Update 6/13/05: I recently received email from an existing Verizon user who had been billed only minutes of use in the past. They upgraded to a Treo 650, and started getting billed per kilobyte even to dial their own ISP (Earthlink) and even when using the slower 14.4K circuit switched data. Anyway, be warned that the "free" data with Verizon may simply not exist any longer in any form. Note that the slow speed circuit switched data was promised to me as a standard voice plan feature, so this most certainly *is* a change in policy if true. I am personally still only getting billed as minutes of use. I have not changed my plan or upgraded my phone.

Background: Most Verizon phones with the correct data cable can be used tethered to your laptop. Smartphones can access data services directly from the phone. This includes phones like the Kyocera 7135, Treo 600, Samsung i600 or Samsung i700. What follows are the critical Verizon specific details you will need to know. This document does not cover the actual dialup setup process for each device and operating system. I assume the reader has setup basic dialup service before. These methods assume you are on Verizon's native network and not roaming or on extended network.

Please see this document for information about the status of Verizon's included data feature.

1) Circuit Switched Data - Just 14.4K. Works with *any* Verizon voice plan. Smartphones can use this method too! Microsoft Windows users add a generic 19,200 baud modem on COM1 (where COM1 is the serial port assigned to the phone). You then create a dialup connection document with the following information:

Phone Number: #777
Username: qnc
Password: qnc
Modem Initialization String: AT$QCMDR=2

Yep, it's really that simple. Note too that you can dial your own ISP if you have one. Sometimes dialing your own ISP works when roaming, where the QNC method will not.

2) 1XRTT (National Access/Express Network Data) - May require separate data plan to use .

Phone Number: #777
Username: 5415551212@vzw3g.com
Password: vzw
Modem Initialization String: AT$QCMDR=3

3) Venturi Compression for all connection types: This refers to a hardware software solution pioneered in the circuit switched data days (to do whatever is possible to speed up the users experience of cellular data). The concept is to have compression software loaded on your PC, and compression hardware on Verizon's side of things to compress and decompress data in more or less real time. I've found the software to work quite well. Verizon used to sell a cable kit for most of their phones to enable "mobile office for circuit switched data" which came bundled with the Venturi software. Cost was like $40-$50 which was mostly for the software given that you could buy most any cheap serial cable (at the time) and use data without compression for less money. You can now download the Venturi client software and continue to benefit from this compression on Circuit Switched QNC style data, 1X Data, and EVDO "Broadband."

Important Notes: Older non-1XRTT phones need no modem initialization string. Modern 1X phones default to 1X mode and subsequently may not need the string. It becomes important when you switch back and forth between the two, the way I do with my smartphone, or in the case where you have a new 1X style phone and you want to connect via circuit switched data.

To enter the string in Windows, see the Advanced, Extra Settings field inside the dial-up connection document. For Palm OS devices this is done as a simple script inside a new connection item: i.e.
PDA Preferences, Network, Details..., Script:
Send: AT$QCMDR=3 ................................... (or 2 for QNC data)
Send CR:
END:

3) New "Broadband" Service: Sorry I don't have access to this. I have been told the settings are same as 1XRTT National Access.