What does the n4 mean to the existing carrier model?

[kobastal]

The Nexus 4 is a great phone. While there may be a few phones that are equivalent, as soon as you factor in that it is unlocked for $350.00, it quickly is in a league of its own. It would seem as though the idea from Google is to help steer us away from the carrier controlled market. People on this forum understand the benefit of that, from both an economic and experiential perspective. But, is anyone seeing this idea permeate the mass market? We have no idea if the Play Store fiasco is a function of the demand or Google's ineptitude in physical sales. We are left with anecdotal evidence. I know that in my office most people scoffed at the idea of going pre-paid. At least two, though, would buy the device immediately if it was available. And, as people see the advantages of pre-paid, more people are coming around. What is everyone else's experience with this?

 

[gone down south]

The Nexus is Phase One of Google's plan. The much more important Phase Two is when they become an mvno of their own and start offering truly unlimited data plans. THAT'S when it starts getting fun!

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Android Central Forums

 

[Fairclough]

To be honest, I doubt Google would provide unlimited data plans in the near future.

 

[chrispher86]

Me personally.. I have not done prepaid since my teens. Although I did wanna go prepaid last year, I didn't. Phones were too high and I had just signed a contract. This was the perfect opportunity for me to see how it compared. I am currently on the $30 a month plan with T-Mobile. So far it's OK. I don't really talk on the phone a whole lot so it works out pretty well. We'll see after some time has passed but i don't foresee any major issues. On that note, after buying the nexus 4, I doubt I'll ever sign another two year agreement.. Or buy another phone that's not a nexus.

Sent from my Nexus 4

 

[chrispher86]

I also think that the average consumer will feel more comfortable with two year agreements though.

 

[zrxoa1]

I have my main line on Verizon with unlimited data. Using this Nexus 4 with Straight Talk is an experiment. I have had my 21 yr old on straight talk for several months as well. Seems to be working ok so far for him.

I plan to jump ship from Verizon but leave a few of the family (wife, another son, mother in law...) on vzw. I have a third son on my Verizon account but looking at moving him to prepaid as well. Probably Virgin Mobile, but maybe straight talk.

I am just somewhat nervous about leaving vzw and giving up my unlimited data. It also makes it tough because Google says I cannot port my Verizon number (had for nearly 20 years...) over to Google Voice.


Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2

 

[jd914]

I'm seriously considering going pre paid but there aren't any pre paid services that I'm in interested at the moment. I'm tired of carriers and their total domination over the mobile market. When you come to look at it the mobile market is a duopoly controlled by Verizon and AT&T which only look to fleece their customers.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

 

[bobjohnson201]

The Nexus 4 is a great phone. While there may be a few phones that are equivalent, as soon as you factor in that it is unlocked for $350.00, it quickly is in a league of its own. It would seem as though the idea from Google is to help steer us away from the carrier controlled market. People on this forum understand the benefit of that, from both an economic and experiential perspective. But, is anyone seeing this idea permeate the mass market? We have no idea if the Play Store fiasco is a function of the demand or Google's ineptitude in physical sales. We are left with anecdotal evidence. I know that in my office most people scoffed at the idea of going pre-paid. At least two, though, would buy the device immediately if it was available. And, as people see the advantages of pre-paid, more people are coming around. What is everyone else's experience with this?

Good question. I honestly don't think that the idea would permeate the mass market. I feel like people like going into stores, and toying around with phones, asking questions about coverage and have someone there to help them every step of the way. I don't think most would be comfortable dealing with APN and proxy settings and what not, but hey who knows? i could be wrong. Another thing to look at is if more people go the prepaid route, throttling could become more prevalent.

 

[bobjohnson201]

I also think that the average consumer will feel more comfortable with two year agreements though.

agreed.

 

[Burleson90]

I don't think it will mean much since the nexus is just one device which doesn't receive a lot of national attention. On sites/forums like here,xda,verge, etc. it seems popular. However I believe this is misleading since it only covers a small population overall. I get what you are asking but think you are looking at it to narrow minded. My office is small and most my coworkers use android devices but had no idea what a nexus is until they heard me pretty much yelling at my computer in the office on the first and second launch day lol.
Overall yes I do agree it will build some more hype as time passes and the nexus brand grows however that won't be for a few years if ever. Personally I kind of like that the nexus brand is still mostly unknown yet still has a huge dev. support system.

 

[cnguyen0320]

Nothing. The N4 isnt mainstream enough.

 

[donec]

I have always used prepaid for cellular.

I think/hope that the Nexus 4 will cause a lot of change but it will have to wait until more companies start competing with it. I hope it won't take long.

 

[PWC Realtor]

I don't see it being mainstream anytime soon. Most Americans are pretty loyal to their carrier and don't want to take the time to research to save money.

I looked at prepaid and MVNOs but since my cell is my only phone and I use it for business their arbitrary rules (vague rules on data use and being able to cancel you at their discretion completely hosing your phone number) scared me. I ended up going with a compromise and Tmo value plan (I was already on classic and could migrate for free) . I actually pay after corporate discount not much more than say Straight Talk and I have a guaranteed data cap along with priority network access. On top of that if I need more data I can just upgrade my plan since Tmo only locks the voice and text part of your plan into a contract while leaving data as a configurable feature.

Just my two cents after researching everything.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Android Central Forums

 

[dan1431]

I do not see things materially changing as the % of people even cognizant of the Nexus 4 is small.

Beyond that, the mentality at least here in the USA, is sign a contract for 2 years and receive a discounted or in some cases free phone.

Talking with colleagues and friends I still get funny looks explaining that I just purchased a phone for $350 without the involvement of my mobile phone provider.
Maybe if Google were to start their own MVNO or even a joint company with say the likes of Dish network things might change as the whole idea would be more mainstream, but until that point the status quo will be as it always has been.

Dan

 

[minnemike]

TO me - this seemingly google subsidized phone is perfect for the existing post paid tmobile business value plan. Unlimited everything, no caps @ $55/month vs $85/month for the same with a tmobile subsidized phone. It's a steal considering I got a brand new cutting edge phone for $350! If I got the tmobile N4 for $200 and paid $85/month, the deal would really be no different than existing ones. I'm saving about $500 over 2 years of the plan buying this phone direct from google.

Prepaid is also a very attractive option, but for contractual plans, I'm just pointing out that there are currently some that take advantage of google's strategy here.

 

[sting7k]

The Nexus 4 is a great phone. While there may be a few phones that are equivalent, as soon as you factor in that it is unlocked for $350.00, it quickly is in a league of its own. It would seem as though the idea from Google is to help steer us away from the carrier controlled market. People on this forum understand the benefit of that, from both an economic and experiential perspective. But, is anyone seeing this idea permeate the mass market? We have no idea if the Play Store fiasco is a function of the demand or Google's ineptitude in physical sales. We are left with anecdotal evidence. I know that in my office most people scoffed at the idea of going pre-paid. At least two, though, would buy the device immediately if it was available. And, as people see the advantages of pre-paid, more people are coming around. What is everyone else's experience with this?

It means nothing because Apple and Samsung sell so many iPhones and GS3's right now that the N4 represents probably less than 1% of the total market.

 

[DirkBelig]

Many people are so stretched thin on money these days, the illusory "savings" of a subsidized phone make all the difference. I had a friend looking for an iPhone over the summer and she went with the $99 iPhone 4 because she couldn't afford the $199 4S. I tried to suggest she either go for the 4S or wait for the 5, but she couldn't and that $100 up front cost difference was the determining factor. When I told people I paid $500 for my off-contract, they'd look at me like I was a secret millionaire; they couldn't conceive of spending so much like that. I live frugally and save like a miser, so I've got the option to drop a few bills on a gadget, but for people with families, mortgages, etc. they need to take the unlubed fist a carrier contract demands.

It's going to be difficult for Google to seriously challenge the carriers because there's less money for carriers in prepaid phones; they're always looking to boost postpaid subscriber numbers and that's why they blow fortunes locking up ever-changing "flagship" phones to draw people to their networks. (The Solavei video makes this point.) They want people paying them $100+ per month on a postpaid contract rather than getting their cut of the $50 a MVNO is collecting. It's basic business and this is why only T-Mobile is selling the N4 in stores, albeit at traditional postpaid prices. They're in dead last place, so anything that brings any amount of business to them they'll take; it's not like they're ever going to get the iPhone (or anytime soon), you know?

It's going to be up to people like us to evangelize the benefits of phones like this and prepaid airtime plans. I tell people that I was going to get a GS3 on AT&T, but by buying the N4 and using ST, I'm going to save over $900 over the two years. "That's like most of an HDTV or my rent and car payments for a month," I tell them and they look like they wished they weren't locked into a contract. We may wish Google could start the revolution from up high, but real revolutions start from the bottom, with the people. Show people your Nexus and tell them how much you're saving. Most will stick with the tried-and-true (and pricey) old ways because change frightens them, but if you can move a few, it's a start.

 

[minnemike]

Yeah - it really does come down to the fact whether you have a few hundo to throw down. So many are living check to check these days. That said, most should still be able to toss the cost onto a credit card. Hell, even locked into a 2 year plan with a subsidized phone you are still paying at least $199 for anything top end.... not to mention the $30 extra per month as I laid out in my post above.

All that said, the N4 is not the phone for the consumer looking for the best camera and largest screen (as you now see advertisements aiming at all the time). It's distinctly a tech/carrier savvy phone and not a status symbol thing. It could be a phone for the budget minded, but those guys just get something used that's super cheap. It really has it's own little niche as it stands.

 

[pespule]

Honestly, only advanced users of technology understand the true benefit of paying more for a phone without any contract as opposed to a cheaper alternative with a 2 year contract.

When people ask how much I paid for my phone and I say, $300, they are like "wow the iPhone or GS3 is cheaper". And then when I told them it's unlocked and out of contract, they are like "so what, you overpaid for your phone". So I just let it be and enjoy my $30 a month bill as opposed to theirs for $80-100.

 

[donec]

It means nothing because Apple and Samsung sell so many iPhones and GS3's right now that the N4 represents probably less than 1% of the total market.

Yes but it does set precedence that the big boys will have to take into consideration.