That’s about to change.
JetBlue is expected to announce a new high speed, in-flight Wi-Fi option later this week at the World Low Cost Airline Conference, according to a company email obtained by The Verge.
The best part? It will be free of charge. (Free for the meantime, while they activate the service on 30 planes.)
Most airlines use Gogo for their Wi-Fi with the exception of Southwest Airlines that chose Row 44. JetBlue’s move to ViaSat is big news because of their purported speed. The email claims the service is capable of loading 10 pages in a little more than one minute. Normally, JetBlue said, other services took 10 times longer than that.
Speeds are supposed to reach near streaming capabilities which would allow you to watch Netflix movies or TV shows while flying, though Mashable has yet to confirm those claims.
The change comes with a growing customer frustration over spotty Wi-Fi and to add a competitive edge. Airlines know customers will likely choose the flights that offer connectivity when they can. JetBlue plans to begin rolling out the service in the first quarter of 2013.
September 19, 2012