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Contract and Subsidy Issues for iPhone Users Looking to Upgrade to iPhone 3G S
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Until they lose their jobs, then watch how fast loyalty goes out the door!!!
Lot of ATT folks lurking this forum, some very helpful, the one guy yesterday answered a lot of questions. But some just very condescending. The moderators are not on their toes.
Part of the reason this is "news" is because even with the partially subsidized price of $399 for the 16GB, you still have to sign a new 2 year contract. So, really they are getting an extra year of contract for free. The early upgrade subsidy is approx 1/2 of the "new" subsidy. Both require 2 year contracts.
Might not make a huge difference, but start linking to this on your twitter if you have one guys: http://twitition.com/f96aq
It's a petition to lower the price of the iPhone. I don't think it'll do anything big, but it's worth a try.
Yes, spread the word!
It's a petition to lower the price of the iPhone. I don't think it'll do anything big, but it's worth a try.
Yes, spread the word!
Guess there are a lot of dumb people out there! Because if you look at google this is a pretty hot topic. And ATT is not getting a lot of sympathy.
Maybe its because people are getting pushed into all kinds of contracts unwittingly and they are just now starting to look at those contracts and say fowl.
Heads Up For O2 Uk People
Hey folks,
I'm a newbie (first time writer, long time listener) and I'm sure I'm late to the party, but just in case it hasn't been said already...
For those in the UK, do NOT ask in or call any of the physical stores for anything to do with Iphone upgrades. They have been told to just cite the party line.
BUT if you phone O2 directly and ask to be put through to your contract manager then things get a little more interesting...
Apparently O2 customers are tiered depending on their usage and spending habits. If, like me, you travel and run up higher than usual monthly bills then you very quickly become a 'platinum level' customer. As such, when I mentioned the possibility of an early upgrade my very helpful contract manager informed me that, once the initial craziness has subsided, they will be posting an Iphone 3Gs handset out to me - probably a few weeks after release. The price of the handset will be added to my next bill, but I will NOT have to pay any of the outstanding months on my contract (which, like most, does not end until January...)
So. There you go. Thought some might find that a little interesting!
Hey folks,
I'm a newbie (first time writer, long time listener) and I'm sure I'm late to the party, but just in case it hasn't been said already...
For those in the UK, do NOT ask in or call any of the physical stores for anything to do with Iphone upgrades. They have been told to just cite the party line.
BUT if you phone O2 directly and ask to be put through to your contract manager then things get a little more interesting...
Apparently O2 customers are tiered depending on their usage and spending habits. If, like me, you travel and run up higher than usual monthly bills then you very quickly become a 'platinum level' customer. As such, when I mentioned the possibility of an early upgrade my very helpful contract manager informed me that, once the initial craziness has subsided, they will be posting an Iphone 3Gs handset out to me - probably a few weeks after release. The price of the handset will be added to my next bill, but I will NOT have to pay any of the outstanding months on my contract (which, like most, does not end until January...)
So. There you go. Thought some might find that a little interesting!
Sorry if this is a repost. I skimmed through the 11 pages really fast and wanted to shed some light on the upgrade pricing and qualifying.
It varys on a few different things. One if you are on a family plan with ATT and you are the main number you can upgrade early say 18 months, however if you are an addon line then mostly you have to wait the full 24 months to upgrade. This is upgrading only not the end of the contract. The end of the contract is 24months no matter how your account is set up. Also if you have have great I mean great not good payment history ATT will let you upgrade early 18 months. Have bad payment history and I have seen accounts that ATT will not let upgrade even if they are out of contract. Granted the customer can cancel and renew but there would probably be a deposit and they would lose there number. This sucks but its they way ATT is setup. I don't work for ATT but I work for a retailer who handles the iphone and I run the cellphone department in that store. So I know a little about how the upgrade process works and I'm dealing with the angry customers first hand even though I'M NOT ATT
It varys on a few different things. One if you are on a family plan with ATT and you are the main number you can upgrade early say 18 months, however if you are an addon line then mostly you have to wait the full 24 months to upgrade. This is upgrading only not the end of the contract. The end of the contract is 24months no matter how your account is set up. Also if you have have great I mean great not good payment history ATT will let you upgrade early 18 months. Have bad payment history and I have seen accounts that ATT will not let upgrade even if they are out of contract. Granted the customer can cancel and renew but there would probably be a deposit and they would lose there number. This sucks but its they way ATT is setup. I don't work for ATT but I work for a retailer who handles the iphone and I run the cellphone department in that store. So I know a little about how the upgrade process works and I'm dealing with the angry customers first hand even though I'M NOT ATT
You know in the end most of the complainers (me included) are just going to find justification and upgrade.
Human Nature, Companies depend on that.
Mine is already on Reserve, whatever that means?
Ok, some points here to help*/muddy the waters* (*delete where applicable)
1) Importantly Apple are accounting for the iPhone differently. From Macworld's coverage of the 2008 iPhone event:
2) AT&T employees make mistakes! As shocking as it sounds, much of the confusion appears to be from people being told different things by different people. By default, go to your carrier site, and they should be able to tell you. O2 in the UK, for example, say this.
3) Asking for Apple/AT&T to suddenly have 1 year contracts and let everyone upgrade now is silly and pointless. The genius of the iPhone is not just its software and ease of use - it's the fact that it has encouraged millions of new customers to take out the higher tariffs that previously only the high-powered businessmen were taking. The major selling point of the iPhone for the carriers is just exactly the fact that it hooks people into paying £45 a month on the latest phone as opposed to £15 on a bog-standard handset that texts and calls. They are getting more bang for their infrastructure.
)1) Importantly Apple are accounting for the iPhone differently. From Macworld's coverage of the 2008 iPhone event:
No lost revenue if you don't get a phone this year your original contract will count towards Apple's revenue stream.Macworld.com/ Apple said:
2) AT&T employees make mistakes!
As shocking as it sounds, much of the confusion appears to be from people being told different things by different people. By default, go to your carrier site, and they should be able to tell you. O2 in the UK, for example, say this.
To be eligible in the US, you appear to have to be within 18th month or less of your 2 yearly contract, but this appears to depend on whether you renewed your contract to get a new contract when the 3G came out (ie you have a 2 year contract from this time last year) or you essentially bought a 3G and kept your iPhone EDGE contract (ie your contract is about to expire now). Check your contract to clarify, and if that fails, the link for At&T is here for you to check whether you can save some bucks if you upgrade now.O2 said:
3) Asking for Apple/AT&T to suddenly have 1 year contracts and let everyone upgrade now is silly and pointless. The genius of the iPhone is not just its software and ease of use - it's the fact that it has encouraged millions of new customers to take out the higher tariffs that previously only the high-powered businessmen were taking. The major selling point of the iPhone for the carriers is just exactly the fact that it hooks people into paying £45 a month on the latest phone as opposed to £15 on a bog-standard handset that texts and calls. They are getting more bang for their infrastructure.
I'm not sure they actually gave you anything extra, over what you get anyway - the early upgrades are a part of their Priority List programme:
- Silver Level (spend £35 to £50 a month), upgrade 1 month early
- Gold Level (spend £50 to £80 a month), upgrade 3 months early.
- Platinum Level (spend over £80 a month), upgrade 6 months early.
The early upgrades appear to work if you upgrade online as well.
faster, but lets not fall for that marketing BS of a lot faster
better camera, still a POS camera. Get a DSLR + a quality lens if you want clear pics.
voice commands, if you like it, more power to you
yeah let me just take this DSLR around in my pocket with me everywhere
****in plz
that's like saying who needs an FM tuner, just carry a ****ing boombox around
Ok, some points here to help*/muddy the waters* (*delete where applicable
1) Importantly Apple are accounting for the iPhone differently. From Macworld's coverage of the 2008 iPhone event: No lost revenue if you don't get a phone this year your original contract will count towards Apple's revenue stream.
2) AT&T employees make mistakes!
3) Asking for Apple/AT&T to suddenly have 1 year contracts and let everyone upgrade now is silly and pointless. The genius of the iPhone is not just its software and ease of use - it's the fact that it has encouraged millions of new customers to take out the higher tariffs that previously only the high-powered businessmen were taking. The major selling point of the iPhone for the carriers is just exactly the fact that it hooks people into paying £45 a month on the latest phone as opposed to £15 on a bog-standard handset that texts and calls. They are getting more bang for their infrastructure.
One year contracts, going forward not grandfathered are not a bad business model, if you charge more for the monthly tiered services.
Are you telling me that a one year contract that starts at the end of someones current contract. I'm talking going forward. but with almost double the cost for voice and data (you get the hit monthly rather than later) isn't as cost effective as a 2 yr contract from the carriers perspective.
of course you would need careful marketing to convince the customer to take the plan.
Hmm this sounds a lot like what ATT does now, too bad they don't publish it clearly for people can understand it.
Check out the ATT wireless page www.att.com
They have a photo of the iphone with a big button in the middle saying Add a line. Kind of interesting...
They have a photo of the iphone with a big button in the middle saying Add a line. Kind of interesting...
It's sounds like you're saying the new contract you sign follows the original... that's not the case. If you had the 3G for 1 year and are signing a new contract, that's 3 years total. 1 phone fully subsidized = 2 years. 1 phone half subsized = 1 year.
It works out perfectly.
I can totally see how some are questioning how some are arbitrarily getting out of this in a year vs. 1.5 years... aside from that this is fair though.
here's my deal
i purhchased a 16gb iphone 3g in october 08 from an apple store at the then un-subsidized price of $499...was told that because i was buying at unsubsidized price, it would not affect my upgrade eligibility, which then read i was eligible as of late may, 2009. went to check online yesterday, upgrade eligibility has suspiciously changed to march 2010.
called at&T, explained the situation, was told to take my receipt from original purchase into an at&T store and they would clear up the situation. took my receipt today, was told by the rep (and the manager) at the at&t store that the $500 i paid was a 'somewhat' subsidized price, and because i didnt pay $699 i was not eligible for an upgrade. told them that was the first time i ever heard a $699 price tag for the iphone 3g, and maybe they were confusing the 3g with the 3Gs. after some back and forth, manager said he cant do anything for me.
called customer service from the store, was put on hold for a total of about 20 minutes, and was finally told that they could not do anything for me. told them this was completely unacceptable, and it needed to be escalated. i now have a pending case open, that will supposedly get resolution on the 18th.
at&t needs to get it right. i did everything the right way in order to prepare myself for an upgrade. the last subsidized purchase i made from at&T was dec. 24, 2007 when i upgraded to the blackberry cure. they seem to be raising the bar now, which is wrong.
i purhchased a 16gb iphone 3g in october 08 from an apple store at the then un-subsidized price of $499...was told that because i was buying at unsubsidized price, it would not affect my upgrade eligibility, which then read i was eligible as of late may, 2009. went to check online yesterday, upgrade eligibility has suspiciously changed to march 2010.
called at&T, explained the situation, was told to take my receipt from original purchase into an at&T store and they would clear up the situation. took my receipt today, was told by the rep (and the manager) at the at&t store that the $500 i paid was a 'somewhat' subsidized price, and because i didnt pay $699 i was not eligible for an upgrade. told them that was the first time i ever heard a $699 price tag for the iphone 3g, and maybe they were confusing the 3g with the 3Gs. after some back and forth, manager said he cant do anything for me.
called customer service from the store, was put on hold for a total of about 20 minutes, and was finally told that they could not do anything for me. told them this was completely unacceptable, and it needed to be escalated. i now have a pending case open, that will supposedly get resolution on the 18th.
at&t needs to get it right. i did everything the right way in order to prepare myself for an upgrade. the last subsidized purchase i made from at&T was dec. 24, 2007 when i upgraded to the blackberry cure. they seem to be raising the bar now, which is wrong.
Thats it I'm tired of clicking the refresh button. I'm going to go off and design a totally new forum that uses direct push to show posts.
Nicee way of saying these posts are going no where!!!
It looks like all the country with iPhone have people up in arms.
US: at&t not enabling tethering and MMS on June 17
O2: Outrageous Phone Plans, and ridiculous extra fee for tethering.
I wonder, how does the plan look for the other countries, because SoftBank, you can get iPhone 3G 8gb for FREE! (and the only one currently available), and also provides discounted billing plans under some of their plans, along with discounted price on iPhone 3G-S.
Is this the start of Cell Phone Company Revolt?
US: at&t not enabling tethering and MMS on June 17
O2: Outrageous Phone Plans, and ridiculous extra fee for tethering.
I wonder, how does the plan look for the other countries, because SoftBank, you can get iPhone 3G 8gb for FREE! (and the only one currently available), and also provides discounted billing plans under some of their plans, along with discounted price on iPhone 3G-S.
Is this the start of Cell Phone Company Revolt?
I don't particularly understand the complaining. If you aren't qualified and have to have it the second it comes out then sign up and order it. Then, when it comes, turn around and sell your 3G on eBay. Right now you can get about $300 for one in good condition. That more than makes up for the price and you end up having to pay about the same amount you would if you completely qualified for the subsidy.
Hi,
Thanks for the reply... I thought so too but I spoke with so many different supervisors (constantly being moved up) and they told me that I am not eligible for an iPhone upgrade and no one can override that. Its funny though, if you bought a 3G iPhone on the day of the launch its saying you can buy a 3GS at the 199 price after 18 months of owning the 3G... Its been past 18 months for my contract with the original first gen iPhone, yet I cant buy a 3GS at the 199 price... I already placed an order for the $399 though.
$499 was the early upgrade price. $699 the unsubsidised price. So if the Apple store said it was unsubsidised, they were wrong and it did affect your upgrade eligibility. If you're going to complain to anyone it should be the Apple store, though I'd check the paper work first to see what you signed and agreed to.