MTN have revealed that the unlimited data service that had become a hallmark of BlackBerry devices in most African countries will not be offered with the BlackBerry Z10 on network.
MTN gave the warning to customers that devices running on the new BlackBerry 10 platform will not support the existing BlackBerry Internet Service (BIS) data packages.
Previously there was some industry speculation that certain BlackBerry services, particularly BlackBerry Messenger (BBM), might remain unlimited even if all other data use is capped.
Older BlackBerry devices need a subscription to BlackBerry Internet Service (BIS) for features such as BBM and e-mail to work.
MTN has then released three (3) data plans for its blackberry 10 devices called BB10 lite, BB10 MiDi and the BB10 Maxi. All with options of weekly plan or monthly plan. (See plans details below) .
BlackBerry 10 Plans | Service Validity | Price | Benefits |
BB10 Lite | Weekly | N850 | 85MB Data for:BBM, Internet access, Social Networking, Emails , BlackBerry App world |
Monthly | N1,000 | 200MB Data for:BBM, Internet access, Social Networking, Emails , BlackBerry App world | |
BB10 Midi | Weekly | N1,000 | 200MB Data for:BBM, Internet access, Social Networking, Emails , BlackBerry App world |
Monthly | N1,400 | 350MB Data for:BBM, Internet access, Social Networking, Emails , BlackBerry App world | |
BB10 Maxi | Weekly | N1,500 | 500MB Data for:BBM, Internet access, Social Networking, Emails , BlackBerry App world. |
Monthly | N3,000 | 1GB Data for:BBM, Internet access, Social Networking, Emails , BlackBerry App world. |
Click here to see the latest MTN Nigeria Blackberry plan codes for N1000 only
The worry about the BB10 plans is the data cap, considering that same network provider gives unlimited data to older Blackberry devices for 1,500 Naira, while for the BB10 customers will have to pay 3,000 Naira to get 1GB of data.
Today (22nd February, 2013) marks the end of the pre-ordering of blackberry z10 from MTN in Nigeria and we expect to start getting the phones anytime from now.
Pre-ordering the blackberry z10 is also available by other networks but the data plan for them is yet to be known.