Re: Nexus 6 on VERIZON
Are you really asking why Evil (Verizon) behaves the way it does? I'm only slightly kidding.
Why are they evil? Seriously they have a duty to their shareholders to return the best possible profits each quarter, they pay a quarterly dividend which is one of the best ones you can ge (7% IIRC). You calling them evil doesn't make them evil.
Verizon takes much longer to 'certify' all kinds of phones, they delay updates, remove features on the phones, lock bootloaders etc etc etc. Then you have truly evil practices like trying to get people to use their paid garbage like Vzw navigator, Messenger etc, not offering wifi calling etc.
All carriers certify devices and software to ensure their call centers aren't flooded with people complaining about a problem with the phone/software/network. It is in their best interest to ensure that all devices are fully operational. Does VZW take longer than other carriers? Without a doubt! Is that inherently evil? No. Have they disabled features, YES! I bitched and moaned years ago that my Razr wouldn't due bluetooth file transfer when all the other carriers would. I was supposed to download ringtones using their paid service, but no other carrier did this. Did that make them evil? No. It made them more profitable. While I figured out how to do it most people wouldn't. They would just pay for the downloads. Remember their entire goal is to make money. Yes their bloat sucks and their Verizon specific apps suck beyond measure, but you put up with that for the great network coverage or you go to another network. Does any of that make them evil? No.
What do they have to gain? Quite simply, planned obsolescence and giving you a reason to upgrade. They aren't the only carrier in the US to do this, they are all evil, but Vzw knows they have the best network and thus a captive audience.
Software updates occur yearly or sooner, so at least 2 softwares before most people upgrade their device. NOBODY and I mean NOBODY is going to go drop $600 on a new device just to get Android 4.4.x a month sooner when their current device works just fine. If the product is EOL and the person has an upgrade or they are a tech enthusiast who has device ADD then maybe they are will upgrade by a new contract or EDGE, but most people get a new phone/contract when theirs physically breaks, runs out of storage, or slows to the point of no return.
Look at the rest of world outside the US. All carriers are on GSM and your phone can work on any tower without fees. Plans cost a fraction of US prices, there are no contracts, if there are they are cheaper. You can get any phone with any carrier and switch sims easily.
But the FCC setup wireless in the US MUCH differently than Europe and Asian countries. Verizon & Sprint switched to CDMA in an attempt to up voice quality over GSM. When WCDMA (a newer GSM standard) came out Verizon and Sprint could have spent the millions to change over the GSM but their network was operational and most people were happy so they didn't. There is of course more competition when you can switch as easy as popping in a new SIM card BUT then again in the non US markets there are much lower costs to operate a network because all the tower space is rented from the Government (using Great Britain as an example here).
The only reason these blood sucking pirates exist in the US (applies also to ISP's) is federal protection by our govt which exists to serve corporations.
So your real beef is with the FCC and Administrations who appointed these self serving jokers? Seems like you have a lot of misplaced anger.
It seems like your definition of EVIL is a corporation making money. That is WHY these companies exist! Nobody sets up a billion dollar infrastructure to be a nice guy. Hell Google created Android to get more search/advertising dollars. It doesn't exist for the greater good, it is about MONEY!
What is EVIL is a person who orders chemotherapy for people that doesn't need it for money. A person who abducts an individual and tortures them for decades. A company who makes money and has policies designed to make more money doesn't make them EVIL, it makes them profitable.
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