Verizon Wireless joins Sprint with launch of EV-DO Rev. A network

I have been testing a Sprint Novatel USB EV-DO Rev. A device for about a month and my full review should be up on Geek.com shortly. I have been enjoying incredible download speeds on my Samsung Q1 and MacBook Pro and saw the Verizon Wireless press release today that announced the rollout of their EV-DO Rev. A wireless broadband network. EV-DO Rev. A gives customers upload speeds five to six times faster than their standard EV-DO rates. Verizon stated the enhanced network will launch in the Boston area, Richmond and Hampton Roads, Virginia, Chicago and its suburbs, Salt Lake City and other cities in Utah, and throughout the state of Florida. My buddy James is in Houston and has EV-DO Rev. A coverage as well so there may be other areas of the country that have undocumented coverage.

The great thing about the Sprint USB device I have been using is that I can use it on my Q1 and MacBook Pro via a standard USB port since neither of these devices has a PCMCIA card slot. Verizon Wireless also announced what I think is the same Novatel modem that Sprint has, called the USB720 with Verizon. The USB720 and the AirCard 595 PC are the two devices with the EV-DO Rev. A functionality and are available now through business channels with availability online tomorrow. Actually, the AirCad 595 PC is available now for US$99.99 on their website. I could not find any pricing on the USB720 device. Verizon's wireless broadband unlimited access with these cards is priced the same as Sprint at US$59.99 per month.