Although the existence of a 3G version of the PS Vita has been well-known, no one has been sure about how much data plans would cost. At Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, that little factoid has finally been revealed, and it shouldn’t be terribly surprising.
The data plans, which come exclusively from AT&T, will come in two varieties. A 250 MB cap comes at $14.99, and a 2 GB cap comes at $24.99.
These data plans are very similar to those found on tablets. There are no contracts, and have monthly payment fees instead. These caps may not sound like a lot, but considering the fact the Vita won’t have a capability of doing any downloading of games over 3G, this really isn’t too much of an issue.
There’s also an interesting note that anyone who activates their data plan will get a free downloadable game. It wasn’t revealed what game(s) that means, but hey, it’s free!
What also shouldn’t be a surprise is the announcement that Netflix will be coming to the handheld. It was mentioned at Sony‘s conference that Netflix isn’t confirmed to be available when the system launches at the end of February, but Sony engineers are working around the clock to try to make it that way.
Personally, I think it’s about time mobile service providers allow consumers to pay for one universal data plan that can be activated on multiple devices, instead of an individual plan for your Vita, netbook, tablet, cell phone, toaster, etc.
What say you, gamers? Who’s plunking down the extra cash for the “internet everywhere” version?