I want to get a blackberryish phone with unlimited internet and text but not ncessarily unlimited minutes. I text and use the internet all the time and don't talk that much. I'm trying to figure out what the best plan for me would be and best carrier (I'm thinking one of the big 3).

Also the best phone deal with a contract. I woulnd't mind having gps on it.

is it possible to get a better deal at besbuy or should I just check stores like atandt sprint and verizon.

[Edited on December 12, 2009 at 10:58 AM. Reason : trying to save money so don't mention iphone]

12/12/2009 10:56:49 AM

I like AT&T a lot... their internet is really fast IMO

12/12/2009 10:58:59 AM

why not the iphone?

12/12/2009 10:59:45 AM

DROID

12/12/2009 11:02:51 AM

fine i'm looking at refurb iphones on their site and theres one for 50. 30 for data plan 40 for 450 minutes and 5 for 200 texts i'm looking at 75 per month with att and 50 today. about to price verizon.

12/12/2009 11:11:05 AM

looks like im going with sprint.

70 dollars unlimited text, cell to cell, gps, tv and internet +450 minutes

how is sprint?

12/12/2009 11:23:08 AM

I've had Sprint since 1998, never had any problems. I will say, however, that I don't get coverage in a lot of places that my GF gets with her Verizon, especially in the mountains.

12/12/2009 11:32:41 AM

An alias can't have a cell phone plan.

12/12/2009 11:33:17 AM

been with sprint since 2000. Never had an issue with them or the coverage, and you cant beat the SERO plan.

12/12/2009 11:44:53 AM

Blackberry Tour with Verizon

12/12/2009 11:52:58 AM

I love BBs... but I've heard that carriers now charge an extra $30 for BBs... can anyone confirm this? my coworker said this because he was going to get a BB, and that the carrier said it's the plan cost + $30 for unlimited data + $30 BB fee...

12/12/2009 11:57:50 AM

^^^ yeah, other than the mountains i don't have any coverage issues. But Verizon pretty much has the mountains of NC on lockdown anyway

12/12/2009 12:04:32 PM

^^ I know sprint charges an extra ~$30 for the blackberry plan so I assume the other companies do as well.

^ Yeah ive had issues in the mountains but I have free roaming so it doesnt really matter much. Generally if I dont have a signal no one else does either.

12/12/2009 12:08:13 PM

regular service then 30 more for the data plan PLUS 30 because its a blackberry? or just 30 for the data plan?

[Edited on December 12, 2009 at 12:27 PM. Reason : clarify]

12/12/2009 12:27:05 PM

^^is that in addition to ~$30 for a data plan? what my coworker said was plan cost + ~$30 for data + $30 for BB

[Edited on December 12, 2009 at 12:27 PM. Reason : ^]

12/12/2009 12:27:29 PM

Quote :

"plan cost + ~$30 for data + $30 for BB "

Is correct. The BB charge is for using BB's mail service. I believe, if you dont want to receive email on your BB then you dont need to pay for the service (with Sprint anyways).




[Edited on December 12, 2009 at 12:45 PM. Reason : a]

12/12/2009 12:44:55 PM

that's what I feared glad I got on BBs before that bullshit!

12/12/2009 12:54:40 PM

Sprint and AT&T rural coverage = shit

Ask anybody that goes to Lake Gaston. They get absolutely nothing up there. If you aren't with Verizon or US Cellular, you can hang it up.

12/12/2009 2:08:28 PM

Cricket

12/12/2009 2:12:40 PM

200 texts? i didnt know they still sold plans for smart- and message-phones that didn't have unlimited texts

12/12/2009 2:18:13 PM

Boost Mobile

12/12/2009 2:20:14 PM

Quote :

"what my coworker said was plan cost + ~$30 for data + $30 for BB"

fail.

You can get a Blackberry on Sprint for $69.99/month minus xx% for employer/student/credit union discount. No other charges. That includes:

*Any Mobile, Anytime
*GPS: Unlimited maps, turn-by-turn directions
*BlackBerry® Internet Service (BIS): Manage up to 10 different accounts with a simple three- click email setup, and IM on the go with Yahoo!® Messenger, AIM®, Google Talk and BlackBerry Messenger.
*Music Premier
*TV Premier
*Unlimited web browsing
*Unlimited text/picture messaging

12/12/2009 3:03:20 PM

^ that's a good deal. Sprints coverage though?

12/12/2009 5:14:04 PM

thanks dmidkiff. sprints coverage map looks very bare but thats misleading. Although it doesn't cover half the country, it covers every city, a large radius of every major city, and a few mile radius of every interstate. Unless you're going way out into the sticks or some remote location, it should be dandy.

12/12/2009 5:17:14 PM

i've had sprint for 1 year, switched from ATT. I don't have any coverage problems, I get better coverage around my apt in raleigh and the mountains where I go. I'm sure there are certain places that another carrier would be better but for my routine, sprint works great.

I think my rate plan was 69.99/mo for 500 anytime mins/mo, unlimited text and blackberry. my bill is $83.69/mo which includes tax, phone insurance, and whatever fees they charge. when i was shopping, i was able to get a better deal through one of the online affiliate sites (free phone) rather than going to sprint.com direct. just do a google search for sprint and click on the google ads on the right.

12/12/2009 5:32:34 PM

I pay $30/month for 500 minutes anytime, unlimited data, unlimited text from sprint, and unlimited minutes start at 7 pm.

12/12/2009 5:41:40 PM

^on a smart phone? how?

12/12/2009 5:47:28 PM

probably a sero plan which isn't compatible with some of the newer smart phones.

[Edited on December 12, 2009 at 5:48 PM. Reason : ]

12/12/2009 5:47:46 PM

http://sprint.com/ncsustudents

12/12/2009 5:56:01 PM

Yea, I'm on SERO plan. I'm using the Touch Pro 2 at the moment. My sister is on SERO plan also, and she was able to get Sprint to let her use the Blackberry Tour.

12/12/2009 6:29:20 PM

You can adjust the SERO plan to voice only and add BIS for ~ 15/mo iirc.

I've been with sprint since 2004 and have never had a problem. My plan includes nationwide roaming[voice+data], so the coverage issue is usually moot.

12/12/2009 6:39:41 PM

sprint's problem isn't their coverage, its their billing. Epic absolute billing fail. Also, I don't have anything against Indians, but the folks at their call center don't understand English. I left sprint because of consistently inconsistent billing crap (additional fees for services I didn't have, double billing for the services I did have) and horrible customer service. I don't mind having a problem here and there but their customer service was so bad that I couldn't get my billing problems resolved.

12/12/2009 8:01:54 PM

Personally I believe their customer service is some of the best I have seen in a company. Just this morning I sent an email to SERO Care at 4:15am. By 4:30am I had a response to let me know the issue was taken care of. 15 minute turnaround at 4am est on a weekend? C'mon.

Tons of companies outsource their CS, you just have to know how to deal with that first tier of reps and pretty much write them off. I might be making a huge assumption here, but it sounds like you lacked the patience and ability to escalate your issue beyond those lowly script readers.

12/12/2009 8:23:49 PM

T-Mobile. Unlimited Web, Text, Voice $79/mo no contract, but you have to pay retail for the phone, or supply your own. I think if you sign a contract and get a discounted phone, it's an extra $10 / month. If you really don't use your voice minutes, they have a 500 minute, unlimited text, unlimited web no contract for $59 / mo

[Edited on December 12, 2009 at 10:52 PM. Reason : sdaf]

12/12/2009 10:51:08 PM

Quote :

"T-Mobile. Unlimited Web, Text, Voice $79/mo no contract, but you have to pay retail for the phone, or supply your own. I think if you sign a contract and get a discounted phone, it's an extra $10 / month. If you really don't use your voice minutes, they have a 500 minute, unlimited text, unlimited web no contract for $59 / mo"

this + Google Nexus One = WIN

12/12/2009 11:09:57 PM

AT&T would be outta business w/o the iphone contract. VZW for blackberrys and etc. The DROID > iphone in all aspect. Personally, I'd wait til after Christmas. The phone prices fluctuate like crazy. I got my enV touch for ~80 w/ 2 year contract, while my friend got it a week later for 129 w/ 2 year contract. Same store and etc.

12/12/2009 11:34:43 PM

Quote :

"and etc."

12/13/2009 1:43:29 AM

Phone planes have gotten expensive in the States

12/13/2009 4:56:22 AM

please move this to chit chat. Aliases should not be allowed to post in the lounge

12/13/2009 8:30:37 AM

Sprint has a decent network, huge 3g footprint, great phone selection. The customer service is just absolutely horrendous. You better pray you never have to call in for anything.

If you are picking up a Sprint phone check the Best Buy Mobile in Crabtree Mall. They waive all the rebates so you get the best price out the door. Sprints mail in rebates take months and they usually do not send them back.

12/13/2009 9:48:45 AM

Quote :

"it sounds like you lacked the patience and ability to escalate your issue beyond those lowly script readers."

For the life of the plan I had always had billing issues that would crop up (road assistance I didn't sign up for or roaming charges on a nationwide plan) and no two bills were ever the same price. The last 6 months I had it was really bad because they had started charging me twice for every feature (2x rate plans, 2x test messaging plans, 2x moble-to-moble) when I only had one phone. I always asked to speak to a supervisor, often the supervisors supervisor. For me it wasn't that the folks were unhelpful it was truly that they couldn't comprehend my English well enough to fix the problem. It was very trying on ones patience, I don't know if that has sense changed but I do know why that was why I left because I was otherwise happy with them.

12/13/2009 5:06:40 PM

I always try emailing ecare with sprint and they always response very promptly.

12/13/2009 7:42:17 PM

http://coverage.sprint.com/IMPACT.jsp

does data cost extra outside the sprint network?

12/17/2009 9:24:48 PM

No charge for voice or data while roaming.

12/17/2009 9:26:45 PM

no but they reserve the right to terminate or disconnect your service if you roam too much.

12/17/2009 9:31:56 PM

I had a customer come in to Verizon a few weeks ago that got terminated by Sprint for roaming too much, she did not have good signal in her house so she set her phone to "roam only" they mailed her a letter after a few months and gave her a few weeks to port her number out or they would disconnect it.


One really can not complain if they do this to you though. They give advanced notice, you still have your phone to sell and recoup the cost of it, and you can not blame them for not wanting a customer that costs them more money than they bring in.

12/17/2009 10:31:45 PM