iPad 2 News: Beware the Verizon Reactivation Fee

Posted Mar 19, 2011 at 3:20PM EST by QJ Staff

Listed in: iPad 2 News Tags: apple, ios, news, Verizon iPad

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A few days ago, Verizon announced that they had waived the usual $35 activation fee for the iPad 2, later adding the Samsung Galaxy Tab and Motorola Xoom to the deal. Since Verizon and AT&T are fighting for every bit of the iPad 2 action they can get, this offer is no surprise. However, there’s a very nasty surprise in store if you drop your service even for a month. ZDNet discovered that, “according to a post on Pogue’s Posts, some readers are claiming that if you let your iPad Verizon cellular service lapse for a couple of months, the company will hit you with a $35 activation fee again, each time you turn the service back on. This pricing goes against what Apple touts as the easy experience of turning your data on and off, at will.” Ouch! Those fees could mount up for frequent travelers who use the 3G service only when they’re on the road, or college students who use Wi-Fi at school but need Verizon service during vacation. I agree that Verizon’s policy seems totally contradictory to what Apple states in the media for the iPad 2. Wonder if any disgruntled Verizon customers have taken this up with Apple?

This is the perfect time for rival AT&T to announce a “no activation ever” deal, but that won’t help the iPad 2 owners who already bought the Verizon model. For those who haven’t bought an iPad 2 yet—which given the difficulty of getting your hands on one, is most of us—the Wi-Fi-only option is looking more attractive all the time. You can use the Personal Hotspot feature on your iPhone to connect your iPad 2 for an extra $20 per month on top of what you’re already paying for the phone, or buy a mobile hotspot like the new Overdrive Pro from Sprint. With more Wi-Fi options becoming available, this isn’t the time for carriers to start pulling tricks like this.

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