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Is The New Verizon 'Share Everything' Plan A Good Deal?

By George Fox
CW50 Detroit Blogger

In general, Verizon service is good. I get decent call quality and connectivity just about anywhere I go in Michigan. Don't get me wrong though -- I'm not 100 percent happy where I'm at. The contracts are ending soon on both my wife and my phones -- so we could soon be patrons of another carrier. I'd end my relationship with Verizon faster than Miley Cyrus' marriage if I could get better value.

Before I cut ties -- let's break down how the new Share Everything plan works for my situation.

Here's my current setup.

  • Nationwide Talk & Text Family Share 700
  • One unlimited data plan
  • One extra line (non-smartphone)

The grand total after my company discount (20%) and after Verizon's sneaky little added charges comes to $118.27.

The new plans have data ceilings set at 1, 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 gigabytes (GB). Currently I'm grandfathered into the unlimited data plan. It's nice to not have to worry about the amount of data I'm using so that will be a factor in my decision. My average data usage is right around .8 GB per month. Including the usage from my wife I'll assume we'll need a 2 GB plan. She's been using a text message only phone forever, but I'm sure she'll be excited to join the smartphone world. Especially if we can swing it without a huge added cost.

Here's the result of my number crunching. (assuming the Verizon additional charges, taxes and fees stay the same)

Old plan - $118.27

New plan - $124.29

In summary, here are the pros and cons if I switch.

Pros - Unlimited calling, affordable data plan for my wife
Cons - Limited data

What do you think? Should I switch my plan with Verizon, stay where I'm at or move to another carrier?

George Fox is a Spartan, a Michigander, and Web Producer for CBS 62/CW50 in Detroit. When I'm not working on content for the CBS Local websites, I'm probably hanging out on the boat, at deer camp or spending quality time with the fam. Follow George on Twitter @GeorgeJFox.

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