Well, after many phone calls around, including some immediate hangups, we now have a few more details on the Chatr service. Wednesday, July 28th 2010 is now the confirmed launch date. The site, www.chatrwireless.com, will go live sometime this evening.
There will be no System Access Fee or 911 fee, however, no associate has been informed what the cost for a SIM card will be. Estimates are between $5 and $10, which is on par with WIND’s $10 SIM card.
Two plans will be offered at launch. Given the target budget range, there will be no data services offered off the bat. Here’s what we do know, that varies from Rogers’ services:
– All plans include caller display
– Services can be pre-paid or post paid
– If you are in ANY home zone, your plan applies (ie A plan in Calgary with unlimited calling gets you the same in Toronto)
The two plans will be:
| Plan / Cost | Unlimited Talk / $35 | Unlimited Talk And Text / $45 |
| Incoming Calls | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Outgoing Calls | Unlimited to anywhere in Province | Unlimited to anywhere in Canada |
| Incoming Text | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Outgoing Text (CAN + US) | 50 texts / 10 cents per additional | Unlimited |
| Voicemail | Unlimited / 25 cent retrieval fee | Unlimited |
After speaking with a representative this morning, here are some additional details that can only be confirmed by this one associate:
– Chatr will operate on the Rogers network, on both 2G and 3G. This means a much lower chance that you will slip out of your Chatr zone and incur roaming charges.
– The coverage area for a Chatr zone is “way” better than WIND’s in Calgary.
I have not been able to get a hold of any associates at Digital Communications, but all WirelessWave stores will be launching Chatr on the 28th, and have been trained prior.