Earlier this week, Verizon Wireless announced that it was offering month-to-month mobile phone service contracts to anyone who wanted to bring their own compatible device for use with Verizon's network. This was greeted with cheers by many analysts and bloggers that follow this market.

Bloggers said that the Verizon Wireless network would now host many more high-end CDMA devices. People who had the resources to pay for quality would use the Verizon network and bring their own best-of-breed handsets or express cards. I actually think that moving to month-to-month contracts would be a bigger driver for EVDO data services than smartphones.

However, there are a couple problems with this analysis that I can't resolve in my own mind. So I thought I'd ask you for help understanding and rationalizing:

1. Other carriers already offer month-to-month: According to our friends at The Boy Genius Report, Verizon Wireless' own internal documents say that month-to-month is already offered by AT&T, T-Mobile, and Alltel. If this is the case, was Verizon's move groundbreaking, or defensive?
2. True Market for Unsubsidized Phones: Now that all of the majors except Sprint offer month-to-month options, we may see different choices made by their savviest customers. Will people opt for unsubsidized iPhones with less memory or less features in the future, so they can upgrade on their own timetables?
3. Month-to-Month for Users of the Original iPhone: If AT&T already offers month-to-month, do I qualify to switch to a month-to-month plan if I paid full retail price and I'm still using the original iPhone? If not, why not?

4. Life After 3G: Verizon Wireless is reportedly planning to move away from EVDO to a new GSM-based "4G" technology called LTE between 2009 and 2011. AT&T has signaled that it will also be on this platform after HSDPA.

   At that point, supposedly all major US-based carriers will use the same voice and data protocols, and switching between GSM and CDMA will no longer be a consideration. With this understanding, if you consider switching to Verizon now to get a BlackBerry Thunder, would it make financial sense to pay full price and go month-to-month? What's the useful life of an iPhone 3G or a BlackBerry Thunder bought tomorrow?

I think the decision about which device to buy next just got more complicated. I can make this decision as I continue to learn about the service plans that the major mobile carriers offer. But what does this mean to our friends and relatives who just want to carry something cool and usable? What do we recommend to them?