Bell adds 1GB smartphone plan with tethering for actually reasonable price
By Chris Ziegler 
posted Apr 13th 2009 10:44AM
posted Apr 13th 2009 10:44AM
Canadian carriers are known for a lot of things; reasonable data pricing, traditionally, is not one of them. As smartphones get more data-intensive by leaps and bounds and wider market segments realize they need laptop cards, these guys appear to be learning -- slowly -- and we're liking what we're seeing with Bell's new $45 CAD ($37) package... sort of. You get 1GB of data for your BlackBerry or WinMo device, $6 per MB for roaming in the US (the same as on Bell's cheaper plans), and extra megabytes run you 3 cents apiece -- and it seems you can tether at no additional charge. For comparison, the $40 CAD plan -- just $5 cheaper -- steps down dramatically to just 8MB of data, so this is what we'd call a "best value" of sorts, if you can really call 1GB for $45 a "best value."[Via MobileSyrup]
Canadian carriers are shit. Plain and simple.
Rogers has offered this same level of data plan for $30. For the past 6 months.
And they're twice as fast. With better phones.
Way to keep on top of the news up here, endgadget. (and way to stay competitive, bell)
Rogers has offered this same level of plan for $30. For the past 6 months.
And they're twice as fast. With better phones.
Way to stay on top of the news up here, endgadget. (and way to stay competitive, bell)
Including tethering?
This is new to Bell. That, by definition, is news.
And it's Engadget, not Endgadget.
The article is clearly talking about pricing vs. usage, with the tethering feature being a bit of a sidenote. But hey it's cool if you want to change your mind about it now.
You might also want to note though that it appears the 1GB of data is actually only for "email, attachments, messaging, Web browsing and Mobile Connect usage", which would seem to exclude any mobile apps on your phone that access the internet. I guess if you live in a world where apps aren't a fundamental feature of your smartphone (but tethering is...?) this might seem like a great deal. Oh and again, only if you don't mind paying 50% more money for 50% less speed than your neighbour down the street.
And yes, if you have a Rogers data plan you can tether your phone without any issues or charges. Although it says it's not covered in the terms, you can ask any Rogers user who's tried it and they'll tell you. In fact, so will their tech support. This might be new to Bell, but certainly not to "Canadian carriers".
Spend less time trolling your reader's comments in defense of bad articles, and brush up on your info. You'll be a better writer.
Let's clarify: the Rogers plan doesn't include tethering. If you followed carrier policy, you'd understand why and how it's significant that tethering is being included as a part of this plan. You may have noticed that it's actually a part of this article's headline, which would make it less of a "sidenote," wouldn't you say?
And once again, this is a new plan for Bell, which makes it news. Not sure what's difficult to understand there, other than your insistence that I bring Rogers into the conversation.
I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't respond to commenters -- particularly those taking pot shots at us. I'm sure you understand.
Interesting, while almost everything seems to be cheaper in North America (especially IT-stuff), phone rates are just ridiculous.
I pay 34€ for my plan and have 1000 minutes (or sms), 15 GB (!) data , a bunch of mobile TV channels and the E71 for 3€.
Okay, let's clear some other things up too, the Robbers ..er, Rogers plan does not include tethering, the new 1GB plan from Bell includes teathering, and yes, allows usage of any app or any type of data usage on the device (there really is no way to limit it to just 'internet, email and teathering', plus you can also share the data feature amoungst a group of users too, which is good for businesses...
However....Bell also has an unlimited plan that has been around since Rogers brought the iPhone 3G here for $30/month...only diference is you can't teather...unless you use something like wifi router for WinMo and get around things.... of course....
The real difference is it works with BES. Tethering is a nice to have, but not worth 15$. The real show stopper in my view is BES support.