CharlieB
09-26-07, 11:38 PM
WARNING: This is a LENGTHY post..but the education is priceless.
Let me be the first to say that I absolutely love this question and I'm faced with it on a daily basis, being as how i'm involved with the wireless industry. When you consider getting a cell phone(s) and a plan to go with it, ironing out the following aspects will put you FAR ahead of the game. Hell, learn them all, actually:
Will it be a Family Plan or an Individual Plan?
- Family Plans consist of a minimum of 2 phones. An account can typically have a maximum of 5 phones on a non-business plan. So if you plan on getting 7 phones for your Family Plan, you may need to split them into two different plans: One plan that holds 5 phones, a second plan that holds the remaining 2.
How many minutes will be used monthly?
- This is one of the, if not THE most critical questions to have answered prior to your going to the cell phone store. The best way to figure this out would be simply to average your past 3 cell phone bills, if you're a first time subscriber, then think of how often you use your house phone in general, and add 100 minutes to it, if you're an avid user. If it's a Family Plan, then make sure that you ask the members of how many they use, and add 200 minutes to that total to be safe.
What kind of phone do I really need to get?
- Selecting a phone has become abit more difficult for the typical *I need just a phone* user since the phones have evolved now into multimedia devices more than simple cellular devices. That being said, it's important that you know ahead of time what you should use, since they now may require special feature plans to be added to your account, simply because it's a *special* type of phone, such as a PDA or Blackberry device which generally require some type of Data Feature which costs you more monthly.
- Be sure to ask the sales person what phones require any additional monthly costing features and which do not prior to looking at the phones, that way you can better gauge what you're looking for, however, if you know you need a Blackberry (or the like), then be prepared to potentially pay for a data charge in addition to your normal monthly minutes plan!
- You're going to find that alot of the younger to mid-aged crowds will tend to shift toward a phone that includes things such as Music Players, Web Browsers and/or Video Cameras. In the current market, camera phones are a default option and hardly, if ever cost more than minimal price. Think of a camera phone as the default now...the same way a car comes equipped with a CD Player and Air Conditioning as standard equipment. Web Browsers are usually abit more costly, as the market doesn't create all phones equally as far as Web Browsing goes. Music Players seem to be the new *incoming default*, meaning that there are music phones out there that do not come at a heavy cost, since the current demand are for these types of phones and the cell phone manufacturers are creating enough to keep pricing very competitive.
Texing, Internet and Pictures....Oh My!
- If you're a parent looking to activate a new line of service for a text user, or upgrading an existing line to someone who would be using the Internet or a real estate agent that takes pictures of homes...or any combination thereof, it is ESSENTIAL that you pick a package that includes these options, such as Text Messaging (Text and Picture and Instant messages are generally characterized as one type of message, all included in one plan. In other words, you won't need a Texting plan and a Picture messaging plan and an Instant Messaging plan separately in most cases) and an Internet package (For when you want to download Ringtones or check the upcoming forecast, or watch Live TV).
- DO NOT, I REPEAT, DO NOT attempt to be *economical in theory* when it comes to these packages! It WILL cost you more down the road if you get a low-end messaging package for little Timmy at $4.99 which enables him to send/receieve a total of, say, 200 messages, when in fact he's blowing well past 1,000+ messages per month. Now you're suffering overages in addition to the feature package cost. OUCH! Take plans that are REALISTIC! Many providers offer an Unlimited Text/Picture plan for what might look like a fairly expensive cost...but I will tell you now, that, say, $19.99 for unlimited Text/Pics is ALOT better than paying $50.00 for all the overages. Better yet, some providers may even have a *Family Texting* package that will feature a pool, or better yet, an unlimited number of messages for all the phones on the Family Plan!
Do I expect a Free Phone?
- It never hurts to ask. Sometimes there will be free phones available, sometimes the phones will be free after a MIR (Mail In Rebate), sometimes there won't be any free phones, but there will be phones that are priced close to it. It all depends on the market and whether or not there are any promotions. Occassionally there will be phones that are free with new activations, however, when Upgrading, it's highly unlikely that you would receieve a free phone instantly. Yeah, it's like that.
- Sometimes you can go to a *Dealer/Agent* to get a free phone. There are drawbacks to this, however. Firstly, it may not be a new phone. They can swear up and down that it is (note: There is no Cell Phone Police), when in reality it couldn't possibly be new since there are 50 numbers in there from people you've never heard of before. Corporate locations will likely have free phones after a MIR or will have phones priced very economically that are legitimately new, 100%.
Dealers/Agents or Corporate stores...what gives?
- Dealers act on their own individual behalf. Each dealer is individually owned and operated and do business according to whatever guidelines and policies their individual owner(s) abide by, usually having minor ties, if any to whatever company that dealer is representing.
- When you walk into a store, you should always ask which you're dealing with. Nowadays, dealers are starting to disguise themselves to look like the actual corporate stores. My opinion as to why this would be, may be because of the horrible reputation they've set for themselves in the past through their questionable sales processes and guarantees. The thought process is that the customer will be more comfortable dealing with Corporate, rather than a dealer, so they make themselves to look as such.
- Dealers may have phones at lesser prices...however, the *higher end* phones are generally equally as expensive, if not more. Dealers will also typically have you sign two contracts and will take your credit card information. One contract would be to the cell phone company as you would expect, the SECOND contract would be TO THAT SPECIFIC DEALER, stating that if you make any changes, add or subtract from your plan after they've established it, etc, then they will charge your credit card the difference to make up their commission loss. In addition, should you cancel, you're likely to pay THE DEALER STORE'S cancellation fee IN ADDITION to the provider (Verizon, AT&T, Nextel ETC) cancellation fee...you're looking at over $350+ PER LINE in cancellation fees! Beware if you're ever made to sign two documents, or listen to a recording, then sign something...you should only have to agree ONCE...if you agree more than once, then walk out of the store. Who wants TWO contracts for every ONE phone?
- Dealers love to give strange and sometimes bizaare return policies. ALWAYS INQUIRE WITH DEALERS what their FULL RETURN POLICY is. A HUGE MISCONCEPTION would be that dealers will honor the same return policy as advertised by whatever cellular company they're going to be using, when infact, the complete opposite usually occurs. Read their return policy CAREFULLY...most usually have a 14 day return policy, even if the company advertises a 30 day return, remember, the dealer is DOING BUSINESS AS, therefore, they do not have to honor anything besides what they wish to. Additionally, beware, make sure that you don't fall for the *14 days or 15 used cell phone minutes* return policy! Basically, your return policy is either 14 days or if you use 15 phone minutes, WHICHEVER FIRST. Yeah. Great.
- Should a dealer *wrong* you or give you equipment and then close the store down or you *void* the return policy, going to a corporoate location will likely yield no positive results as the equipment that you purchased belongs to that dealers inventory. It is incredibly likely, if not definite that the corporate location will refer you back to the dealer of which you dealt with. Worst case, you'll have to deal with the customer service department (the corporate 800 number) to get any kind of positive result, if at all.
IN CLOSING:
Should you have any questions, or feel as though I left something out, make sure to post here or E-Mail me. I will go ahead and add to it as I see questions arise. I've been in the Cell Phone Industry now for well over 4 years and I've seen just about every fathomable situation. Talking about it should be easy as pie. Let me know!
http://weekendersny.com/forum/images/misc/progress.gif
Let me be the first to say that I absolutely love this question and I'm faced with it on a daily basis, being as how i'm involved with the wireless industry. When you consider getting a cell phone(s) and a plan to go with it, ironing out the following aspects will put you FAR ahead of the game. Hell, learn them all, actually:
Will it be a Family Plan or an Individual Plan?
- Family Plans consist of a minimum of 2 phones. An account can typically have a maximum of 5 phones on a non-business plan. So if you plan on getting 7 phones for your Family Plan, you may need to split them into two different plans: One plan that holds 5 phones, a second plan that holds the remaining 2.
How many minutes will be used monthly?
- This is one of the, if not THE most critical questions to have answered prior to your going to the cell phone store. The best way to figure this out would be simply to average your past 3 cell phone bills, if you're a first time subscriber, then think of how often you use your house phone in general, and add 100 minutes to it, if you're an avid user. If it's a Family Plan, then make sure that you ask the members of how many they use, and add 200 minutes to that total to be safe.
What kind of phone do I really need to get?
- Selecting a phone has become abit more difficult for the typical *I need just a phone* user since the phones have evolved now into multimedia devices more than simple cellular devices. That being said, it's important that you know ahead of time what you should use, since they now may require special feature plans to be added to your account, simply because it's a *special* type of phone, such as a PDA or Blackberry device which generally require some type of Data Feature which costs you more monthly.
- Be sure to ask the sales person what phones require any additional monthly costing features and which do not prior to looking at the phones, that way you can better gauge what you're looking for, however, if you know you need a Blackberry (or the like), then be prepared to potentially pay for a data charge in addition to your normal monthly minutes plan!
- You're going to find that alot of the younger to mid-aged crowds will tend to shift toward a phone that includes things such as Music Players, Web Browsers and/or Video Cameras. In the current market, camera phones are a default option and hardly, if ever cost more than minimal price. Think of a camera phone as the default now...the same way a car comes equipped with a CD Player and Air Conditioning as standard equipment. Web Browsers are usually abit more costly, as the market doesn't create all phones equally as far as Web Browsing goes. Music Players seem to be the new *incoming default*, meaning that there are music phones out there that do not come at a heavy cost, since the current demand are for these types of phones and the cell phone manufacturers are creating enough to keep pricing very competitive.
Texing, Internet and Pictures....Oh My!
- If you're a parent looking to activate a new line of service for a text user, or upgrading an existing line to someone who would be using the Internet or a real estate agent that takes pictures of homes...or any combination thereof, it is ESSENTIAL that you pick a package that includes these options, such as Text Messaging (Text and Picture and Instant messages are generally characterized as one type of message, all included in one plan. In other words, you won't need a Texting plan and a Picture messaging plan and an Instant Messaging plan separately in most cases) and an Internet package (For when you want to download Ringtones or check the upcoming forecast, or watch Live TV).
- DO NOT, I REPEAT, DO NOT attempt to be *economical in theory* when it comes to these packages! It WILL cost you more down the road if you get a low-end messaging package for little Timmy at $4.99 which enables him to send/receieve a total of, say, 200 messages, when in fact he's blowing well past 1,000+ messages per month. Now you're suffering overages in addition to the feature package cost. OUCH! Take plans that are REALISTIC! Many providers offer an Unlimited Text/Picture plan for what might look like a fairly expensive cost...but I will tell you now, that, say, $19.99 for unlimited Text/Pics is ALOT better than paying $50.00 for all the overages. Better yet, some providers may even have a *Family Texting* package that will feature a pool, or better yet, an unlimited number of messages for all the phones on the Family Plan!
Do I expect a Free Phone?
- It never hurts to ask. Sometimes there will be free phones available, sometimes the phones will be free after a MIR (Mail In Rebate), sometimes there won't be any free phones, but there will be phones that are priced close to it. It all depends on the market and whether or not there are any promotions. Occassionally there will be phones that are free with new activations, however, when Upgrading, it's highly unlikely that you would receieve a free phone instantly. Yeah, it's like that.
- Sometimes you can go to a *Dealer/Agent* to get a free phone. There are drawbacks to this, however. Firstly, it may not be a new phone. They can swear up and down that it is (note: There is no Cell Phone Police), when in reality it couldn't possibly be new since there are 50 numbers in there from people you've never heard of before. Corporate locations will likely have free phones after a MIR or will have phones priced very economically that are legitimately new, 100%.
Dealers/Agents or Corporate stores...what gives?
- Dealers act on their own individual behalf. Each dealer is individually owned and operated and do business according to whatever guidelines and policies their individual owner(s) abide by, usually having minor ties, if any to whatever company that dealer is representing.
- When you walk into a store, you should always ask which you're dealing with. Nowadays, dealers are starting to disguise themselves to look like the actual corporate stores. My opinion as to why this would be, may be because of the horrible reputation they've set for themselves in the past through their questionable sales processes and guarantees. The thought process is that the customer will be more comfortable dealing with Corporate, rather than a dealer, so they make themselves to look as such.
- Dealers may have phones at lesser prices...however, the *higher end* phones are generally equally as expensive, if not more. Dealers will also typically have you sign two contracts and will take your credit card information. One contract would be to the cell phone company as you would expect, the SECOND contract would be TO THAT SPECIFIC DEALER, stating that if you make any changes, add or subtract from your plan after they've established it, etc, then they will charge your credit card the difference to make up their commission loss. In addition, should you cancel, you're likely to pay THE DEALER STORE'S cancellation fee IN ADDITION to the provider (Verizon, AT&T, Nextel ETC) cancellation fee...you're looking at over $350+ PER LINE in cancellation fees! Beware if you're ever made to sign two documents, or listen to a recording, then sign something...you should only have to agree ONCE...if you agree more than once, then walk out of the store. Who wants TWO contracts for every ONE phone?
- Dealers love to give strange and sometimes bizaare return policies. ALWAYS INQUIRE WITH DEALERS what their FULL RETURN POLICY is. A HUGE MISCONCEPTION would be that dealers will honor the same return policy as advertised by whatever cellular company they're going to be using, when infact, the complete opposite usually occurs. Read their return policy CAREFULLY...most usually have a 14 day return policy, even if the company advertises a 30 day return, remember, the dealer is DOING BUSINESS AS, therefore, they do not have to honor anything besides what they wish to. Additionally, beware, make sure that you don't fall for the *14 days or 15 used cell phone minutes* return policy! Basically, your return policy is either 14 days or if you use 15 phone minutes, WHICHEVER FIRST. Yeah. Great.
- Should a dealer *wrong* you or give you equipment and then close the store down or you *void* the return policy, going to a corporoate location will likely yield no positive results as the equipment that you purchased belongs to that dealers inventory. It is incredibly likely, if not definite that the corporate location will refer you back to the dealer of which you dealt with. Worst case, you'll have to deal with the customer service department (the corporate 800 number) to get any kind of positive result, if at all.
IN CLOSING:
Should you have any questions, or feel as though I left something out, make sure to post here or E-Mail me. I will go ahead and add to it as I see questions arise. I've been in the Cell Phone Industry now for well over 4 years and I've seen just about every fathomable situation. Talking about it should be easy as pie. Let me know!
http://weekendersny.com/forum/images/misc/progress.gif