I logged into my Virgin Mobile Broadband2Go account the other day and noticed something new. Previously, I had two plan options: $10 for 100 megabytes (or 10 days, whichever comes first) and $40 for unlimited data (lasts for one month). However, there is now a third option in the list.
It seems, since I bought my MiFi from Wal-Mart, I can get one month of service with 1 gigabyte of data for only $20. Obviously this plan wouldn’t work for me as my sole source of broadband (I know I use a lot more than 1 gig each month), but it is probably a great deal for people that just use the MiFi occasionally or strictly for Web browsing (no downloads).
I initially thought you could get this deal if you simply bought a new top-up card at Wal-Mart, but this article seems to indicate that it is only available to customers that bought (or buy) their MiFi devices at Wal-Mart. Sadly, at this point in time, Wal-Mart seems to be charging $40 more than list price (and Best Buy is charging $50 more; both according to their websites – Radio Shack is still selling the device at the $149 list price) for the MiFi devices, so you’re most likely going to have to decide how much you think you might use this mid-tier plan before you decide whether to buy the device at Wal-Mart.
6 Responses
I’ve been trying to decide if this is worth it – for example, next month I am going to san fran for a week – the hotel charges $10 a day for internet – I just don’t know how far 1 gig will go. I also have heard these devices aren’t that great as they need to be rebooted a lot, etc.
I do occasionally have to reboot mine (maybe once or twice a day), but that only takes 15-30 seconds so it never really bothers me. I’ve also had to reactivate mine once or twice since I got it back in September.
I also found while I was in Cincinnati that the data speeds seemed much slower there than they are here. It may have been a national issue that happened to occur while I was in Cincinnati or it may just be that Sprint’s network is worse in Cincinnati than it is here. That’s something to consider. Of course, for the most part, the broadband in hotels is never anything to write home about, either.
Depending on how much you travel these days, it probably is worth it. A lot of hotels still seem to charge $10-15 per night for WiFi access, so it wouldn’t take long for this thing to pay off. On top of that, it’s something you can use everywhere rather than just in your room. For instance, if you are taking a train or bus (not on planes, obviously), you can use this thing while you’re travelling.
It’s definitely not the greatest thing in the world, but it is nice. It can be frustrating at times, but I think if you travel a lot, it’s definitely worth it.
I am wondering though – what about the upcoming release of the Sprint Peel – I am thinking maybe that is the way to go – although they don’t make one yet for the new 4g ipod touch
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/11/09/sprint-to-launch-peel-case-for-ipod-touch-on-sunday/
it’s cheaper to start with and $29/month for a 1gig – so you pay a bit more per month but more than half less up front.
Interesting…
The Peel looks interesting. The thing to remember, though is that the Peel only supports the iPod and one other device, while the mifi supports 5 devices at the same time. Also, Sprint will charge you overages if you go over your allowed usage. Virgin will cut off your service until you buy another top-up card. You also have three plan choices for the mifi. You can choose $10 for 10 days, $20 for 1 gig/month or $40 for unlimited/month.
You’re right, though, that the initial investment is much cheaper for the peel. If you use it regularly, though, it looks like it will end up costing you more (especially if you use a lot of data). I do like the fact that it’s also a case for the iPod.
And now last night i saw a deal on tv for time warner 4g mifi – they said $39/mo for the first 3 mos but didn’t say what it goes up to.
Eventually I will have to get one of these mifis just for travel.
accountually the plans for the virgin mobile broadband2go is cheap regarding with the connection that would be case to case basis in short if you lived in a forest or lemme say rural areas we don’t have any coverge there you can check the data coverage on the web site at http://www.virginmobileusa.com to make sure if you have a coverge or not before you purchased the device.No contract and no activation fees needed but then try to READ first before you put some passwords on the activation procedure.
You can also used Credit/Debit card for the payment for the plans
Cassandra Virgin mobile Broadband2go advisor