[Q] Verizon's Plan Changes - General Questions and Answers

Verizon is making some changes to their plans starting tomorrow (as everyone already knows).
I understand that one of these changes is that if we are currently on the grandfathered data plan, the only way to keep this is if we pay the full price for a phone upgrade.
Since the full price upgrade will not put us in a 2-year contract or use a currently available upgrade, would it be possible to upgrade a phone and sell that new boxed phone to try to offset the price of a full upgrade (since I'll eventually pay the full price to upgrade my phone sometime).
I'm not expecting to break even, but I was just wondering if it were a possibility.

cylic said:
Verizon is making some changes to their plans starting tomorrow (as everyone already knows).
I understand that one of these changes is that if we are currently on the grandfathered data plan, the only way to keep this is if we pay the full price for a phone upgrade.
Since the full price upgrade will not put us in a 2-year contract or use a currently available upgrade, would it be possible to upgrade a phone and sell that new boxed phone to try to offset the price of a full upgrade (since I'll eventually pay the full price to upgrade my phone sometime).
I'm not expecting to break even, but I was just wondering if it were a possibility.
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If you know verizon you know that wont happen. But I'd be happy to pay full price to keep unlimited
Sent from my Incredible 2 using XDA

I don't really know much about Verizon's marketing habits. I'm just reading stuff like this and this!
I hope it doesn't cost the full price

Verizon Blows
I've been using 40 gigs avg a month going back 4 years because I'm on the road a lot. Nothing good lasts forever. As a grandfathered subscriber my plan is to keep my Bionic until it dies and just pay full price for a Nexus or something. Getting rid of you unlimited data for a cheap price for a new phone is not worth it in my opinion.

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Related

9 Months to Go on Contract

Anyone see a way to get a Thunderbolt when I have 9 months to go on my current contract? I realize I could pay full price but not looking to do so. Thanks for any suggestions. My current phone is an amoled incredible.
Add a line? $10. a month.
jdk2 said:
Add a line? $10. a month.
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if you added a line and got the contract pricing wouldn't you also have to sign up for a data plan, which then cannot be removed without breaking the contract and incurring ETFs. then it'd be $10 + $29.99/month......seems buying retail would be better/equivalent to that.
ebay is always an option, but since it's so new it would be quite difficult to get anything much less than retail cost.
i don't know much about it but i've seen mention of early upgrade fees on verizon, maybe you could talk to verizon employees and see if you have any options there. i haven't had much luck with them but people have posted about experiences with verizon people where they are really accommodating and friendly.
sitrucz said:
Anyone see a way to get a Thunderbolt when I have 9 months to go on my current contract? I realize I could pay full price but not looking to do so. Thanks for any suggestions. My current phone is an amoled incredible.
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Back when I got my Droid 1, I was only 12 months into my 2 year contract. VZW let me do an early upgrade but did charge me a $20.00 fee. I recomend you calling *611 from your phone.
good luck !!!
Verizon did the same with me for my tbolt. I was 13 months into contract, they let me upgrade for 2 year contract price + 25.00$
Sent from my ADR6400L using XDA App
Buy retail or try to get an early upgrade...
it is actually really annoying. everyone always wants the latest phones and cannot wait to get them... and then they scramble to find the best way to get them when they still have "x" months left in their contract (x usually being greater than 6, closer to 12).
at that point, why not just get a 1 year contract to begin with. pay the extra $70 for your device up front but then have the freedom and flexibility at 10 months to do as you choose (and be able to get a new device without trying to "work the system" and weasel your way out of a contract or find some fishy way to add another line). you will end up spending more if you do not get a 1 yr contract.
I am a firm believer of this!
*EDIT*: and Verizon does not always allow early upgrades for 2 yr contracts, so you cannot rely on that
bmcclure937 said:
Buy retail or try to get an early upgrade...
it is actually really annoying. everyone always wants the latest phones and cannot wait to get them... and then they scramble to find the best way to get them when they still have "x" months left in their contract (x usually being greater than 6, closer to 12).
at that point, why not just get a 1 year contract to begin with. pay the extra $70 for your device up front but then have the freedom and flexibility at 10 months to do as you choose (and be able to get a new device without trying to "work the system" and weasel your way out of a contract or find some fishy way to add another line). you will end up spending more if you do not get a 1 yr contract.
I am a firm believer of this!
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That, I'm never getting another phone at a two-year contract ever again unless the whole market system changes with it, which i dont see happening.
Regardless, if you are stuck in a contract, do the add a line thing, as with that, you can get the new phone on a new line, then switch it over to a crappy cheap phone that doesn't need a data plan, and disable everything on it, so you're only paying the $10 a month for an extra line.
Russ36363 said:
Regardless, if you are stuck in a contract, do the add a line thing, as with that, you can get the new phone on a new line, then switch it over to a crappy cheap phone that doesn't need a data plan, and disable everything on it, so you're only paying the $10 a month for an extra line.
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maybe i'm not well-versed on verizon's contract terms. are you all sure that the contract doesn't forbid cancelling the data plan? i was basing my knowledge on an experience with at&t more than two years ago, haha. at that time i did the secondary line upgrade to get a new blackberry and at&t's terms were that in order to get an upgrade price it is required to sign up for a data package. the loophole there for me was that the data plan could be cancelled after two months at no cost at all. later on a friend who tried to do the same thing as me could not because at&t changed their policy and would not allow people to remove data plans after two months without an ETF.
is verizon's policy better and either doesn't require a data plan upon upgrade or allows you to remove it immediately after upgrading? (note: i tried to look up verizon's policy on this by going to the site and pretending to be a new customer but it started to ask for payment and personal info before showing me the terms and conditions. it did require me to sign up for a data plan when purchasing a smartphone though) i'm curious to know what the fine details are.
bkiminfinity said:
if you added a line and got the contract pricing wouldn't you also have to sign up for a data plan, which then cannot be removed without breaking the contract and incurring ETFs. then it'd be $10 + $29.99/month......seems buying retail would be better/equivalent to that.
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make sure you have an older dumbphone to transfer your existing line to. then you can drop data to your heart's content.
i have done this twice now, once for x and once for thunderbolt. $10/mo each.
bkiminfinity said:
maybe i'm not well-versed on verizon's contract terms. are you all sure that the contract doesn't forbid cancelling the data plan? i was basing my knowledge on an experience with at&t more than two years ago, haha. at that time i did the secondary line upgrade to get a new blackberry and at&t's terms were that in order to get an upgrade price it is required to sign up for a data package. the loophole there for me was that the data plan could be cancelled after two months at no cost at all. later on a friend who tried to do the same thing as me could not because at&t changed their policy and would not allow people to remove data plans after two months without an ETF.
is verizon's policy better and either doesn't require a data plan upon upgrade or allows you to remove it immediately after upgrading? (note: i tried to look up verizon's policy on this by going to the site and pretending to be a new customer but it started to ask for payment and personal info before showing me the terms and conditions. it did require me to sign up for a data plan when purchasing a smartphone though) i'm curious to know what the fine details are.
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From the experiences I've had and others who've posted about it, the only restriction AFAIK from verizon is that you need a data plan on the line when you activate the phone on that line, so you'd need to add a data plan on the line when a smartphone is activated for it. However, if the phone isn't a smartphone, i've been able to add and remove the data to the line as needed (I've had an old enV phone where theres been a few times where I've needed the data, so I've just turned on the data plan for the two weeks or so, and never gotten charged outside of that, or fees)
Bodero said:
make sure you have an older dumbphone to transfer your existing line to. then you can drop data to your heart's content.
i have done this twice now, once for x and once for thunderbolt. $10/mo each.
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i have an old blackberry pearl flip, does that count? seeing that it is a blackberry i would think it doesn't......
but a follow-up question i have is that is it worth it paying the extra $10/month? price speculation for tbolt: $319 for 1-year contract, add the $10/month for a year = $120 for a total of $439. retail is $599 so you save $160.....as opposed to paying $319 alone and saving $280. i guess for someone with an upgrade available the method of adding a line and then moving the new phone saves you an upgrade and costs $120 more to get the tbolt. so you are paying an extra $120 above the cost of the phone itself to save your upgrade.
makes more sense for someone with no upgrade option then.
But i didn't think it could be just 10 dollars a month. The phones are required to have their own 29.99 data plan
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Thanks all I'm thinking *611 and see if I'm eligible for that early upgrade and will do the 1 year contract.
Bodero said:
make sure you have an older dumbphone to transfer your existing line to. then you can drop data to your heart's content.
i have done this twice now, once for x and once for thunderbolt. $10/mo each.
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Or call Verizon and tell them you no longer want a phone on that line and they'll put a dummy ESN on it. That's what I did the last time I pulled the add a line and drop it for a discount.
It turns out I'm eligible for the early upgrade on 5/10 of this year which puts me on my incredible for 1 year. My full upgrade is up on 1/10/12. So I guess I'll see what's out there in May. Thanks again.
just keep calling *611 and get someone that is nice. after 4 calls to CS i begged the lady to ask her supervisor to advance my upgrade (from Dec.). I paid the $20.00 fee. good luck.
I found an official document on verizon's FAQs under "Worry Free Guarantee". Easier to get to through google. When I have the link I can post it.
Basically it states that if you are in a two year plan already you will be able to take advantage of one more annual upgrade at discount price or if you so choose wait until your 20th month and get your "New Every Two" credit.
I had to print this sheet and make sure the full url was across the top in order to show it to a verizon rep. He then put a remark under my account stating that I was indeed elgible for an early upgrade. The problem is just with the changes verizon is now implementing.
Sent from my DROID2 GLOBAL using XDA App
I bought my thunderbolt on craigslist for $540. Was a little shady as the guy didn't have the box, but had all the accessories Verizon employee maybe? Just can't imagine how a day old phone is missing the box. Anyway I activated the phone with no issue.
When you guys are paying the $20 or whatever to get the early upgrade, so they just reset your account so that Wirefly/Amazon/etc see you as upgrade eligible, or do you then have to buy the phone from VZW? I'd like to upgrade 4 months early (and have multiple lines to upgrade, so the "new every 2" would only take care of one phone) but I don't want to pay VZW an extra $50/phone if I can avoid it.
They are sadly apparently getting rid of the annual upgrade feature Anyway should you want to go the full retail route I got mine cheapest through VZW at 599.99 vs the 749.99 it seemed to be listed everywhere else. I don't get my annual upgrade which they are still honoring for the time being until July of this year (still can get it should I want to grab another device this summer).
The only reason I could see to upgrade earlier than your annual upgrade date is in the off chance verizon changes the way they do 4G data plans for new 4G phones at that point? Currently they are offering 4G at 3G data prices w/ unlimited data, and they can't suddenly start charging those of us who are on these unlimited plans more or force us to the tiered plan concept... so we'd be grandfathered in sorta like the unlimited data AT&T users are currently. Was the main reason for me jumping the gun and upgrading early at full retail, that and the speeds are amazing.

[Q] Possible Sprint ETF Loophole?

So towards the end of June I was planning on leaving Sprint and heading over to At&t with the girlfriend. I had a plan with my brother to swap lines, his being off contract, allowing him to continue using my GSII and having me leave Sprint without any ETF worry. However now it seems that my brother is backing out of the whole idea which is leaving me at a whopping $300 ETF that doesn’t look too pretty.
I figure by selling the SII I am still looking at a big chunk just to get out of Sprint and buying a new phone until I realized something. I noticed that the difference between smartphones and basic phones half the ETF fee, $150 in my case. So what if I were to downgrade my plan with a basic phone, pay the ETF, sell the SII for around $200, and have some left over to put into the new phone. It all just seems too good to be true and I might just be overlooking something just in the thought of a somewhat loophole but what do you guys think? Could it be that easy? Should I read the terms and conditions instead of writing a thread out of shear excitement?
What do you think?
Generally speaking, it is much harder to downgrade than it is to upgrade. When you entered the contract for the smartphone you agreed to pay for service for a full two years in return for a subsidized phone. Legally they can (and odds are they will) tell you to either keep the phone & plan or pay the etf.
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If your rooted get roam control.
They will drop you after a while.
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new AT&T upgrade plan (AT&T "Next")

http://www.engadget.com/2013/07/16/att-next-upgrade-program/
AT&T:
http://www.att.com/shop/wireless/next.html?sf15024656=1#fbid=PD71HEOU89k
Interesting...
Also... top comment on Engadget:
OK, so I work for ATT I'll just clarify this for you guys a little. This is what we reps have been told. Basically whatever the normal price plan is for the phone you add 1/20th of the phones price to that normal plan pricing. After 12 months minimum but before 20 months you can choose to trade in your old phone and get a new one. There are no down payments for either phone so there is that, you can get an iphone 5 64GB for no money down if you have good credit XD. BUT you would then pay an extra 40 some per month to make up for it. The average installments would be $20 with smartphones usually costing about 400 or more so after 12 months you would have paid $280 or more and if you sold your old phone you could buy a new one.
POINT: This is a blatant rip off, save up your money those months and sell the phone you save money, the price you pay for this simply gives ATT a larger profit, they will then resell the old phones you turn in which by the way have to be in perfect shape or there will be an additional charge for repairs. Anyone with sense will no do this.
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Oh and how this effect the unlock policy, currently any non iphone can be unlocked after 90 days of service in good standing. On this ATT NEXT plan you cannot unlock it until after the full 20 months.
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FAQ
What is AT&T Next?
AT&T offers you another choice for smartphone and tablet pricing. AT&T Next is a new way for you to get a new device every year. You have the choice after 12 monthly payments to trade it in for a new device or choose to keep it, and after 20 months, there are no more installment payments. No down payment, activation, upgrade, or financing fees are required — only sales tax on the device is due at time of purchase.
How can I take advantage of AT&T Next?
Visit att.com or a participating AT&T Company Owned Retail location to learn more about AT&T Next and to find out if you are eligible.
Are there additional charges?
Sales tax is charged on your new phone or tablet at the time of sale. There's no down payment and no activation fee.
Is a contract required with AT&T Next?
AT&T Next requires that you sign an installment agreement to pay for the device over 20 monthly payments. If you cancel your wireless service, the remaining unpaid balance on the device is due. A Wireless Customer Service Agreement (voice and data service) is required.
How many AT&T Next installment plans may I have on my account?
There's a limit of two per account.
What devices are eligible for AT&T Next?
At this time, customers can buy a smartphone or tablet with AT&T Next.
Do I own the device? Or is this a leasing offer?
The device is yours and you’re responsible for 20 monthly payments. You’re also responsible for any loss, theft, or damage to the device — both during the installment agreement period and after. We recommend you purchase the optional Mobile Insurance to protect your investment.
How do I get a new device every year with the program?
After your twelfth (12) installment payment, but before your twentieth (20) installment payment, if your wireless account is in good standing you may trade in the device. The device must be fully functional and in good physical condition. Select a new smartphone or tablet and a new 20-month agreement will start.
When I trade in my device after 12 months and get a new one, what is the length of my new installment plan?
When you trade in your device, no further installments are billed for the original device. You will start over with a new 20-month installment plan on your new device.
Will I be able to pay off this device early?
Yes, you have the option to pay off your installment agreement, but the full outstanding balance will be due immediately.
What payments are due if I cancel AT&T Next?
The full outstanding balance on your installment agreement becomes due.
What if I don't want to trade in my device after 12 months and I want to keep it?
You have the choice to either trade your phone in or keep your phone. If you keep it, after 20 months, it’s yours and no more installment payments are required.
What if my phone is damaged (e.g. cracked screen)? Can I still trade it in after 12 months?
Yes. However, we reserve the right to charge a fee to repair the device and return it to fully functional and good physical condition.
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This is a ripoff. Why is everyone trying to follow TMobile's BS? There's a reason why offer crap service.
I'm going to stick with my normal 2 year upgrades. AT&T has always offered me an early upgrade from 6 months-1year at the 2 year price. If that goes away and I have to put up with this BS, I'll be pissed.
mr_blanket said:
http://www.engadget.com/2013/07/16/att-next-upgrade-program/
Interesting...
Also... top comment on Engadget:
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Interesting... I called this when T-mobile started this. It is almost better to pay full price for phones now... If you sell your current phone 300-450 and put the rest on a credit card you will still be saving money or just pay it up front. But the cancel at any time is pretty cool idea
But this may lead us to buy unlocked devices and not deal with locked bootloaders....
AutoUnion said:
This is a ripoff. Why is everyone trying to follow TMobile's BS? There's a reason why offer crap service.
I'm going to stick with my normal 2 year upgrades. AT&T has always offered me an early upgrade from 6 months-1year at the 2 year price. If that goes away and I have to put up with this BS, I'll be pissed.
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I am willing to bet that soon that will go away... Not sure how soon but eventually
joshuadjohnson22 said:
I am willing to bet that soon that will go away... Not sure how soon but eventually
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Yeah, this sucks. I might just start paying full price and sell the old phone. Much easier.
some quick calculations
S4 is $32/month. Would have paid $384 in a year.
If I just bought a Galaxy S4 for $629. I could sell it in a year for ~$400, so $229.
or
use your upgrade. $149 is what I spent on my Galaxy S4. Sell it for $450 in the Fall, pick up GNote3 on CL, etc. $500-550. Only out about ~$100-150. Sell GNote3 in the Spring for $450-500 for GS5.
AutoUnion said:
Yeah, this sucks. I might just start paying full price and sell the old phone. Much easier.
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same here, as I posted above... why not get the international unlocked version and be able to flash out of the box? Now with international phone having LTE I don't see a need to get carrier phones if it will cost us so much
joshuadjohnson22 said:
same here, as I posted above... why not get the international unlocked version and be able to flash out of the box? Now with international phone having LTE I don't see a need to get carrier phones if it will cost us so much
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I wonder if this also means that those early upgrades they used to give to iPhone owners are gone to. I have iPhones on the other lines on my family plan, so if I don't have an upgrade, I could bank on using one of those
AutoUnion said:
I wonder if this also means that those early upgrades they used to give to iPhone owners are gone to. I have iPhones on the other lines on my family plan, so if I don't have an upgrade, I could bank on using one of those
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I think those things will die off slowly. But I doubt it will be right away
I'm curious to see what else they talk about at their keynote.
I would really like them to do what US Cellular did. They brought back Unlimited Data, but it's ONLY valid for the 2 year contract length. After that, it's gone. If you try to break your contract, the ETF is $$$$. Let them charge $40/month for it. Still worth it over Sprint/TMobile, IMO
AutoUnion said:
I'm curious to see what else they talk about at their keynote.
I would really like them to do what US Cellular did. They brought back Unlimited Data, but it's ONLY valid for the 2 year contract length. After that, it's gone. If you try to break your contract, the ETF is $$$$. Let them charge $40/month for it. Still worth it over Sprint/TMobile, IMO
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It will be "Blah Blah Blah we want more of your money... Blah .... we will take it with force if we have to.... Blah .... what are you going to do about it... Blah Blah.... bend over and take it.... Blah I will be charging you a fee for listening to this keynote it will appear on your bill as a $10 Keynote charge... This will be added to your monthly bill to pay for future keynotes"
I think it's nice for it to be an option. Myself, I just buy out of contract if given a choice. It's nice to offer this and the traditional plan so some people who cant afford a phone outright can get one.
All the carriers new deals are all including trading in smartphones as of late. Usually you get ripped off as you can sell it yourself for more $. Selling my year and a half old iPhone 4S almost paid for my S4 in full out of contract..
20 month = same as unlocked upfront
12 month and upgrade to newer phone = 60% of cost one year lease... what a ripoff
Well it is AT&T
AT&T users better read the fine print before rejoicing. You’re still paying the same high monthly contract price for your no-contract plan. AT&T is double dipping into your wallet when those contract monthly plans has a subsidized phone calculated into them but you’re paying full price for the phone.
AT&T Mobile No Contract.
$70/m unlimited talk.
$20/m unlimted text.
$30/m 3GB data plan.
$32/m Samsung S4 monthly payment Next program.
+$10/m device insurance.
——————————-
$162
Compare with T-Mobile, and the price you pay for unlimited talk, text, and true unlimited, you’re just paying for the talk unlimited portion on AT&T. Not to mention, the insurance is built into the Tmo Jump program.
T-Mobile
$50/m unlimited talk/text.
$20/m unlimited data plan.
$20/m Samsung S4 monthly payment.
$10/m Jump program (includes premium device insurance).
——————————-
$100/m
I guess Att thinks we can't do simple math.
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This is the most telling story I've seen about it so far...
http://www.theverge.com/2013/7/16/4528404/att-next-phone-upgrade-plans-a-huge-ripoff
mr_blanket said:
This is the most telling story I've seen about it so far...
http://www.theverge.com/2013/7/16/4528404/att-next-phone-upgrade-plans-a-huge-ripoff
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We all needs to repost this. Att needs to know we are not going for this crap.
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nthknd said:
We all needs to repost this. Att needs to know we are not going for this crap.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda premium
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Absolutely. Repost, Facebook, Tweet, Link, +1, etc. Maybe this will cause a Xbox One-like backlash.
What I hate the most is that the majority of the people on this forum are stuck with AT&T until 2015 :crying:
You guys do realize this is an OPTION right? They are not forcing you to take this deal. Verizon also has a deal starting like this one as well. At least att is not forcing those with unlimited data to lose it when they want an upgrade like big red does. Att has always given OPTIONS unlike other carriers who force things down your throat. Remember that when you start typing your rant about how att sucks.
Also when was anything perfect at launch? I'm sure as time goes on and voices are heard, this plan will get made to make more sense.
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While it is an option, for now at least, so many people will fall for this scheme. People like my iPhone loving mother who is persuaded by "as seen on TV" adds will probably fall for this no matter what I say. Or teenage girls who beg their parents for the latest and greatest.
All they have to say is "NEW DEVICE EVERY YEAR". That's it. People will be overjoyed and they will make billions. Only our small subset of users will actually do the math.
Yeah att is simply bartering...if your selling something at a garage sale you always start with a high price and slowly lower until you reach an agrrement...att wants to make as much money as possible so they will start high and hopefully lower to find a price they still make profit and that people will go for...and as stated this plan is only a choice, we arent being forced to use the next plan
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk 2
I have a $285 etf right now
Say I early upgrade to a s3 mini at $12/mo ($250 full price) with the next promo. I can just pay off the $250 and leave with no penalty? Cheaper than paying my etf and I can sell those phones as new because I wouldn't keep them.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

[Q] New Verizon phone advise...

I am just a very short time away from being able to walk away from Big Red (feb 20). i am very reluctant to do so. I love the unlimited data. I am on an old alltel plan from yrs ago. So my question is if i stay with verizon what would be a great phone to purchase that should have a great development like my current phone the galaxy nexus. what phones are all these great developers using who still want to stay with verizon. I am seriously considering ordering the Note 3 Developer edition for verizon off of the samsung website. i am in line for one. they were on backorder. what do you think?
I have unlimited data on multiple lines, which is pretty much the only reason why I am still on VZW. They will probably kill all unlimited data plans either this year or next year, it is just a matter of time. When you give up VZW unlimited data, you will never get it back. Ever. Yes, T-mobile offers "unlimited" data but there is a catch: you are throttled after you go over 3 GB. So before you walk away from unlimited data, be sure you have your priorities in check. What is more important to you, having unlimited data or a phone that is not locked down? If it comes down to how much money you can save on another carrier, then that is another matter, and obviously a top priority for most people. But I would strongly encourage you to think about it long and hard before giving up unlimited data until VZW forces it.
Regarding your question about phones, unfortunately VZW is notoriously anti-open and anti-consumer, and that is not going to change. With each new generation of devices, they force OEMs to make it increasingly difficult to unlock bootloaders and root. I am not telling you anything you don't know here. VZW has managed to gimp all of their latest devices so much that the development scene is very slow compared to just a few months ago. If you check out the VZW development threads, you will see what I mean. I have a Note 2 and Note 3. The Note 2 community is still fairly active considering how long it has been out, and many devs have moved on to other devices. But the Note 2 isn't crippled with Knox, which is why the Note 3 dev scene is so pale in comparison. Unless you have a Note 3 DE, you are stuck on TW based roms, probably until the end of time. And Samsung's miniscule allotment of DEs has prevented it from becoming the superstar phone that it could (should) have been. You can hold out for a DE, but the fact that so few people have it means there will be lack of interest & effort from devs to build roms for it. So in reality if you stay on VZW, you must decide if you want TW or no TW. If you like TW, then by all means get the best TW phone available (Note 3). If you want more options like AOSP-based roms, then consider the LG G2 or the upcoming G2 Pro (if it even comes to VZW). The G2 dev community is pretty active, much more so than the Note 3. Alternatively, you could get an older phone like the Note 2 or S4 with an established dev community, and just wait & see what comes down the pike.
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sublimaze said:
Yes, T-mobile offers "unlimited" data but there is a catch: you are throttled after you go over 3 GB.
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That's completely untrue. T-Mobile unlimited means unlimited. You're throttled if you are below their $70 plan. I'm currently on their $70 unlimited everything prepaid plan and haven't gotten throttled and I'm at around 5GB of usage this month. The $60 plan is 2.5GB before throttle. The $50 plan is 500 MB before throttle. There's also a $30 plan that's 100 minutes (10c/minute after), unlimited text, and 5GB before throttle. All plans include LTE.
Product F(RED) said:
That's completely untrue...
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Actually you just proved my point. Unless you are willing to pay $70/month, you WILL be throttled. But thanks for clarifying the cutoff figures.
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sublimaze said:
Actually you just proved my point. Unless you are willing to pay $70/month, you WILL be throttled. But thanks for clarifying the cutoff figures.
Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk
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Actually, no. You made a broad-sweeping statement, insinuating that no matter what plan you're on, you'll be throttled after 3GB of usage. Try being more specific next time.
Product F(RED) said:
Actually, no. You made a broad-sweeping statement, insinuating that no matter what plan you're on, you'll be throttled after 3GB of usage. Try being more specific next time.
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The take home point is this:
The OP is currently on a Verizon unlimited data plan, which means truly unlimited and doesn't need to be qualified by how much he pays per month.
Verizon unlimited is truly unlimited and unthrottled. T-mobile's service is unlimited so long as you are willing to pay a premium. If you are unwilling or can't afford to pay that premium, then you will be throttled. My original statement may be "broad sweeping", but there is an equally broad number of people that will not pay a premium for truly unlimited service.
So comparing the OP's current unlimited data plan to T-mobile's unlimited data plan is not necessarily comparing apples to apples.
But thank you for your exceedingly helpful contribution to this thread about what phone to use on Verizon :thumbup:
sublimaze said:
The take home point is this:
The OP is currently on a Verizon unlimited data plan, which means truly unlimited and doesn't need to be qualified by how much he pays per month.
Verizon unlimited is truly unlimited and unthrottled. T-mobile's service is unlimited so long as you are willing to pay a premium. If you are unwilling or can't afford to pay that premium, then you will be throttled. My original statement may be "broad sweeping", but there is an equally broad number of people that will not pay a premium for truly unlimited service.
So comparing the OP's current unlimited data plan to T-mobile's unlimited data plan is not necessarily comparing apples to apples.
But thank you for your exceedingly helpful contribution to this thread about what phone to use on Verizon :thumbup:
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Chances are if you're in Verizon, you're already paying a "premium" over T-Mobile. Take it from me, I used to be a Verizon employee and I'm a current T-Mobile customer. Happy now?
To the OP:
Any Verizon device Galaxy S4 or later supports AWS LTE (which is what T-Mobile uses for LTE). So if you buy one of those phones and switch, as long as you live in an LTE area you will get full service (EDGE, HSPA+, LTE). However if you're looking to start new and buy or subsidize a T-Mobile phone, you have to ask yourself what you want in a phone.
Personally, I would recommend either the Moto X Developer Edition (because you maintain warranty even if you unlock the bootloader), or the Nexus 5 (a natural choice). I personally prefer and own the former and absolutely love it. It's pretty much stock Android with a few useful additions like active notifications, touch less controls, etc. And the unlocked and Developer Editions get their updates straight from Motorola. Matter of fact, I just got the 4.4.2 OTA update a few days ago.
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Thank you every one for a few choices that i really havent paid attention too. the moto x de. and the g2. Look guys... i pay 110 a month for one freaking line but is unlimited data. if i switch to tmobile i will save money per month just in the bill alone. i plan on buying any phone i get straight up. no contracts. i want to be free and clear. so tmobiles $70 unlimited plan is the way to go if i cannot manage to find me a phone on verizon that has a strong development community behind it. i KNOW what coverage is like with verizon here in my area. i was taken by the larger screen of the note3. all i want is me some AOSP roms. not a fan of TW really. the galaxy nexus has just spoiled me to AOSP. its over @ yrs strong and still running the up to date Android versions. unlike the previous droids i have owned. verizon support gone after six months. i want a good phone that will be viable in the android world for maybe the next 2 yrs.
i am scared to bite the bullet and leave big red. really dont know what their coverage is like here. 8 yrs ago it sucked.
gnexuser said:
Thank you every one for a few choices that i really havent paid attention too. the moto x de. and the g2. Look guys... i pay 110 a month for one freaking line but is unlimited data. if i switch to tmobile i will save money per month just in the bill alone. i plan on buying any phone i get straight up. no contracts. i want to be free and clear. so tmobiles $70 unlimited plan is the way to go if i cannot manage to find me a phone on verizon that has a strong development community behind it. i KNOW what coverage is like with verizon here in my area. i was taken by the larger screen of the note3. all i want is me some AOSP roms. not a fan of TW really. the galaxy nexus has just spoiled me to AOSP. its over @ yrs strong and still running the up to date Android versions. unlike the previous droids i have owned. verizon support gone after six months. i want a good phone that will be viable in the android world for maybe the next 2 yrs.
i am scared to bite the bullet and leave big red. really dont know what their coverage is like here. 8 yrs ago it sucked.
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Moto X, trust me. It doesn't need any custom ROMs. It just works. I promise you. You can root if you want and install a custom recovery. At most maybe XPosed with some modules. But ROM-wise, it's amazing out of the box. And this is coming from a guy who has a ROM'd Galaxy S4 too.
There are 3 threads devoted to discussions about devices, please repost your question in one of these three threads: The what should I buy thread or the The Device Suggestion Thread or the The Device Comparison Thread.
Thanks!

Please help, trying to understand AT&T new upgrade schemes

I realize this is probably not the best place to post this...and possibly this doesn't even belong on this forum at all. But if you have ATT, please I would appreciate any thoughts you have about this.
I was previously on a family share plan with 4 other members of my family. I was pretty happy with the plan we had. Now I have taken the leap to dump 3 grandfathered UL data plans, and shift over to a mobile share account, which saves me about $100 per month in service charges, and still gives me nearly double the data I need for our group.
The thing I still can't quite get my head around with this plan, is the way they option your upgrades. I have seen the math, and realize the best way to do an upgrade on this plan is to do the Next program, and basically pay retail rent over the next 18-24 months, maybe finish out the lease to own the phone I'm renting...maybe just toss it back to upgrade to a new device.
But I just don't buy into it. For some reason, maybe I'm too frugal, I can't stomach the thought of paying retail for a phone. Even though I know it's cheaper overall than doing it the way I used to do it (pay $200 upfront for a device, and pay an extra $30 or so per line per month towards my contract price).
I find myself clinging to my working phone, with no plan of attack in mind for how I will actually do my next upgrade. And my whole family of users is getting antsy for upgrades. Everyone is off contract now, but I don't even know how to explain to them all how this new structure works. If we all upgrade we pay a rental fee every month and there goes that $100+ savings, now we are paying more than before on the old family plan, so why did I switch?
Help me figure out how to make sense of it all...and where to go from here...please!

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