Verizon Introducing $20 Fee to Upgrade Your Smartphone

[rickyt07]

Well the obvious answer there is to regulate the regulatory fees. The government could make a regulation capping those fees at x% of the monthly bill, otherwise the telecoms are always going to just pass the cost of the regulation on to the consumers that way.
[doublepost=1459522841][/doublepost]

If you don't mind me asking, what part of the country are you in? I'm in the Southeast and I would love to use T-Mobile but the reception here is almost non-existent for T-Mobile.

Yes I also would love feedback from T-Mobile service reception around Missouri. I am sure the big cities carry great coverage but wonder how it is along our highways and other small to medium cities.
[doublepost=1459528656][/doublepost]

I think the next time T-Mobile runs a promo to pay for early cancellation at a different carrier, I'm going to switch over.

Totally am looking into this myself.
[doublepost=1459529654][/doublepost]

If you're not buying it from them, I would assume it falls under the "customer provided equipment" with no fee. It's like they are charging you an additional $20 for the "privilege" of getting the phone from them.

That is exactly how I see it. I cannot believe they charge this fee every month on top of having the phone payment and then finally the actual cost of the plan. haha i am just stunned at the moment.

 

[AlphaGuitarist]

I didn't go through the whole thread, so my apologies if this has already been mentioned. T-Mobile charges $15 for a SIM cards. I'm not sure if that only applies to new activations (I'm not a T-Mobile subscriber), but if it applies to upgrades as well, it's no different than an upgrade fee.

 

[NoleATL]

I'd love to hire T-Mobile, especially for when I travel to Europe, but their coverage sucks and I can't do my job.

 

[lparsons21]

Thanks for the mention of Project Fi. I had never heard of it. I just ordered the Nexus 5X from Google as they will discount it $150 when you activate it. For me T-Mobile now has good coverage for everywhere I'll be with some exceptions. But those exceptions are when I'm on a road trip and I have AT&T with my OnStar subscription.

 

[Brad Boushey]

Verizon customers planning on upgrading to the iPhone SE or another new smartphone should do so sooner rather than later, as the U.S.'s largest carrier has outlined plans to introduce a new $20 upgrade fee starting next week.

Beginning next Monday, April 4, a new $20 flat rate charge will be applied to smartphones purchased on a Device Payment financing plan, or at full retail price, according to a leaked internal memo obtained by MacRumors.

The same $20 premium will also apply to customers taking advantage of Apple's new iPhone Upgrade Program. Verizon cites "increasing support costs associated with customers switching their devices" as a reason for the new fees.

The new upgrade fees will impact all consumer accounts, as well as business accounts without an ECPD profile. Verizon's existing $40 upgrade fee for customers renewing a two-year contract with a new device remains in place.

The new $20 upgrade fee will be charged at the point of sale through direct Verizon sales channels, while the fee will be added to the customer's next bill when the smartphone is purchased through an indirect reseller.

AT&T similarly charges $15 per smartphone added or upgraded with AT&T Next, and "bring your own" devices. Sprint also charges an upgrade or activation fee up to $36 per device. T-Mobile does not have upgrade fees.

Article Link: Verizon Introducing $20 Fee to Upgrade Your Smartphone

[doublepost=1459621578][/doublepost]In Lawyer speak, (Lawyers wrote the below). VZ is a bold faced LIAR! VZ thinks customers are stupid. There are no extra COSTS, this is a LIE. This is a PROFIT CENTER. Say it like it is, GREEDY!

"People are switching devices more frequently," a Verizon spokeswoman told CNNMoney on Thursday. As a result, the company needs to cover the costs of processing higher device turnover, she said.

 

[dk001]

[doublepost=1459621578][/doublepost]In Lawyer speak, (Lawyers wrote the below). VZ is a bold faced LIAR! VZ thinks customers are stupid. There are no extra COSTS, this is a LIE. This is a PROFIT CENTER. Say it like it is, GREEDY!

"People are switching devices more frequently," a Verizon spokeswoman told CNNMoney on Thursday. As a result, the company needs to cover the costs of processing higher device turnover, she said.

It's interesting. I'm not a Verizon customer. I dumped them ages ago when the repeatedly stuffed my account. I now have AT&T and will be test running Fi starting next week.
I pulled my AT&T bills, last 3, and started looking at all the costs aside the base data plan and base add a line cost.
Then I started trying to find out what and why for each extra amount. So many make no sense and I am still looking at others.
Time to simplify. I am hoping, like a couple of my peers have found, that Fi works out well.

 

[lparsons21]

I'll be trying out Fi myself, probably next week assuming the phone comes by then. Alternatively I'll switch to Verizon prepaid as it makes more sense for me. I'm a very low data user and am on the 1Gb plan, with military discount it comes to $45.50 plus taxes and fees of about $10. I can switch to prepaid and get it for $45 plus sales tax of about $3.
If Fi works well AND if using Hangouts gives me something similar in experience with what I get with iOS/OSX phone integration, I'll keep Fi and pay the $30 a month minus whatever data I don't use.

 

[northy124]

I'd love to hire T-Mobile, especially for when I travel to Europe, but their coverage sucks and I can't do my job.

Whenever I'm in the US I've never had an issue with T-Mobile in NY, LA and LV. On the European side you can always get something like the Orange Europe prepaid sim that works everywhere and includes international calling.

 

[mountain]

Verizon is trying to steal from people and I hope other carriers don't follow. What a shame!

I hope people will start moving to tmobile or a diff carrier. Vote with your wallet.

 

[Ash Pole]

In reality, nobody will go thru the hassle of leaving Verizon simply over a one-time $20 fee. Without greed, capitalism would not succeed.

 

[kdarling]

There's a special irony in Apple device owners complaining about another company also wanting to maximize its profits.

 

[maxsix]

Phew, I had almost gotten worried that Vzw had run out of ideas and ways to charge me for absolutely no reason!

VZW, taking a page out of the decades old, tried and true Apple Book Of Profit Taking... Grabs $20 more simply because they can.

Make no mistake, other than the budget minded, this modest fee will go unnoticed by VZW's well heeled cadre of movers and shakers.

 

[ggibson913]

I just upgraded to the iphone SE 64gb. and I just found out that they are going to charge me $40 extra a month for doing the 2yr contract deal for $49. If I was to make the payment option they told me it would be $20 extra a month when ordering from apple.com. Verizon even charged me $20 each month for a phone that I paid in full on their website. So these fees are ridiculous and they are leading customers to believe they are paying that nice price for data when in fact as the get further along they realize it is too overpriced. Also I am sending a complaint because I was lead to think that this $40 was just an upgrade fee, which to me I always thought was a one time charge on the first bill. Now all of sudden upgrade fees are monthly? I just switched from Sprint because I was paying over $90 a month, but now it looks like I will be paying the same for 3GB of data instead of unlimited. Very frustrating and now stuck in a 2yr agreement.

You have 14 days to return

 

[617aircav]

I can't believe Verizon charges $70 for a plan with 1gb of data. Crazy.

 

[tgwaste]

I'm on T-mobile but one of my parents is on Google's new Project Fi service with a Nexus; were tired of Verizon and looks to be a good service. (except you can only use it on nexus phones; there may be a way to use it on iphones)

-Costs $20/month for unlimited call minutes, unlimited texts
-Costs $10/month for 1 Gb of data and you are refunded $1 for every 100 Mb you don't use.
-International data roaming all over the world at domestic prices.
-Uses Sprint, Wifi, and T-mobile (CDMA and GSM) simultaneously on one SIM, switches to whichever has the strongest signal.
- up to 10 free extra data-only SIM cards.

You're kidding me with this pricing structure right?

Why not just pay $65 to tMobile for talk, text, 6GB ? The same above would be $85.

Its absurd that data plans 5 years ago were BETTER than they are today.
[doublepost=1460053983][/doublepost]

I can't believe Verizon charges $70 for a plan with 1gb of data. Crazy.

Yep. Im on it. I pay $76.10 for Talk, Text, 1GB. ( I get an extra GB as a bonus but that ends soon ).

Almost done though, few more months and I'm out!
[doublepost=1460054086][/doublepost]

In reality, nobody will go thru the hassle of leaving Verizon simply over a one-time $20 fee. Without greed, capitalism would not succeed.

In REAL reality there are more incentives to do so than $20, which is why Verizon is losing market share.
[doublepost=1460054138][/doublepost]

I didn't go through the whole thread, so my apologies if this has already been mentioned. T-Mobile charges $15 for a SIM cards. I'm not sure if that only applies to new activations (I'm not a T-Mobile subscriber), but if it applies to upgrades as well, it's no different than an upgrade fee.

just type SIMFREE in the box at checkout and that goes away. Also, I thought it was $10.

 

[AlphaGuitarist]

just type SIMFREE in the box at checkout and that goes away. Also, I thought it was $10.

It's actually $20 now. I'm sure that Verizon will waive the "activation" fee, if asked.

 

[617aircav]

You're kidding me with this pricing structure right?

Why not just pay $65 to tMobile for talk, text, 6GB ? The same above would be $85.

Its absurd that data plans 5 years ago were BETTER than they are today.
[doublepost=1460053983][/doublepost]

Yep. Im on it. I pay $76.10 for Talk, Text, 1GB. ( I get an extra GB as a bonus but that ends soon ).

Almost done though, few more months and I'm out!
[doublepost=1460054086][/doublepost]

In REAL reality there are more incentives to do so than $20, which is why Verizon is losing market share.
[doublepost=1460054138][/doublepost]

just type SIMFREE in the box at checkout and that goes away. Also, I thought it was $10.

You may be better Of cancelling and paying ETF now that waiting several months.

 

[Wowereit]

I don't get what the fee is for.
Maybe your system is different, but here in Germany you just pull out the SIM and insert it into the new device.
That's it.

 

[C DM]

It's actually $20 now. I'm sure that Verizon will waive the "activation" fee, if asked.

Verizon has even petty stringent with their fees and sticking by them.