Verizon Wireless will begin selling Apple’s iPad at its 2,000 retail stores nationwide on Oct. 28

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Verizon Wireless will begin selling Apple’s iPad at its 2,000 retail stores nationwide on Oct. 28

October 14th, 2010 -=_MaXsKi_=- Leave a comment Go to comments

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Verizon Wireless will start selling new Apple iPad on October 28th

Well, it finally happened!!! AT&T is losing their grip on Apple Exclusive Product lines such as iPhone and iPad. According to CNN Verizon Wireless will begin selling Apple’s iPad at its 2,000 retail stores nationwide on Oct. 28, the companies announced Thursday.

You’ll be able to buy the iPad at 2,000 Verizon Wireless stores nationwide. (Is this the precursor to Verizon getting the iPhone next year, as recent reports suggest?)

Interestingly, consumers won’t have access to the iPad 3G. Instead, if you want one from Verizon, you could buy an iPad Wi-Fi version plus a Verizon MiFi mobile hotspot. The hotspot uses Verizon’s 3G network and generates a Wi-Fi hotspot that you can then use the iPad with. From the press release:

Verizon Wireless will offer three bundles, all featuring an iPad Wi-Fi model and a Verizon MiFi 2200 Intelligent Mobile Hotspot, for a suggested retail price of $629.99 for iPad Wi-Fi 16GB + MiFi, $729.99 for iPad Wi-Fi 32GB + MiFi and $829.99 for iPad Wi-Fi 64GB + MiFi. Verizon Wireless is offering a monthly access plan to iPad customers of up to 1GB of data for just $20 a month. In addition, Verizon Wireless will also offer all three iPad Wi-Fi models on a stand-alone basis.

The move ends AT&T’s exclusive grip as the wireless carrier for Apple’s wildly popular tablet, and potentially sets the stage for a broader partnership between Apple and Verizon. The two are widely rumored to be preparing to bring Apple’s iPhone to Verizon’s network in early 2011.

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It just so happens that Oct. 28 is the same day that the iPad will go on sale at AT&T stores, too. There, you can buy the 3G model with an AT&T monthly service plan.

There have also been reports of the iPad going on sale at Wal-Mart, Target and even Sam’s Club. Gee, you think Apple’s doing a big push for the holidays? Ya’ think?

Verizon Wireless will offer three iPad bundles, all featuring an iPad Wi-Fi model and a seperate Verizon mobile hotspot device. The retail prices range from $630 for a 16 GB iPad to $830 for the 64 GB model.

Those prices match the cost of Apple’s WiFi + 3G iPads, which come with built-in 3G capabilities running over AT&T’s network. Stand-alone, Wi-Fi only iPads — which Verizon says it will also sell — begin at $500.

Customers could already run their Wi-Fi iPads over non-AT&T networks using hotspot external devices, like the one Verizon is selling as part of its iPad bundles. But the Verizon partnership marks the first time Apple has linked up to sell its devices with a wireless partner other than AT&T.

Verizon’s smartphone data plans offer unlimited data use, but the company isn’t being so generous with its iPad data cap: A monthly plan offering up to 1 GB of data will cost an additional $20. That compares to $15 on AT&T for a 250 MB data plan, or $25 for a 2 GB plan.

“We’re thrilled to be working with Verizon Wireless to get iPad into the hands of even more customers this holiday season,” Apple chief operating officer Tim Cook said in a prepared statement.