veriPhone!!!

Well, the three exclamation marks after the title of this blog post DO NOT signify any revolution in the mobile phone industry. It's just a sigh of relief.. Ah the iPhone's finally on Verizon! After four years of the first iPhone's launch.

Now, let us come to the details. So what is the Verizon's iPhone all about? It is exactly the same iPhone 4 but on a CDMA EV-DO network., no 4G, no international roaming.  When re-phrased, that means better call reception, faster data and lesser dropped calls. However, there is a drawback to this. Verizon's CDMA network does not allow simultaneous voice and data, i.e. you cannot browse while you are on a voice call, which is a big deal and AT&T actually allows you to do that ( Surprising, ain't it? ). Of course, there are the trivial design changes, the extra black seams on the metallic edge. Hope that after-all they aren't that trivial, and solve the antenna-gate issues.

Verizon's iPhone is being offered with a Personal Hotspot feature which can connect up to five Wi-Fi enabled devices, pricing of which is not known yet. It also comes with the choice of an unlimited monthly data plan which is now unavailable on AT&T.

Whether a customer should go for an iPhone with Verizon now is highly questionable. Apple launches product updates for the iPhone every year around September, which is around seven months after the launch of the veriPhone. Say you purchase it right now, your mobile phone will become obsolete in less than a year and you know how it is, Apple makes every predecessor look almost ancient.

So the moral of the story is:-

The Better

• America's most reliable network
• Better reception when compared to AT&T's network
• Personal Hotspot option
• Choice of unlimited data plan
• The differences in design might solve reception issues with iPhone 4

The Worse

• Lack of simultaneous voice and data connection
• No international roaming
• Cannot be unlocked and used with alternative operator *Wink*
• Product launch not simultaneous with actual product upgrade

So it is up to you guys to decide whether to upgrade to a veriPhone ( if already a Verizon customer ), or switch operators just to get one. Decide wisely!!