Wanna get in on the Verizon Early Termination Fee class action settlement? I did and went to verizonETFsettlement.com just like the postcard told me. Basically, if you were a Verizon Wireless customer from July 23, 1999 to August 10, 2008, and you were either charged an ETF, whether you paid it or not, you could be eligible for a piece of a $21 million pie (after the attorneys get their fees first), just file a claim form by October 14. In typical fashion, I tried filing a claim but the site keeps timing out. Something to bookmark and check in on later and hope they fixed it. Even when you think you’re giving Verizon its comeuppance, somehow you get screwed over. UPDATE: The website seems to be fixed now. By the way, at the end you will have to print out and mail in forms. They want you to attach documentation of your ETF. If you don’t have documentation, you can still make a claim but you will get a lesser amount.
cellphones
Join The Verizon ETF Class Action
Congress Asks Wireless Carriers To Justify Text Message Rate Increases
The similar price increases, coming at similar times, Kohl said, “is hardly consistent with the vigorous price competition we hope to see in a competitive marketplace.”
Quicken Beam Checks Your Balances On Your Cellphone
Sick of overdrafts? Don’t feel like juggling your bank balance in your head? Quickenbeam from Intuit is a new free service, in beta, that lets you check your account balances, no matter what bank you have, from your cellphone.
Verizon Junk Mail Advertises Phone Sex Hotline
The phone number in this Verizon mailer connects to “an exciting new way to go live with hot horny girls.” Can you hear me now, big boy?
The $19,370 ATT Phone Bill
You really got to be careful when using cellphones or wireless data plans internationally, otherwise you’ll end up racking up $19,370 on your AT&T AirCard like this American kid did in Canada. It would be nice if they made some kind of warning system that said hey, you’re spending several hundred times what you normally do, are you sure you want to continue, but then again, it would also be nice if a cupcake appeared on my desk right now.
AT&T's Arbitration Clause Strips Consumers Of Their Rights
We just love the word unconscionable. You know who doesn’t love it? AT&T. Their mandatory binding arbitration clause was ruled unconscionable by the state Supreme Court of Washington, after AT&T tried to prevent a consumer who believed he was being systematically overcharged from filing a class action lawsuit.
ATT Data Network Down, Complain For Credits
AT&T wireless is experiencing some kind of data outage in the Northeast, and if you call up and complain, you can get a $10-$20 credit (YMMV), Gizmodo reports. Let us know in the comments if you’re an AT&T user experiencing data outages, where you’re located, and if you have any luck snagging credits. If calling 611 from your phone doesn’t work for ya, here is a variety of contact information to try.
"The Computer" At AT&T Is All Powerful And Humans Have Lost Control!
Attention citizens: A machine known only as “the computer” has taken control of AT&T. The humans are powerless to control it — or even to negotiate with it. If it decides that you should be triple billed for phone numbers you don’t need or use, there’s nothing AT&T can do. Gather your children and all the salmonella-free peanut butter you own and report to your basement. Dunk your cellphones, DVRs, Apples and XBOXes into cold water before they rise up and destroy you like they’re destroying reader Patrick.
Teddy Bear Cellphone
I am secretly coveting this stuffed teddy bear that is also a cellphone. It’s called Kuma Phone. Price: $500. Conspicuous consumption has never been cuter. [Cscout Japan]
AT&T: Being Robbed At Knifepoint Will Not Help You Qualify For The Cheaper iPhone
Reader Anthony was robbed at knifepoint by a jerk with a 10″ blade, but his real complaint is that he feels that AT&T is robbing him again. After he filed a police report and told AT&T that his new iPhone had been stolen, they told him that since he already bought an iPhone he no longer qualified for the subsidized price of $199.
Washington Upholds ATT Customer's Right To Class Action
In another step towards the impending demise of mandatory binding arbitration, a customer’s right to file a class-action lawsuit against AT&T Wireless was upheld by Washington Supreme Court yesterday.
Verizon: 'You've Earned A New Phone' (Just Not From Us)
Is this Verizon promotional email being over-enthusiastic with its subject line, or is it actually misleading? A phrase like “you’ve earned a new ___” doesn’t usually get followed up with, “Just pay us anywhere between $100-$200 for it,” unless it comes from a scam vacation offer. Or Verizon. As Bryan notes in his email to us, “The subject line must mean something like when you tell Verizon, ‘You’ve earned my suspicion and contempt.'”
../../../..//2008/08/22/condom-is-a-free-ringtone/
“Condom!” is a free ringtone for your phone. It’s being promoted in India as part of a campaign to normalize condom use, but there’s no reason you can’t put it on your own phone to impress and amaze fellow diners, bus riders, church goers, etc. It’s also catchy! [Crave]
Couple Can't Get Rid Of Cellphones No Matter What They Do
The sales rep did his song and dance and insisted that I test out the phone service for 2 weeks. I said no a few times but he wouldn’t hear it. Well, he gave me 2 phones and 2 phone numbers. No credit check, no money whatsoever. I walked out of the store with 2 free phones and some paper work.
../../../..//2008/08/13/best-buy-will-start-selling-1/
Best Buy will start selling the iPhone on September 7th, making it the only retailer other than Apple and AT&T to offer the device. [Associated Press]
Sprint Says It Lost Some Of Those 2.8 Million Customers On Purpose
By all accounts, Sprint has hit an iceberg and is leaking customers like the Titanic, but new CEO Dan Hesse says that they lost some of those customers on purpose because they were just crappy customers. As strange as this sounds, it does match up with what we’ve been hearing from (former) Sprint customers.
../../../..//2008/08/05/for-all-six-of-you/
For all six of you Americans out there who use a Symbian phone, SymbianGear is offering one free app per day for 10 days. You’ve already missed days 1 & 2, but they’ve got 7 more to go if you’re interested. (Today is Texas Holdem). [SymbianGear via Symbian-Guru.com]
Video Tutorial For Escaping Cellphone Without ETF
Who needs a bunch of words to tell you how to get out of your cellphone contract without early termination fee when a nice boy will tell you how do to it? You just sit back, grab some popcorn, and watch Ely Rosentock’s video tutorial. 9 minutes later, you’ll know how to break your cellphone contract without ETF, or moving to California. Video inside… [More]
