So, I was going through my email the other day when I got a message from the good people at FreedomPop. Remember that these are the people that are offering free mobile data (up to 500MB a month) when you pick up their Photon 4G hotspot. I used it in Las Vegas during the Consumer Electronics Show and I use it whenever I go shopping in the States. While the free plan has been adequate for me, I know that I might need more in the future.

Imagine my delight when that email told me FreedomPop would now let me roll over my unused data and keep it for when I need it. That’s great, because I don’t use up the full 500MB every month. It’d be great to rack up that “excess” for when I would need it, like CES or some other major trade show. Better still, they say that this rolled over data can be shared with friends and that I could store up to 20GB of rolled over data for that rainy day. This is a great way to avoid overage charges.

Then, I clicked through to see the offer. And then I was disappointed. The rollover feature is not a free bonus. Instead, it is a $3.49/month “limited time offer” option that you can add on to your account, just as you can pay for faster speeds or more monthly data. I suppose there is value here for the people who need it, but I don’t think that it should be limited to 500MB of rollover then. If someone is already paying for the upgrade to more data, they should be able to roll over more of that data.

I’m still waiting for the LTE roll out from FreedomPop, but they’re still waiting around for Sprint to do it. Either way, companies like NetZero and FreedomPop are continuing to change the game for mobile service and I appreciate their efforts.