Virgin Mobile has been a popular pre-paid wireless carrier in the United States for a while now, using Sprint's network as a backend. As with most carriers in the US, both iPhones and Android devices were available to customers. However, Virgin has now partnered with Apple and will only offer iPhones moving forward.

The move is part of Virgin's new "Inner Circle" program, which will give you 12 months of unlimted (with some limitations) calling, texting, and data for $1. After that, the usual $50/month fee takes effect. However, your only choice is to buy an iPhone - the store page now only lists a handful of Apple devices. Virgin's home page now says, "we're teaming with Apple to offer you nothing but the world's most popular phone." Essentially, Virgin Mobile USA is the closest thing to an Apple carrier.

This calls into question what kind of support Virgin will give to existing non-Apple users in the future, and Android fans will have to switch carriers or switch platforms.

Thanks: Menachem

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