I have been a sprint customer for 6 years now. In that time I have had two Treo’s and have been relatively happy with the phone and Sprint. About a year ago my wife wanted a new phone and we went looking. I really liked the iPhone, but didn’t like AT&T or the idea of paying so much a moth for the data plan.
We looked around and my wife decided she liked one of Sprint’s phones; She found out we both get Upgrade Rebates for staying with Sprint- significant rebates- $150 each- so we go with Sprint for two more years. This rebate is to “reward us for being loyal Sprint customers.” I was quite happy with my Treo and didn’t even get a new phone. The sales man at Sprint assured us I could use my upgrade rebate any time in the next two years to buy a new phone when I wanted to.
So time passes, then all the buzz about the Palm Pre bubbles to the surface. My Treo is still working fine, but I gotta admit I was intrigued by the Pre. I read a few blogs, and reviews and saw a few videos. I was on the fence. I have a friend with the newer iPhone, and really do like it. Maybe I will just keep my Treo for another year and then go to the iPhone. Plus the new family plan I will have to get will be at least $50 more a month. That’s a lot.
Then Saturday June 6th comes around, I’m checkin the news sites and run across a few stories about the Pre. I really would like a new phone, it seems really snazzy- almost as good in terms of aesthetics as the iPhone. Palm’s new WebOs is built on Linux too, so that pretty much seals the deal. I never have like Apple’s super-proprietary ethos, even though I love their phone and the innovation they brought to smartphones. And I still don’t like At&T.
So we go to get the Pre Saturday afternoon.
Before I go I get on Sprint’s site to check to make sure I get my Upgrade rebate as well as the normal $100 rebate everyone gets.
I do! I am psyched…
Sprint
I go to my local Sprint store, and they have plenty of Pre’s, phew. Thank God!
The salesman is finishing up with a customer who is also getting a Pre, he seems very happy, my level of anticipation is even higher now.
Come on, this is taking too long! I think as the salesman syncs up the guys old address book with the Pre’s. Well That’s cool I think what a nice service. I’m gonna do that too.
So after an eternity the salesman finishes up and sends the guy on his way, no w I can actually hold the Pre.
And… I am actually underwhelmed. After holding an iPhone- and tinkering with a few blackberries, this is a little bit of a let down. It is so little and kinda shaped weird- but the salesman shows me all the cool things it does- still not like the iPhone, but still very cool, I tell myself- this is gonna be great.
Ok, I tell the guy about my upgrade rebate, and he says yep you get that, awesome.
So he gives me my price and it is
$200!
I say, wait what about my upgrade rebate- “Oh its in there,” he assures me.
“But then Why am I paying what anyone walking off the street would pay?”
“Well because the actual retail price of the phone is $500, so your upgrade rebate gets taken off that.”
“But that’s not what the told me, I saw the
press release from Sprint- the phone is $300″
“Here I will put it on paper for you,” he says clearly incredulous that I would even argue with him.
So he scribbles down some numbers to show me the error in my thinking.
So I say, “I don’t understand. How much would a person just walking off the street pay?”
“Well $300 with a $100 rebate.”
“Then how does that make sense? I am a 6 year Sprint customer, who was promised a upgrade rebate for signing another 2 year contract, whay don’t I get my upgrade rebate too?”
“Cuz then you would only be paying $50 for the phone,” he says with a smile.
I calmly take my Treo and leave.
I call Sprint’s customer service, this has got to be a mistake I think, it’s gotta be a bad apple telling me this I think- some greedy salesman who wants a bigger commission.
Nope.
I talk to a customer rep then a manager who both tell me I am getting my Upgrade rebate, it’s just for some mysterious reason that they can’t explain, the price for me is $150 higher than it is for everybody else.
Then, after I explain myself again-and finish by saying, “how is that rewarding me for staying with Sprint?”
“Well we do waive the activation fee and the deposit, as a way of rewarding our upgrading customers,” she says.
But what about my $150 upgrade rebate?
“Well, you are getting that sir”
This is going nowhere. I hang up.
So to recap,
Price of the Palm Pre: $300.
Price of the Palm Pre for loyal customers: $450, or $500, or whatever the hell Sprint says it is I guess, (otherwise known as the Jack-Ass Surcharge).
I honestly don’t get the logic. Not only are they losing a loyal customer but also the extra $50+ a month I would be paying for my new plan.
But now I am reading about
problems with the Pre too, so maybe there is a reason for everything—or maybe Sprint is just a greedy, short-sited, dishonest corporation.
Tags: palm, pre, sprint, sucks
Another reason to think twice before buying a Palm Pre is that the thing’s screen is apparently spontaneously cracking! Thanks to 
