If buying iPhone at AT&T store, beware!!

[MultiMediaWill]

He was trying to force that on you because it makes him more commission.

Last year when the iPhone 5 was extremely hard to find.. I located 3 of them at Verizon/RadioShack. All of the refused to sell me it at full price ($649). They knew it was a hot item and they wanted as many new activations as possible to boost revenue.

I finally found a Verizon that would sell it outright *IF* I bought $75 worth of accessories with it. I bought the and returned them later that day.

RadioShack gave me a real hassle, to which I contacted Customer Relations and after about 15 emails, my local RadioShack district manager gave me a $50 gift card.

My ATT rep tried so hard to get me on the Next plan when I got my 5s. I finally told him to essentially shut up. When I heard a nearby employee try to convince a different customer to get on the next plan, I said "you guys must get some crazy commission on the next plan." The employee said they get no commission for it. So why are all the reps trying so hard for us to get on the plan?

 

[Collin789]

My ATT rep tried so hard to get me on the Next plan when I got my 5s. I finally told him to essentially shut up. When I heard a nearby employee try to convince a different customer to get on the next plan, I said "you guys must get some crazy commission on the next plan." The employee said they get no commission for it. So why are all the reps trying so hard for us to get on the plan?

Oh I'm sure they get commission. Or they have some sort of race to see who can sell the most Next plans.

 

[supersalo]

I wouldn't call it a scam but I imagine it makes AT&T a lot of revenue. It's an option for someone who wants a new phone every year and isn't worried about the total cost of ownership. If I have the numbers correct it's cheaper yearly than paying the early upgrade / activation fees as long as you stay in the program and get new phones. But if you decide to get off the merry go round and not get a new phone the cost of the equipment is crazy expensive. Like payday loan expensive.

AT&T is simply dumbing it down like car salesmen do. It's not about how much it costs, it's about how much it costs per month. And I'm sure a lot of people just want to make the same payment every month with no surprises and hand over their phone to get a new one every year. No hassle with extra fees and then selling it on eBay / Craigslist.

I think it's more expensive. You're already paying $20/month in subsidies for the iPhone. The Next plan adds $27/month so you've paid an extra $324 at the end of the year. You can then upgrade, but you have to turn in your old phone.

Instead if you pay the $250 "partial discount" upgrade after a year and sell your old iPhone (even broken iPhones used for parts go for $100 on eBay), then you're only paying the $250 minus whatever you sell the old one for (which could be more than $250).

 

[ABC5S]

A simple Google search tells you NEXT is a scam.

I mean, 2 year contracts are scams, as well. But, it's the unfortunate nature of the beast in the US.

I'd switch to MetroPCS if I could. IDGAF.

Friend, and I took a week off to visits family in Alabama last week. He had the Metro PCS Carrier, and I had a Verizon. MetroPCS went dead near a small town for that entire week, and my verizon kept on trucking. Just saying

 

[Clix Pix]

Reading this thread with interest.... When I was in the AT&T store on Launch Day, right away the sales person mentioned the Next plan and how I was eligible. I said, "gee, that's interesting, as when I checked online a couple of days ago I was not eligible, as I am only one year into my two-year contract." I already knew that candidates had to be out of contract for that Next plan. He waffled a bit, went off to consult a supervisor, who undoubtedly told him the same thing I'd just said, and we were back to Square One, which was my breaking the contract and starting a new one with the new iPhone, and also trading in my iPhone 5. I was interested to note that in the end, it cost me less to trade in in the iPhone 5 and start a new contract for the iPhone 5S than it would have if I'd been fully eligible for an update. I'll remember that next year, too......

 

[Col Ronson]

I'm on a family plan with 4 lines on it with a family of people who really don't care about new phones. And I don't plan on leaving AT&T anytime soon.

you should consider it with all the **** customer service you've been getting.