Humberto Saabedra is the Editor-in-Chief of AnimeNews.bizPhoneNews.com and an occasional columnist for Ani.me. He can also be found musing on things at @AnimeNewsdotbiz

254 responses to “Sprint Launches HTC Hero”

  1. F1

    @ Don Louie

    “Sprint isn’t Metro PCS, they don’t flash phones.”

    Who told you that?

    Since past year, they have to do it, as part of their open Network declaration!
    They will warn you in advance, no gurantee that all the SPRINT features might work, if need be, VZW would flash it back, if you had to return the unit.

    Thank You

  2. Sprint Tech

    F1, Sprint has NEVER flashed phones. If the ESN is not in the database and the phone does not say Sprint on it, they wont activate. No exceptions.

    Also. I had a thought. What if Sprint let anyone buy the Hero, Pre, or Instincts and let them keep their old plan, but requires a specific Data plan to be put on the acct instead. Like the $30 Pro pack? So, you can keep your legacy plan but must switch your current data plan with this new one? Would that be a fair compromise?

  3. F1

    @ Sprint Tech

    Dear “Longterm” employee,
    this should help provide you with a better understanding,
    of the SPRINT customer’s state of mind.

    Year after year, one can hardly ever get a consistent answer, or even an honest one, at any level of service, that in it self is substandard and unacceptable.
    Never mind the “bait and switch” practises on various Data plans, year after year, repackaging the same product and selling it for more inflated prices,in addition to the discriminative marketing practises against it’s core foundation of Legacy & SERO clients, that consists arguably of some 40 plus million customers!

    Changing the rules mid game is simply wrong, surely you can appreciate that and by default our sentiments.

    Please try to remember that at the end of the day, the consumers by their passive or active action, including but not limited to legal action, i.e. “class action law suits”, can make or brake any business, simply based on the treatment they have received.

    You have to put yourself in their position, as a result you will have a far better understanding of their state of mind,and lastly stop defending this failed business model.
    If you realy would want to make a difference, try to improve your company, since it’s action has resulted in what you are now experiencing.
    We all know that you are not CEO Dan Hesse, we also know he does not listen to you or anyone else.
    Every new SPRINT CEO comes in, claims to want to fix things, they make a couple of improvements, get greedy and prepare to move on, but only after filling their pockets with millions of dollars.

    I am certain that you also will recognize this pattern at SPRINT, now imagine being a longterm customer, it is shamefull and defenceless, and it can not stand for long, unless he or the next CEO changes policy before it is too late for change.

    Thank You

  4. F1

    @Sprint tech

    “Like the $30 Pro pack? So, you can keep your legacy plan but must switch your current data plan with this new one? Would that be a fair compromise?”

    Are you and Don Louis the same individual?
    You seem to have at very least have had the same marketing training,
    maybe you are both retention agents?
    He asked the same question, six months ago regarding the Pre, prior to it’s release, also here you go with the repackaging of Data!

    BTW last year I was offered by SPRINT, the flashing of any VZW CDMA phone, including the Omnia, is that another example of inconsistency by SPRINT?!

    I rest my case.

    Thank You

  5. JJ

    @sprint tech
    Sprint might not flash a phone for you but they have to BY LAW give you the unlock code once you are done with your contract. You can bring most unlocked cdma phones to sprint and they will activate them. The only thing is that they don’t gurantee that the data programs on the phone will work. My friend was using his unlocked motorola 385 with sprint for a while. Verizon will also take unlocked phones but they also will not gurantee the data features. They might give you a hard time trying to activate because they want to sell you their own handset but sooner or later you can activate it.

  6. Don Louie

    JJ, have fun with the weak phones offered and only upgrade options being flashed phones from other providers, way to make a stand. Love how you capitalized verizon like it’s leaps and bounds ahead of Sprint even though TracFone has only part of thier coverage (no roaming or DOrA) to offer.

    GP, I’m surprised the fact that your account isn’t old hasn’t been brought up as the reason you can’t add lines. Some account have restrictions on the number of lines they can have initiallym I went thru that my first 2 years of service but it was rectified by the 3rd, no amount of escalation can fix it, only time and can.

    F1, smartphones on all carriers have that $30 data pack that only includes data and email but Sprint will let you get a rebate with a $25 pack and in some cases allow a switch to the $15. They’ve taken a hard stance on thier featurephones by only allowing Everything plans but could go a long way by making the Pro Pack the official data pack of said phones, which in essence is no different than the RIM policy upheld on legacy and SERO. This disagreement has been raging for a long time and probably will continue.

    igor, being a tech dude you sound really petty that because Sprint has a hard policy you refuse to help your friends and fam save money. You either don’t want them having a better plan than yours or want to have the cheapest plan with the best phones.

    Boz, I understand exactly what you are saying and feel your pain. What is an option is to explain you case to Account Services before you do any upgrades and they may give you the maximum discount on the Everything Data Share plan which would add about $30 to your bill but look at it this way, in a pinch you will always have nav and in down times you have an entertainment options. I’ve been wondering why there are only two Data Share option and think thsi was one of thier big mistakes being that it cut out the small talking fams that want these phones

  7. JJ

    @donlouie,
    How did I capitalize verizon? All I said was that straight talk used the verizon network and that would be a great thing since they have a lot of coverage. I know that there is no roaming included but my friend has verizon and he rarely roams. I support sprint over verizon anytime but you can’t change the fact that sprint phones switch to roaming a lot more than verizon. Your also right, they have weak phones right now but like I said before, my wife is perfectly happy with a flip phone that she uses for mostly talking and texting and once in a blue moon uses data.(Don’t forget that straight talk offers 411 service for free) Also last time I checked the w385 by motorola got great ratings and is a very durable phone.
    I am still on a plan with sprint myself and will stay with sprint as long as I can. Its just my other lines that I am getting rid off. Also straight talk is going to be releasing a slide out samsung qwerty phone in the next month or two and will probably continue releasing better phones in the near future.
    Don’t get mad at the fact that a lot of people who rarely use data have a better option than sprint now that straight talk is out not to mention all the other NO CONTRACT plans out there that work very well too.

  8. Don Louie

    JJ, let me get this straight, you and F1 plan to circumvent the current policy in order to keep your plans and save a few dollars by waiting til your perspective phones come to another carrier, spend $600-$700 on the phone (not counting the service and required data plan), get service for a few days/weeks, cancel and try to get said phones activated on Sprint? All that just so you won’t have to spend $10-$30 extra every month. But in protest JJ canceled he and his wife’s plan to get 2.5G and nowhere close to a smartphone, unles his wife has TracFone and he went to VERIZON but either way it went he is still paying more for less

  9. Don Louie

    I in no way am mad at anyone’s choice, the reasoning and justification behind that choice causes hilarity. Did you wife have a SERO plan too? Whatever new phone TracFone gets will not be DOrA for a while, Page Plus would’ve been a better option because you can use whatever Verizon phone you want and the unlimited paln is cheaper

  10. JJ

    yes she was on sero. I looked at page plus but page plus is $39.95 and straight talk is only $30 and my wife never goes over 500mins. Also page plus is only 20mb which isn’t much less but its still $10 less. Although page plus does allow you to keep your minutes for 120 days compared to 30 days with straight talk. I will try out straight talk for a little bit and then review my options. Thanks for the input donlouie.

  11. JJ

    I just checked again and page plus offers a 1200min 1200text plan with 50mb of data for 29.95. You have to use within 30 days but that is a better deal than straight talk. I will see if they will let me put my old verizon phone on it. Will try straight talk for a month and see what happens.

    Oh by the way, the bbb has just contacted me and told me they have sent the info to sprint. I will be waiting for a response from sprint. Im crossing my fingers and hoping. If it doesn’t work out I’ll be happy with tp2 or the diamond 2 when its released.

  12. Don Louie

    Page Plus is the only pre pay option that has access to better phone, thru vzw. You all continue making a stand and fighting the supposed good fight.

  13. Igor

    @ Sprint Tech

    I was under the assumption the SERO and LEGACY were either the same or very similar. If I am wrong about that, I apologize. Sorry to call you a liar. However no offense to you, but if you say you are so bright and have been with sprint for so many years, and have seen so many managers, district managers, regional manager etc. come and go, how come you are not a manager yourself. How come sprint doesn’t recognize your talent and loyalty by promoting you?

    @ Don Louie

    As I said previously, I would recommend the best plan for the person. If the only thing that the person is interested in is price, and they are looking for an all inclusive plan with text messaging, data, and all of the other features, then I would recommend Sprint. However most of my friends and family emphasize quality over price. First of all, since there was a question of what is the big hype over Verizon, I’ll answer that while we are on the topic of quality… I live in new york city, which obviously has a lot of cell phone towers and gets good reception from almost any provider, but putting a verizon phone next to a sprint phone, you will see that the coverage and call quality is significantly better on the verizon network. Prime example.. I work in an office building on the 10th fl, I sit not to far from a window but I get very bad reception. I have only a one bar and I keep loosing EVDo service, while my verizon phone works with no problem (always 4 or 5 bars and always great data coverage).
    Getting back to what I would recommend, if there is a $10 -$15 difference in cost, and I knew that price was not a big concern (and it’s not with most people that I know) I would recommend a reliable service which has good customer support over Sprint in a heartbeat. Just a couple of months ago that wasn’t the case. Even after the palm Pre came out I wasn’t very upset. First of all the customer service has decreased in quality, no body knows the right answer and you need to speak to 3 – 5 representatives and each one gives you a different answer. Also Sprint has clearly set a president that their customers can not rely on them in the long run.

    and about the idea of paying $30 extra for data… WHY WOULD I PAY $30 FOR SOMETHING THAT I ALREADY HAVE!!!! It’s not paying $30 in order to have data, It’s paying $30 in order to get use a phone which I should already have access to as a sprint customer. The bill that I pay every month has the sprint logo at the top, the same logo that is on all of these phones. Maybe Sprint should separate in to two companies and put a SIMPLY EVERYTHING logo on all of these phones. Until then, all sprint customer’s should be entitled to get any of the sprint phone.

    And what’s this whole idea that you HAVE TO HAVE UNLIMITED DATA. You never had to have unlimited minutes.. the provider would just charge you for any minutes that you used that you didn’t have. If a person thinks that they only need 10 or 20 or 50mb of data, then they should be able to make that decision, and if they go over, just charge them. Don’t force people to get what they don’t need. The customers’ needs should always come first!

  14. Don Louie

    igor, it still comes off as someone whining. airhead said it best, they aren’t forcing you to get any phone. you’ve made your choice to stick with what you have and that’s fine but to make it about quality of service, in the NY area where Sprint is either 1 or 2 for both data and voice, makes the argument even less valid. Since you are a tech dude, get the Touch Pro 2 or wait on the Diamond 2 and put Android on it, there is a way.

  15. JJ

    @don louie
    First of all I appreciate your tips on the page plus situation. Thanks

    On the topic of having to switch to an everything plan to get the hero, technically sprint is forcing you to switch. If you decide to stay with a phone that is not android,instinct or pre they let you be but otherwise they FORCE you into an everything plan. How is that not forcing?
    Also when it comes to quality, sprint is rated on the top of the list in new york but igor is right when it comes to using the phone indoors. Verizon has sprint beat in that regards. For me especially it gets frustrating when I go into a shopping center and I have to force my touch diamond to roam. What will happen when I upgrade to a newer phone that no longer has that option? I’m stuck with having a phone that doesn’t work indoors. I understand 4g will probably fix that in the future but we are living in the now. I am wililng to stick by sprint because I have a good priced plan and decent signal coverage but when they force you to change to a more expensive plan that defeats the whole purpose of staying with sprint.

    I think that is what igor is trying to point out. Most people are indoors over 50% of the time. I would want my phone to have evdo indoors especially since I tether once in a while. At home sprint had to give me an airave to use my phone which doesn’t improve evdo just 1x.

  16. Igor

    @ don louie

    I think we have demonstrated that sprint customer service is below par. Just the fact that the representative JJ spoke with told him that the hero will work with the Hero shows how the representative was not knowledgeable. If that was the only occurrence, then it would not be a big deal, but this is happening over and over again for many people. Either sprint has decided to do that as a strategic selling tactic, to tell people it will work and then when they try to activate tell them they have to switch the plan and hope that they just switch since they already have the phone in their hand (bait and switch). Or the representatives are not properly trained or informed. Either way it says something about the quality of service Sprint offers.

    In regards to the fact that Sprint is rated as number 1 or 2 in New York, it has no relevance. I don’t know what rating Sprint hold in New York or nationwide but I do know from experience that the sprint network does not work as well as Verizon’s. JJ is absolutely right, outside the phone works fine, but inside is a whole different story. And nowadays when a lot of people (people I know) are using cell phones as a primary phone and no longer have landlines in the house, using a phone indoor is a very bid deal. I’m not saying that sprint does not work in doors, but it doesn’t work as well as Verizon, and there are certain times when it doesn’t work at all while verizon does. I have never encountered a situation where I had service on my sprint phone, but the verizon phone does not work, but there have been many times when the situation was reversed. It’s ok that Sprint is not as good as verizon, there will always be the best company, and then the ones that are close behind, but the reason I make this point is because there was a comment earlier (I don’t remember by who) stating that they don’t understand what’s the big deal about verizon. Well the big deal is that currently they are the best and the most reliable, and rather than down play the difference, strive to be at the same level.

  17. GP

    @ Don Louie

    Thanks for your thoughts … but I am pretty darn confident that time is not the problem in being able to add lines. When I spoke with a very knowledgeable retention rep (who is now dedicated to my account), she said that one day they could add the xtra lines of service on this specific plan and then the next day they couldn’t. Sprint simply blocked the codes from activating ANY lines of service with that plan code.

    Again, what happened to you did not happen to me. At least you are consistent.

  18. Boz

    Well, I just got off of the phone with Account Services and they offered me the same everything data 450 plan for $49.99 that they offered @JJ. They also offered me the everything messaging 450 for $29.99 for my wife’s phone. Basically, I would be paying the same monthly rate for my account as I am now, but my wife will have unlimited texting instead of 300 msgs, and I will have texting, data, gps, etc. on my line instead of just data. I took that deal. My account changes will be effective tomorrow so that I can go to Best Buy and get myself a Hero.

  19. JJ

    boz-Thats a great deal. I’m glad it worked out. Enjoy the hero. I am still waiting to recieve a mailing label to send my hero back and Ive been playing around with it and it is a very good phone. Very smooth os and great phone design. My account still is eligible for the 49.99 and I can still call back and get it but I’m still deciding. I will wait for a response from the bbb and see if they offer me something better . If not I will decide if I stick with sero and get tp2 or diamond2 or get the hero. We will see. Good luck and enjoy your new phone.

  20. Sprint Tech

    I still gotta say I have never ever seen Sprint flash a phone. I have never even heard of anyone in Sprint with the capabilities to do such a thing. Our s/w upgrade program will not upgrade or “flash” a phone’s firmware if it doesn’t recognize the current firmware already in the phone. We just do not flash a non Sprint phone. It doesn’t happen. There is no policy on this subject. No method & procedure for it. Nothing. That is because we do not, and will not in the foreseeable future, flash a non Sprint branded phone. We don’t even flash Virgin Mobile devices, and we own them.

    F1, you say Sprint offered to do it, but you never actually had it done? It sounds like false promises given by someone who had no intent but to try to get you off the phone. If you tried to pursue that flash, it would never have happened. Its just not done. Yes, we can give you the MSL if you find another carrier willing to flash your phone, but that is the absolute only thing will do.

  21. Don Louie

    Christopher Price should get in this to tell F1 his dream of an iphone (man that’s funny) or Derire being flashed after he paid all that money is pretty much a pipedream. I have heard of people saying things like that have been done but whoever did so had no official help from Sprint

    Boz, more people ought to loose their sense of entitlement and just ride the savings wave because unless you are on a fam plan of 800 minutes or less and only one data user then the only option is pre pay. JJ can attest to that

  22. Don Louie

    GP, I can honestly say your experience mirrors mine but you know more about what I went thru than me. This account must have some type of spending limit to not allow you to add lines or something of that nature but what do I know? Your problem is way different than the rest of these posted here because it seems you want to add a line but are being denied, my fault for not keeping up but the way you kept shooting back about what you were not being given made me believe it was one of the featurephones restricted to you. Your account is a little more than 2 years old so at this point it’s a no for you, maybe by that 3rd year you can

  23. Don Louie

    igor, this “bait and switch argument holds no weight. If some rep told you something before the phone even came out, and apparently you have enough time with Sprint, C.S. in general, to know that stuff has to be taken with a grain of salt because this site was telling at the same time the Everything plan could very well be a qualification. You should team up with JJ and F1 in the complaint to the FCC and BBB to see what that brings you all. Doing all that here comes off as a bunch of whiny, arrogant wannabe brats feeling they are entitled to whatever Sprint offers, just my opinion

  24. F1

    We all know what Clint Eastwood has said about an individual’s opinion!

    Don Louis you never denied being an agent of SPRINT, silence is golden.

    Stop pretending being a customer of SPRINT, if anyone is whiny that would be you, by constantly bickering about us expressing our valid frustration with SPRINT, and trying to help each other by utilizing our sources,at least Sprint tech is attempting to help!

    Your comments are very immature:
    “Don Louie on October 15th, 2009, 12:28 pm

    Christopher Price should get in this to tell F1 his dream of an iphone (man that’s funny) or Derire being flashed after he paid all that money is pretty much a pipedream…..”

    Please have some more respect for yourself!
    It is very naive to under estimate our collective influence.

    Thank You

  25. Don Louie

    for F1, I’ve been a Sprint customer for 9 years, did try to work for them and may again in the future. You have been whining about keeping that precious plan of yours for a good long while now and I’ve given you and others options but they fall on deaf/blind and stubborn ears/eyes. I saw you post here and in other post about how you were waiting on vzw to get the iphone next year (every time you typed for all to read it I chuckled) so you can buy full price and use it on Sprint, just want the site’s administration to verify what I know to be a false hope. Sprint Tech has said so and I have been told by techs in store as well as over the phone, just wanted you to know before spending money on a phone you will have sell on ebay to get close to what is paid back. I respect the fact that you have a great deal in your current plan but the bottom line is if you really want the new hotness, you’ll have to give it up and if you refuse to acknowledge it so be it but you won’t get any help from Sprint flashing a Verizon phone

  26. Don Louie

    P.S. good luck with BBB and the FCC

  27. Igor

    @ Don louie as I said in my post, its either that Sprint is purposely sending these phones out hoping people will switch once they have the phone in their hand OR (that’s the operative word) a lot of sprint representatives need to be retrained and the customer service is not knowledgeable. Either way you look at it the customer service sucks. And these phones are being sent out (already released) to customers on incompatible plans, so i am not sure what you mean by “If some rep told you something before the phone even came out”. Once again the phone was out and was being sent to people, for example to JJ.

  28. Don Louie

    JJ is no example because he was going off hearsay, the same thing that is leading F1 to believe an iphone is going to be on vzw next year and he can have it flashed to Sprint, man it gets funnier every time. I imagine a sub walking in the store saying “I don’t need the rebate, I’m using it on Sprint” then goes into the local store aking to have it flashed and they say “we don’t do that”, in this case it would be some Android phone though cause it will be a wait for the fruit

  29. Don Louie
  30. GP

    @ Don Louie

    At some point you will stop trying to figure out my situation and realize that I am providing accurate information. There is not a spending limit, there is no time period or anything other than Sprint management pulled the plug on the plan. I tried 3 times over the past 1.5 years to get the 3rd line added. Each time my request was escalated and each time the answer … Sprint is not activating any lines of service with your plan code … not even additional lines on an existing account. THAT IS ALL THERE IS!!!

    This is wrong … it is misrepresentation … it is breach of contract. The only thing that has kept me with Sprint is the cost benefit that I derive from the plan. Don Louie, you might as well stop trying to figure it out and simply realize that these are the facts. Remember that I have had at least 15 calls with Retention over the last 2 years and a dedicated rep that will call whenever I have a question or problem.

    The fact that Sprint will not allow legacy customers access to many phones is another slap in the face. It is also a policy that creates distrust and disharmony by treating legacy customers (long term customers) as if their business wasn’t valuable all these years.

    Again, current and future customers of Sprint need to know the facts about what Sprint agrees to versus what they actually do. Protect yourselves! Have an exit strategy. Speak up when you are not treated well and let everyone know. ALSO, speak up when you are treated well too. So to that point, I have had a couple of wonderful retention reps that have done spectacular things for me. Probably, the only reason that I am still a customer.

  31. ajmqrst

    To you stupid SERO whiners, do you really think VZ or AT&T gives a flip about you anymore than Sprint or have any more “principles” than Sprint? You seriously can’t be that stupid. New phones, new reality, even if it means making a business decision to “break a promise”, as you put it. Live with it. Pay to play or go away. It’s that simple. Go to VZ or AT&T and pay more for their “loyalty” if you think that’ll work out better for you. Good luck with that.

    I suppose you guys are also stupid enough to think that when a credit card companies raises rates, you can find a different bank that will promise not to ever raise your rates?

  32. JJ

    @ajmqrst
    You and so many others just don’t get the point do you? The main point here is the fact that the plans that everyone is talking about have the features(unlimited data etc…) that are also included in the everything plans and therefore there is no technical reason why they are blocking it. We are talking about sprint not vzw or att so that reasoning is irrelevant. We are talking about a company that blatanly is saying that a phone won’t work on a certain plan because it uses some type of special data when the real reason is they just want to force their customers to pay more. Thats just it.
    And your credit card comparison? Nice comparison! That is why congress has passed a law that makes those rates hike illegal unless there is a valid reason and they have an EXPLANATION behind it. Something that sprint doesn’t have. Everytime you call and ask why they are not allowing it you get a different reason everytime that do not make any sense.

    So if you don’t fall under the category of being forced to pay extra then don’t call those who are whiners. That’s basically saying that if someone is fighting for something they believe in their whiners. That makes all americans whiners then.

  33. Don Louie

    JJ, you and all the other SERO aren’t fighting for anything you believe in, it’s something you think you’re entitled too and I would like a link that says rate hikes are illegal because mine doesn’t call it a law but an inquiry

    http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2009/07/credit_cards_congress2.html

    I dig dig a little deeper and found this though

    http://michiganmessenger.com/25997/vague-law-threatens-to-solidify-abusive-credit-card-rate-hikes

  34. Igor

    @ Don Louie

    How is JJ no example. There was no hearsay, he called sprint, they told him yes of course you can have the Hero with your plan. Sprint sent him the phone… and then Sprint told him that they won’t activate it unless he changes his plan. Once again a Sprint representative sent him the phone and told him that he can upgrade without changing his plan.

    @ajmqrst

    I’m sure that when you get screwed you just lay there and take it, maybe even ask for some more, but there are people who don’t like to get screwed. We are aloud to question why certain things are being done, and just because a company decided to do something doesn’t automatically make it right. As JJ said earlier, if nobody ever questioned anything then there would never be any progress.

    -Im sure you think that our founding father who wanted freedom of religion and speech, the people who fought against slavery, or for woman’s rights were all whiners. If it was up to you I’m sure you would still have kids working 12 hour days with dangerous machinery for pennies per hour. Who needs progress! Let’s just leave everything the way it is.

  35. airhead

    I had commented about the issue of Sprint’s position on forcing customers into higher priced plans on 10/14 but as of yet I haven’t seen any responses to my point(s) of view… : (

  36. JJ

    Yep I still have the phone at home. Im waiting for the return label. In the mean time Im hoping before I send it back that I hear back from sprint and the bbb and see if they want to help me out. If it still doesn’t work out then sprint not only isn’t going to get extra money from the forced upgrade, but I am still using the same amount of data or even more then I would have used on the hero and they have paid for overnight shipping twice. In the end I still have my $30 unlimited data plan that I will not be letting go unless the release a more powerful android device-maybe the HERO 2? Even then it is still too good to let go. Not to mention I just found out I can listen to espn radio on my phone which will definetly eat up some data. Oh well sprint you screwed another customer and yet the customer is still here.

  37. Igor

    @ Airhead,

    Your post was pretty accurate accept for the fact that it is not appropriate for sprint to arbitrarily decide that certain people can get phones and certain people can’t. It’s called discrimination. Weather this type of discrimination is legal or not I do not know. But as always, discrimination creates controversy and contempt.

    If some company decided to build a nuclear power plant next to your house you would complain and be upset, but the same can be said, if you don’t like it just pack up and move to a different house. But there are zoning laws in place to restrict companies from doing so. Therefore the point is that if there aren’t any laws to keep companies from doing this yet, then maybe somebody should draw attention to this in order to create these laws. The way our legal system works is that first somebody does something which is deemed wrong, then the courts make a decision and set a president and then laws emerge. Unfortunately our laws are created after the fact that enough wrong is done (wall street is a prime example).

    So once the cell phone companies do enough wrong, someone will decide we need to put a stop to this. Currently there are a lot of bills being drawn up in committees addressing various issues with the cell phone industry. At one point any time you wanted to move to another carrier you had to change your number (which was just a way of keeping you with your current provider because a lot of people were attached to their number either for business or personal reasons). There was absolutely no technical reason why you couldn’t keep your number but companies just didn’t want to let you go. Then congress decided that this shouldn’t be the case and made a law forcing companies to allow you to keep your number, and we have all been better off for it. Just recently the European Commission stated that all cell phones (in Europe) must have a standard phone charger, because they recognized the issue of companies changing their chargers from year to year just to force you to buy new accessories.

    The point I am trying to make is the fact that you shouldn’t just accept that if a company is doing it, it is automatically right. If you are hurt or inconvenienced by these actions it is your right to voice your opinion and try to make a change. People used to sign petitions in order to indicate how many people are actually affected, but these days you can just talk about it on sites like these, because companies have specific department searching for information about their company and creating reports.

    Also organizations like the BBB and FCC were created to regulate these companies, so to laugh and say that they will not stop in is just preposterous. They may or may not step in, but that’s what they are there for in order to protect the consumer, and initiate change.

  38. airhead

    Agreed. Complaining or acting properly (not whining as some put it) is the American way to deal with what does seem arbitrary. Ultimately, it can be left to some government official(s) to decide upon. That doesn’t exactly make me feel secure as the government also seems to make arbitrary decisions which can go in different directions in different situations at different times.

    Overall, I definitely would love the newest devices on my old plan BUT I know there ARE options including our ability to switch cell companies. The problem is, as many of those arguing against our point see, is that even with the Sprint changes, their plans are still less expensive than the competitors…

    Lets hope the BBB or Feds agree that Sprint shouldn’t prohibit old plans from new devices!

  39. Don Louie

    igor, how can slavery, civil right, women’s rights and a nuclear site be compared to phone choices? Your stance on this looses more credibility with each post. airhead is the only looking at this logically by acknowledging choices are limited but seeing that even if the choice of those phones was taken the cost would still be less than any other national non pre-pay with way more add-ons. Keep up the good fight but stop acting as if you all are martyrs doing this for the benefit of all, you just want to continue paying less than everyone else.

  40. Igor

    @ Don Louie

    Obviously a stupid smart-phone is not as important to fight for as the things I listed. My point is the fact that people need to fight for what they believe is right and not just say “well that’s how it is so I will just take all the shit that is thrown at me”. I’m sorry if my comparison was not clear and you thought that I meant that choice of phones is as important as civil rights. Next time Ill make sure to simplify my thoughts as much as possible so that even you can understand them.

    The fact that you argue about the analogies I make instead of realizing the point just shows that you would rather argue and disagree with whatever is said, rather then pause and think about the actual thoughts behind the statements.

  41. F1

    Chris…..again what happened to my post with only 1 LINK ?!

    Thank You

  42. Don Louie

    http://www.phonearena.com/htmls/Cellular-Souths-HTC-Hero-gets-its-own-new-smartphone-plan-article-a_7297.html

    http://www.boygeniusreport.com/2009/10/17/more-t-mobile-project-dark-rumors-financed-phones/

    http://www.engadgetmobile.com/2009/10/17/verizon-confirms-palm-pre-hitting-big-red-early-next-year/

    The first link is for all those who want the phone and out of Sprint at the same time some cheap rates, the second a comparable carrier that’s nation and cheaper rates and the third is those who wanted the Pre but no cheapness involved because you know, it’s the network

  43. Don Louie

    do the links provided cause comments to be moderated

  44. Don Louie

    How much moderating does it take, it must be about the links? F1, who were your links from because my three are from phonearena, boygeniusreport and engadgetmobile?

  45. Christopher Price

    Any comment with at least a few links will trigger moderation. It’s not site-specific, it’s an anti-spam system. Sometimes comments with even just one link trigger it. We’d share our heuristics, but that would aid spammers.

    We review comments when time permits, between building a new gaming platform and spinning off Newsroom Network, that just isn’t as much as normal right now.

  46. Don Louie

    my fault Chris, was posting these when the moderation was done, actually tried a third time too, delete it after checking it, please

  47. bottomline

    I really dont understand what all the complaining(bitching) is about ? U either like the provider that you’re with or u dont…. If u do, stay with it, if not, move on…… This isnt about civil rights being violated people, its about wireless options ! Get over it…….

  48. F1

    @ Don Louis

    I had just 1 link to “Mobileburn”, regarding the relase of the m900 on SPRINT!

    I also had a comment to you regarding you not listening,
    when I said it is not about the money, and it is about my freedom of buying a phone of my choice, I sited that there is no phone on the SPRINT line that I like, since the WebOS and Android devices are off limits to Legacy plan customers, also excluding the Instinct family of phones, it does not leave anything I can switch to, from my horrible PALM PRO 850!!

    1.If VZW gets the iPhone
    2. I can buy it unlock it by paying the full price
    4. Have SPRINT flash it, if possible, at the time!
    5. If not, return it to VZW, have them flash it back
    6, Return it for a full refund to VZW!

    What is wrong with having it on your own terms???
    Remeber, when you buy a car, you are aloud to gas it up at any gas station of your choice!!

    Thank You

  49. Don Louie

    You and GP continue to think your are not being heard or misunderstood when that isn’t the case. You do like at least 3 phones because there is only one Web OS and currently ons Android on Sprint now with both needing a plan change that will cause you all to spend $10-$40 more but at least $20 less compared to any national post pay option that has a smartphone. Then you want to link to to the Moment that will be Android so if that interest you the a plan will be the on;y option.

    http://www.engadget.com/photos/no-contract-30-45-straight-talk-wireless-plans-storm-walmart/2364336/

    You could wait on this like JJ, get verizon phone and go to Page Plus, Metro PCS or Cricket. Quit trying to fool yourselves by saying this about choice because if tit were you would have left a long time ago to get a comparable device with another carrier.

  50. Don Louie

    On the misguided idea that you will be paying full price for an iphone (you’ll be waiting at leas a year for that, if ever) and having Sprint flash it is really not an option. First of all the only place to get an unlocked phone is thru Best Buy and those are only GSM, CDMA carrier won’t be unlocking a device til the contract is up, second of all no national carrier is going to activate an non-carrier branded phone, third is once a phone is flashed it won’t be flashed backed byt those same national carriers so don’t waist your money on that is the only advice to give at this point

    http://www.sprintusers.com/forum/showthread.php?t=101726

    you can look thru this thread, join and start another on there or even ask on the forums here if you think I’m mistaken