Dreadful Sprint Policy Change Coming Next Week…

i currently have the free and clear plan and was thinking about using a BlackBerry on one of The lines. (the tour 9630 works on this plan). if I bed it on before this fee goes into effect, will i be spared?

I have 7 lines with Sprint & have been with them for 12+ years. I am out of contract on most of my lines….they have made my decision to switch to verizon iphones pretty easy.

@Yitzi:
You need to activate it by 01/29 or else you will lose your free and clear plan!

@Gn:
Good, speak with your wallet!
Enjoy Verizon! Their coverage is vastly superior and they don’t play games like this with their customers. And at the rate Sprint is going they won’t be much more expensive either.

Sprint obviously is doing this because they feel like the extra incremental revenue will be worth more than the customers leaving. It would be great to see a 2011 Q1 net loss in subscribers due to this change.

how much is the price difference with sprint legal family plans the unlimited ones with Verizon unlimited? ?

sprint getting worse and worse
this is more of way to force customers to swtich into everything plans and give up old plans

whats with sero these days?

when u say sero plans are not affected, does that include the old sero plan (500 mins) or the newer one?

Is this considered a change in term that will allow me to cancel my contract? We have 2 lines one that is already out of contract and one that still has a few months left on the contract but is up for renewal. I am possibly thinking about switching if I can get out of the contract for free otherwise I will either upgrade this week before this goes into affect or just wait it out an switch. Any suggestions?

Hey Dan, Wat Do U Mean That I’m Gonna “Lose My Free And Clear Plan” . . . Wont I Be Able To Add On A SmartPhone After This Date And Just Pay The $10 Fee? (Again The Phone I Have In Mind Is The BlackBerry Tour 9630, It Currently Works On The Free And Clear Plan)

@Cholentfresser:
Old SERO.

@Daniel:
Call Sprint and ask.

@Yitzi:
No. The $10 fee isn’t compatible with free and clear plans, so you will lose your plan if you activate even an old blackberry or palm phone after 01/29.

What it wasnt enough that i couldnt get any of the new smart phones!? These people are creeping up on us!Its not even worth having sprint anymore.

@Dan this is technically not that bad. At it stands even before this change, you had to give up your grandfathered plan to switch to any subsidized smart phone. And a 4g phone was always and still is an extra $10…
True that the activating an old phone thing is stupid, but with more and more 4g phones coming out, people will want evos etc.. Anyway. And it’s still $10 cheaper than verizon to add an extra line on a data family plan.. I don’t think they willloose any customers

i just left att and am in the proccess of signing up with sprint their prices are so much better and from what i understand their coverage is about the same any reason i should get it for me paying 125 instead of 185 (with att) seems worth it – i am getting charged the extra $10 but only for my android phone not the blackberry??

any opinions i have 30 days to cancel

Dan:
I’m not getting this, I have a Sprint plan with 5 phones, and one of them has Blackberry sevice, will I be charges now $10.

Thanx Dan For The Info And For The Quick Response. Any Idea Where I Can Purchase A Used BlackBerry Tour 9630 And Have It By 1/29 ? (New Is Also Good Its Just That I Cant Afford It)

Dan: Also if my Blackberry brakes, and I buy a used one on ebay to replace it, so i have to make a simple ESN change, are they going to start charging me $10 monthly, and if yes does any one have an idea how to make an ESN change and get around this.
Thanks

@yitz
where do you live? i may have an extra tour

@yitzi. Go on ebay or. Raigslist. If u vo on ebay and look for something eith a buy it now and ask seller for expedited shipping

@Dani I’m In Lakewood. Where Are U At?

@josh Thanx For The Advice. . . I First Wanna See If I Can Find Someone On This Site Cuz On Ebay U Never Know Wat Ur Getting And I Dont Have Much Time To Play Around With . . . .

Dan, I believe even Sero plans WILL be affected. Once a Sero customer activates any smartphone after 1/30, they will incur a $10 monthly fee.

Sero customers who switch to Sero Premium, however, which cost $10 more anyway, will not be affected by this change.

According to the Sprintusers.com forums, which has almost always been reliable, Sprint will also be taking away any added benefits to old Sero accounts as of March 1st, such as any employee discounts, as well as “pick 3” and other add-ons.

I understand why you are upset, and I am also upset about this change, as I have been a Sero 500 customer for more than 4 years, with a 25% employee discount and pick 3, and now Sprint will be messing me over.

However, despite all of this, Sprint is still the cheapest plan that you can get for your money. AT&T T-MOBILE and VERIZON are still 30-50 more per month with the same features.

To Zev: “Breaks” is the way it is spelled, not “brakes”. “Brakes” are what you use to stop your car or your bike.

@Zale:
Sprint may be the cheapest, but if they’re going to make me lose my legacy plan to change to another Centro I’m going to seriously consider jumping ship.

From how I understand it SERO customers shouldn’t be affected.

This is from the FAQ page:

“Does this affect SERO subscriptions?

* No, SERO accounts are not impacted by this charge. Customers wanting to upgrade from a feature phone to a smartphone may need to leave their current SERO plan and change to the SERO Premium plan (this rule is already in effect), but do not need to pay the $10 Premium Data add-on charge.
* The $10 Premium Data add-on charge for the HTC EVOâ„¢ 4G, HTC EVO Shiftâ„¢ 4G, Samsung Epicâ„¢ 4G a Galaxy Sâ„¢ phone remain in place.”

Ok. I’m a bit confused here. I switched to an android phone and then to a blackberry from my old SERO 500 plans to the new “SERO Premium” ones(for 10 dollars allowed me to use the newer phones). Before that I had the centro on the old Sero plan. At the time I switched they said if I wanted at any time, I could switch from my new smartphone back to my centro, and my monthly cost would go back down from $40 to $30. Does this mean its back to the “old sero plan”??? If this is the case, does it make sense for me to switch back to the 30 dollar plans and just make do without a smarthphone? after all it’s gonna be $20 cheaper?? If someone could please clarify this all to me so Ill know what to do before the deadline I would greatly appreciate it!!!

Delta 50% bonus and 25k elite miles are now back till may 31 2011 i got an email from Amex

in parenting Feb. issue there is a $10 off any order at amazon mom

Dan you are wrong. Insurance replacements or warrutee exchange it does not apply

@yitz contact me [email protected]

@vvv:
I never said otherwise. However if you want to do it yourself and put an old phone on your plan (without paying $7/month for insurance and then a $100 deductible) you will have to pay $10/month and change plans.

can u post the link for the delta deal with the elite miles thank you

@Dan
please clarify if this rule is for any future activation of a smartphone regardless of what you have existing on that line, or will it be affecting only when you have a “non-pda” and are switching to a “pda”?

Thanks

@YY:
Any future activation of a smartphone regardless of what you have existing on that line (even the same phone) will incur the $10/month charge.

I have a smartphone on an old fair and flex. basically if it breaks i gotta switch plans?? also in that case whats the point of paying 7 a month for insurance if anyways i wont be able to activate a smart phone again??

im so confused, so if have insurance and exchange my phone they will still charge 10$ month??

@chulent:
@je:
If you have insurance and they replace the phone then you do now have to pay the $10/month fee.

Note that if you even wanted to activate another phone in the meantime until the insurance replacement comes you would subject yourself to the $10/month fee…

hi i need a new phone quickly for a line on my account since mine broke and was taking time to decide whcih one to purchase but now theres no time! i can get 100 refurb blackberry with my insurance but i prefer a diff phone..anyone looking to sell a phone for decent price? please let me know asap emial me at [email protected] thank you in advance

@leeor:
I have some extra 2nd generation brand new Palm Centros…

does anyone have a code for gogo in flight wifi onaa

@Askmoses: The $10 extra that you are currently paying will remain. It’s not an additional $10 to $50. So you have an option of leaving as is at $40 or downgrading to a regular phone for $30. Basically you are not affected by the new rules.

@Yitzi:

Do you like capitals?

TRY REPLACEYOURCELL.COM I BOUGHT 3 PHONES FROM THEM. GOT THE PHONES 2-3 DAYS.

Dan: im on a legacy free & clear and haVe insurance. My question is what if my phone breaks . can i still get a new replacement from sprint without changing plans or they will cforce me to change to the everrything plan? will i have to change in the future, if i keep my acct the same. Meaning not switching phones only through insurance?

@Aron I’m On A Mobile Phone And When I Type With T9 It Automatically Starts Every Word With A Capital. I Never Really Did Much Research If There Is A Way To Change This Cuz I Dont Really Mind It And Most People Dont Notice. But U Got Good Eyes!

@Anonymous:
Ok. Only thing that seems to change is before I was able to downgrade to my centro for -10$ a month. Now it’s not gonna be considered a standard phone, rather a smartphone. This making sense?

oh my,
last week sprint called me about my business plan that was grandfathered in on a pretty sweet deal, more than 10 lines… they want me to choose a new plan… i guess this is all related…
can anyone help with sero plans… or what’s my best bet for 10+ lines?
thanks all

@Dan:

What color?? I am definitely interested, and Dan how much?

please email me at [email protected]

@HSS:
Green Centro new for $105 shipped, dan at dansdeals.com

How about if I have a non-data free and clear plan, and I want to switch to a BB just for the full keybored texting without upgrading the plan. Think they will charge the $10??

Thanks

so why not get new SERO?

@Eli:
Yes.

@Anonymous:
Only old SERO is exempt.

@Dan:
Exempt from what? I had the old sero, switched to premium. Is there a gain to switch back?

i currently have a sprint plan with 15 phones majority being blackberrys. my bill is around $1200/month. what service do you recommend switching today that’ll be a comparable price? will the new service be willing to pay the end-contract-early fee from sprint? and will i be able to keep my old numbers? thanks dan

@dan
You are making a huge mistake! The free and clear etc. Older plans can not have any phone classified as a smart phone on them. This rule has been in affect for a while. If you try to activate any phone classified by sprint as a smartphone they make you switch to the new everything plan. The blackbery tour and curve 8330 are the last phones NOT CLASSIFIED AS A SMARTPHONE! That means that the blackbery tour and curve 8330 are NOT affected by this new 10 dollar charge because they are NOT smartphones in sprints dictionary! I have verified this with sprint! So anyone that has a bb tour or curve 8330 or pearl 8130 or any OLDER model bb is not affected by this even if you activate it after jan 30! So don’t run to buy your tour now. Just get it when you need it and you will NOT have to change your plan and will NOT be charged 10 dollars extra! This new rule is only for smartphones. And the bb tour and older are NOT smartphones!

dan how much

i currently have the free and clear plan with a regular flip phone. I used to have a blackberry but it broke and couldnt afford a new one. They told me that since i switched to a regular phone i can not switch back to a blackberry with my free and clear plan. rather, i would have to switch to the blackberry new plan. is this true? are you saying that i can get a blackberry and still keep this plan? also a blackberry will be charged 10 dollars a month as well?

This scam of not allowing smartphones on old plans has been around for a while now. They do not let any smartphones on any plan that’s not an “everything data” plan. If you had a smartphone on an old plan and it breaks and you try to activate a new one. you would have to switch plans even before this new 10 dollar thing.there are a few smartphones not smartphones in sprint dictionary. The htc touch pro 2 and the older blackberys the tour and older. Any phone that the new charge applies to was not able to be activated on an older plan anyway. So if you have a phone now on an older plan you will not be affected by the new 10 dollar charge and if by some chance you had a smartphone on an old plan from the days before they stopped allowing it if that phone were to break they wouldn’t allow you to activate a new one without switching to an everything plan anyway. So the chutzpa that they have done to us older planholders has nothing to do with the new charge! That started over a year ago when they stopped alowing new activation of any smartphone on any old plan!

@fred:
@jake:
Guys, guys, guys, you are missing the boat.
I know that Sprint hasn’t let smartphones onto legacy plans for nearly 2 years now.

What is changing now is that they were not even satisfied with that and they are adding many many more phones into the smartphone category.

This includes older phones that were always OK like the Blackberry Curve 8330, Blackberry Tour 9630, Palm Centro, Palm Treo 755p, HTC Touch Pro, HTC Touch Pro 2, etc.

If you have those phones on your plan they won’t kick you off, but legacy account holders wont be able to activate those phones as of 01/30 and other account holders will need to pay $10/month for newly activated phones.

Read the FAQ that I linked to at the end of the post for more info!

To all those with a smartphone legacy plan(myself included) that seem to be concerned about the $10—this is the last of your problems (we are still saving a bundle even if we had to pay the $10)they will NOT allow you to keep your plan if for whatever reason you need to activate another phone with data.

does it make any sense to go SERO?

@dan:
You are wrong! The blackbery tour is still not classified as a smart phone. I had 2 people from sprint read me the list!

@jake:
Wow, 2 people from Sprint! No way! They must be right!!!!!!!!!


Effective 01/30, new Sprint smartphone list requiring premium data add-on (includes the following but is not limited to):

Blackberry 8350i
Blackberry 8830 and older BlackBerry phones
BlackBerry Boldâ„¢ 9650 smartphone
Blackberry Curve 8330
BlackBerry Curveâ„¢ 8530 smartphone
BlackBerry Curveâ„¢ 9330 smartphone
BlackBerry Styleâ„¢ 9670 smartphone
Blackberry Tour 9630
iDEN BlackBerry phones
HTC EVO
HTC EVO Shift
HTC Heroâ„¢ with Googleâ„¢
HTC Snap (s511)
HTC Touch Diamond
HTC Touch Pro
HTC Touch Pro 2
LG Optimus S (LS670)
Motorola ES400
Motorola ES400S
Motorola i1
Palm Centro
Palm Pixi
Palm Pre
Palm Treo 755p
Palm Treo Pro
Samsung Ace (i325)
Samsung Epic
Samsung Instinct
Samsung Instinct HD
Samsung Instinct s30â„¢
Samsung Intercept (M910)
Samsung Intrepid
Samsung Moment
Samsung Transform (m920)
Sanyo Zio (8600)

@dan:
I read the link you have posted and clicked on the link at the bottom for the list of phones that require this fee and the blackberry curve 8330 and the tour 9630 and the pearl 8130 are NOT listed. The blackberys that are listed are the newer curve 8530 the bold and the style. Those have never been alowed on old plans. I don’t know why you are saying that they added the tour and curve 8330 to the list of smartphones.

@yitzi:
If you plan on getting the blackberry tour,curve 8330 or pearl 8130 then don’t rush its not affected by the new rule as it is NOT a smartphone.

@fred:
Have fun trying to activate your Curve 8330 or Tour 9630 come Sunday the 30th 🙂

And if you really did visit the Sprint link linked to at the end of the post and just did a simple Control-F search for Curve 8330 or Tour 9630 you would see that those phones are explicitly being added to the smartphone list.

@Dan:
The list in your link does not list the blackbery tour or curve 8330. Where are you quoting from?

@jake:
I’m honestly not even sure why I’m arguing with you. But just to make things clear I think it’s cute how you use the name “jake” and “fred” so interchangeably while posting from the exact same ip address as each other. Have a g’night Fred/Jake.

@Fred:
Is a palm Centro a smartphone according to sprint?

@fred
read this http://community.sprint.com/baw/community/buzzaboutwireless/plans/blog/2011/01/19/whats-there-to-know-about-the-10-smartphone-premium-data-add-on

@ dan:
I think what fred and jake are saying is thart the list on the first link has those phones listed wit a disclaimer that its not guaranteed to be accurate. in the middile there is alist that is directly from sprint and that does not have those phones listed.

@dan:
I think they are right. Old blackberys are not included as per 2 sprint account services supervisors

@dan:
I spoke to a few sprint reps and I’m gona join the boat with fred and his friends. I think you missed the boat on this one.

@Fred Thanx For Calming Me Down On The Rush To Get A BlackBerry. But At This Point I’m Just Unsure Who To Follow, Jake And Fred Say One Way And Dan Is Saying The Opposite. Can We Get A 3rd Person To Take Sides -(Since Jake And Fred Are The Same Person, I’m Looking For A 3rd Shita On This Shaila/Debate!)

Just link directly to the FCC’s online complaint form.

@Jake
Why are you arguing with Dan? He is king. He is always right.
@Dan
Thanks for the persistancy and all the info. Here is my question, I have a free and clear plan, 3500 mins for 3 lines shared. Unlimted, txt, n/w mobile to mobile. I call my communications guy (last week) and he told me that for additional 20 dollars a month, I would be able to add unlimited BB service. HOWEVER,this would only work with a bb tour or older. So, are you saying that if i dont add that feature by jan 30 I will not be able to keep my grandfather plan if I want a BB? Thanks for all your work!

Hey dan,
Why not have a little bet here. Let yitzi buy his tour before jan 30 at your advice. And if fred and co. Are right then you pay for the tour!

Sprint is being very vague here. Then again I’ve never actually gotten correct answers from one of Sprint’s hopeless phone agents.

That said, this is from a post by a Sprint employee on Sprintusers.com. It sounds to me that the system itself may not force you onto a new plan with an older smartphone, but a rep may force you onto one. I agree that it’s all quite confusing!

Effective 1/30/11, Sprint requires the $10 Premium Data Add-on on all (new and older) smartphones.

A smartphone is a device with an operating system that provides advanced computing capabilities including:
– Android
– BlackBerry
– Microsoft Windows Mobile
– Palm
– Samsung Instinct phones

3G/4G Smartphones

HTC EVO 4G
HTC EVO Shift 4G
Samsung Epic 4G
No change here, these phones require the $10.00 fee.

Smartphones that systematically require $10 Premium Data Add-on
BlackBerry® Curve 8530 smartphone
BlackBerry® Curve 9330 smartphone
BlackBerry® Bold 9650 smartphone
BlackBerry® Style 9670 smartphone
HTC Hero with Google
Palm Pixie
Palm Pre
LG Optimus S
Motorola ES400S
Sanyo Zio
Samsung Moment with Google
Samsung Intercept with Google
Samsung Transform

Smartphones that require $10 Premium Data Add-on, but not systematically enforced.
iDEN BlackBerry phones
HTC Touch Pro II
Palm Centro
Motorola i1
Older BlackBerry phones including 8330
Samsung Ace
Samsung Instinct
Samsung Instinct s30
Samsung Instinct HD
Samsung Intrepid
Any unlisted smartphone

@Dan. I just started a new 2 year contract on my existing group plan last week and got a Blackberry with it. If i decide to exchange the blackberry within the 30 day return policy for a different module blackberry will i get this new charge?

Thank you dan. My advice with this is twofold. First anyone that has an old bb now should call sprint and ask if it is ìncluded in the new premium fee. You when you get a rep that says its not included and you WILL get one to say that,even if you have to try a few times.make sure they NOTATE Your account. My experience with sprint is that if the system allows it most reps will do it because they are rated by customer satisfaction surveys and they usualy do anything the system allows to make you happy! So as long as they don’t block these phones in the system you should have no problem. If you run into a stubborn rep just hang up and call back or ask to speak with “account services” they will get it done for you!

With sprint if its not systematicly enforced. It can always get done with the right agent.

I called 2 reps on gotten 2 answers on the Palm Centro. So I called a 3rd rep who first told me one way and then changed his mind in middle of the phone call!

Bottom lime, the reps have no clue and Sprint corporate is being intentionally vague about the coming changes.

@fred:
Good advice.

@ben:
True, but they can always start enforcing it systematically.

They “can start” but as of now they haven’t and the rep that does tell you it is included is prob. Just making a mistake. I have had sprint reps tell me I need an everything plan to activate a tour even now. Until I convinced them to “try” and they came back and told me I’m right. Bottom line it seems like this new charge doesn’t realy affect us old free and clear users much bec. We’ve been abused for 2 years already. In the meantime I’ll keep enjoying my 2 blackberys with 1200 shared min,free incoming, unlimited text,pick 5 and 6pm nights and weekends for 65$ a month. I’ll sit on pins and needles waiting for the next shtick to try to get me to switch plans but for now it seems were safe.

@ben:
The Sprint press release clearly says that all smartphones will now be included as of 01/30. If you don’t change your phone you’ll be fine, but who knows what will happen the next time you need to change phones?

@dan:
I agree I also saw the press release. However the old blackberrys up until now are not called smartphones. Who told you they are rewriting the dictionary on smartphones? All the press release says is that any phone that is considered a smartphone will have the new fee. It doesn’t say they are changing the classification of phones that until now haven’t been called smartphones. I think we should all stop calling them and putting these ideas into their heads. But as of now they are not dealing with changing the dictionary on phones they are adding a fee to ant phone that is already called a smartphone. Its so basic dan, I don’t know why you are fighting this point so hard? What you shoud be advising your audience ia that if you have an everything family plan and want 5 blackberys on it after jan 30 and don’t want to pay 50 bucks extra a month, just pick up a few tours on ebay! They have that dumb trackball thingy but they are otherwise pretty good! Hatzlacha dan, and have a wonderful day back in ctown.

I spoke to a sprint rep who had a list that was released january 20th specificly listing all phones that need the new 10$ add on. The blackberry tour 9630, curve 8330,pearl 8130 are NOT on the list. The bold 9650,style 9670,curve 8530 and 9330
ARE on the list. She emailed me a link if anyone wants it. I Hope this was helpful.

VERY SIMPLE! Best option for everyone is, just find the most solid phone you can find and activate it before jan 30. Why take chances when you have such a good F&E plan i pay 130 for 7 lines. The few 100 dollars i spend buying new solid phones for everyone on my plan is penny’s to the dollar if G-d forbids my plan changes! Even if my plan gets forced to change 2 years down the line after one of these phones break ill still know i saved a few thousand dollars over these past couple years. I advise people to not risk it and stop bothering people with your questions, just find yourself a tour, curve, touch pro 2 or anything older like i have! Dont waste your time arguing on what will happen, take Dans prior warnings to this situation and play it to your benefit.

@dani:
Why waste money on phones you don’t need now if its pretty clear that the phones you mentioned are not affected by the changes? I have 5 lines a tour or touch pro 2 even a good used one is over a 100$ to spend 6-7 hundred $ now when its pretty clear that its not necessary at this point is wasteful and not everyone has 6-7 hundred to spare.

@ben:
Wow you are Ben, Fred, and Jake now!
Do you think that by writing new names it will sound like more people are on “your side”???
At least change your ip address so I can’t tell…

@ben
Did you see the list that sprint put out on jan 20th?

OK Guys, this is per my conversation I just had with Byron in Sprint’s corporate Executive Services Office in Overland Park, KS. It confirms our worst fears are unfortunately true.

All smartphones, regardless of whether they required a special plan in the past, will be included in the change on 01/30.

This includes any phones running a Palm operating system or a Blackberry operating system. There is no official list from Sprint because all phones that are on these platforms are now included in the $10 premium data fee.

If you activate any smartphone (including Centro, Tour, Curve, etc.) on 01/30 then the representative will inform you that you need to add a $10/month premium data fee. The system may not do it systematically, but either way all smartphones will require this fee.

The $10 fee is not compatible with any legacy plans, including free & clear or fair & flexible. People on these plans will need to switch plans to an Everything plan to activate any older phones, unless it is an insurance or warranty swap.

@dan:
I have it notated on my account that the tour is not included….so if its not system blocked I imagine with a normal rep or a little escalation I can get it done. What do you think?

@yoiley:
In my experience Sprint account notes seem to disappear whenever an agent is arguing with you…

It may very well work, but I wouldn’t rely on it.

@Dan
so if I make the switch before 01/30, will i be charged?

@Sruly:
No.

Dan, I have 12 lines with Sprint Free and Clear plan. I have been with this for over 5 years. Correct me if im wrong please. I currently have Blackberrys, are my options either make my blackberry last as long as possible and then switch at that point to a non smart phone( will they let me go to a non smartphone and let me keep my legacy plan or will they make me get the new expensive plan) OR should we switch out now to all non smart phones before jan 30th and this way we know at least we have our minutes,text etc and just sacrifice the greatness of the smart phones. Does anybody know if we will be able to swap to a non smartphone when the current BB we have break and STILL be able to hold on to our legacy plan? I am aware that I can try and get insurance put on my phones now and then pay $7 a month and then $100 for the insurance deductable( that will work until Sprint insurance runs out of Blackberry Tours to do an insurance swap with) PLEASE ADVISE ASAP

@Chaim:
Yes you will be able to switch from smartphones to dumbphones after 01/30 without any problem. So you can wait until they break.

You can also buy insurance and then keep your smartphone after it breaks.

I am not liking the sound of this. I have a legacy plan and i also have my siblings and parents on a legacy plan

@dan:
Account services will do it especialy if I already have one on there and it just broke

Thank you very much Dan, now I just have to figure out how to get insurance put on a phone that hasnt been bought brand new from Sprint. I have two brand new BB tours in my office but they were not bought from Sprint directly

Hi I have a free and clear plan and am eligible for upgrade but can’t get a tour or curve 8330 because nobody has them any ideas?

quick question – i was planning on switching to sprint soon – should i try getting ahold of an old sero plan, being that its not affected that would be the (only) way to go right?

@Eli
was just on sprints site, they have the tour 9630 available for $99.00 with upgrade. i also have free and clear plan and im probably going to do this upgrade. the onty bad part is this bb doesnt have camera

did anyone get out of the contract without etf

dan,

i just got off the phone with sprint advanced tech(877-735-8405 this is a direct line they answer immedietly and they gave me an interaction ID to get the conversation whenevr I need ) and then to their escalation department( i called regular customer service and did not get correct answers)what I have been told by them and they seemed very certain of this is that while the list includes the blackberry tour to the $10 fee it will not force you to change your plan it will only force you to change if you are switching to a phone not compatible with your current plan(i have free and clear)so basically if in october your current blackberry tour breaks and you add a new spare one to your free and clear account you will be charged the $10(unless its ins replacement) but it will NOT AFFECT YOUR ACCOUNT IN ANY OTHER WAY…..obviously I have the same skepticism as you as i have been told different answers from different departments but this one seemed to be competent I suggest anyone who wants to call that department too and see if they get different answers what i also suggest is putting Insurance on immedietly and if after jan 30th they allow you to activate a new COMPATIBLE smart phone on your free and clear without changing your plan you can always take the insurance off.

dan,

if you can email me please do i spent alot of time on the line with sprint and would like to compare notes thanks

also if you notice while the list saying phones that will be charged the $10 fee includes the tour th list that shows the phones requiring everything data plans and requiring you to change your old plan does not include the tour.

Dan, it would be great if you could respond to Eli as he seems to be on to something and this a huge issue for hundreds of the NY and NJ area guys. Thanks

@chaim:
There’s no way to know what will happen.
I did email my personal business rep about the Centro and this is what she wrote back.

“For clarification purposes here are a couple of examples:

You have the Centro on a line and you damage it or lose it and buy another one from an alternate source and need it to be activated. At the time of activation you would have to pay the additional $10 even though it is still a Centro on the line.

If you had insurance on the device and even though we no longer carry the centro and you lose it or damage it, we would replace the device with whatever we have in inventory that is closest to the centro, you would not have to pay the $10 extra.

Please let me know if you would like further clarification.”

@yitzi:
That’s pretty cool they hadn’t been carrying them for a while even without the camera its prob worthwhile if you have a f and c plan

I Currently Have The Free And Clear Plan. Do I Need To Add On A Data Package In Order To Activate The BlackBerry Tour On My Plan? Meaning To Ask, Can I Just Have A BlackBerry With Out Internet. . . Will It Work?

I have a Free and Clear plan. I was just on the phone with 2 different reps and 2 different managers at sprint while trying to upgrade to the Blackberry Tour 9630 they have available. They all keep telling me that I must change plans to get acctivate this phone. Dan, what do you suggest?

@SG:
Try again before the 30th!

Sprint keeps telling me that a tour cant be acctivated on my plan. Should I tell them to send me the phone anyway. Will I be able to acctivate it?

Hi Dan,
I have F and C with a bb tour and i have insurance, from what your rep told you it would seem that if insurance sends me a bb bold next month i can activate it on my old plan without the $10 add on??
problem is that currently i cant switch to a bold because it requires an anymobile plan or similar..
can your rep clarify this? it would seem to me that only if insurance sends the exact same model we would be ok but not if they send a newer device.
thanks

Sprint Is Keeps Telling Me That The Tour Is No Longer Available Even Though It Shows It Avail On The Site. They Say I Shouldn’t Try Ordering On The Site Cuz Its Currently Not Working Properly. Does Anybody If This Is True? Or Which Dept. In Sprint Can Really Tell If Its Avail?

@yitzy:
I ordered one from them the telesales said they can’t order it but online my order seems to have gone through.

@yehuda:
You can not have a bold on your plan! The system won’t allow it no matter where you get the phone from.

@sg:
You should order it because it can be activated, I just activated a tour on my free and clear plan last week. Worst case just return it to any sprint store within 30 days for a full refund.

@yoiley:
so what would the point of insurance be if they will run out of tours soon and they may send a device not compatible either way.

hey Dan,

i was wondering whether the insurance has to be added before jan 30 or can i do it after if my phone break after jan 30.

@yehuda:
They will have them for a long time….they uaualy are loaded with refurbished ones for years. I don’t think the insurance is worthwhile bec. You are paying 7$ a month for the chance to potentialy save 10$ a month? Besides its not even clear that the 10$ fee applies to the tour but even if they will try to charge you 10 if the phone breaks even dans agent agreed that its not going to be systematicaly enforced. My experience with sprint is that if the system allows it you should have no problem getting a rep. To make a “one time exception” especialy if you already have a tour on the account. Just get your tour activate it before the 30th and relax! If the phone breaks with a little effort you will be able to activate a new one and will prob. not have to pay the 10$ fee bec. Its not compatible with the f&c plan. I’m very experienced with sprint and I’m confident in what I’m saying.

@yaakov:
They only allow insurance to be added within the first 30 days of activating the phone. However as far as the 10$ fee is concerned, it wouldn’t matter if you add the insurance after jan. 30th if the replacement phone came from insurance then you are fine….for now that is…untill they change that policy as I’m sure they will….just give them a few months until we all settle down with this change and I’m sure they will have more waiting!

Did anyone that ordered the tour from sprint get a shipping confirmation email?

@sg:
I did!

@yoiley: its not only to save 10$, its also to not have to change to a more expensive plan

@yehuda:
If you believe that they will make you switch…I don’t believe it but that’s the debate dan has been having with that other fellow….come jan. 30th we will see, I guess for now play it safe and get that phone insured but I’m pretty sure from what I’m hearing from sprint that the old bbs that work on old plans should be fine. But like I said we will see!

@dan:
I have some major news! I spoke with a senior rep and this is what I was told! Sprint already put the “premium add on” into the system on any account that is going to have it. They just made the charge for the time being “0” untill they upgrade or change their phone. I have 2 acounts one is a everything data plan with 3 blackbery styles and the rep checked my account and confirmed that the “premium add on” is already in the system on my account, its just showing a charge of $0.00 until I change my phone. And I also have a free and clear plan with 2 blackberry tours and she looked at my account and confirmed that the “premium add on” is NOT on that plan! It seems that they didn’t add the whole premium data thing to any free and clear plans! So…if the phone is able to be activated on the plan then there isn’t even a way to charge me the 10$ and since the system allows the tour to be activated on the free and clear plan there is no reason why any rep. Won’t do it. The 10$ add on is not a thing that any rep will be adding manualy, it is a system generated charge automaticaly. If its not in the system on your account there is absolutely no reason for you to have any issues. Because its not any reps job to add the “premium add on” charge. That is a system generated automatic thing. So if the system leaves you alone why would any rep bother you with an issue that is not his/her job. Am I making any sense?

You are able to activate a phone yourself via sprints website. Do you think that we will still be able to activate a Tour without messing up the plans? Worst case I’ll get a regular phone and get a BB for data elsewhere. Not worth giving up unlimited everything for $15 even if it will inconvenience me by carrying two phones.

@moshe
If you already have a blackberry pack on there I think technicaly you can activate it online. I would NOT risk activating online. It will probably delete a lot of your add-ons. And maybe change your plan against your will. Its best to do it by phone.

@dan:
Any updated info? We are getting down to the wire now….I just got my new tour today(no camera) from sprint. I guess I have 30 days to decide if I should get insurance on it.

I was told the same thing as yoiley. What does it mean for f&c plans?

@yitzi: Well if its the way Yoiley says then we’re not in such bad shape after all. I could live with a Tour

Yeah but who knows with sprint….I’m not even sure they themselves know!

I Have Free And Clear Plan. If I Buy A Tour And Add It On, Do I Need To Upgrade My Internet Package? Now I Pay 15 Bucks A Month For Internet.

. . . Sorry I Wasnt Very Clear . . I Currently Have Free And Clear Plan With A Basic Phone On My Line. If I Upgrade To The Tour Will I Also Have To Upgrade My Internet Package? Now I Have The 15 Dollar Package (At No Charge Of Course!)

@yitzi
Yes you need the 30$ blackberry pack. I have that for free of course, but they don’t offer that for free anymore so its going to cost you 30 bucks. If you get the htc touch pro 2 you can keep your free 15$ data pack. The htc touch pro 2 is an android phone and is the only android that is compatible with the free and clear plan.

@yoiley Thanx for ur help. My Next Question Is If The HTC Touch Pro 2 Is Included In The Argument If The Tour Is Going To Be Charged The $10/Going To Work On This Plan After The 30th .

@yitzi:
Its in the same argument as the tour.

@dan:
You being so quiet on this subject the last few days, we need your advice.

@yoiley:
I’ve given over what I heard.
The bottom line is nobody at Sprint really knows what will happen come Sunday so be sure to have the phone you want with insurance on it by the 29th if you want to play it 100% safe.

@dan:
I guess get the phone and insurance. You can always cancel the insurance later.

@yoiley:
touch pro 2 isnt android

@macher:
It is

@dan:
Can you bring this post back to the top and let people share their experience with the old plans and see how it really affects us, Now that its jan. 30th

I did not finalize the change but it seems that it would’ve gone through had I done it. Here’s what I get when I attempt to change from one Treo 755p to another:

Review – No Plan Change Required

Please note that any discounts you may be eligible for will not be reflected in the prices below, but will be reflected on your bill.

Now please review the information below. In the next step your old phone will be deactivated and ***-***-**** will be assigned to your new phone.

Smartphones: If you just bought a new smartphone to receive your mail-in rebate, you’ll need a plan that includes data, like Simply EverythingSM, or a data add-on, like the Pro Pack. Check this list and then change your plan or add-on selection before you complete your activation.

Your Current Plan
Your new phone

My Phone

Model: PALM TREO 755 EVDO PALM
HEX: ********

Free & Clear Add A Phone
$7.99
Change Price Plan Selection
Your Add-Ons
Cellular Call Detail $0.00
Unl Shared Nights/Weekends 6pm $0.00
Unlimited Text Mesaging $0.00
Sprint Unlimited Data Pack $0.00
America Roaming Included $0.00

Change Add-Ons Selection

Adjusted Estimated Monthly Total
$7.99*

I just pulled an old tour out of my closet to see what would happen if I try to activate it on my free and clear plan. I currently have a blackberry pearl on it. Here is my experience. The tour was activate without any issue! And NO 10$ add on! The rep explained that she has a list of phones that need the 10$ add on that was emailed to her from corporate on friday jan 28th and the blackberry tour is NOT on it. She did say that the list does say “any phone running on the blackberry service” is included but to quote the rep. “aparently that just reffers to the current blackberrys and not the old ones” she explained that all the rep. does is try to activate the phone. The system then prompts her to add the 10$ premium before it allows her to continue….if the system doesn’t prompt her to add the 10$ premium or to change the plan then that means that the phone and plan are compatible, and there is no reason for any rep not to activate the phone. So it seems like us free and clear plan holders can breathe a sigh of relief and there doesn’t seem to be a need for wasting money on insurance.

@dan:
I Was able to activate my new tour on my free and clear plan today with no problem. I bought it on ebay last week and I was so sure of my information that I waited till today to activate it just to prove my point! Dan, I think its time you agree you were wrong on this one.

@yoiley
Did you verify it too? It seems like everyone is trying it out today, Did anyone have any problems?

@fred
Did a test on a curve 8330 on my free and clear plan and it worked like a breeze. I wonder if I tried it on my everything data plan if it would add the 10$ charge? Maybe I’ll try it out tomorrow.

How much does a almost brand new bb tour sell for! I wanna buy if somebody has one or even a brand new please let me know

Brand new is over 300 “like new” used about 180-200.

Sprint.com has them without a camera for 100$ with a 2 year upgrade. I don’t get it? Why are you so excited about this news? You could have had any bb on your plan 2 days ago. This whole discussion was about if a phone would break after the 30th what would happen when we try to replace it. But to just get a bb on your account? You could have done that any time you wanted before the 30th! Just don’t understand some people….

@dan:
Did you do a little testing? What did you find, now that its jan 31st?

@fred:
There’s no wrong of right here, this is Sprint we’re talking about.

I have written confirmation from multiple Sprint executives that all smartphones (including all BB and Palm phones) are included in this change.
However as it is not systematically enforced, it is up to the rep to force you to change your plan, therefore it will always be YMMV unless Sprint changes that.

@dan:
The thing is that there is a list that was given out to all sprint employees clearly listing the devices that are included in the new charge. So any rep. That you speak to is supposed to check that list, and the old bbs are NOT on that list. So unless the rep is trying to be nasty, it is more likely to have them do it than not. Of course its ymmv with sprint about anything, but if you run into a nasty rep. Just hang up and call back and you should be ok. Its not as ymmv as you are making it. And I personaly wouldn’t be wasting 7$ per month on insurance.

was anyone able to get out of their contract because of this?

If you are eligible for an upgrade on a Free & Clear plan but cannot due to the fact that you need to up the data plan…you can tell them that you chose to take a $70 credit instead of the upgrade. I did it today and got a $140 credit to my account.

@moshe:
That credit is a retention credit and is available to anyone that is close to the end of their contract if they renew the contract. It has nothing to do with what plan you have and nothing to do with “not being able to do an upgrade” you can still do the upgrade after you get the credit. Also why can’t you do an upgrade? As long as you choose a regular phone that is not a smartphone, you should be able to do an upgrade even on a free and clear plan.

@fred: I no longer have the little letters saying that I am eligible for $150 off to upgrade so I’m assuming that this $70 WAS in place of my upgrade. Secondly I like the blackberry tour and need a cam..no option for those two on Sprint anymore thus I opted for the $70

@fred: I take that back..Fred the $150 is still there, however this is what it says when I try going through with it…You have an upgrade discount available and can save up to $150 off a new phone. To receive your discount, you’ll need to change to a plan with a regular monthly price of $39.99 or higher. Call us at 800-SPRINT-1 or visit a store near you to change your plan and upgrade your phone.

for some reason my power vision was removed from my acct???

@ moshe:
Are you perhaps trying to get a phone that is a “smartphone” ? If not try telesales. Get whatever phone they offer for free, and sell it on ebay for 150-200 and then go buy a refurbished or good used tour with a camera on ebay or amazon for around 180. When you order from telesales make sure you ask them to “match” any online prices including free shipping and NO activation fee. Also make sure the phone you order doesn’t have a rebate because you will NOT get the rebate if just sell the phone. Because in order to get the rebate you need to have the phone activated on YOUR line for at least 60 days. So get the best/cheapest phone that has no rebate. And enjoy!

@Dan

I have a group business plan with around 8 phones unlimited and free everything and i was eligible for a free upgrade with 2 year new contract. I got a New Blackberry Style. I called to activate it and they mentioned i will need to change Data plans and since i use around 2000 min i will need to goto a $99 a month plan. Manager got on and she said that instead of 19.99 it will be 39.99 . Are there anyway around these charges? or will i need to pay if i activate this phone. As per your messege it says only additional $10. Please help.

sprint is not letting me out yet. but we shall see , they say that im unaffected because i have a evo and already pay an extra 10 every month, my argument was that till now it was a specific 4g add on and now its just an add on so i want out. i have a feeling they were told not to let people out for this because they will claim it doesn’t affect you until you get the new phone and at that point if you don’t want to pay dont change phones

Just hung up with Sprint signed up for a new 2 year and got a Blackberry style and had prob transferring without a fee. The only blackberry that you wouldnt get charged extra is the BlackBerry® Tour™ 9630 Smartphone which they are sending me so now a have a blackberry style which i have to sell or can exchange and bought the refurbished Tour 9630 for $79

I have a Free in Clear contract so it might be a little different.

sprint says they will let me grandfather in a old smartphone without the fee as long as i dont re-sign my contract when i get the new phone

I just changed one semi-broken Tour to a newer one I get on eBay and i had no problems through the process. man am i relieved

Dan!! I just got a phone call from sprint, as a response from my FCC complaint!! But they are full of it, so I called the FCC…