Do You Need a Data Plan?

[space]

Verakot -- I'm afraid I can't tell you whether the Droid can function without the data plan, since VZW will not allow you to drop the data plan if you have a smartphone activated.

If you are principally interested in wifi-based access, to the extent that you might even use Skype for calling, why not get an iPod Touch instead? That should do everything you want at a FAR lower total cost.

[verakot]

I'd like to do the same thing you did - deactivate the phone and switch back to the phone that does not required data plan; but instead of selling it on eBay I'd like to use its WiFi capabilities without data plan while it is deactivated.

I am not interested in iPod Touch because I want to learn more about Android and use the Droid for development. With the "new every 2" plan it will cost me $99 compared to $399 for G1 that Google offered to developers. Also I can use it with WiFi if this is possible on a deactivated Droid.

So you have not tried WiFi while you deactivated your Droid or you just sold it without activation?

[space]

Got it. That makes good sense.

I deactivated the Droid by calling VZW and asking them to deactivate it and reactivate my old phone. After they deactivated it, I reset my Droid so that it would be in the "like new" factory configuration for the person who bought it. If you power the Droid on following this reset, the first thing it will want to do is configure itself, and to do this it needs to see the cell network and be activated. I didn't see any way around this. So I never had an opportunity to test wifi with the deactivated unit.

However, if you skip the factory reset step, you *may* still be able to use it with wifi only. But if you ever need to reset the unit, you'll probably need to re-activate it.

My $0.02: if you're willing to be a Verizon customer for the next two years anyhow and don't anticipate needing or wanting a different phone soon, then you may as well get it. If it absolutely can't work without activation, then you can probably sell it. (Disclaimer: please do triple check before doing what I did to make sure that your contract won't incur any penalties for deactivation! It seems to have worked for me, but ... who knows ... maybe the fine print in our contracts differs.)

[verakot]

However, if you skip the factory reset step, you *may* still be able to use it with wifi only. But if you ever need to reset the unit, you'll probably need to re-activate it.

My $0.02: if you're willing to be a Verizon customer for the next two years anyhow and don't anticipate needing or wanting a different phone soon, then you may as well get it. If it absolutely can't work without activation, then you can probably sell it. (Disclaimer: please do triple check before doing what I did to make sure that your contract won't incur any penalties for deactivation! It seems to have worked for me, but ... who knows ... maybe the fine print in our contracts differs.)

Just got the Droid. From what I see there is no way to skip activation and thus use it without data plan... I will try to google if somebody has done this already.

[verakot]

I found out how to skip activation: On the activation screen, you need to press once on each corner starting from upper left clockwise (4 times total). This will skip activation and allow you to use all feature of the Droid.

[dodgemaniac]

quick question. i have the envtouch now and do alot of texting. i want to get a droid and i know i will have to pay for the data but does data include texting? or will i have to have the $10 text and pix charge on top of the $30 for data?

[thelion]

Data does not include texting. It should. But it does not.

[khelek]

quick question. i have the envtouch now and do alot of texting. i want to get a droid and i know i will have to pay for the data but does data include texting? or will i have to have the $10 text and pix charge on top of the $30 for data?

Your data plan does *not* include texting....I think if you go through the steps of ordering a phone through the verizonwireless.com site, you can see the various costs for the text plans.

However, if you have Google Voice, you can work around this very nicely. GV allows you to send and receive SMS for free. However, it does not allow you to send to multiple people at the same time, and you can't send MMS (pix/video). You can send text to one person at a time. For most people, that's good enough. Also, it won't work with some services that send SMS notifications (redbox comes to mind).

If you get a Droid and have GV and decide to use that for SMS, be sure to turn OFF SMS forwarding in your GV settings. Otherwise, you end up getting your GV messages through VZ's messaging, and if you don't have a texting plan, well.....you'll be in for an ugly surprise come bill time.

[clsperka]

I signed up for a Verizon account and purchased a Droid , used it for three weeks, then decided to return the phone. My account was cancelled, no ETF was charged, and my number was ported back to AT&T. However they never asked for the phone back. I now own a motorola Droid for the bargain basement price of $200.
Using the work same work around Verakot posted I bypassed the activation screen and the phone works just as it did when I was a Verizon customer with the exception of being able to make phone calls. With a wifi connection I have been able to... access the web, access the android market place, use gmail, and use google voice for texting. The GPS seems to work though I haven't used turn by turn navigation yet. My next goal is to load Sipdroid and use Sipgate to make Voip calls from the phone. Hopefully if Google rolls out their own VoIP service I'll be golden. Like the original poster hinted at, I have a awesome Android version of the Ipod Touch.

[deputc26]

OK reading the first few pages of this was very frustrating...

YOU CAN USE THE DROID WITHOUT A DATA PLAN I AM DOING IT RIGHT NOW.

You do not have to "unlock" it or root it or point it toward mecca and pray to it you just have to buy it outright (got mine on eBay for $465 Nov. 10th) and get a new plan online or wherever by supplying your MEID which is a number in the battery compartment.

OK, calming down

err I hope you didn't arrive at this conclusion in one of the two pages I didn't read and I hope no VZW people see this and decide to lock everyone out so they can take more money from people.