Is A Verizon iPhone In Your Future?

It is pretty much a done deal that Verizon will begin selling the iPhone soon, maybe in just a few weeks. Are you going to be standing in line to get one?Are you an AT&T user that has been unsatisfied with their coverage and have been waiting for the big red Z to get one so you could switch? Or maybe you don't get AT&T service in your area or are simply locked into Verizon with a family plan. I doubt there will be huge lines for the phone as anyone that really wants an iPhone 4 already has one. Still, there has to be some pent up demand from existing Verizon customers or disgruntled AT&T customers that will generate some nice sales figures for Verizon.

Despite the fact that unlimited data plans are going the way of the dodo bird, Verizon is keeping their unlimited plans around for a little while longer. They have spent millions on their network and are confident that if millions of people buy an iPhone, the nation's largest cellular network will handle the extra load according to the Wall Street Journal, unlimited data plans and all.

A Verizon iPhone isn't a slam dunk though. First of all it is on a CDMA network. We don't have details on the phone yet, but unless it is a so-called "World Phone" you won't be able to travel to GSM countries with it. You also cannot just swap out your SIM card to another device like you can with AT&T.

Speed may also be an issue. Boy Genius Reporter Zach Epstein is going to stick with his AT&T phone simply because download speeds are in the 5Mbit/sec range versus 800Kbit/sec speeds for Verizon in his area. That is 625% faster. If your main purpose is to check emails, update Twitter and Facebook status and grab some apps here and there, either speed is fine, but if video is your thing or you want to do some serious web browsing, AT&T's speeds may be the way to go.

Of course, the iPhone may hold little interest for you if Android or Windows Phone 7 is your smartphone of choice. But if you are an iPhone fan, what are you going to do, stick with AT&T, or switch?