3 thoughts on “How Bad Can a Cell Phone Company Get?”

  1. I have no experience with Sprint, but here’s my Verizon story for you:

    I upgraded my Treo to the latest version (Treo 700P) in June, and signed up for another two-year contract. I completed the process the same way I ordered my phone the first time: online.

    This time around, however, there was a question about the text-message rate. I called to ask why I had to pay $10 now for messaging that cost $5 before, even though I kept the same plan when upgrading the phone.

    Speaking to a customer service representative, I was told that a sales rep had given me the $5 option. She said I couldn’t get it now because it hasn’t been offered in more than three years.

    I tried to explain that I signed up online, that I never even spoke with a sales rep, and that obviously the plan existed three years ago (because I was enrolled two years ago) to no avail. So, I’m paying $10 a month now for my text messaging.

  2. Verizon bad, very, very bad. I had one of their store managers tell me I did not qualify for an upgrade after the rep on the phone told me I did. The manager said she would let me upgrade only if I purchased their insurance. While she was pretending to use the computer regarding my contract, I called Verizon and asked a rep if I qualified for and upgrade. She said, “yes”, and I replied, “good can you please explain that to the store manager here who says I don’t.” The manager quickly retracted her demand and gave me the one-year contract upgrade without the insurance. An employee of that same store tried to tell me that no phone service offered a phone that could be used in Europe and the US. I laughed at him. Verizon bad, very, very bad.

    After the Verizon experience, I switched to T Mobile and I have been pretty satisfied, with one exception: because one of the phones on the family line was receiving SMS from wrong numbers and calls as well, I asked them to change the number. They wanted me to pay $15 for this. So I asked them if this $15 charge was worth more to them than the $90 a month they are getting now. They still would not change it free. The problem is, T Mobile is better than the other services I have used and I need GSM.

    If this worthless Congress would work for the citizens who put them there instead of the corporate goons, maybe we would have reasonable communication service.

  3. Among other things, people text message when they can’t talk — at the movies, in class, during a meeting.

    What I’d like to know is why we can’t just buy our cell phone and purchase service ala carte. Why are we letting them force these 24-month contracts on us?

    It seems the wireless carriers have restored much of the telephone business to its status pre-AT&T breakup, especially when it comes to the customer is never right.

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