Sprint: Smartphone Users Need to Pay $10 More

The comments I've been seeing in this particular forum disappoint me. If this were happening on my service provider, I wouldn't be spinning a senseless increase as something beneficial.

I have to agree. "At least it's unlimited."

Well, it's been unlimited all of this time. This is a price increase plain and simple...and in a truly competitive market it wouldn't fly.

I just don't understand how people are ok with this. I'm more ticked off that they are, and Sprint's not even my carrier!

The good news is the wife will be forced to come to the dark side at Metro come upgrade time. I'm sick of paying an extra $15 as it is now. $25 won't happen. 😁

These apologists are tickling the hell out of me! I feel like I am reading an excerpt from Animal Farm.

Thank you, apologist fits perfectly in this scenario.

These Sprint fanboys are no better or worse than the AT&T or Verizon fanboys. Fanboys in general irritate me.

Actually, I'd say this is worse. Generally everyone is pissed when there is a price hike, unless some rep is trying to play damage control (in which case they're not a fanboy)

I agree. I love Sprint and their service, but I also am not a proponent of this increase. I have addressed my concerns to Sprint.

However, in the light of argument, Verizon has initiated alot of negative moves lately that work against the subscriber also.

I have argued that the iPhone has hurt the consumers of the industry in pricing rather than work as an advantage. The only ones benefitting, are Apple and the carriers. Sprint is in a position where they need to raise revenue. With the two top carriers carrying the iPhone and making policy changes in their favor, Sprint can adjust their pricing while still remaining cheaper. It sucks really.

It's trickle down economics at it's best. This is where the private sector fails the cons...
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The private sector has not failed the consumer. The consumer has failed themselves. They buy needless products and services for the WOW factor...and to prove they are better than friends and family.

If there was no market for this kind of abuse, this abuse wouldn't happen. Simple really.

Agreed.

Customers demanded free (or cheap) phones, and tons of features included "at no charge." This is the payback

If phones were unlocked/unsubsidized and you could take it to another carrier if your current one pissed you off, plan pricing would be very different.

Menno,

I think for the first time ever we're in 100% agreement.

I'm not evil all the time 😁

I personally hate contracts. the only reason I'm with Verizon (I work for them, but I could keep a droid around and run it over wifi for show) is that with my family plan, and discounts it comes to roughly $50 a month, which is great since I travel a lot and it actually works.

If I didn't travel as much, or if I lived closer to the city I'd have Tmobile or Sprint more than likely. Don't like Metro/Cricket because I can't stand their store reps (ive been in a few) and they don't have the cool phones, and I'm a tech junkie.

Yes. That's why I had four lines. Fifty percent discount is so seductive. But once one no longer works there those prices are hell!

Metro will have some attractive LTE devices by the end of Q2. I'm a simple guy who needs his phone for a phone and for e-mail. The Optimus M is spectacular for that purpose.

If you frequently travel outside of the coverage area (which is quite large now), Metro is not for you. $0.19 per minute would add up quickly.

I saw their samsung, it would be great, except that it's a samsung, so you'd never get an updated software.

And we'll have to see what they get in terms of speed. I know their coverage area is getting larger, but I live on a fringe area right now. You wouldn't believe the number of metro customers we get coming in because they keep going on roaming. I like the little guy carriers for the most part, and if they work for people great. But for me, I travel a lot, and it's not just to metro areas.

Just curious, what are your speeds like on the M? have you done speed tests? One nice thing about Verizon upgrading for LTE/iphone CDMA is that my speeds are now crazy fast for EVDO. 2.1-2.3 in the city, 1.9 here in the "Boonies"

Except when traveling to Detroit I'm on 1X. That's super slow for downloads, just right for e-mails.

Yeah, I couldn't do that. I use my phone for podcast/last.fm streaming when I'm driving. Youtube and the like at people's houses.

But 1x is fine for voice and emails, and I understand I'm still in the extreme minority when it comes to cellphone usage.

I use WiFi quite a bit.

Also, Pandora works fine on 1X if you can believe it.

I love my Incredible! I stream INTERNET radio all day long.

Agreed

Verizon has pulls some crap lately, but Verizon customers are mad about it (even on this forum) Could you imagine this SAME exact story, but replace sprint with Verizon. not only would verizon customers be up in arms, but Sprint fans like Diamondpro would be here trying to prove some point.

I understand why they're doing this, I really do. I wouldn't be happy if I'm a sprint customer, but at the same time, they need to do SOMETHING to make money so they can continue investing in their network. More than likely, it came down to a change like this, a removal of feathres (or data cap) or increase in minutes across the board. of those three, this fee makes the most sense, I'm just astounded that most sprint customers are trying to justif...
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Menno,
Agree'd, this $10 or more or less inline of which other carriers are charging for smartphones. Why should a data using feature phone, which uses far less data be charged the same as an Evo etc... OK, I'd be unhappy, but I would get over it.

Actually, something similar DID happen which is why I am rocking the SCH8-U870 for my primary phone.

The required data change you mean? for smartphones?

Or the drop of unlimited tethering options?

The mandatory data plan for feature phones. I could have an Envy Touch active but it's not worth it.

ah. Well they did drop that as well.. just not on the touch. I was never a fan of resistive touch screens anyway.

But yeah, that change was stupid. THough I will say this, is smacked hardware makers pretty hard. Their new high end feature phones are a lot cheaper for us to purchase. (The Envtouch cost us more to purchase than the LG ally or HTC eris did)

Slammer,
Not sure if Sprint will get the iPhone or not, really its a non-issue. On AT&T and soon to be VZW there is no difference in cost of plan on using an iPhone or any other smartphone, Android etc... The data plans are the same. If you don't care for the iPhone, fine, your choice. But lets not use it a a boogieman.

As said previous, I would say a good percentage if not majority of new Sprint smartphone users are already paying this fee. (for better or worse). For EVO's and other Wimax phones.

I'm no fan of the recent changes at Verizon, either. In lieu of a subsidy-free world, I support choice and benefit to the consumer.

I think the Verizon changes are a tell-tale sign of a need for industry-wide change in the way phones are priced from the manufacturer, to the distributor, to the retail supplier, and into the consumer's hands.

An extra $10 fee is simply a sign that the carrier needs more revenue for something.

It's not 'senseless', Sprint eventually has to start making money, and they aren't going to be able to do that if they continue just giving everything away for nothing or close to it. It is impossible to give everyone 'free' data and still make a profit.

What was senseless was going to an unsustainable price point in the first place.

I agree

So you don't mind paying more as long as they don't remove features? (I use well over 5gb myself, I also have unlimited, with verizon)

Granted, I understand they're still cheaper than Verizon/ATT, even with this new data charge, but I was expecting customers to be a LITTLE pissed off about it, if fo no other reason than they're charging it on BLACKBERRIES as well. In what universe is a blackberry user a heavy data user?

I have to say that most of us that work for Sprint are also pretty unhappy about the price jump.
We are going to get a barrage of unhappy customers that were promised that if they got a smart phone other than the EVO, Epic, or Evo Shift that they wouldn't have to pay anything extra. We are going to get customers asking us to do something to make them the exception to the rule, which we won't be able to.
As a Sprint customer myself I can say that I won't be upgrading to a different smartphone when the time comes. I'll continue to use the one I have until it dies so I can avoid the fee. And when I finally do have to upgrade out of necessity I'll probably get something that doesn't require the add-on service. I definitely use well over th...
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Only one of the major four caps their smartphone data plans, and that's AT&T. 25% does not constitute "most companies," and if I started adding in regional companies the percentage would decrease.

at&t is the only one with a hard cap, but they all have a soft cap, anyone promising you 'unlimited' anything is a liar and should be avoided, no one can possibly promise you a truly 'unlimited' amount of a finite resource. 'Unlimited' means simply 'the cap is set so high we assume most people can't reach it' but there is no such thing as truly 'unlimited' and never will be.

I can show you my bill. 16GBs last month.

Sure, there's got to be a line somewhere in the legalese. But they're not going to charge overage on a plan that already states "unlimited" without risking litigation. Instead, they would throttle the speed or suspend the service. That still doesn't equate to the overage rates on an AT&T smartphone data plan.

Sprint says unlimited.
Verizon says unlimited.
T-Mobile says unlimited.
AT&T says 2GB.

Still not a majority. If or when that changes, this conversation would be different.

... smartphones with unlimited data via data cards?

Verizon, for example, has soft caps on their data card plans. They haven't called them unlimited in a while though. However, their smartphone data plan is completely unlimited with no throttling. This may change, though, with the iPhone launch.

I don't know. I see it all the time. It's a regular conversation between me and Menno. We're not sure why people have been confusing smartphone and aircard data for years.

About a month or so ago, on Engadget, I believe, people were all bent out of shape over Verizon announcing $50 data plans for 4G. They assumed it was for smartphones, when the press events clearly stated it was for USB modems.

Is this for legacy plans, or for new customers?

This is for New customers, or for existing customers when they upgrade their existing plans

Thats what I thought.

That is really funny how you can try to use what I say against me. Next time, SPELL CHECK. I love Sprint and they work for ME. So to me that is all that matters.

They were talking about Diamondpro, not you.

Diamondpro uses emoticons like little girls like putting glitter all over something.

LOL...sorry I will keep the emotions out of this. My apologies.

Actually, you probably didn't me to comment on MY comment, because my comment was about DiamondPro, but whatever...

My apologies, I should reaad all comments before responding.