Hasta La Gadget!

While Verizon and HTC have said that the HTC One isn’t hitting Big Red anytime soon, that doesn’t mean that the new device won’t land on Verizon at some point in the future. Recent evidence suggests that the One may be itching closer and closer to Verizon stores, thanks to a discounted DROID DNA, which customers can grab for free for a “limited time.”

It’s worthy to point out that this isn’t just any normal smartphone with a discount. The DROID DNA is HTC’s flagship device on Verizon, and such a discount like this either means that the phone is selling poorly (which we highly doubt) or Verizon is making room for a new HTC flagship — a.k.a. the HTC One.

Then again, the sale isn’t lasting that long. The deal ends tomorrow, meaning that most customers will miss it if they blink, so it’s certainly not a sale that Verizon is counting on to lower inventory, but it’s possible that they could just be raising awareness for the new-ish phone, since the DNA is HTC’s latest phone on Verizon, and it’s already quite old.

The HTC One isn’t an exclusive phone by any means, as it’s already available on AT&T and T-Mobile, and HTC usually puts most of their phones on Verizon’s network, so we’re a little surprised not to see the One in Big Red’s lineup, but it could only be a matter of time before that eventually happens, unless HTC has other plans.

However, Verizon is hosting their own little even this week at CTIA, which could be the moment where Verizon will announce the HTC One. Then again, HTC has said that if Verizon and HTC announce One availability, it’ll be a “big deal,” and an event at a relatively small tech conference like CTIA doesn’t really sound like the “big deal” that the two companies were talking about, but we’ll see what the companies have brewing and report back with our findings.

Verizon HTC One speculation returns as DROID DNA offer arrives is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Mobile phone contracts provide a relatively easy way to get a shiny new smartphone, however there are also those who already have a capable device on hand that prefer to go the no-contract route. That being the case, it looks like Verizon Wireless has recently bumped the data allowances on their prepaid 3G smartphone plans. There are two plans available and they are priced from $60 per month.

These plans were originally announced back on February 1st and at that time they came with options for either 500MB or 2GB of data. In the data-centric world that we currently live in, 2GB may be low for some and 500MB may even cause you to limit your smartphone usage. With that in mind, Verizon has bumped the allowances to 2GB and 4GB.

Specifically, the $60 plan has 2GB and the $70 plan has 4GB. Each of these plans also offer unlimited talk and text messaging. And for those keeping track, while the data has increased, the price of the plans has remained the same. Customers who are already signed up will see the new data allowance immediately.

Otherwise, new customers choosing these plans will have to wait until June 6th to see the 2GB ($60) and 4GB ($70) limits go in effect. Seems the better option here may be the 4GB plan, after all that is only a $10 per month increase and it offers double the data. Of course, for some 2GB may be enough to feel comfortable and not have to worry about going over.

Aside from Verizon upping the data, AT&T has also recently announced Aio Wireless. While the AT&T offering isn’t available in all markets just yet, it does seem to be one worth watching. For now Aio Wireless is available in Orlando, Tampa and Houston. The Aio smartphone plans begin at $55 per month and offer unlimited calling and messaging as well as 2GB of data. In other words, they seem to be fairly close in price to the Verizon prepaid options.

SOURCE: Verizon Wireless

Verizon increases prepaid data limits for 3G phones is written by Robert Nelson & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

HTC Director of PR Tom Harlin has confirmed that there are still no plans to launch the HTC One on Verizon’s network, or rather the company hasn’t “made any official announcement” about the device coming to Verizon. Harlin says that when HTC and Verizon decide to release a new product, you’ll certainly know about it, since it’ll be a “big deal” for them.

Harlin says that the company’s DROID DNA is still the “HTC hero smartphone at Verizon,” and he claims that the DNA’s features “still compete with products in 2013,” which hints to the possibility that HTC may skip over Verizon this year, since they think that the DNA will last into 2014 before the company will need to release a new phone on Verizon.

The HTC One is been released on all major carriers except for Verizon, which is leading to so many questions and rumors on the Verizon version of the new device. Frankly, we’re not sure why the company isn’t releasing the phone on Verizon, and if they eventually do, it’ll way later than all the other carriers.

The HTC One is one of the newest Android devices to release this year so far, and it comes with an aluminum unibody shell, which is something that we rarely see on an Android device. The Samsung GALAXY S 4, which also was recently released, comes with the traditional plastic shell that Samsung used on its Galaxy S III.

Verizon HTC One comments make “big deal” of future release is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

As it stands right now, Verizon holds 55-percent of Verizon Wireless, with Vodafone holding the other 45-percent. According to some sources who spoke to Reuters, Verizon is looking at buying out Vodafone‘s stake to take full control of Verizon Wireless. Assuming Vodafone is approached by Verizon, nothing says it will need to sell, however, or that it will be interested in doing so.

Says the sources, Verizon has not yet approached Vodafone, but has instead hired advisers and are looking into the possibility. If the proposal is offered, it is said to involve $100 billion in a combination of cash and stocks ($50 billion from financing, the rest in shares), with Verizon being ready to “push aggressively” to have the deal go through.

Back in 2004, Verizon almost scored Vodafone’s stake in Verizon Wireless when the company was trying to purchase AT&T Wireless, something that would have necessitated the sale of its stake. That purchase didn’t go through, however, and as a result Vodafone retained its Verizon Wireless stake. If the proposal is made, some analysts expect that Vodafone will demand more.

One such reason is the large tax bill Vodafone could be faced with if it sells it stake, estimated to come in at about $20 billion, reducing the value of Verizon’s offer. The sources have a different take on that, however, saying that the way the proposal is made would reduce the tax burden to about $5 billion instead, possibly less. Nothing official has been said on the matter.

[via Vodafone]

Verizon considering Vodafone stake buyout, says sources is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Verizon didn’t do so hot during Q4 2012, but the company is back posting up their Q1 2013 results, and things are looking mighty good for the company. Verizon profited a whopping $4.8 billion during Q1 2013, and that’s mostly thanks to the addition of 677,000 new subscribers throughout the quarter, with 7.2 million smartphone activations.

Verizon is now up to 98.9 million subscribers total, which means it shouldn’t be too long before they reach the 100 million mark. Furthermore, the carrier activated 5.9 million LTE devices out of the 7.2 million total activations. Verizon also claims that 28% of all activations during the quarter were customers who came from other carriers.

As for Verizon’s other services, FiOS internet saw a bump of 188,000 new customers and 169,000 new FiOS Video customers, which rose the revenue of that particular sector of the company up $2.6 billion. And for those who thought that Verizon quit expanding FiOS will be pleased to know that they added fiber optics to 83,000 homes during the past quarter alone, with 217,000 more homes planned for 2013.

Total revenue for the company rang in at $29.4 billion, which is 4.2% increase year-over-year. Operating income grew 19.8% to $6.2 billion in Q1 2013, compared to $5.2 billion during the same time last year. $19.5 billion of that $29.4 billion revenue came from Verizon’s wireless business alone, which is up 6.8% from last year.

Verizon boasts $4.8 billion profit in Q1 2013 results is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.