Virgin Mobile

Last week Verizon and Apple announced that Verizon will be selling the iPad starting on October 28. For $629.99 you will get a 16 GB iPad with WiFi and a Verizon MiFi, which provides WiFi hotspot access to the Internet for up to five simultaneous devices via the Verizon network. Verizon is also providing some data plans specific to the iPad/MiFi bundle; for $20 per month you get 1 GB of data and if you go over you pay another $20 per 1 GB. Verizon is also providing a 3GB for $35 plan, and a 5 GB for $50 plan.

On face value Verizon’s plans are not as low as AT&T’s 3G plans for the iPad. AT&T charges $25 per month for 2G of data, which is two times more data for only $5 more per month. The Verizon/MiFi bundle is more attractive because you can share the MiFi internet access with multiple devices, while AT&T’s is restrict to the iPad. The 16 GB WiFi + 3G iPad for AT&T costs the same as the Verizon/MiFi bundle.

In my opinion, if you really need a MiFi, 1 GB of data per month will not be enough, pushing you towards the 3 GB/$35 or 5 GB/$50 plans from Verizon. If you are in the market for a MiFi and data plan to use with an iPad and other computers, another option is Virgin Mobile’s Broadband to Go with Virgin’s MiFi 2200, which is the same MiFi device as Verizon’s, only it works with Virgin Mobile. Virgin Mobile’s MiFi costs $149.99 and is available online or at Best Buy. While the combined price of Virgin Mobile’s MiFi and a 16 GB iPad with WiFi is higher than Verizon’s ($649.99 vs. $629.99), the monthly data plan costs $40 per month for unlimited data. Both Verizon and AT&T’s plans are prepaid with no contract, and when you reach the data limit you pay more for additional data.

Virgin Mobile’s Broadband2Go has the best monthly price for a MiFi, but in my experience there is trade-off in that Virgin Mobile’s data speeds, which are actually over Sprint’s 3G network, is not as fast as AT&Ts and probably not Verizon’s. In my use I get download rates between 300 and 450 Kbps, while my AT&T 3G access with the iPad can hit over 1 Mbps. Another consideration is if you don’t share the MiFi Internet access, the iPad with built-in 3G is more convenient because you only have to recharge and carry one device. In my case, after testing the Virgin Mobile MiFi for one month, I decided to not automatically renew each month and activate it only when needed, therefore providing me with backup Internet access for our house when there are power outages, provided that I keep the MiFi charged.

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The news isn’t good for Virgin Mobile: Engadget Mobile reports that right before the mobile virtual network operator slashed ten percent of its workforce on Monday, the company was notified by the NYSE that it was “not in compliance with certain listing criteria.”

According to the NYSE, that means the company’s stock is “below the applicable standards because the average market capitalization of its Class A common stock and substantial equivalents, over a period of 30 trading days, is less than $100 million.”

The report said that Virgin Mobile has 45 days to respond with a business plan that “demonstrates its ability to get back into compliance within 18 months.”

It remains to be seen if the sole remaining major MVNO can rescue the concept from its gradual slide into oblivion.

Virgin Mobile USA, the lone standing mobile virtual network operator in the U.S. (after Helio, Amp’d Mobile, Mobile ESPN, and Disney Mobile all went kaput) will cut 10% of its staff, or about 45 people in New Jersey and California, Silicon Alley Insider reports.

“In a memo to employees today, Virgin Mobile USA Chief Executive Officer Dan Schulman explained that the Company had identified continued synergies associated with the transition of IT services to IBM and the acquisition of Helio,” the company said in the article.

Virgin is well positioned with its strong prepaid model and resulting sales, although it’s struggling to turn a profit. Last quarter, Virgin made just $4.1 million on $323 million of sales, the report said.