Sprint is always losing customers to Verizon and AT&T. This quarter they lost 148,000 “post-paid” (the opposite of pre-paid) customers. Is it the service? The phones? They don’t seem overpriced. [More]
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AT&T Debuts New Unlimited Plans In Attempt To Irritate Verizon
By 1.15.10
AT&T just put out a press release announcing new unlimited plans for all of their customers, even the ones with, gasp, iPhones. [More]
Update: All Four Major Carriers Now Waiving Fees For Haiti SMS Donations
By 1.14.10
Update 2: Sprint has also announced that it is waiving fees, retroactive to Wednesday. (Thanks to changebumpin!)
Update: MSNBC has updated their article, and they say that AT&T has announced it will waive fees for donations, and apply the exemption retroactively to those who have already donated. (Thanks to Mathew for the heads up.) [More]
Sprint Crawls To Let Guy Cancel Account
By 1.14.10
Chase had a problem with Sprint — the company wouldn’t acknowledge the fact that he canceled his account. [More]
Sprint Doesn't Believe I Canceled My Account
By 1.11.10
UPDATE: Sprint got with Chase and allowed him to cancel his account. [More]
30-Day Window To Cancel Sprint Without Penalty Starts Tomorrow
By 12.31.09
Starting tomorrow, Jan 1, 2010, you can cancel your Sprint cellphone contract without early termination fee. They are increasing monthly regulatory fees from $.20 to $.40. This constitutes what is known as a “materially adverse change of contract” and means you can break the contract without penalty. An official Sprint spokesperson officially confirmed this for us. A few things to know: [More]
Sprint Fee Increase Is Your Chance To Escape Without Early Termination Fee
By 12.9.09
Sprint has confirmed they will increase monthly regulatory fees from $.20 to $.40 on January 1st, creating an opportunity for customers to drop their contracts without incurring an early termination fee, which could save you up to $200. [More]
Sprint Forcing Customers On Too-Good-To-Be-True Plans To Upgrade
By 12.1.09
I don’t know how Corey ever managed to secure a monthly plan that only costs $2.50–oh wait, it looks like some old offer Sprint forgot about but some of their customers found. Well, now Sprint knows about it, and they’re not happy. On the bright side, hey, no ETF to worry about if you want to switch carriers, Corey. You can read Sprint’s take-it-or-leave-it offer below. [More]
Sprint Gives Stranger Full Access To Customer's Account, Shrugs
By 11.20.09
When Campbell changed his phone number with Sprint earlier this year, the company immediately assigned his old number to a new customer. They also gave that customer full access to Campbell’s account.
Chart Compares Total Cost Of Ownership For Popular Smartphones
By 10.30.09
You may think that buying an iPhone with AT&T service is an expensive commitment, and you’d be right. But as this chart from BillShrink shows, your total cost of ownership (TCO) for any of the latest smartphones is going to exceed 2 grand over a 24-month period. In fact, the highly-praised new Motorola Droid on Verizon works out to exactly the same TCO as the latest iPhone.
No Palm Pre For Verizon Wireless?
By 9.25.09
If you’ve been holding out on a phone upgrade or carrier switch until the Palm Pre comes to Verizon, you may need to give up the dream. The carrier has “reportedly ditched plans to offer the Palm Pre early next year,” says PC World. Apparently poor sales of the device at Sprint, combined with Verizon’s interest in upcoming Blackberry devices, killed any enthusiasm the carrier once had. Update: The no-Pre rumor may be false, according to these two analysts.
Live In An AT&T Dead Zone? There's A Fix, But It'll Cost You
By 9.21.09
It’s no secret that AT&T’s cell network sucks (and, yes, that is the scientific term for the state of the company’s infrastructure). Fortunately, AT&T has come up with a solution to dead zones and overtaxed circuits: The AT&T 3G MicroCell, a router-like device that will let you experience the magic of using your mobile phone in your very own home! Of course, magic doesn’t come free — or cheap. AT&T is testing the MicroCell now, and is charging subscribers $150 for the box, plus $20 a month for the magic of, you know, using your own freaking phone in your own damn home.
FCC Proposes New, Awesome, Net Neutrality Rules
By 9.21.09
The FCC today proposed new rules to protect and preserve “net neutrality,” the idea that ISPs must treat all users the same and not prejudice against different types of customers. In a speech, Chairman Julius Genachowski supported adopting the “Four Freedoms” first articulated by the FCC in 2004 (PDF) not just as principles but as formal rules, and adding two more: “non-discrimination” and “transparency.” The big networks are, naturally, incensed.
Sprint Opens Mobile-to-Mobile To All Providers
By 9.10.09
If you’re a Sprint customer using the company’s Everything Data Plan, you can now call any mobile phone on any network without using up any of your plan minutes. Good news? If you’re on the carrier’s $70 a month plan, which has 450 included minutes along with unlimited data service, it could be — if you don’t roam into areas where there’s no Sprint coverage (where the meter will start running) and if you have a lot of regular contacts on other cell networks.
Sprint Yanks $100 Credit Offer On Palm Pre, Says Oops
By 9.9.09
Earlier today, Sprint made news by effectively cutting the price of a Palm Pre to $99 for new Sprint customers, after a $100 credit. Now Sprint is saying it was a publishing error and not a valid offer.
Sprint, AT&T Won't Tell Identity Theft Victim Where Thief Resides
By 8.6.09
Fearing his identity would be stolen, Mike put out a fraud alert on his credit report to insure he’d be contacted whenever new credit applications went out under his name. The move paid off because someone snagged his social security number and tried to open accounts with AT&T and Sprint.
Help Friends Conserve Cell Minutes By Changing Your Voicemail Greeting
By 8.2.09
David Pogue’s continuing crusade against useless voicemail instructions knocked loose an excellent suggestion for anyone willing to re-record their voicemail greeting. Too often the standard voicemail greeting is: “Hi, you’ve reached so-and-so. Leave a message, and I’ll get back to you.” Why not make it more useful, something like: “Hi, you’ve reached so-and-so. Please press star (or whichever command applies to your carrier) to leave a message.”
