G.

Here's how the EVO stacks up against Verizon and AT&T.

If you get our Sprint Everything Data 450 plan with your EVO, you will pay $79.99 a month. ($69.00 / month, plus a $10 a month premium data charge.)

That includes:

Unlimited calling in America to any wireless phone (via Any Mobile, Anytime)
Unlimited Text
Unlimited Web
450 Anytime minutes

As for Verizon and AT&T, with their 3G phones -- remember, their 4G exists only on a PowerPoint slide while ours covers 40 million people today -- they offer much less.

Verizon's Nationwide Unlimited and AT&T's Nationwide Unlimited include

Unlimited Talk

If you want to add

Unlimited Text, it's $20/month
Unlimited Web, it's $29.99/month

You end up paying a total of $119.98/month for a 3G device.

Our EVO 4G saves you $40/month or $960 over the life of the 2 year contract.

Let's see, a better phone, a faster network and $960 still in your pocket.

I think this phone is going to do well for Sprint. What do you think?

Tags ATT EVO Sprint Sprint 4G Verizon
May, 12, 2010
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about 2 years ago WillieFDiaz (Twitter) responded:

Except people who arent in 4G still must pay an extra $10 for "Premium Data" that cant be used?

about 2 years ago Dave Zatz responded:

VZW's base voice plan is like $40. +$30 for data, +$5-$20 for text, +$3 for Visual Voicemail. So for me it'd be $78-$93 on VZW versus $80 on Sprint. VZW also offers a 1yr service agreement for a bit more upfront. Do you guys do that, too? Hmmmmm. :)

about 2 years ago Witold Witkowski responded:

Its easy to be negative, its harder to be the hard working underdog.

I've been a Sprint customer since 2001, and I've never encountered a company that takes care of their customers as well. Sure, there are rough spots, sure its far from perfect, but one thing is for sure, Sprint has always rewarded loyalty. If not for the boneheaded Nextel acquisition and subsequent moneypit, Sprint would have had nationwide 4G access already. Seriously, was push-to-talk that important? And now the Nextel network has been bastardized as Boost Mobile. iDen is dead, just kill that network. Its frequency inefficient and technically obsolete!

I remember when my roommate in college had GPRS and he thought it was killer, and I had my 2G phone at the time which blew him out of the water. (I think it was called PCS Vision at the time).

Then EVDO came, and again Sprint was first w/ high speed packet data to the handset. (Had one of those first phones too)

I've dealt with VZN, and AT&T for non-personal use, and Sprint has been the least restrictive when it comes to phone customization.

I had a Motorola Q9c which was sold from both Vzn and Sprint. The Sprint one was WIDE open, and I had no problems customizing it, playing with the Windows Mobile 6.1 core, everything. Try THAT on the same hardware on VZN. The Q9 for Verizon had a software disabled GPS, because they wanted you to pay for it.

Sprint was the first US provider to have pico-cells on offer, the Airrave, but they were mocked for having a small network. When AT&T got their pico-cells, you could have thought it was the second coming of Christ! How revolutionary it will be for iPhone owners to extend their network into their home!

I sound like a Sprint apologist, but I'm not. Believe me, this company has annoyed the hell out of me before. Wrongly billing me, terrible customer service, once even losing my account entirely. I've got so many bad stories I could fill volumes. But we live in an imperfect world. Why do I (and consequently my family) stay with Sprint? In the end, I like having the cutting/bleeding edge tech, and Sprint is doing that. I'm sure there are examples where I'm wrong, but Sprint has always (in my mind) had the first mover disadvantage. They test the waters for the big guys, and force them to move.

I like to support the underdog, and Sprint as an underdog is doing well.

By the way, if you've finished this Opus, I commend you, as this was just going to be a 2 sentence reply to a post I saw somewhere.

about 2 years ago John Taylor responded:

Thanks Witold. We are working hard to improve... 9 quarters in a row of improved customer satisfaction is starting to pay off, but we're not done yet. Thank you for sticking with us.

about 2 years ago dfiedor responded:

Just called Sprint to see how much it would cost me to get the EVO. The guy said he had no information. I told him that Sprint sent out a PR this afternoon and was told to "go to the web site" then. lol

I have had the "everything" program with my Instinct for over a year and so doubt the $199 phone will be available to me. Too bad, too, as I had plans of writing a few articles about the EVO and how it could be used to save senior citizens money -- for those who travel a lot, it could pay for itself within months, as my Instinct did.

Alas, my limited budget (retirement) will not allow me to lay out too many hundred dollar bills just to get my hands on the EVO phone. And now, the Nexus One will not be available to me, either. So, I guess either I'll have to forget about Android for a while or buy the first inexpensive tablet that comes along running the 2.1 OS.

about 2 years ago bkoppe (Twitter) responded:

While Sprint's price for the Evo is competitive and I still plan on getting it, your comparison is misleading. You're comparing AT&T and VZW's unlimited talk plans to Sprint's 450 minute plan, while AT&T and VZW both offer 450 minute plans too. So, it's more accurate to compare the Evo price ($79.99/mo) to AT&T's 450 minute + unlimited data + unlimited text ($89.99/mo). The only difference is that AT&T only has free mobile-to-mobile in network and night/weekend minutes are limited to 5000 on that plan. With the addition of rollover minutes, it's pretty much a wash.

The Evo is a much better device than is available on any other carrier, and Sprint is a much better carrier than AT&T. Add to that the 4G service that you get with the Evo, and it's still a great deal for a great phone. It's misleading to say it's $40 less per month though.

about 2 years ago Enrique Gutierrez responded:

... I pay $89.99 at AT&T for 450/Unlimited w/ Data/Text ... blah

about 2 years ago bkoppe (Twitter) responded:

Same here Enrique, which is why it's frustrating to see someone try to claim Sprint's $79.99/mo pricetag is $40/mo cheaper. There's no question in my mind that the Evo is the better deal - it's still $10/mo less, there are more unlimited minute scenarios, Sprint is a more reliable network, the device is way better than anything on AT&T, and 4G access is a huge plus - but I lose faith in Sprint when I see deceptive comparisons like the one posted above. It's not going to prevent me from getting the Evo, but it will certainly make me more skeptical of future claims made by Sprint.

-- current AT&T customer, switching to Sprint for Evo

about 2 years ago Ollie Townsend III responded:

An extra $10 a month for 4G doesn't sound that horrible. The only issue is that it isn't in my area yet either. None the less, it will have to make it here sometime right? Or else I will just have to visit friends often!

about 2 years ago John Taylor responded:

Thanks for emails and comments. To get a better idea of the value we offer vs. AT&T and Verizon, visit www.sprint.com/anymobileanytime.

about 2 years ago jasonchichan (Twitter) responded:

Do you know if there's a way to incorporate the Evo into a family plan or will each line need the above referenced $79.99 plan. I've currently got 5 lines on an Everything Data 3000 and would be interested in upgrading all 5 if there was a family option.

about 2 years ago BP3DOTS (Twitter) responded:

I think the real ripoff here is the fact that the hotspot $30 charge does not also cover the permium data $10 charge. That would be a lot more sensible.

about 2 years ago Witold Witkowski responded:

One other thing, this device is coming out with Android 2.1. Android 2.2 (Froyo) is slated to come out very shortly, and have built-in support for tethering (http://tcrn.ch/bKUVlN)

I wonder if Android 2.2 will be available for update on the EVO.

Also, I wonder if other means of tethering will work, or if the Android OS will lock those out automagically.

about 2 years ago Ollie Townsend III responded:

I think it's fairly safe to say that "Android" wont lock out the other forms of tethering, but carriers on the other hand may give it a shot. Or simply not push out the update until it becomes a moot point (Hero, Samsung...)

about 2 years ago Witold Witkowski responded:

At the risk of talking about FightClub, I wonder if PDANet will break.

about 2 years ago (Facebook) responded:

I'm wondering if there will be an extra charge for using the mobile hotspot feature, and if so, how much? I know this has been a much-anticipated feature, but there was some worry that Sprint would charge the extra $30 or so that is charges for the MiFi device.

about 2 years ago Ollie Townsend III responded:

Your worry has been confirmed. Sprint will indeed be charging the $30 for the hotspot feature. Yet another reason we wonder if the Evo will ever see Froyo.

about 2 years ago sttng (Twitter) responded:

I wonder if Sprint Premier customers (like myself) will be able to pre-order the phones for the 4Jun launch?

about 2 years ago Ollie Townsend III responded:

Not sure about at Sprint, but you can walk into Best Buy right now and pre-order. And of course you know, Best Buy doesn't make you wait for the mail in rebates.

about 2 years ago rockopico responded:

uhhh...so what about those of us paying 99.99 a month for the unlimited everything plan? Are you seriously recommending that we downgrade our plan and help sprint LOSE money from their current customer base? Who the F is making these decisions. For those of use who have been customers for 10-years and are real Sprint Premier customers, this ridiculous fee should be waived...if not, you lose money when I downgrade. I won't be the only one doing this.

about 2 years ago Ollie Townsend III responded:

My .02 (not a Sprint rep,employee or anything near) The plan he was showing was the bare minimum you would need for the phone. I am "hoping" that people paying the "Everything" for $99 would indeed get Everything. But again, that is an educated guess, and one that would be uneducated of Sprint not to agree with. *hint hint* Don't prove me wrong Sprint.

about 2 years ago nullable_type (Twitter) responded:

While I think it's wonderful that Sprint offers a more affordable Everything Data plan with only 450 peak minutes, if you want to compare apples to apples, you should note that AT&T and Verizon offer unlimited minutes in the plans you mentioned, while Simply Everything on Sprint is $99 (unlimited talk) + $10 for 4G...that puts you at a mere $10 per month savings. Ironically, Sprint has chosen to make the hotspot service so costly that I am evaluating my usage to determine if I can squeeze in under 450 anytime minutes...then I can get the $70 + $10 (4G) + $30 (hotspot) for only $10 more than I am paying now on Simply Everything. If Sprint had done $15-20 for the hotspot I would be inclined to keep Simply Everything and they would get even more of my money.

about 2 years ago HaikuHorner (Twitter) responded:

John, thanks for your posting. I am a current AT&T customer who is thinking of switching to Sprint. What disappoints me about your pricing scheme is that the $10/month is not being charged exclusively to 4G users. It is also being charged to people who have no 4G access. So in fact what you are really doing is charging $440 for the phone, and hiding the costs.

about 2 years ago firedawg responded:

Who would of bought a Nexus One?

"There's really no need for it," said Sprint spokeswoman Michelle Leff-Mermelstein referring to the Nexus One. She added that with HTC Crop.'s Hero, and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.'s Moment, there wasn't room for another Android device in the line up.

I can tell you, I surely would have grabbed the 3g n1 to avoid the $10.00 fee! The truth is sprint, there is a need for it. You have forced those wanting a competitive android phone into corner leaving no option but the evo and a $10.00 slap in the face.

Thanks

about 2 years ago bkoppe (Twitter) responded:

That's an excellent point. The cynic in me wonders if that's the real reason Sprint decided against the Nexus One.

about 2 years ago justsoshy (Twitter) responded:

This is FALSE advertising! why are you comparing their unlimited plans to your 450 plan? WTF

If you consider anytime/anymobile to be unlimited ITS NOT! and if u want to compare apples to apples than Sprint needs to make it truly unlimited.

But as far as now this is the real deal:

SPRINT EVO PLAN 450 (+TXT + DATA): 79.99

ATT IPHONE 450 (+ DATA) : 69.99
- ADD TXT: +$5 (200) OR +$15 (1500) OR + $20 (UNLIMITED)

SORRY BUT NO REAL SAVINGS THERE FROM SPRINT. IPHONE GETS MY MONEY AND GOOD BYE SPRINT!

about 2 years ago Ollie Townsend III responded:

@justsoshy: I agree they are comparing Apple to... yeah, well ya know... but is it me or is your "NO REAL SAVINGS" math a bit off?

about 2 years ago bkoppe (Twitter) responded:

Actually, what's most upsetting to me about this particular post is that Sprint is still $10 cheaper. I agree it's not much, and in many cases the extra $10 might be worth it for better service or based on the principle of not paying extra when you aren't even in a 4G market, but it's still $10 cheaper. What's most upsetting, though, is that instead of being honest and saying "yes, the extra $10/mo lessens your savings, but Sprint is still cheaper," they've apparently decided it's best to mislead and compare their competitor's unlimited plans to their own 450 minute plan. That kind of dishonesty alone makes me wonder if the $10/mo savings over AT&T or Verizon is worth it.

Memo to Sprint: It doesn't matter if you're still (barely) the cheapest option if you're also perceived as the dishonest option. I'd much rather pay a little more every month and give my money to a company that is honest when comparing their plans to competitors.

about 2 years ago Ollie Townsend III responded:

@bkoppe: Now that I can fully stand behind!

about 2 years ago (Facebook) responded:

So you are going to combat customer frustration with deception? Nice going...you are comparing apples and oranges

Maybe Sprint should rename the "Everything Data 450" plan to "**Almost** Everything Data"

about 2 years ago John Taylor responded:

I'm just catching up on these comments and I'm dismayed to basically be called a liar on my own blog.

The comparison is a fair one if you consider everything the Any Mobile Any Time plan includes. Verizon and AT&T charge you for texting and web, Sprint includes it. Visit sprint.com/anymobileanytime for details.

Keep in mind that the current "Everything" plans have a 5GB cap per month on data. With the $10 a month premium data charge, EVO users won't have a cap on 3G or 4G data.

The bottom line is this is premium pricing for a premium product. Even with the $10 data charge, Sprint is still cheaper.

about 2 years ago dfiedor responded:

I think you are correct and my reply was polite.

My only question to Sprint was how much would it cost me when I already have the "everything" plan with my Instinct. They couldn't answer.

Then, I asked how much it would cost me to get the phone as a "so called" premium (or whatever they call it) customer after only one year on the service. The guy referred me to the web site -- didn't even know that Sprint had put out a PR on the topic that day. Oh well. . . .

I wanted the EVO so that I could write a series of articles for senior citizens on how that phone would help them. To start with, I've paid for my Instinct a few times over just by using it to watch gas prices. The EVO would be a world better at pricing goods and services, as well as number of other things useful to the senior set.

However, if it's going to cost me too much (very limited income here) to get the phone, I may just buy the first inexpensive Android 2.1 tablet that comes out and use that as my base for the articles.

Anyway . . . that EVO has MANY great attributes for our senior population but most will think it is probably much too complicated. My (self-imposed) job as a writer would be to show and tell them that a device such as that can be easy to use to make their lives easier and even more enjoyable.

Remember now, many seniors travel a lot and that large screen EVO would be the best travel companion available -- for many reasons.

Anyway, don't worry about the nay-sayers. Half of them are Apple fanboys anyway. And, really, Apple better be damn worried because they have nothing as good as Android 2.1 and Android 2.2 is right around the corner. In that class of smart phone, the iPhone 4 will be a yawner!

Fact is, I have a number of retired (technical people) waiting to see if I can show them something with Android. And, if I get my hands on a good Android device (like the EVO) I will be showing them quite a lot!

BTW, I've been on this Internet since it started -- before it was public.

You have a good, informative site and I sincerely hope you keep it up. As a political writer with a few thousand editorials on the net, I'm used to those type of comments and didn't even flinch when I read them. Had I known it bothered you, perhaps I would have written to counter some of them. But, as I said, I'm rather used to it. . . .

~Doug

about 2 years ago John Taylor responded:

Thanks Doug. As you can imagine, the level of interest in this particular device is tremendous. I'm sorry the Care rep you spoke with couldn't answer all of your questions. As we get closer to launch, our care team should be fully up to speed.

If I can have a media relations team member help you with your article, please email me at john.b.taylor@sprint.com.

John

about 2 years ago (Facebook) responded:

John,

Once again your statement is incorrect. The 5gb cap exists only for the data cards, not the phone plans. And even if there was a cap, what if don't live in a 4g area and probably won't hit the limit?

about 2 years ago jtd3d responded:

Big big bummer. I have been an iPhone switcher. I was going to switch, without a doubt. Until I read this update. Reality is the iPhone is worth a premium, not huge but it is a better phone. Am I going to switch for a few bucks, no. By the time you add the cost of tethering and the additional $10 per phone on my family line, I am not that much off from AT&T. Wow, Sprint is losing a fantastic opportunity in switching users like me over to their service. I don't use much data, I have five family lines. I am the perfect customer and Sprint is trying to stick it to me. See ya, have to look into t-mobile now.

about 2 years ago dfiedor responded:

Really, I hate to butt in here, but I've been following some of the comments concerning subscription fees. From my personal experience, I beg to differ.

I went through a number of different phones while an AT&T customer and all have one common characteristic: dropped calls! Picture me finally scheduling a half-hour conversation with a world-class medical research scientist and ten minutes in my damn phone hangs up on him. Can you spell embarrassing? More than just once, too. Dropped calls were rather frequent. And, when I called AT&T to register a complaint, the damn phone system dropped out on them, too. Twice! Oh, and that includes using a rather new iPhone 3g that I borrowed for a few days.

Now, about the cost: The difference between my unlimited voice calling on AT&T and what I now pay for the "everything" program on Sprint is not very much. Better yet, I have never -- ever -- had a call drop with my Instinct. Even when there were no bars up, I still had a clear conversation.

Now I've moved away from big city life. Here, even many AT&T employees use Sprint cell phones because there is no dependable AT&T mobile signal in most places around here.

Recently, I saw a video where one of the big Sprint honchos clearly stated that current customers with one of the better smart phone packages will be able to keep that package with the EVO. I have yet to hear one of the sales people at Sprint say the same thing, but if they don't I'll be looking up that video and sending that Sprint executive a rather interesting letter.

I'll probably never have the opportunity to use the 4G, yet will probably have to also pay the surcharge. So be it. I'll grouch about it for the first couple billing cycles, then forget it. Because, when used properly, I expect that phone will actually save me quite a lot of money over that two year contract -- many times more than the cost of the phone, ultimately. Sorry folks, but the new iPhone cannot do that for me. Besides, being older, I much prefer the larger screen.

about 2 years ago David Mustayne responded:

Wait, the justification for the $10 doesn't make sense! What does he mean that there is currently a cap on a data plan of 5 gigs? The Simply Everything plan clearly states "Unlimited Data", which is also stated in my 450 Everything Data plan. My Instinct has already used over 20 gigs of data and I have 18 more days before the next billing cycle to even triple that without worrying about an overage charge. Somebody please clarify.

about 2 years ago derikd responded:

I just have to say, that people seem to be intentionally (?) misunderstanding the value of the Sprints 450 plan. Sure, that plan limits your _landline_ calls to 450 minutes and the true unlimited plan on verizon does not do this. But VZW's 450 plan doesn't give you unlimited mobile to mobile (any network) so comparing Sprint's 450 plan to VZW's 450 is just as unfair a comparison.

I use an average of 1100 total minutes a month over the last year. The average number of minutes spent on _landline_ calls is less than 150 per month. Most of those calls are to one particular friend who refuses to get into the 21st century and buy a cell phone (though I did finally convince him to get a cordless).

AND EVEN LANDLINE CALLS ARE FREE when made after 7pm (which is when I usually call this guy). Indeed the calls that I make to a land line during extended business hours are almost entirely personal business calls (to my broker, to physician's office, or some such thing). It comes out to maybe 5% of my calls.

Of course, if you really do use your phone for a lots of calls to BUSINESSES during business hours... chances are you are not really using your phone as a personal communication tool but rather a business appliance. Which is fine, but you are then better suited to get the Truly unlimited plan for $30 more per month. And even in that case it is STILL $10 cheaper.

John, please don't let these guys get you down. You might be making a "slightly" unfair comparison, and doing so to put the best spin on YOUR plan. But they were making an even MORE unfair comparison _on_purpose_ to try and make their preferred vendor look good. I hope most people are smart enough to see through the spin (on both sides) and realize that Sprint is offering fantastic value for personal use.

derikd

P.S. I __really__ don't like being FORCED to pay $10 extra per month for this phone on the excuse that is "premium 4G" when Sprint and I both know that there will never be 4G in my area. True, I am getting the 5GB cap removed, and I guess that is worth something. But I would at least like to have the OPTION to forgo that $10 plan. It is not that much to me, but it IS kind of annoying. Since it only applies to this phone, it feels like a poorly hidden price hike on the phone itself.

about 2 years ago jtd3d responded:

Bottom line is i am Sprint's target customer and I am now having second thoughts. I have a five line family plan with AT&T and spend around $325 a month. I have three of those five lines as iPhones.

Before I read about this pricing switching to Sprint was a no-brainer. Saving $150 a month and potentially even being able to drop my home internet payment was going to push me to drop the beloved iPhone, my talk-and-surf feature, and my ever-increasing 3G speed (all things Sprint couldn't/can't give me)

But now the savings is down to probably less than $100 a month. It has made me reconsider, at this point I am probably not switching.

about 2 years ago David Mustayne responded:

Corporately, AT&T and Verizon don't even see Sprint as a competitor due to all the subscribers willingly jumping ship. Add to that the fact that subscribers are jumping ship to wireless carriers with HIGHER plans just adds insult to injury. Although I don't think the extra $10 will prevent any of us from putting food on the table for our families I do think the $10 is going to hurt Sprint more than it will us.

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Sprint EVO 4G Pricing vs. AT&T and Verizon