Alltel’s Unlimited Mobile Broadband Plans Are Their Strongest Suit.
On 1/9/2009, Verizon Wireless completed it’s merger with Alltel. If you were interested in Alltel, please refer to our reviews on Verizon.
Contents: Plans Speed Coverage
Alltel mobile broadband has the most superior 3G plans. With each plan having unlimited data in some shape or form, you can download to your heart’s content (with some conditions of course). Unfortunately, Verizon’s bought them and it’s unsure how long it will last. Considering that Verizon has 5 Gigabyte caps on their 3G plans, the days of unlimited 3G may be all but gone.
Alltel 3G Plans
Unlimited Mobile Broadband in the U.S. & Canada
The last time we covered Alltel mobile broadband plans, there were 3 mobile broadband plans to quench your thirst for unlimited 3G.
Not to be outdone by themselves, there’s four Alltel Wireless plans for mobile broadband plans this time around:
- National Wireless Internet | $59.99
- National Wireless Internet Bundle* | $39.99
- Internet Anywhere Bundle | $69.98
- Extended Wireless Internet | $99.99
*Available only to existing customers willing to add a new data card line to their ‘Smart Choice’ wireless plan.
The National Wireless Internet 3G plan is your regular run of the mill mobile broadband plan. Reigning in at about $60/month, it’s more or less the plan to compete with the other carriers except for one thing:
It’s an unlimited 3G data plan.
Like a rare exotic Amazonian species, upon its discovery, you might experience bewilderment and disbelief that it actually exists.
Next up is one of the newer & rarer National Wireless Internet Bundle.
If you are an Alltel customer (or become one) and add an Alltel data card line, you’ll pay only $39.99 ($40) for unlimited mobile broadband. How sweet is that? I might just have to leave T-Mobile on this one.
The Internet Anywhere Bundle, 3rd in the lineup, offers up an interesting variety.
The Internet Anywhere Bundle for about $70 gets you unlimited data for your broadband card plus WiFi anywhere Alltel offers it. Just between you, I (and the rest of cyberspace), this plan isn’t the best value offering.
It just so happens that both T-Mobile and AT&T offer WiFi hotspot usage in their mobile broadband plans for free. For Alltel, this is more likely an attempt to offload use of their EVDO Rev. A/Rev.0 network onto WiFi to save themselves (not you), money.
The Extended Wireless Internet 3G plan remains unchanged from last year. While it might not hit the spot for most, if you frequent both the United States and Canada, then this is nothing short of a miracle. For about $100, you get unlimited 3G coverage in all of the United States and Canada.
Technically, no one else offers unlimited international mobile broadband (even if it’s just in one other country). If you’re a regular visit to the chilly north, then this plan can possibly save you hundreds of dollars and several strands of grey hair from stress. Kudos to Alltel on pulling this on together.
Another cool unspoken benefit of Alltel’s unlimited 3G plans is the absence of overage charges.
If you’ve read the free Mobile Broadband Buyer’s Guide, you’ll see how the major carriers can charge anywhere from $51 to $500 per Gigabyte for going over their 5 GB caps. Dangerous stuff you need to know.
^Back To Top
Alltel 3G Speed
A Mix of EVDO Revision 0 & Revision A.
While these graphs show the average speeds, here’s the full deal. In EVDO Rev. A areas, average speeds are “600-1400 Kbps [downloading], peaking at 3.1 Mbps, and 350-500 Kbps average upload speeds, peaking at 1.8 Mbps.
In EVDO Rev 0 areas “speeds are 400-700 Kbps with peak rates up to 2 Mbps, and at average upload speeds of 40-70 Kbps with peak rates up to 144 Kbps”.
For everywhere else think, dial-up speeds.
^Back To Top
Alltel 3G Coverage
May Expand Thanks To Verizon Merger.
Last time we spoke about the Alltel coverage area for 3G/mobile broadband, we mentioned how Alltel had a roaming agreement with Sprint to give it pretty excellent coverage throughout the country.
An interesting tidbit is that their roaming partnership was to last 10 years. However, since Alltel is merging with Verizon, its unsaid as to what will become of that partnership.
In the worst case scenario of that roaming agreement vanishing, the Alltel coverage area for 3G will become an extension of Verizon’s mobile broadband network for pretty good coverage. While Sprint may be the coverage kings at the moment, a Verizon Alltel merger may mean some serious competition in that arena.
In addition to Alltel’s EVDO network, they also have WiFi available with certain plans for high speed access at over 17,000 locations (almost half are Starbucks venues).
While they have pretty good coverage, their map is pretty bad when you compare it to the interactive nature of Verizon, Sprint, AT&T or T-Mobile.
Not Sure About Alltel?
Check out our Postpaid Mobile Broadband Comparison
^Back To Top
