Christy is upset. She got a call from a strange Verizon sales rep who claimed he had sold her a phone. (He didn’t.) The stranger told her that she could have VCast free for one month. She declined.
cellphones
Sprint Sets Up Consumerist Reader Executive Customer Service Hotline
By 5.30.07 — Updated: 5.22.13
Sprint has set up a special phone number directly to the executive customer service queue just for Consumerist readers. [More]
Cellphones Are Kryptonite To Nissan's I-Key
By 5.26.07
Our pocket holds two things: our keys and our cellphone, so it’s a good thing we don’t own a 2007 Nissan Altima or Infinity G35. The intelligent I-Key used to start those models can be turned into a paperweight if placed within an inch of an active cellphone.
Watch Out For This Cellphone Scam
By 5.23.07
Be wary of people calling your cellphone claiming to be from your service provider and offering to upgrade your phone packages. They may actually be independent dealers trying to make a quick buck.
8 Interviews With A Sprint Mole
By 5.22.07
Back in February, we posted a series of conversations we had with a very knowledgeable Sprint insider (he still has his job, by the way). Here’s a limited collector’s edition box set of our eight chats.
Raised Txt Msg Rates, Got Until May To Cancel, But The Change Doesn't Happen Until June, So You Can't Use It To Cancel. Funny How That Works.
By 5.22.07
Joseph wanted to cancel his T-mobile contract over their raise in the text-message rates. Legally, this material change of contract voided his previous contract, but T-mobile still wanted to charge him an early termination fee.
Sell Your Old Cellphone Online
By 5.21.07
Here’s an alternative to throwing away your old cellphone, selling it on ebay or craigslist, or donating it to charity.
Cingular Charging Me $349.99 For Phone I Already Returned
By 5.14.07
Chris exchanged his messed up Blackjack with Cingular (now the new AT&T) under warranty replacement. Now Cingular (now the new AT&T) can’t find the phone that he sent back and keeps trying to bill him $349.99 for it. Repeated calls to customer service are unsuccessful and provide contradictory information.
Washington State Bans Texting While Driving
By 5.14.07
Starting in January 2008, it will be illegal to text while driving in Washington State. The measure signed into law by Governor Chris Gregoire also bans talking on a cellphone without a hands-free device while driving. Violators will be punished with a fine, but only if first pulled over for another reason.
Under the new laws, drivers who read and compose text messages or talk on a cell phone without a hands-free device could face a $101 ticket. The text-messaging ban takes effect Jan. 1; the cell-phone law will be enforced starting in July 2008.
Drivers will be exempt in “some situations, including emergencies.” — CAREY GREENBERG-BERGER
Cingular Admits Store Salesmen Add On Features You Didn't Ask For, Just To Make More Commission
By 5.11.07
Matt’s voicemail stopped working so he called up Cingular to get it fixed, and while he was there he had them check out the rest of his account to make sure everything was ok, but they found something disturbing.
Confirmation: GrandCentral + TMobile = Cheap Incoming Phone Calls
By 5.9.07
You can get cheap calls on your T-mobile plan by hooking it up with Grand Central, reader Noah’s T-mobile bill confirms.
Why Corporate Lawyers Get "Confused" When You Try To Escape Contract Over Material Adverse Changes
By 5.9.07
Now we know why cellphone companies have been giving customers such a hassle when they try to cancel over material changes to the contract: there’s two possible definitions. Ken Adams, an experienced corporate lawyer who drafts a lot of contracts, says:
Materially Adverse Clauses For All Major Cellphones – So You Can Escape Contract Without Termination Fee
By 5.9.07
Here’s a roundup of all the contract clauses regarding “materially adverse changes” for all the major cellphone carriers. When they starting charging new fees or raise the price of a service, you can use this section to argue that you need to be let out of contract without early termination fee….
Verizon's New Surcharge For Calling Mexico Means It's Contract Cancel Party Time?
By 5.9.07
Materially adverse changes to contract mean the contract is void. Is Verizon’s new surcharge for calling Mexico a materially adverse change? The following was included in customer’s April Verizon Wireless bill:
Top Verizon Stories
By 5.7.07
“Just before Poodleman filed a motion to seize Verizon’s property, he received a check from the company….Perhaps it was better for everyone involved that Verizon paid Poodleman, as it might have been a bit difficult for the sheriff to arrest an entire company.”
Verizon Keeps Making Up Contract law To Prevent Customers From Cancelling Without Penalty
By 5.7.07
Michael tried to cancel Verizon without early termination fee because they raised the basic text messaging rate from .10-.15 dollars. Two customer service reps approved the disconnect without fee, but then it got rejected by the disconnect department. Their reason was that 1) 60 days had passed since the notice of the change was sent out and 2) Since Michael hadn’t used “enough” of the text messages, the change wasn’t materially adverse.
Stop Tktktkkt Sound By Wrapping Cellphone In Aluminum Foil
By 5.5.07
If you have a problem with your cellphone making an annoying tkkttktktk sound come out your speakers, this Instructable says wrap it aluminum foil. Doing so should prevent the EMF gremlins from escaping and wrecking havoc on your audio equipment.
Verizon Specifies How You're Allowed To Link To Its Site
By 5.4.07
Harry Maugans discovered that Verizon thinks it can stipulate how you link to their website.
