Watching mobile TV and video by using Verizon Wireless If you’re of a certain age, you might remember the teeny Sony TV that fit into a shirt pocket and that you could watch while walking down the street or waiting in line. Sony didn’t sell many of them because they weren’t what people wanted.

Now, of course, you don’t need to buy an extra device. You already carry around a portable TV — on your mobile phone. Watching TV is just a matter of using your phone to watch programs. Although mobile video isn’t as mainstream as other services (primarily because video still costs too much to have streaming TV live on your mobile phone), we think that this situation is about to change now that wireless carriers offer better and cheaper data plans.

All major national wireless carriers in the U.S. offer mobile TV and video. For example, find the Verizon Wireless V CAST service at http://products. vzw.com/index.aspx?id=video, (Although V CAST doesn’t cover the entire United States, it’s available in most major urban areas. To see whether you’re in one, visit the Web site.)

To deliver V CAST mobile TV, Verizon Wireless uses a dedicated video network so that you can watch video in real time and not have to wait. (The alternative: Wait for a complete video file to be downloaded and saved before you can watch it. You can then store the video file on your device and watch the video even where you don’t receive a signal — on a plane trip, for example.) Because Verizon Wireless uses a dedicated network, it’s not possible for you to view V CAST Mobile TV in real time without being connected to the network. Verizon Wireless has signed up with TV channels such as CBS Mobile, Comedy Central, ESPN Mobile TV, Fox Mobile, MTV, and NBC News 2GO. You can watch eight channels, benefit from parental controls, and watch unlimited basic video clips, including monthly access to the Verizon Wireless Mobile Web 2.0 service. The V CAST Mobile TV Basic plan gives you limited TV access and parental controls as well.

To take advantage of the Verizon Wireless mobile TV and video offers, you must have a compatible phone and subscribe to the appropriate Verizon Wireless service plan. If you’re not a Verizon Wireless subscriber, your wireless carrier may offer mobile video as well. When you visit the Web site, it walks you through the process of downloading mobile video services to your mobile phone.

Downloading TV and video

To access V CAST Mobile TV and videos on your phone, follow these steps:

1. Open the Get It Now menu.

You have two ways:

• On your V CAST phone, press the right navigation key to open the Get It Now menu.

• Use the dedicated Mobile TV media softkey on the external body of a specially designed V CAST mobile phone.

2. Highlight Pictures and Video or Get PIX & FLIX on the menu, and then press the OK button.

3. When you’re prompted to select V CAST On Demand or Get V CAST Video, select one and then select OK.

The first time you open V CAST Video On Demand, you’re asked to choose a daily or monthly access subscription. Choose a subscription plan, and then select OK. If you’re asked to upgrade your V CAST software, follow the instructions on your phone’s screen.

4. Highlight a video that you want to download.

5. Select the Options softkey.

6. Select Save Video and then select OK.

Some videos are available only to watch, not to download.

Finding saved clips on your phone

After downloading and saving video clips, you have two ways to access your video clips:

- If you have a V CAST mobile phone, you have a V CAST application built into your phone. You can access videos by using the My Videos (or My Clips) option within the V CAST application.

- You can also access videos outside the V CAST application. Follow these steps:

1. Launch the Get It Now option on the menu from your V CAST–enabled mobile phone.

2. Select Picture & Video (or Get PIX & FLIX) from the menu.

3. Select My Videos (or My FLIX) to view your download.