Dear Verizon: We're still waiting for you to fix GPS on your Windows Mobile handsets

Kudos for keeping Big Red in check!

Don't hold your breath...

Thanks for keeping up with this. I hope the May 11 date that is floating around pans out!

What makes you better customers to Verizon is paying more money to them each month, ie paying to use VZ navigator instead of any GPS software you want. Yet another reason to steer clear of Verizon.

just got an omnia and have heard alot about that may 11 omnia ROM update date.....any ideas on that?

How about stop that mandatory data plan crap

Talked to three different VZ reps ... They each claim that memo was a fraud and VZ has no plans to allow the use of any unapproved software on their GPS equipped devices. One also still claimed that installation of any software not from VZ would be a violation of my contract. That must be in the fine fine fine print.

Verizon is pulling this crap with GPS on BlackBerry too. More people need to leave (like I did) to get through to them.

The Memo was not fake. VZW has already unlocked the GPS on several Blackberries.

All three of the WinMo devices (Saga, Omnia, Touch Pro) currently have test software with unlocked GPS floating around internally at VZW.

I would not be surprised to see the Touch Pro and Saga release this month. The Omnia will most likely be last (but can you say Flash Lite 3.1 support in Opera?)
;-)

VZW continues to disappoint. I've been with them for 12 years and plan to jump ship to a carrier that gives a #*$# about their customers. Sure, the network is everywhere, but so are the let downs. I don't like being sold crippled or dumbed-down phones (Titan and now Raphael).

Hope is what keeps slave in captivity. BUST YOUR CHAINS!!!!

Hmm. Everything on Verizon is a lockin. Purchased the Omnia, a review stated the verizon had built in GPS.

Looking to get away from this train wreck of a company. Predict three years from now the company will be on the ropes. Everyday that goes buy is another customer learning how Verizon doesn't care about them. Google's new OS and the Iphone along with Wimaxx will turn them into a shell of a company without any customer loyalty. Can we say Circuit City?

The letter was a hoax. I spent some time last week trying to track where the letter came from, but there is no record of a letter regarding a ROM update to the Omnia or any other of our Verizon branded phones. Unlike our competition, we at Verizon must uphold the highest quality of standards. Allowing our customers to use inferior third-party applications to access the GPS chip would be a violation of our promise of the highest level of quality which we offer to our customers.

Verizon has not completely disabled the GPS capabilities of the Omnia, Saga, or Touch Pro; we have bundled VZNav on these phones which is one of the most popular GPS software applications on cell phones today. VZNav utilizes cell phone towers to triangulate on your position much faster with better accuracy than the outdated Global Positioning Satellite system. We encourage our customers to utilize this software which we have installed, at no cost to our customers, on most of our handsets.

just got off the phone with verizon
NO UPGRADE FOR OMNIA TODAY or in foreseeable future
GRRRRRRRR.

This is so frustrating. I guess if nothing is released by the end of the day, it’ll be time to install the leaked Beta ROM.

Jeff,

You said:

"He says he spent time trying to find out who sent it yet the name of the exec is right there and there has never been a denial -- ever -- from that named author: Steve Schwed."

I said:
"I spent some time last week trying to track where the letter came from."

In other words, I was trying to find a copy of the email with full headers so that I could verify that this email did in fact originate from Verizon.

You said:
"You should also know it is posted on Verizon forums -- not 3rd party forums about Verizon, but Verizon own owned and controlled verizon.com forums."

So?

You said:
"This response by Schwed was posted on all the major tech blogs."

So?

You said:
"Mr. Prost, if you are an executive with Verizon, there should be no problem giving your full contact information so you can issue a statement saying it is a hoax on your letterhead."

I never said I was an executive. If you would like to know who Verizon's executives are, we are required to disclose them under SEC Regs. 17 CFR Parts 240, 243, and 249 (i.e. the "Fair Disclosure Act") - see http://finance.yahoo.com/q/ir?s=VZ.

You said:

"If it was a hoax there wuld easily have been a denial by the author of the extensive coverage it garnered -as opposed to the TRUTH which is that Mr. Schwed actually sent followups referring to the letter (!)." and "Mr. Schwed could easily have written a one sentence denial to any one of the major blogs" and "I promise you Mr. Schwed has not denied it even with direct requests to his office."

You're leaning on the premise that Steve Schwed is an "HQ Executive Relations Supervisor" at Verizon. Even if there were such a position as "HQ Executive Relations Supervisor," there is no Steven Schwed at Verizon. Verizon does have a Director of Public Relations and External Affiars (which is what I'm assuming the hoaxer meant when he/she was trying to sound official), but I can assure you that our Dir. of PR&EA does not go by Steve Schwed - not even on Saturday night.

Unlike our competition, we at Verizon must uphold the highest quality of standards. Allowing our customers to use inferior third-party applications to access the GPS chip would be a violation of our promise of the highest level of quality which we offer to our customers.

You're kidding, right? Inferior 3rd party apps?! LOL, yeah VZNav is SO sweet!... Give me a break.
It's just a money grab. If you REALLY only cared about your customers using this super high quality VZNav, they why don't you NOT charge a monthly fee for it?
That paragraph is one of the funniest things I've read in a while...

More like, "Unlike our competition, we at Verizon don't believe in giving our customers the freedom of choice and the chance to use their devices to their FULL potential"...

GPS on Blackberry Curve 8330: My opinion: Yes, Verizon is still advertising buy one/get one free -- but I bought one for myself and use the Enterprise unlimited data-however, they refused to allow my husband to get one free because he didn't want the unlimited data plan. He has a disability that really precludes his trying to surf the web and get email on a device that small. He wants to be able to sync to his desktop and import contacts and appointments (like medical appointments) from Outlook - the only way he can do that is pay $200 for something like a Saga -- where's the buy one/get one free ? I've written them several emails and asked about their provisions for Americans with disabilities (they conveniently don't seem to get the point about that), but they continue to suggest other phones and tell me he can't have his free Blackberry phone unless he buys a data plan that he doesn't want and can't use. We've been on Verizon over 4 years - but we won't be on it two years from now. And as to their blocking other GPS software -- well, it's beginning to feel downright like it's "all about the money". How do they think they can continue to compete with the other carriers and treat the customers in this manner.

I've been with the V for a long LONG time, both business and personal.

The bull they sling, the misleading information, goes unchallenged. Every time they play "bait and switch" they should be sued. Class action HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS!

Yeah I'm pissed, tired, and ready to JUMP SHIP! We should become "ALL ABOUT THE MONEY!" just like them, and do whatever it takes to send the message that "just cause your big, dosen't mean you're not accountable".

Sheesh (now ranting) We wouldn't let GM or FORD get away with selling us a car without wheels would we? People file and win lawsuits against MICROSOFT. We can too!

Stand up and be counted, or at least EMAIL THE CRAP OUTA THEM for their failure to do as promised.

My 8330 Curve has crippled GPS. FINE. GIMME ONE THAT DOSEN'T and you can have the phone back.

Organize, fight, win!

(end of rant)

Goodbye first half of 2009... VZW makes me sick.