jalawler, in Verizon-land the subsidy is about $10/month. A MiFi device is subsidized and has a per-month fee of $20 whlie tablets are not and are $10 - both are dumb data sinks so I'm attributing the delta to the subsidy. Feature Phones are both subsidized as well as have the voice overhead and are $30/month which places voice service at $20/month. This meshes nicely with Smartphones at $40/month which breaks down to $10/month for subsidy, $20/month for voice access, and $10/month for data access.
I really hope they stop subsidizing MiFi devices soon, while upgrading a smartphone every two years seems like an eternity it's hard to imagine a MiFi feature that would make me lust after an upgrade.
Under the new Verizon and AT&T share plans, the lack of subsidy seems to me to be reflected in the cost per month per device. Granted, the higher cost of a phone includes usage as well, but it would make sense that part of the difference is the subsidy.
I'm one of those few who wants data on my tablet. I carry it with me most of the time. I prefer the larger screen for almost all purposes, from reading on the commuter train to Twitter and web browsing. The only reason I bought a smartphone was to combine the separate phone, iPod and ancient PDA I was carrying. If I could, I'd drop the data plan on it.
OK, but the discourse often defaults to criticizing carriers for high service prices -- as in the observation attributed to GigaOm about device subsidies. Operators have the right and the motivation to make a profit. I understand questioning the logic (or lack thereof) of certain market strategies, like tiered pricing.
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