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Virgin Mobile will start throttling data speeds in March

Joe — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 15:00:17 +0000

We knew it was coming. It was just a matter of when. We learned last year that Virgin Mobile would throttle the speeds of its heaviest data users. It will begin this practice on March 23rd, with users who exceed 2.5GB per month getting their speeds throttled. To be clear, this applies to Virgin smartphone customers using Beyond Talk plans. Throttled speeds are 256Kbps, which is something of a relic for old dial-up users. If a user gets throttled, he has to either way for the beginning of the next billing cycle, or otherwise pay for a new monthly plan immediately. Neither seems like an attractive option, but those are the breaks.

Via Android Central.

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Virgin Mobile offers free month of mobile broadband

Joe — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 14:26:34 +0000

In an effort to attract new mobile broadband users, Virgin Mobile is offering new Broadband2Go customers a free month of data when they sign up. This requires the purchase of a MiFi or USB modem, but once customers activate they’ll get a free month of data, which covers 500MB. That normally costs $20. After that customers can continue paying $20 for 500MB, or can switch to the 100MB plan for $10 or the 2.5GB plan for $50. The promotion runs through Tuesday, November 15, so make sure to visit Virgin Mobile’s website to sign up before it expires. Lines must be activated by December 12th.

Via FierceWireless.

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Virgin Mobile adds Samsung M575 to payLo

Joe — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 15:28:42 +0000

That’s the Samsung M575, the latest phone to hit Virgin Mobile payLo. It’s a simple handset, featuring a QWERTY keyboard, a media player, and up to 32GB of external storage. Thankfully, it does support 3G data, though the uses are limited. It fits perfectly into payLo’s budget-minded theme. You can grab one for $79.99 at Virgin Mobile’s website.

Via Phone Scoop.

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Virgin Mobile announces LG Optimus Slider and HTC Wildfire S

Joe — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 14:43:39 +0000

Click for larger

We’ve seen the above picture recently — last week, in fact. It’s the LG Optimus Slider, and it is now officially coming to Virgin Mobile. Last week we detailed the Optimus Slider, noting its reasonably fast processor, 3.2-inch screen, sliding keyboard, and Android 2.3. As expected, it will cost $199.99. Virgin will release the handset on four different dates: October 17th on Virgin Mobile’s website, October 31st at Best Buy and Radio Shack, November 6th at Target, and November 13th through Sprint retail outlets.

Virgin also made two more announcements, including an update on data throttling and another Android handset.

The above-pictured handset is the HTC Wildfire S, another Android 2.3 device that Virgin announced. It’s a little lower end than the Optimus Slider, mainly in terms of its slower processor. It does, however, have the same 3.2-inch screen — though the 320 x 480 resolution leaves a little to be desired. Unfortunately, it will check in at the same price as the Optimus Slider: $199.99. You can grab it on October 23rd.

Remember when Virgin announced that it would start throttling data speeds in October? Turns out that it won’t happen, at least not now. Virgin has tabled its plans, which include dropping data speeds to 256Kbps after 2.5GB of consumption at 3G speeds, until some time in 2012. That’s good news for those who plan to pick up either the Optimus Slider or the Wildfire. Enjoy unlimited while it lasts.

Via Phone Scoop and FierceWireless.

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LG Optimus Slider coming to Virgin Mobile

Joe — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 14:23:13 +0000

Click for larger

Another Android handset will soon make its way to Virgin Mobile. The LG Optimus Slider, which Verizon just released as the LG Enlighten, is coming soon, according to a Best Buy listing. It runs the latest version of the Android operating system, 2.3, meaning it has all the newest features of the Android platform. It’s also reasonably fast at 800MHz and has a fairly standard 3.2-inch touchscreen with full sliding keyboard. Really, it provides a newer alternative to the Samsung Intercept, which was Virgin’s first Android handset. It should drop next month for $199.99.

Via PhoneNews.com.

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Virgin Mobile going after T-Mobile postpaid customers

Joe — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 12:30:50 +0000

Apparently Virgin Mobile smells blood in the water. This week it launches an ad campaign that directly pleas with T-Mobile customers to make the switch. It does seem odd, indeed, that Virgin is targeting customers from a postpaid brand, but the opportunity is clearly there. T-Mobile is already losing customers, and Virgin sees the opportunity to satisfy them with their monthly prepaid plans. It would help, though, if the ad didn’t make a specious claim or two.

The ad in question mocks the new T-Mobile girl, which, in my book, is a no-no right off the bat. Maybe that’s just the testosterone-fueled guy in me talking, but seriously, why insult such an exemplary spokeswoman? It does create familiarity, though, and at the same time it sets up a contrast between Virgin and T-Mobile.

The one part I disliked more than the mocking of Carly is the customer service claim. AT&T, as we all know, is seeking regulatory approval for its acquisition of T-Mobile. AT&T just happened to score lowest on a recent J.D. Power and Associates survey that measured customer service in wireless. Virgin pokes fun at AT&T for this, while conveniently ignoring the prepaid side of the same survey. That one had Virgin Mobile dead last in customer service score. (On the postpaid side, T-Mobile came in a close second to Verizon.) That’s quite a bold claim coming from a company that has failed in the exact same survey.

It is clear why Virgin is running this ad spot. But they’re not winning any points, at least with me, by bringing Carly into it. Nor are they scoring any integrity points by speaking ill of AT&T’s customer satisfaction score while their own score is equally deplorable.

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Virgin Mobile to throttle Beyond Talk data speeds

Joe — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 12:30:56 +0000

Just last week we got the bad news that Virgin Mobile would raise the rates in the lower tier of its Beyond Talk plans. The changes weren’t all bad, but the $10 monthly increase of what was the greatest smartphone deal on the planet certainly hurt. There’s some more hurting coming, too. Virgin announced yesterday that while they would continue to advertise unlimited data on the Beyond Talk plans, users would only get 2.5GB at 3G speeds. After that customers can still use data without an additional fee, but the speed is dropped to 256Kbps. Basically, it’s the same deal as their mobile broadband plans. This change will place in October, so customers still have a few months to run amok. Virgin published an FAQ page to help clear up confusion.

Via Phone Scoop.

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Changes coming to Virgin Mobile

Joe — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 12:30:28 +0000

Be on the lookout for some plan changes at Virgin Mobile. The site PhoneNews.com got their hands on a PDF sent to dealers, and it details the various plan changes they’re making in the near future. The most notable is what you see above, to the Beyond Talk plans. The super awesome $25 plan gets a $10 bump to $35 per month, while the $50 plan goes to $55. It’s not all that bad, considering how great the old plans were. Now they’re just good, rather than spectacular. The $30 payLo plan will also include 1,500 minutes, 1,500 messages, and 30MB of web access, but apparently that is a “limited time allowance increase.” There’s no word on when these will go into effect, but it doesn’t figure to be long. Also, two phone-related issues after the break.

First, the PDF officially states that the Motorola Triumph will drop on July 19th. We had heard that before, but not in an official-official capacity. Also, via Phone Dog, the LG Optimus Black, an Android handset, should also be making its way to Virgin once it drops later this year. It’s not quite a high-end handset, but it’s a sleek-looking device that includes a front-facing camera and a 1GHz processor. Again, there’s no word on when this will drop, but it could be a while.

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Look for the Motorola Triumph on Virgin Mobile July 19th

Joe — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 15:00:24 +0000

It wasn’t found in the likeliest of places, but it appears that we now have a release date for the Motorola Triumph on Virgin Mobile. From the ad, found in People magazine, it looks like July 19th is the date. I can imagine plenty of Virgin customers going for that, since it will be the most powerful Android they’ve released to date.

Via Phandroid.

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Virgin Mobile getting Android-powered Motorola Triumph

Joe — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 12:30:29 +0000

Yesterday Motorola and Virgin Mobile announced a new Android handset, the Triumph. It resembles many of Motorola’s other Android handsets — it’s kind of like the Droid without the slide-out keyboard. It’s a larger device at 4.1 inches, and it features a 5 megapixel rear and VGA front-facing cameras. It runs fast at 1GHz, and, for the multimedia fans, it has an HDMI output. It also runs Android 2.2 out of the box, though at some point you have to figure it will get 2.3. This looks like the highest end handset to date for Virgin Mobile, and I can see plenty of users upgrading. There’s no price or release date set for it, but I would figure somewhere between $200 and $300 with a summer release date.

Via Phone Scoop. Hands-on video from Phandroid after the jump.

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