Hours after Amazon’s unveiling of the Fire phone, it’s time for part two of this big day in wireless to get underway as John Legere and T-Mobile take the stage in Seattle.
T-Mobile today announced its new “Test Drive” program that will allow anyone to try an iPhone 5s on its network for a full week for no charge. Starting on Monday, June 23, consumers can sign up for the Test Drive online, and a few days later they’ll receive their iPhone 5s with unlimited domestic service. They can then use the device for 7 full days, and if they decide that they don’t want the phone when they’re done, they can return it to a T-Mobile store and pay nothing.
Of course, there are some nitty gritty details worth noting. When you sign up for T-Mobile’s Test Drive, the carrier will place a $699.99 hold on your credit card for the iPhone 5s. When it comes time to return the iPhone, you’ll need to pony up $100 if you bring it back with a cracked screen, water damage or some other issue. And if you don’t bring it back at all, well, you’ll be out $700.
T-Mobile’s Un-carrier 5.0 move also includes some big network news. The magenta carrier has launched its Wideband LTE network in 16 markets, giving those users access to a service with peak download speeds of 150Mbps. Those markets are:
T-Mo has also rolled its Voice over LTE (VoLTE) service out to more than 100 million people in 15 markets:
Via T-Mobile (1), (2)
