Sprint says ‘me too’; will include Wi-Fi on all future major devices

CDMA lovers rejoice — it looks like the last piece of the Wi-Fi puzzle has finally fallen into place. We know cost was one of the major barriers preventing Wi-Fi from finding its way to most CDMA handsets in the past as CDMA handsets are significantly more expensive for carriers compared to similar GSM models [...]

CDMA lovers rejoice — it looks like the last piece of the Wi-Fi puzzle has finally fallen into place. We know cost was one of the major barriers preventing Wi-Fi from finding its way to most CDMA handsets in the past as CDMA handsets are significantly more expensive for carriers compared to similar GSM models due to demand. Back in May we scooped the fact that all BlackBerry devices released by Verizon after the Tour would include Wi-Fi — the Storm 2, the Aries, etc. To add to that, we’ve now been told that earlier this year VZW apparently began including Wi-Fi in requirement docs sent to OEMs with regards to future smartphones. With this in mind, it makes sense that we’re now learning Sprint has done the same and is now “embracing Wi-Fi in all its major devices going forward” according to FierceWireless. The site even claims that Sprint “will offer a version of the BlackBerry Tour starting next year that will include WiFi.”

It makes perfect sense of course — Sprint can’t very well let Verizon hang Wi-Fi over its head. In the end as far as consumers are concerned, the bottom line is everyone wins and AT&T/T-Mobile have one less leg up on Verizon and Sprint in terms of handsets. Were Sprint and Verizon able to negotiate better pricing from OEMs? Have both companies decided to trim margins rather than continue dealing with Wi-Fi hungry subscribers? Whatever the case, both major CDMA carriers have come around and smartphone customers will have one less thing to complain about in the near future.

Thanks, Verizon Guy!

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