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dundun
Oct 29, 2005
H E R B
I understand people don't like being locked into 2 year contracts, but paying full price for the phone you're going to be using doesn't seem like a value proposition. Unless you go the ebay/craigslist route and buy something second hand.

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Burden
Jul 25, 2006

Brock Landers posted:

Some specific questions about this latest ETF offer:

I have a family plan with two lines that I'd be looking to move over, both with an etf. One with an iPhone 5 and one with a 5s.

1.) Do I have to trade in the actual device on my ATT account? I have a couple spare iPhone 3GSes in working order. Can I just bring them in and be done with it, or do I actually have to have them functional on my lines? Does it even have to be a smartphone?
2.) the offer says I have to buy a phone with payments. Can I sign up for the payments and then pay the phones off immediately?
3.) Can I sim swap another phone right away or is there some kind of waiting period where I have to use the tmobile phone?
4.) how fast are the number ports, on average?

Thanks!

1. You just need to trade in a phone that is in working order. It doesn't have to be your actual phones. You 3GSes should be fine. As long as it is a phone that is in our trade in system it will work.
2. Must buy a phone, on or off payments.
3. You can swap phones right away.
4. Depends on the carrier, but typically less than 24 hours.

Burden fucked around with this message at 17:34 on Jan 12, 2014

Kanish
Jun 17, 2004

Burden posted:

1. You just need to trade in a phone that is in working order. It doesn't have to be your actual phones. You 3GSes should be fine. As long as it is a phone that is in our trade in system it will work.

Thats awesome news, my family plan has one cracked iphone 5 on it, but a backup 4 that is fine can be my trade in for that line. Switching and getting new phones wont save a ton of money (~$25-30 a month, which is better than nothing), but Im doing it more to support the consumer friendly practices going on. Thanks for your info!


Also, anyone who lives in Baltimore/DC Metro Area (Columbia, MD) can speak for service reliability? The coverage map looks good, but Im always skeptical of that kind of thing.

stimpy
Jul 27, 2004

Cap'n Scrap'n of the Hit Brigade

LastInLine posted:

1) No but some/most models offer wifi calling

2) No it can be a featurephone/dumbphone

3) Yes

4) I can't answer this but I'd assume you can do it over the phone/internet somehow

5) I would assume you're correct

thanks!

A couple follow up questions if you don't mind:

How good is the wifi calling? Am I going to notice a difference between wifi calling and standard calling?

Also, no wifi calling for iphone? I don't give a poo poo because gently caress Apple, but that may be a killer for the wife. Is that something that is coming at all, or is it just a non-starter?

d[-.-]b
Aug 1, 2004

my fav champ that hero who cats a spell that make all bad guy fall down and say my dick BIG

stimpy posted:

thanks!

A couple follow up questions if you don't mind:

How good is the wifi calling? Am I going to notice a difference between wifi calling and standard calling?

Also, no wifi calling for iphone? I don't give a poo poo because gently caress Apple, but that may be a killer for the wife. Is that something that is coming at all, or is it just a non-starter?

Wi-fi calling usually sounded better to me than normal calling on my HTC One.

Big Bowie Bonanza
Dec 30, 2007

please tell me where i can date this cute boy

dundun posted:

I understand people don't like being locked into 2 year contracts, but paying full price for the phone you're going to be using doesn't seem like a value proposition. Unless you go the ebay/craigslist route and buy something second hand.

2 years on Verizon with Unlimited Talk, Text and 1GB data: 90/mo = $2160 + tax and then pay $99.99 for a Galaxy S4 = 2259.99

2 years on T-Mobile with Unlimited Talk, Text and 2.5GB data: 60/mo = 1440 + tax and then $623.99 for a Galaxy S4 = 2063.99 + tax.

Assuming you get only $200 in credits for the phone you trade in, this drops the total to 1863.99 + tax.

That is a savings of $396 over Verizon and you get more out of it. How does that not seem like a value proposition?

Big Bowie Bonanza fucked around with this message at 20:47 on Jan 10, 2014

Kanish
Jun 17, 2004

"d[-.- posted:

b" post="424271605"]
Wi-fi calling usually sounded better to me than normal calling on my HTC One.

Does it transition automatically? Like If I go into my apt and service cuts out on a call will It stay connected as long as it on wifi?

Insane Totoro
Dec 5, 2005

Take cover!!!
That Totoro has an AR-15!
Is there a chart of deductibles under JUMP?

ilkhan
Oct 7, 2004

I LOVE Musk and his pro-first-amendment ways. X is the future.

dundun posted:

I understand people don't like being locked into 2 year contracts, but paying full price for the phone you're going to be using doesn't seem like a value proposition. Unless you go the ebay/craigslist route and buy something second hand.
Couple things in play here. You get a lower monthly bill from day one, you can upgrade whenever you choose, you can bring your own phone and pay less every month, you can finish paying the phone off on schedule and simply pay less every month.

Karma Comedian
Feb 2, 2012

I have some friends who have asked me about the feasibility of using this promotion from T-Mobile to get out of their contracts with AT&T, then port over to cricket. Is that something that is possible, or should I tell them they're boned?

Yeah they're basically asking me to help them avoid etfs.

NyetscapeNavigator
Sep 22, 2003

dundun posted:

I understand people don't like being locked into 2 year contracts, but paying full price for the phone you're going to be using doesn't seem like a value proposition. Unless you go the ebay/craigslist route and buy something second hand.

That's why you buy a Nexus 5 for $350 straight up.

Qwijib0
Apr 10, 2007

Who needs on-field skills when you can dance like this?

Fun Shoe

Kanish posted:

Does it transition automatically? Like If I go into my apt and service cuts out on a call will It stay connected as long as it on wifi?

no, cell calls would drop rather than jump to wifi. Wifi calls won't migrate APs either (in an enterprise environemnt).

Qwijib0
Apr 10, 2007

Who needs on-field skills when you can dance like this?

Fun Shoe

Wizard of Smart posted:

I have some friends who have asked me about the feasibility of using this promotion from T-Mobile to get out of their contracts with AT&T, then port over to cricket. Is that something that is possible, or should I tell them they're boned?

Yeah they're basically asking me to help them avoid etfs.

I guess? They'd still need to buy the tmo phone, and then be on tmo until the etf was paid, then pay off the new phone that's on the payment plan and then sell that to buy another cricket phone. Seems like a lot of effort to save $10/mo vs. a comparable t-mobile plan.

AwkwardKnob
Dec 29, 2004

A good pun is like a good steak: A rare medium well done
So could I just trade in any phone that T-Mobile has on its list of acceptable devices, and keep the Galaxy Note 2 I've been using for my new T-Mobile contract? Or is buying a new phone through their deal a required part of the process? It would be nice to switch and save the money on having to pay for a phone at all.

If I bought the device at a discount through Verizon when I signed up for my 2-year contract, this plan might not be as cut-and-dry right? Verizon would probably charge me an early termination fee, as well as try to charge me the remaining price for the phone itself? Sorry for asking extremely specific, kind-of-dumb questions but when it comes to Cell Phones it seems like the only way to navigate everything.

T-Mobile's plan sounds awesome, but the complications I'm thinking of are slowly making it seem like a hassle. Maybe a hassle worth undertaking to save a bunch of money, but still.

Molten Llama
Sep 20, 2006

AwkwardKnob posted:

If I bought the device at a discount through Verizon when I signed up for my 2-year contract, this plan might not be as cut-and-dry right? Verizon would probably charge me an early termination fee, as well as try to charge me the remaining price for the phone itself? Sorry for asking extremely specific, kind-of-dumb questions but when it comes to Cell Phones it seems like the only way to navigate everything.

The ETF is there to recoup your handset subsidy. When you pay the ETF, you're effectively paying off your phone. (Unless you signed up for whatever awful JUMP knockoff Verizon was hawking, in which case you may have to pay both an ETF and the rest of your handset. I'm not familiar with their plan.)

If you just have regular old Verizon service, you're done once the ETF is paid.

Qwijib0
Apr 10, 2007

Who needs on-field skills when you can dance like this?

Fun Shoe

AwkwardKnob posted:

So could I just trade in any phone that T-Mobile has on its list of acceptable devices, and keep the Galaxy Note 2 I've been using for my new T-Mobile contract? Or is buying a new phone through their deal a required part of the process? It would be nice to switch and save the money on having to pay for a phone at all.

If I bought the device at a discount through Verizon when I signed up for my 2-year contract, this plan might not be as cut-and-dry right? Verizon would probably charge me an early termination fee, as well as try to charge me the remaining price for the phone itself? Sorry for asking extremely specific, kind-of-dumb questions but when it comes to Cell Phones it seems like the only way to navigate everything.

T-Mobile's plan sounds awesome, but the complications I'm thinking of are slowly making it seem like a hassle. Maybe a hassle worth undertaking to save a bunch of money, but still.

You can trade in any phone, but you still need to buy a new one from t-mobile. In theory, your old device does not have the right bands to work on tmo LTE/HSPA so you want a new device, and you only have one device now because you don't save every phone you've owned so you get some credit for your current phone toward the one you'd need to buy anyway and as a bonus, no ETFs. Making you buy the new phone is their commitment hook, rather than a contract. Difference is you can turn in the phone and pay the difference (or buy the phone outright) to walk away at any time.

Brock Landers
Jul 28, 2004

You're a donkey. I like that.

Qwijib0 posted:

You can trade in any phone, but you still need to buy a new one from t-mobile. .

Assuming your current phone has the right bands: trade in a crappy phone, buy one of their $100 phones, swap sims, sell the $100 phone for whatever you can.

Qwijib0
Apr 10, 2007

Who needs on-field skills when you can dance like this?

Fun Shoe

Brock Landers posted:

Assuming your current phone has the right bands: trade in a crappy phone, buy one of their $100 phones, swap sims, sell the $100 phone for whatever you can.

It's not that you can't do that, or that it might not be a savings for some people, it's that the effort level required is not going to be worth it, if they even have a decoy to trade.

hotsauce
Jan 14, 2007
Welp, just started post-paid service w/T-Mobile ($70 plan w/10% work discount). Went into a 3rd party store close to my house because it was, well, close.

So the salesman wasn't totally upfront (shocker, I know). He said there is no limit on domestic roaming (we were looking at Montana). I said great!

Before signing on, I asked again to clarify...asked if there was a 50mb limit on domestic roaming. He said yes, I guess so and told me to "just use wifi whenever you can."

I went ahead with it anyway because, unlimited (I'm in T-Mo's coverage area 95% of the time).

Two other things he told me was after 2.5gigs of tethering, it will continue to work, just at slower speeds. Is this true? I thought it just shuts off.

Also he said I would never be terminated if I use too much domestic roaming voice/data. True? I thought they could boot you.

Crumps Brother
Sep 5, 2007

-G-
Get Equipped with
Ground Game
What's the scoop on domestic data roaming? When I check the coverage map everywhere around me is listed as "Service Partner". Does that mean that all of my data usage will be roaming?

Burden
Jul 25, 2006

Crumps Brother posted:

What's the scoop on domestic data roaming? When I check the coverage map everywhere around me is listed as "Service Partner". Does that mean that all of my data usage will be roaming?

You would be correct. All your calls would be as well.

hotsauce
Jan 14, 2007
So how much roaming use gets you the ax? Is it unclear on purpose? Guess I'll test and find out.

Edit: found this:

http://www.t-mobile.com/Company/CompanyInfo.aspx?tp=Abt_Tab_Government&tsp=Abt_Sub_LegalNotices#DataRoamingChart

The chart lists metered plans. What about the $70 unlimited? Is it, in fact, truly unlimited use regardless of roaming like the T-Mo rep I spoke with today reaffirmed (the backpedaled saying use wifi when you can)?

Clarification please. Referring to domestic "in the US" roaming in non-TMo areas (i.e. AT&T towers).

hotsauce fucked around with this message at 06:12 on Jan 11, 2014

Ribsauce
Jul 29, 2006

Blacks in the back.
Does T-Mobile offer a 30 day return policy like Sprint? I do not know anyone with T-Mobile so I have no reference to how good their service actually is all around North Carolina. I am afraid of getting stuck with another 2 years of horrible cell reception (I am considering changing since Sprint has somehow regressed which didn't even seem possible)

edit

holy mackerel the 70 dollar plan is unlimited everything AND 2.5gigs of mobile hotspot? God drat amazing! Can I do this with a Nexus 5 (or whatever the consensus sub $350 no contract phone is?)

Do prepaid plans give corporate discounts or anything? I am guessing no

Ribsauce fucked around with this message at 15:33 on Jan 11, 2014

VAGENDA OF MANOCIDE
Aug 1, 2004

whoa, what just happened here?







College Slice
1) Yes you can do that with a Nexus 5 or Moto X.
2) No, I'm about 95% sure you need to be on postpaid. And I'm pretty sure the plan you reference is a postpaid plan.

Meldonox
Jan 13, 2006

Hey, are you listening to a word I'm saying?
Cripes, I called every Walmart in town and each of them either say they can't do the nerd plan or don't have the activation kits necessary for it. Every T-Mo store I call says I have to get a phone with it and they have to do the non-nerd-plan activation in the store. The one time I try to buy something from a brick and mortar I'm going to have to buy the activation kit online anyway.

Why won't you just let me give you my money? :negative:

Big Bowie Bonanza
Dec 30, 2007

please tell me where i can date this cute boy
It may be worth actually going in person to check for the nerd plan kits because Walmart employees are typically absolutely loving clueless.

Tedronai66
Aug 24, 2006
Better to Reign in Hell...

Meldonox posted:

Cripes, I called every Walmart in town and each of them either say they can't do the nerd plan or don't have the activation kits necessary for it. Every T-Mo store I call says I have to get a phone with it and they have to do the non-nerd-plan activation in the store. The one time I try to buy something from a brick and mortar I'm going to have to buy the activation kit online anyway.

Why won't you just let me give you my money? :negative:

PM me your address and I can send you a micro or nano kit for a buck (to cover stamps)

Kreeblah
May 17, 2004

INSERT QUACK TO CONTINUE


Taco Defender

Ribsauce posted:

Does T-Mobile offer a 30 day return policy like Sprint? I do not know anyone with T-Mobile so I have no reference to how good their service actually is all around North Carolina. I am afraid of getting stuck with another 2 years of horrible cell reception (I am considering changing since Sprint has somehow regressed which didn't even seem possible)

Sprint dropped theirs to 14 days a year or so ago, which is currently standard among all four major carriers.

tray
Nov 24, 2006

nice to meet you!
So I'm with Sprint and got a Nexus 5. Sprint of course didn't have any screen protectors so I went to get a Zagg from a TMo corp store. I let the sales guy give me a pitch and it seems like a good deal. I'm thinking about switching. What I'm wondering is, can I get a prepaid SIM to test out the TMo coverage and data speeds? I have a Nexus 5, but I'm pretty sure I have to unlock the Nexus 5 before I can use it on TMobile. Once I've tested teh coverage out, assuming I want to go back to Sprint, do they need to like re-lock it for activation on their network again? I just wanna test out Tmobiles service before I jump ship. I'm in Seattle now and I've heard they have a pretty solid 4G network in the city but I figured I'd ask before I start buying SIM kits

Mu Zeta
Oct 17, 2002

Me crush ass to dust

You can just get a Micro sim card from the Tmo site. It was free when I ordered one a few months ago.

e: I'm not sure if the Nexus 5 can be locked to carriers. Pretty sure all the hardware is exactly the same.

Mu Zeta fucked around with this message at 22:39 on Jan 11, 2014

tray
Nov 24, 2006

nice to meet you!

Mu Zeta posted:

You can just get a Micro sim card from the Tmo site. It was free when I ordered one a few months ago. The Nexus 5 cannot be locked by any carrier.

Cool thanks, my Sprint online account had something about 'Click here to get a pin/puk unlock code!' so that confused me.

wormil
Sep 12, 2002

Hulk will smoke you!

Ribsauce posted:

Does T-Mobile offer a 30 day return policy like Sprint? I do not know anyone with T-Mobile so I have no reference to how good their service actually is all around North Carolina. I am afraid of getting stuck with another 2 years of horrible cell reception (I am considering changing since Sprint has somehow regressed which didn't even seem possible)

Coverage is okay in NC, in the cities and along most major highways but reception inside buildings is pretty weak. I had ATT for awhile and it was the same. A few folks I know with Verizon seem to do slightly better.

Kreeblah
May 17, 2004

INSERT QUACK TO CONTINUE


Taco Defender

tray posted:

I'm in Seattle now and I've heard they have a pretty solid 4G network in the city but I figured I'd ask before I start buying SIM kits

Just FYI, T-Mobile's US headquarters are in Bellevue. If there were a serious issue, the executives would probably notice and have it fixed, so coverage is pretty awesome. I'm on LTE pretty much everywhere around here, and the few areas where I drop off to HSPA+, it's still fast.

gariig
Dec 31, 2004
Beaten into submission by my fiance
Pillbug

Kreeblah posted:

Just FYI, T-Mobile's US headquarters are in Bellevue. If there were a serious issue, the executives would probably notice and have it fixed, so coverage is pretty awesome. I'm on LTE pretty much everywhere around here, and the few areas where I drop off to HSPA+, it's still fast.

I live in Seattle and it's pretty good coverage outside. Inside buildings it's a crap shoot. Someplaces its good and other times it's low or no signal. T-Mobile just purchased a bunch of low frequency spectrum which should help with the building penetration. Otherwise I've enjoyed being on T-Mobile and so much better than Sprint.

tray
Nov 24, 2006

nice to meet you!
Good to know, thanks for the info. I've been with Sprint for years. They sent me a picocell free of charge so I'm gonna give em til the end of the contract before I jump ship.

Burden
Jul 25, 2006

quote is not edit....

muscat_gummy
Nov 30, 2008
Can you really just trade in any eligible phone? I have 2 dumb phones that may be in the system (haven't checked) but wouldn't they be like, uhhhh you had an $85 month smart phone plan with Sprint; why are you giving us this $20 dumb phone?

EFT deal question: can I switch over to T-Mobile, stay on the $50/month plan until the EFT stuff goes through (assuming 3 months ish?), and then buy a new SIM, sign up as a new prepaid customer for the Nerd plan, and then port my phone #? I'm trying to decide between that option and waiting out my current contract until June. Switching now would be cheaper than waiting it out by over $200 (total yearly cost), as long as I can get on the $30/month plan eventually. Cost of the phone upfront (when I get off the $50/month contract) is not an issue; I'm planning on the Nokia 521 (plus an iPod touch to replace the 4s; if I wait it out I'm stuck with the locked 4s for about the same total yearly cost).

dundun posted:

I understand people don't like being locked into 2 year contracts, but paying full price for the phone you're going to be using doesn't seem like a value proposition. Unless you go the ebay/craigslist route and buy something second hand.

It is cheaper for people who have the cash and don't want to upgrade all the time. I'm happy to keep my phone until it stops working; hopefully that is more than 2-3 years. Even in 2 year increments, it is cheaper to buy outright.

$600 phone, cost over 2 years

Sprint: $2,240 (pay $200 up front, $85/month plan)
T-Mobile Option A: $1,320 (pay $600, get on $30/month plan)
T-Mobile Option B: $1,800 (cost of $600 phone plus $50/month plan)

If you want to keep that phone for year 3, you're then paying $85/month to Sprint still but only $30-$60/month to T-Mobile. 2 years of Sprint at $85/month is $2,040.

I say this out of experience because I bought an iPhone with Sprint which is at the end of it's contract and which I'd like to keep using but not for $85/month. By the end of the contract I will have paid Sprint $680 (Assuming $20/month of the bill goes toward the phone cost.) for a locked phone that is worth $100 if I'm lucky. gently caress that. If Sprint pulls a "free" 5S out of it's rear end I'd still be on the hook for an $85/month 2-year contract. I could buy a new 5S upfront, use it with T-Mobile, and pay less total over 2 years. Then I could sell it for more if I want to get rid of it because it's unlocked.

Stick100
Mar 18, 2003

muscat_gummy posted:

Then I could sell it for more if I want to get rid of it because it's unlocked.

Your post is completely valid but I wanted to point out that the difference between locked and unlocked phones is not that much if your carrier is desirable (att / tmo). No one wants sprint phones on the secondary market because far more nerds that sell phones are leaving Sprint then joining.

IuniusBrutus
Jul 24, 2010

I have T-Mobile pre-paid, and after this next bill my account will be at about zero. I get a 19% service discount from my employer. Does this discount cover any additional data I add to my plan? i.e., $10/month for 2.5 gigs? Also, what is the easiest way to switch to postpaid and keep my number? I already have an Nexus 5, so I don't need a phone. I also have a few micro SIM activiation kits, if I can use those to do it myself.

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Stick100
Mar 18, 2003

IuniusBrutus posted:

I have T-Mobile pre-paid, and after this next bill my account will be at about zero. I get a 19% service discount from my employer. Does this discount cover any additional data I add to my plan? i.e., $10/month for 2.5 gigs? Also, what is the easiest way to switch to postpaid and keep my number? I already have an Nexus 5, so I don't need a phone. I also have a few micro SIM activiation kits, if I can use those to do it myself.

Why do you want to switch to post paid? Last I checked post paid was more expensive (even with 19% discount) for the same service and the only real advantage was roaming.

I believe there are normal taxes on post paid while there are none (except sales) with prepaid.

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