Database Users

Purchasing for T Mobile users: The Breakdown

Thinking about purchasing the nexus one? Here is a breakdown for all T Mobile customers of what's required.
Purchase Link
If you have a family plan, shared plan, flexpay plan or corporate account you will need to change before going to purchase the nexus one from the link above. Once all the above items are removed/changed then you are good to go and can enjoy the upgraded discount.
Quote from Nexus site "You can choose to purchase the Nexus One from the Google Phone Webstore without service for $529 USD, or with a qualifying T-Mobile US service plan at a discounted price:
Nexus One without service: $529
Nexus One with new, 2-year T-Mobile US service plan for new customers: $179
Nexus One with new, 2-year T-Mobile US service plan for qualifying existing T-Mobile customers who are adding data plans: $279
Nexus One with new, 2-year T-Mobile US service plan for qualifying existing T-Mobile customers who are upgrading their data plans: $379"
Source
I only paid 179.99 but that's because i opened a new line of service and got a new number. Be aware that if you open a new line of service to get the 179.99 price you CANNOT cancel your other line of service early or you will have to pay a 200.00 fee for early termination. The only option you have is to switch it to a home phone plan. If you decide to go that route as I did then it is 10.00 a month. It uses your sim card and a router that you get from T Mobile for 40.00. You must have a high speed connection to use this option.

I'm hoping you accidentally hit submit before finishing your post, cuz it doesn't make much sense to me.
I have been off contract since January 2009. How do I get the $179 price?
Edit: Just saw your post in the other thread. I think what you're saying confirms what the T-mo rep told me earlier today. She said that if I switched from my old grandfathered plan to the Even More 500 plan, then I'd be eligible for the $179 price. Not that I'm going to do it... it's cheaper for me to stick to my current plan and buying the phone unlocked.

uansari1 said:
I'm hoping you accidentally hit submit before finishing your post, cuz it doesn't make much sense to me.
I have been off contract since January 2009. How do I get the $179 price?
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Someone in another forum had the same issue and apparently he had to add another line. Once his N1 comes in he plans on canceling his old line and switching his number over to the new line. I can try to find that post if need be.?

rantrav said:
Someone in another forum had the same issue and apparently he had to add another line. Once his N1 comes in he plans on canceling his old line and switching his number over to the new line. I can try to find that post if need be.?
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That's not necessary, but thanks. I'd only buy the phone unlocked, because it will considerably cheaper than switching plans and being in a contract again. I'm really just curious because it doesn't seem right that if we're off contract with T-mo, we couldn't take advantage of the subsidized price of the phone. Theoretically we're paying higher plan prices every month because our original phones were subsidized. So if we're off contract, then we should have paid T-mo back for that subsidy and they should either discount our monthly rate (like the Even More Plus plans), or subsidize a new phone for us.

uansari1 said:
That's not necessary, but thanks. I'd only buy the phone unlocked, because it will considerably cheaper than switching plans and being in a contract again. I'm really just curious because it doesn't seem right that if we're off contract with T-mo, we couldn't take advantage of the subsidized price of the phone. Theoretically we're paying higher plan prices every month because our original phones were subsidized. So if we're off contract, then we should have paid T-mo back for that subsidy and they should either discount our monthly rate (like the Even More Plus plans), or subsidize a new phone for us.
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Sorry, people on here seem to like 'hard evidence' that is only text from another person. I am sure that this has been the plan since the beginning. Google, obviously having the upper hand and being in control, is calling the shots on how this works. T-Mobile, being an underdog, was probably given first dibs with this being part of the deal. But, I do agree with you. I bought it unlocked and would have rather saved the money and updated my phone with current plan. The guys post was something about he had a "grandfathered" in plan and was eligible through TMO for the update but with it being through Google he wasn't able to.... I guess all we can say is 'okay' and mush on.

I would have bought the unlocked version as well but I'm already paying the same amount as the plan that is required so took the discount and ran. I'm sure eventually there will be more plans available. Google is sure to take a lot of heat for it and will eventually crack...well I hope anyways lol.

Both of you should take a look at the discussion here:
http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/Google+Mobile/thread?tid=3c0fd3870ec370a8&hl=en#all
It doesn't look good for people who are existing customers, off contract and want to sign a new contract. Kinda ****ty if you ask me, but fortunately it won't affect me.

For people interested in the tmo family plans, here is some math.
Getting 2 subsidized phones over a two-year period breaks down to an extra $15 a month ([$180 x2]/24). 2 unlocked phones is $44 a month ([$530 x2]/24).
Looking at text and web family plans with no annual contracts, its $109.99 for 750mins, $119.99 for 1500mins and $139.99 for unlimited. This gives you freedom of picking your plans or switching to another carrier that supports this phone.
Knowing that if you get the subsidized version, you will be paying $160 a month plus the breakdown of $15 a month (spreading out what you pay up front for the devices) it comes to $175 a month.
With the unlocked device price breakdown at $44 a month, you can see you will save money if you buy the unlocked phone and use either the 750min or 1500min family plans as they will cost you $154 and $164 respectively.
This is a two year savings of $504 and $264!

uansari1 said:
Both of you should take a look at the discussion here:
http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/Google+Mobile/thread?tid=3c0fd3870ec370a8&hl=en#all
It doesn't look good for people who are existing customers, off contract and want to sign a new contract. Kinda ****ty if you ask me, but fortunately it won't affect me.
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I love the first post that clearly states "only new T-mobile customers are eligible to purchase Nexus One at the discounted price of $179." If thats true then why did I get one for 179.99, I've been with them for 7 years! lol

uansari1 said:
Both of you should take a look at the discussion here:
http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/Google+Mobile/thread?tid=3c0fd3870ec370a8&hl=en#all
It doesn't look good for people who are existing customers, off contract and want to sign a new contract. Kinda ****ty if you ask me, but fortunately it won't affect me.
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I have a family plan with 4 lines so I had to break down and pay full price.... same when the G1 came out. Only reason is because i feel like this phone I will keep for some time. I hope. Google, I think, will be getting a lot of heat about this. I took a look at the link and there are A LOT of pissed off people on there. But GOOG does have the money to blow.

This is interesting guys
http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/Google+Mobile/thread?tid=06a361e72a26b798&hl=en

ryanmo5 said:
i would have bought the unlocked version as well but i'm already paying the same amount as the plan that is required so took the discount and ran. I'm sure eventually there will be more plans available. Google is sure to take a lot of heat for it and will eventually crack...well i hope anyways lol.
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theyre all unlocked

melterx12 said:
theyre all unlocked
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Oops lmao, I meant without service

I actually bought the unlocked phone for $530,-. I have another 6 months on my contract.
But this way, I'll be contract free, and am actually SAVING money now, because I had a G1 with Myfav600, which was $80,- a month.
And I never even come close to using my 600 minutes.
So the 500 plus plan is perfect for me. And I save $20,- a month.
And , when they get the Voip thing happening, I can use that as well, since I have a Google Voice number.

i'm a current T-mob customer with 9 mo left on my 2 yr contract i got with my G1, once i get some extra cash saved up i plan to pay the full price for the nexus one because for me at least i currently spend $53 a month on my service with t-mob and don't care or benefit to change it and if i could extend my contract and pay less for the phone by some amount it will still save me more in the long run by not having to pay for the dumb 80 dollar a month plan they force you to have by going that route
this is of course as long as they do not change their tune on how they are handling this before i'm ready to purchase the phone i.e. give me a discount of some amount to upgrade and keep my current plan or one very close to it

Im currently on the even more plus 500+unlimited text+Web
On flex pay. Iam so lucky i didnt sign a 2 year contract!
I just hope tmobile doesnt try to make me pay 80 if i buy the phone without a plan. Just going to pop in my sim from G1

I've posted this in a couple other threads but it should help here.
I'll tell everyone up front I worked for T-Mobile customer care for the last 4 years up until this past June and was a supervisor for the last year of my time there.
If you currently have a single line plan that is out of contract is qualifies through T-Mobile for the full discount but Google is giving you the price that is almost $400 here is what you can do it get around it. And change to the Even More plans prior WILL NOT fix this issue.
Alot of people are getting bad information from TMobile about what needs to be done because the reps were given almost no information about the ordering process. So most reps and just going with the flow to try and get people off the phone.
When you go to order the phone with Google select the option to add a new line to your account. It will give you the 179.99 price for adding the new line. Once the new phone comes in the mail call T-Mobile and cancel your old line and ask them to put a "request old number back" request to replace the new number with your old one. This takes about 24 hours to go through. During that 24 hours your old number will not work because you have to cancel it before you do this.
I know for a fact this will work but the rep you talk to may give you crap about doing this and not let you because they want to be a ****. If you're worried about that call and cancel you old line when you get the phone then call back and talk to another rep and tell them to put in the request for you.

Don't you have to pay the 200 dollar ETF if you cancel a line?

There's no ETF if the line has no contract. So if you add a new line to get the discount you can cancel the old one without a fee

Ah I missed that part. I am trying to get the 180 price and I only have a few months left on my contract and they won't upgrade it. They will let me add a new line of service though.

No Loopsholes for Purchasing

I just switched to EM+ Family plan and recently came off of EM. I still have until September for my contract that I extended when I got the G1 back in Thanksgiving of 08.
I figured that I'd go to EM+ and use the "Subsidizing" ability to cover the $530 cost. This will not work for the unseen future due to some "duh" moments.
EM+ works this way: If T-Mobile is selling the phone on their site, you can use EM+ to purchase it and subsidize it over a maximum of 20 months. They charge you separate from your bill, and you can choose how much to pay additional each month for the phone. (Not sure if there is a minimum payment per month. I'm guessing you have to at LEAST pay 1/20th of the phone's cost).
This won't work with the N1 because Google has exclusive selling rights for the phone.
So, like a moron, I finally came to the conclusion that there are only two ways to buy the phone, and they are the ways Google has already plain-as-day outlined.
Until there is a new game in town and Google relinquishes their exclusivity and T-Mobile picks up the Nexus One of their own accord, my only option is to buy the phone outright because the EM+ plan is not compatible with the purchasing options on the Nexus One. This is because the nature of EM+ does not make the "extension" option a viable choice due to the non-contractual nature of EM+.
It is also the highest plan possible, and - aside from the $35 fee - possibly the best plan T-Mobile offers because it's packages are cheaper than EM. However, once on it, there is no backing out.
Start saving those pennies, XDA family.

wait so does that mean that i cant buy the n1 unlocked & unsub through google, then go to tmobile and get a EM+ plan?

All we can do is either pay the $530, or $180 if your line is eligible for an upgrade (contract or upgrading to EM in the first place).
TMo always lets you upgrade to EM+ if your line isn't on it, but the $35 upgrade fee applies, and you are still obligated to the contract time you signed up for before switching to EM+. IE, I still have till the end of September for the extension I signed up for at the End of November 2008 when I got my G1, even though my account will switch to EM+ on the 8th of January.
Of course, we could always do the $180 and pay the $350 cancellation fee, but that costs a total of $530 -_-

Blueman101 said:
wait so does that mean that i cant buy the n1 unlocked & unsub through google, then go to tmobile and get a EM+ plan?
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You can do that. He's talking about upgrading and getting the 180 price instead of the full 530 price.
I have tried to talk Tmobile in waiving the ETF on one of my lines if I buy the N1 and add an aditional line but they won't do that either. Its either 530 or nothing for me. (don't want to pay 110+ dollars a month for two lines)

engagedtosmile said:
You can do that. He's talking about upgrading and getting the 180 price instead of the full 530 price.
I have tried to talk Tmobile in waiving the ETF on one of my lines if I buy the N1 and add an aditional line but they won't do that either. Its either 530 or nothing for me. (don't want to pay 110+ dollars a month for two lines)
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thanks
*phew* I was worried that my ordering of the n1 was for nothing
-Cheers

errr tmobile
I saved my upgrade for this but their plan totally sucks for the Nexus one.
500 minutes???!!!! for 79$ [email protected]#%@%
I just bought it unlocked im going to just put my sim in it.

Lol, good job. I am in agreement with that.

This stuff is to fin complicated, they should have thought this out more. All this what works what doesnt stuff you know.

I bought my Nexus One for $530 then just went over to T-mobile and changed my G1 plan to an Even More Plus 1000 minute unlimited text/web $69.99 a month. Unlocked phone and no contract, can't beat that. I think they charged me $35 to change plans but I still think that is great deal. Oh, and all the T-mobile employees in the store were going nuts loving my phone since they had never seen it before.

Best place to get a Vibrant off contract

I've been following the Galaxy S and Vibrant releases for a while and love the Vibrant. I however have a problem concerning plans. Since I will only be using its Internet capabilities where I have Wi-Fi (college, home, work), I have no need or desire for a data plan. T-Mobile REQUIRES new devices are sold with data plans so my question is.
1.Would getting a Vibrant from Ebay (for ~$500) and using my old SIM be the best option?
2. Can I just walk into a Tmobile store and tell them I want to purchase a RETAIL ($500) Vibrant with no contract or SIM and get one that way (or are they going to add a data plan and ask me for my Tmobile line credentials to do so)?
3. Is getting a Vibrant on contract for $200 + data plan and then cancelling the contract after the 15th day the cheapest option?
I suppose I would prefer to buy it from Tmobile, even at retail price since I get the manufacturer insurance of 1 year (have needed it before) free though if not possible, Ebay is an option too. I'm just looking at getting it as cheap as possible without having to do a 2-year data plan contract.
Thx.

I bought it at T-mobile off contract, however i made some other account changes while i was there so not sure if they require anything account wise when buying off contract.

I see. What kind of changes did you make? Adding a data plan or something else?
Do you think I can walk into a store, and buy a Vibrant for $500 WITHOUT providing any account information so that they cannot associate my account with the phone?
I'd like to keep my contract AS IS currently, and if possible not renew it (it just passed the 2 years mark so I can technically get a discounted phone if I renew it but I do not like T-Mobile's new contracts. I have unlimited texting on my line through a Family plan)

you might try asking this over in the the Tmobile vibrant forum
i believe you can cancel the data plan after or during the first month but i'm not the expert

costco WAS selling Vibrants off-contract (even more plans) for $229. not sure if its still ongoing.

Either costco or t-mobile. At costco they have to tie it it to a new phone line, which you can cancel at any time since you aren't under contact, pretty sure there is no fee.
I opted to but at tmo, and have the price split up over 20 payments interest free. I already had an existing android plan though.

andy2na said:
costco WAS selling Vibrants off-contract (even more plans) for $229. not sure if its still ongoing.
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Even More plans are contract plans. Are you talking about Even More Plus plans?
Go by a T-Mobile store and ask or call their customer service. You'll get a much better answer straight from the horse's mouth than you will from here.
I've heard about people trying to get a discounted phone with a new contract or making changes to their plan so they qualify and then immediately change things around in a manner that would disqualify them from the discount after they got it and then T-Mobile hit them with the remaining amount for the full price of the phone in their next bill. I guess it's their way of saying "cheaters never prosper".

If I buy it from Tmobile with ANY sort of contract...Even more Plus or Even More, they WILL add a data plan to it. There is also activation fees for a new line so not only will I have to pay the $500 for an even more plus plan, but I would have to CANCEL the line...in that case I may as well get it off of Ebay and save myself the hassle of all that.

The T-Mo forums are really helpful with everything other than development. Try there or stop at an official T-Mo store. The third party official partner places get paid to sell contracts. I've had some bad experiences on eBay and had to go to resolution with the seller twice on pre-smartphone phones, so beware.

What kind of bad experiences exactly?

If I were you and looking for a SGS I'd buy the full model that has all the extras... or possibly even the version with a slide out keyboard and ffc. The SGS Pro i believe it is.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

}{Alienz}{ said:
What kind of bad experiences exactly?
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Wrong carrier on one occasion and got a refurbished instead of new phone the other time. I have gotten good deals as well, so it's a crapshoot. I probably didn't screen the seller as well as I should have, just looked at the overall rating.
Sent from my T-Mobile G1 using XDA App

you could probably call tmo or stop in to a tmo corp store and ask, I find they are usually very helpful about things like this. side note i actually had a long conversation w/ the rep at the store when i bought my vibrant about cyanogenmod and phone modding, which he has done to his phones.

OMG, costco was selling this for $250 no contract and noone spread the good news. SHAME ON YOU ALL.
Know if i can still get it @ 250?
if you find any good deals please post it here. thanks

engineer14 said:
OMG, costco was selling this for $250 no contract and noone spread the good news. SHAME ON YOU ALL.
Know if i can still get it @ 250?
if you find any good deals please post it here. thanks
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Click to collapse
Nope. A memo was sent out and they raised the price Tuesday morning to $479. Think the $250 was a pricing error.

The best deal is with Bing cashback! $325
Go to bing.com
search for tmobile (you should see gold dollar sign w 35% off)
click on the link to tmobile site then do your shopping
I got my phone for $325 and on top of that, 35% off activation and the $59 plan.
so my total saving was $208
But bing is ending its cashback program at the end of july so better hurry!

I don't see the gold $ when I search t-mobile nor when I do my shopping after clicking through bing do I get the discount.
Is there supposd to be some code you put? Is it possible for you to just post a link?

too bad Bing cashback is gone at the end of the month.
@killer bee
See picture

hpz937 said:
you could probably call tmo or stop in to a tmo corp store and ask, I find they are usually very helpful about things like this. side note i actually had a long conversation w/ the rep at the store when i bought my vibrant about cyanogenmod and phone modding, which he has done to his phones.
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I went to check the phone out the phone at a local store and someone was playing with the demo so the rep let me play with his personal phone. I noticed he had the su app installed lol
Sent from my T-Mobile G1 using XDA App

engineer14 said:
OMG, costco was selling this for $250 no contract and noone spread the good news. SHAME ON YOU ALL.
Know if i can still get it @ 250?
if you find any good deals please post it here. thanks
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Click to collapse
I totally agree! I recently switched our 5 phones over from AT&t and we went with Even More Plus because it's cheaper in the long run and no contract. However, we had to pay full price for the phones. Two of them were basic flip phones, but three of them were Samsung Vibrants at $500 apiece. We bought them at a T-Mobile corporate store and the most they did for us was waive the activation fee (which I found out would have been done anyway as a AAA member) and give us one free car charger when we bought the other two. We shelled out $1500 for the three Vibrants and we could have paid $750 at Costco!!!!! We're still in our 14 day return period, obviously, so if this is all true I'm going to call T-Mobile and see what can be done.

How Do People Keep Getting New Phones?

theres alot of talk of switching from this phone to that, but how do they do it? My dad has always handled the purchasing and contract stuff with tmobile, so i dont know. Theoretically if i wanted to switch from my vib to the G2 (NEVER!), would i just sell my vibrant and buy the G2 at full price?
note: this is just an example, G2's are stupid (for me)

Buying the phone outright, at least on T-Mobile, will give you cheaper rates. Part of your monthly bill is to pay back the difference between what the carrier paid for the phone and the discounted price they sold it to you for. For example, my Evo cost Sprint about $450 to buy it from HTC, however in exchange for a higher bill, they can sell it to me for $200 and make back the money about halfway into my contract. Like I said, I think only T-Mobile will give you lower rates if you choose not to buy the phone at a discounted price from them.
So yes, people usually buy them outright or they buy them for cheap off of friends or idiots on craigslist. If you do the math, most of the time it would cost you less to buy the phone for the full price if it means lower service cost. But most people want instant gratification and think...well they don't think lol.

A job helps. I buy my phones outright because the get more plus plan does not give upgrades, but over the long term, it saves money.

me i actually wait until the store is closed and "let myself in" and its usually a alot of phones out on display.

If you did not buy the phone outright (i.e. as an upgrade for cheap), and wanted to sell it and buy a different phone used, would that cause a problem for your account? Or would it just be as easy as logging into your T-Mobile account and selected a different device for "my phone"?

Terrier Hockey said:
If you did not buy the phone outright (i.e. as an upgrade for cheap), and wanted to sell it and buy a different phone used, would that cause a problem for your account? Or would it just be as easy as logging into your T-Mobile account and selected a different device for "my phone"?
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Once you pay for it, it's yours. You can do whatever the hell you want with it. Sell it, destroy it, whatever. As long as T-Mobile's getting their money, it doesn't matter.

dligon said:
me i actually wait until the store is closed and "let myself in" and its usually a alot of phones out on display.
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DEBO! lmao
IMHO, I'd say once a year is more than sufficient to upgrade your phone in terms of the technological jumps. Anymore than that seems like a waste of money. No one says you have to keep upgrading, its just a matter or preference. If you find a phone you love and works for you, stick with it. If you love having the cutting edge stuff and its worth it to you to spend the money, then by all means, spend spend spend.

a job and full price. lol. i haven't had a contract with tmob for like 4 years anyway...
but then again, i went from a g1 to the vibrant, but i typically get a new phone once a year. had a bb curve, wanted android and got the g1, cm wasn't cutting it on the g1 anymore, so i got the vibrant, when a substantially better phone comes out (dual core, better screen, honeycomb, etc), or the vibrant just isn't working for me i'll get a new one (likely the former).
that or my wife needs a new phone (she has a cliq...), so i may pawn my vibrant off on her and grab an sgs2 or vibrant 4g.

I have enormous piles of money all over my mansion. That's how.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

If you don't have any connections, then the best way is to go on T-mobile's cheap plans and then buy the phones used from a site like ebay or craigslist.
The typical cost for a new-ish smart phone is going to be right around $300... so you are paying more than the $200-with-contract price that T-mobile charges.... but you break even on the extra cost in 5-6 months by avoiding the extra monthly cost for service on a contract (since you buy the phone without signing up for a contract).
You can also usually sell the old phone for ~$100 after you unlock it, and put that money towards your next upgrade.
Right now, I plan to see how the battery life on the dual core phones goes. If battery life is improved, then I will shoot for device running "Ice cream" or whatever comes after honeycomb.
If battery life still sucks, then I will keep my Vibrant (and the 3 spare batteries I have for it) in the short term and keep an eye out for cheaper plans

Im in a college town and I can get things cheap off craigslist. I bought my second vibrant for 120 brand new with accessories. Just got an hd7 for 150 and ive bought 4 hd2 plus a couple broken ones from 40-150.
Key to buying phone monthly is patients, checking craigslist every couple hrs, and lowballing. I love to see a listing up for a couple days because its usually the green light.
Every phone i buy i usually see for 2x what I paid for.
Ive been living off my first real phones tmobile mda, samsung blackjack, and moto milestone. Ive been selling and buying since my mda. I try not to use my own money.
And all but not least I dont care for light cosmetic issues, thats what silicon cases are for.

imitebewrong said:
I have enormous piles of money all over my mansion. That's how.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
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Lol
Sent from my LG-P500 using XDA App

intruda119 said:
Im in a college town and I can get things cheap off craigslist. I bought my second vibrant for 120 brand new with accessories. Just got an hd7 for 150 and ive bought 4 hd2 plus a couple broken ones from 40-150.
Key to buying phone monthly is patients, checking craigslist every couple hrs, and lowballing. I love to see a listing up for a couple days because its usually the green light.
Every phone i buy i usually see for 2x what I paid for.
Ive been living off my first real phones tmobile mda, samsung blackjack, and moto milestone. Ive been selling and buying since my mda. I try not to use my own money.
And all but not least I dont care for light cosmetic issues, thats what silicon cases are for.
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Exactly. Thats what I do. Just buy phones, make profit, and keep the cycle going until you have the Phones you want and they cost nothing.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

serban954 said:
Exactly. Thats what I do. Just buy phones, make profit, and keep the cycle going until you have the Phones you want and they cost nothing.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
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yup all my phones are a result of selling my PSP years ago.
xD

scrizz said:
yup all my phones are a result of selling my PSP years ago.
xD
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only thing I really paid for was my moto miletone. I loved that phone and it was perfect for me. Everything else is from my original purchase of my mda. I get mad when I hear people trying to choose phones or game systems ect. I just bought a newer white 360 with 20inch moniter for 65 bucks on craigslist. Now I got a 2nd moniter and my girl got another 360 exclusive for kinect. Or just sell it and make 200+ for it.
Next I will get atleast 300+ for my 32gb vibrant( this title will make me alot of moniesssss) soon.

funeralthirst said:
a job and full price. lol. i haven't had a contract with tmob for like 4 years anyway...
but then again, i went from a g1 to the vibrant, but i typically get a new phone once a year. had a bb curve, wanted android and got the g1, cm wasn't cutting it on the g1 anymore, so i got the vibrant, when a substantially better phone comes out (dual core, better screen, honeycomb, etc), or the vibrant just isn't working for me i'll get a new one (likely the former).
that or my wife needs a new phone (she has a cliq...), so i may pawn my vibrant off on her and grab an sgs2 or vibrant 4g.
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Click to collapse
Not really. All it takes is a brain. T-Mobile is addicted to promotions. I just upgraded my Vibrant to a HD7 for $200.
Free Online Promotion:
1. Order HD7 from T-Mobile as an Add-a-Line for $0 (they waive the Activation Fee) with a $15 Data Plan and Insurance.
2. Swap the SIMs in the Vibrant and HD7s.
3. Wait 2 Weeks.
3a. Sell the Vibrant for $200+
4. ETF the Line you added when you got the HD7 (it's using your older SIM*).
5. Total Price: $200 (Price of the phone for a new customer).
* You will still qualify for upgrade pricing when you would have if you had kept the Vibrant, because you still have the Vibrant SIM, you ETF'd the new SIM instead
If you're on T-Mobile, watch the promotions and wait. The only time you should feel like you have to get a new phone early is if you've been burned with an earlier purchase - like many [US] Galaxy S users feel they were.

intruda119 said:
only thing I really paid for was my moto miletone. I loved that phone and it was perfect for me. Everything else is from my original purchase of my mda. I get mad when I hear people trying to choose phones or game systems ect. I just bought a newer white 360 with 20inch moniter for 65 bucks on craigslist. Now I got a 2nd moniter and my girl got another 360 exclusive for kinect. Or just sell it and make 200+ for it.
Next I will get atleast 300+ for my 32gb vibrant( this title will make me alot of moniesssss) soon.
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The newer 360s aren't White, they're black.
Unless you meant a newer white 360 that isn't guaranteed to fail on you sooner or later?
The new Black "S" or pre-"S" Elite Models are fine, though.
The white ones... I wouldn't spend anything on them.

Buy a phone from craigslist and sell your old one on craigslist.

N8ter said:
Not really. All it takes is a brain. T-Mobile is addicted to promotions. I just upgraded my Vibrant to a HD7 for $200.
Free Online Promotion:
1. Order HD7 from T-Mobile as an Add-a-Line for $0 (they waive the Activation Fee) with a $15 Data Plan and Insurance.
2. Swap the SIMs in the Vibrant and HD7s.
3. Wait 2 Weeks.
3a. Sell the Vibrant for $200+
4. ETF the Line you added when you got the HD7 (it's using your older SIM*).
5. Total Price: $200 (Price of the phone for a new customer).
* You will still qualify for upgrade pricing when you would have if you had kept the Vibrant, because you still have the Vibrant SIM, you ETF'd the new SIM instead
If you're on T-Mobile, watch the promotions and wait. The only time you should feel like you have to get a new phone early is if you've been burned with an earlier purchase - like many [US] Galaxy S users feel they were.
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Click to collapse
yeah, you could do that. but you pay more monthly on a contract plan than a no contract plan. plus, if i have a problem with something (or want to go to a contract for a phone), tmob is much more receptive to what i want when i'm off contract (and they check how long i've had service with them).
and i think you mean cancel the new sim/line and pay the etf on that. otherwise you lose future upgrade capability on the existing line. you physically swap the sim card between the two phones, but you cancel the sim that came with the <new phone line>. sim cards can't be reused, so you wouldn't be able to make your old sim use the new line's number and i'm pretty sure a sim has to be associated with a line.
why wait 2 weeks and why buy insurance? or is the two weeks to make sure the imei of the new phone takes for insurance (i don't have phone insurance, it's pointless)?
the hd7? that's a downgrade... and 'get a new phone early'? two years (22 months) between new phones is ridiculous, or at least is for any smartphone. once a year is about right with how technology is moving on phones.
i'm much happier just paying full price than doing some 'activate new line, call and ***** they didn't waive the activation fee, make sure the imei transfered for insurance, cancel line, pay more each month, etc.' dance.

xmrtarox said:
Buy a phone from craigslist and sell your old one on craigslist.
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Click to collapse
That depends on where you live. Since this is the Vibrant forum I'll assume we're talking T-Mobile...
Not many people around here have T-Mobile, and their coverage is worst than Boost and Virgin so there are probably more people on Boost than on T-Mobile. Trying to sell a T-Mobile phone here won't get you anywhere.
Plus, the Value of these phones have gone down quite a bit.
Most people don't really see a point in buying a phone at off-contract prices, or anything close, because even if you buy at contract price and ETF 2 weeks later, the phone is cheaper.
So I rather buy on contract knowing I'm not poor and can ETF at any time on T-Mobile than buy a $500 phone and act like I'm better off because I'm off-contract.
$499 off contract, or $199 (with rebats) + $200 ETF fee two a few weeks later to end the contract?
Don't see a point in paying those prices for off-contract phones...
The contract prices only matter if you stay on the contract the entire time, but it's ALMOST ALWAYS cheaper to buy at contract price and ETF on T-Mobile later, than to buy an off-contract phone. You're actually throwing money away if you buy it off-contract.
That is precisely why AT&T and Verizon raised their ETF prices up about $100 bucks. To make the contract price + ETF = retail price. T-Mobile still hasn't, so it's cheaper to buy on contract and ETF break the contract after the first two weeks or month (depending on if you're waiting on rebates).

[Q] Where to go now...

Well, after loving the **** out of my Leo I find myself needing to reup my contract and with AT&T buying tmobile I am not so sure I want to stick around, but so far everyone tells me they are the only two networks that would support my phone. So I ask you guys are there any newer phones that are this loved and open ended as the Leo is?
I mean this phone is just beyond words awesome and I am dragging my feet to leave tmobile cause of it. But with all these new phones coming out and dual core phones I am just wondering if someone could give me some suggestions for another phone this open and easy to flash and hack.

RiffyDivine said:
Well, after loving the **** out of my Leo I find myself needing to reup my contract and with AT&T buying tmobile I am not so sure I want to stick around, but so far everyone tells me they are the only two networks that would support my phone. So I ask you guys are there any newer phones that are this loved and open ended as the Leo is?
I mean this phone is just beyond words awesome and I am dragging my feet to leave tmobile cause of it. But with all these new phones coming out and dual core phones I am just wondering if someone could give me some suggestions for another phone this open and easy to flash and hack.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is no phone like the HD2, and so far I'm not incredibly impressed by the dual-core phones. The sensation is laggy, the SGS2 is ugly and I don't need 1080p recording on a freaking phone.
I'm holding out for quad-core devices or the iPhone 5, unless I just get sporadic and pick up a new device just cuz.
I would just wait till AT&T-Mobile releases a phone that gets both ATT and T-Mobile 3G so you have awesome coverage, no phone right now can do that besides the Vibrant.

I don't know that there are any phones like the HD2 out there, but I am in the same boat as you and can offer a suggestion.
Stick with T-Mobile a little longer but don't lock into a contract. The AT&T deal might not even go through, and even if it does, you wont see any affects of it for several years.
T-Mobile has a new "Value Plan" where if you buy a phone out-right, you don't have to sign a contract and the monthly rate is a lot cheaper ($20 less per month) than if you subsidize it and lock into a 2 year contract. You can switch to this and continue to ride the HD2 wagon, or buy a new device - In which case, if you dont want to pay the full price of the phone up front, they offer a payment plan, where you pay part up front, then $15/month for 20 months. So compare that to the 2-year contract plan and you're saving $5 a month for 20 months, then $20 a month for the last 4 (and beyond). If you decide you want to leave prior to the 20th month, you just pay off the remaining ballance on the phone and you're free to sign elsewhere.

Hamburg said:
I don't know that there are any phones like the HD2 out there, but I am in the same boat as you and can offer a suggestion.
Stick with T-Mobile a little longer but don't lock into a contract. The AT&T deal might not even go through, and even if it does, you wont see any affects of it for several years.
T-Mobile has a new "Value Plan" where if you buy a phone out-right, you don't have to sign a contract and the monthly rate is a lot cheaper ($20 less per month) than if you subsidize it and lock into a 2 year contract. You can switch to this and continue to ride the HD2 wagon, or buy a new device - In which case, if you dont want to pay the full price of the phone up front, they offer a payment plan, where you pay part up front, then $15/month for 20 months. So compare that to the 2-year contract plan and you're saving $5 a month for 20 months, then $20 a month for the last 4 (and beyond). If you decide you want to leave prior to the 20th month, you just pay off the remaining ballance on the phone and you're free to sign elsewhere.
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Click to collapse
You lost me towards the end there mate, all I know is that tmob keeps bugging the **** out of me to reup and that sure as hell ain't going to happen anytime soon. My plan is still good and stuff I only pay I think 70 a month of unlimited everything.

RiffyDivine said:
You lost me towards the end there mate, all I know is that tmob keeps bugging the **** out of me to reup and that sure as hell ain't going to happen anytime soon. My plan is still good and stuff I only pay I think 70 a month of unlimited everything.
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Click to collapse
What he's saying is the "no contract" plans are $20 cheaper than the contracted ones.
The 500 minutes/unlimited data is $80 a month if you're on a contract. The same plan is $60 a month if on the "no contract" plan.

orangekid said:
What he's saying is the "no contract" plans are $20 cheaper than the contracted ones.
The 500 minutes/unlimited data is $80 a month if you're on a contract. The same plan is $60 a month if on the "no contract" plan.
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^ What he said. Just go to a t-mob store. They'll explain it better. Hard to explain in a post.

I got it the second time, thanks. True 60 is nice but dropping the 15 more for unlimited mins text and data doesn't seem so bad...still don't see how unlimited can mean 5 gigs, but then I don't work marketing.
Mostly I was just hoping to find the next phone to jump to for a boost in specs but still having the total freedom this phone gives. I mean I can reflash any rom I want to test and then just throw out a restore if I don't like it. There isn't anything this phone hasn't been able to do for me. I am looking and starting to think no one will ever make a phone this good again.

RiffyDivine said:
I got it the second time, thanks. True 60 is nice but dropping the 15 more for unlimited mins text and data doesn't seem so bad...still don't see how unlimited can mean 5 gigs, but then I don't work marketing.
Mostly I was just hoping to find the next phone to jump to for a boost in specs but still having the total freedom this phone gives. I mean I can reflash any rom I want to test and then just throw out a restore if I don't like it. There isn't anything this phone hasn't been able to do for me. I am looking and starting to think no one will ever make a phone this good again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The sensation is kinda like that now, you might give that a shot.