Gillian Shaw
Sun
Rogers Wireless has dramatically dropped data pricing for the new Google Android-powered smartphones released Tuesday, bringing back the promotional six gigabytes of data for $30 a month it offered with its launch last year of Apple’s iPhone.
That compares to Rogers‘ regular wireless data rates that start at $25 for 500 megabytes for the iPhone and other data-rich devices in its product lineup.
The first phones to be released in Canada with Google’s Android platform are the HTC Dream and the HTC Magic, available through Rogers for $149.99 with a three year voice and data plan that amounts to a minimum monthly service fee of $45.
The $30 for six gig data plan for the Android phones is only available until July 1, 2009. The promotional pricing for wireless data is only available to customers purchasing the HTC Dream or the HTC Magic.
In an interview when he was in Vancouver this week talking to Rogers employees, the company’s new CEO Nadir Mohamed suggested such promotions would be offered to address the needs of early adopters who may be particularly heavy data users. He said it is also a way to meet the concern of consumers afraid to try wireless data devices like the smartphones for fear of unexpected costs.
The Android operating system has built-in integration with Google’s mobile services including Google search, maps and Gmail and in a move similar to Apple’s app store for the iPhone, the Android Market offers 3,200 applications for download on Android phones like HTC’s Dream and Magic. More applications are added daily.
British Columbians have proven to be among early adopters of mobile Internet services, with 45 per cent of cell phone users accessing the web from their mobile devices more than five times a day, according to a poll conducted by Ipsos-Reid for Rogers Wireless. Among British Columbia‘s smartphone users, 47 per cent are downloading applications.
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