"ps56k" <pschuman_no_spam_me@interserv.com> wrote in message
news:hcvk72$rov$1@news.eternal-september.org...
> just been reading some ramblings about VZ doubling their early termination
> fee.
>
> SO - we have the family plan... coming up on the 2yr window in Jan 2010..
> and our son is off to Germany for a year; left in July -
>
> We're locked in several different ways... but was wondering how they are
> interrelated ?
>
> Do you only have the option to signup for 2 years ?
> What happens to us in January ?
>
> The phones are subsidized by the 2yr plan,
> so is the (current) early termination fee to pay for the phones or the
> plan ?
>
> Can I walk into a VZ store and pay for a plan - month to month ?
> (goes back to what happens to us after January ?)
>
> Lastly, wonder if in certain cases it makes better sense to just buy the
> phone outright,
> vs getting the subsidized contract ?
Nothing happens to you in January, except you are no longer in danger of a
termination fee. Actually, that probably happens 30 days or so earlier.
You don't have to buy anything in January--what you have now will keep right
on working.
You can choose to go in and sign a new contract, and Verizon will call you
and ask if you'd like to do this, but you don't have to.
And, if you do choose to go for something different or new, you can choose
anything Verizon sells--you don't have to go for a new 2 year contract--and
you can also go to something like Page Plus which is touted here, if the
economics of that work for you. You own the phones and can do anything you
want with them.
You should double check the early termination business---it doesn't affect
you at all if you don't terminate (and you can pick a shorter contract
period, I believe)--and I think the posts have been about the fees for the
high-end smart phones--and that may not be descriptive of what you are
using.
ps56k wrote:
> just been reading some ramblings about VZ doubling their early
> termination fee.
>
> SO - we have the family plan... coming up on the 2yr window in Jan
> 2010.. and our son is off to Germany for a year; left in July -
>
> We're locked in several different ways... but was wondering how they
> are interrelated ?
>
> Do you only have the option to signup for 2 years ?
> What happens to us in January ?
>
> The phones are subsidized by the 2yr plan,
> so is the (current) early termination fee to pay for the phones or
> the plan ?
>
> Can I walk into a VZ store and pay for a plan - month to month ?
> (goes back to what happens to us after January ?)
>
> Lastly, wonder if in certain cases it makes better sense to just buy
> the phone outright,
> vs getting the subsidized contract ?
>
While Bill has explained it very well, I thought I'd add my twist to the
explanation.
What happens is that you automatically go on a month-to-month basis. They
keep your monthly rate the same as it had been under contract but you now no
longer are obligated under a contract and can quit at any time.
In addition, I thought I'd point out that you now own the phone(s). You can
keep them and continue to use them, or sell them and use the money to buy
another phone (or anything else you want). I usually flip my phones like
that and, in the past, have often gotten all of my initial money back. That
is harder to do now since the deals on phones have gotten so much better and
the 2-year contract rate has been made progressively shorter (it's like 20
months now), but it can still be worth the try.
Carl wrote:
> ps56k wrote:
>> just been reading some ramblings about VZ doubling their early
>> termination fee.
>>
>> SO - we have the family plan... coming up on the 2yr window in Jan
>> 2010.. and our son is off to Germany for a year; left in July -
>>
>> We're locked in several different ways... but was wondering how they
>> are interrelated ?
>>
>> Do you only have the option to signup for 2 years ?
>> What happens to us in January ?
>>
>> The phones are subsidized by the 2yr plan,
>> so is the (current) early termination fee to pay for the phones or
>> the plan ?
>>
>> Can I walk into a VZ store and pay for a plan - month to month ?
>> (goes back to what happens to us after January ?)
>>
>> Lastly, wonder if in certain cases it makes better sense to just buy
>> the phone outright,
>> vs getting the subsidized contract ?
>>
> While Bill has explained it very well, I thought I'd add my twist to the
> explanation.
>
> What happens is that you automatically go on a month-to-month basis. They
> keep your monthly rate the same as it had been under contract but you now no
> longer are obligated under a contract and can quit at any time.
>
Without a contract is there anything to keep VZW from raising rates?
> In addition, I thought I'd point out that you now own the phone(s). You can
> keep them and continue to use them, or sell them and use the money to buy
> another phone (or anything else you want). I usually flip my phones like
> that and, in the past, have often gotten all of my initial money back. That
> is harder to do now since the deals on phones have gotten so much better and
> the 2-year contract rate has been made progressively shorter (it's like 20
> months now), but it can still be worth the try.
>
>
"Richard B. Gilbert" <rgilbert88@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:9LCdnS1n2up84mnXnZ2dnUVZ_uGdnZ2d@giganews.com ...
>>
> Without a contract is there anything to keep VZW from raising rates?
>
That's a fair question. I for one have never read the "fine print" in the
contract, but I also have never had a rate increase during any period I was
out of contract. I currently operate on a plan that is no longer offered by
Verizon, so I think the answer for all practical purposes is no.
I would suggest that unless you have an overwhelming need for a new
phone...do nothing in Jan 2010. You will no longer be subject to an early
termination fee, you will be free to switch carriers if you choose, or you
can just continue on on a monthly basis. You can always buy a phone and NOT
sign up for a 2 year contract, but expect to pay considerably more for the
phone. If you don't buy from Verizon, make sure it is compatible and
functional on their network.
Part of my question was about Early Termination...
Our son is out of the country since July - for a year -
Both the cost of the basic family plan for my wife (until Jan 2010)
along with the +$9.95 additional line for our son,
adds up to money for idle or non-used service... about $70
vs just a very basic plan for her - until our son come back,
and then I guess migrate back up to the family plan ?
I should have her try and talk to someone at the local VZ store
and see what can be done.
At 06 Nov 2009 14:58:23 -0500 Richard B. Gilbert wrote:
> Carl wrote:
>
> > What happens is that you automatically go on a month-to-month basis.
> > They keep your monthly rate the same as it had been under contract
> > but you now no longer are obligated under a contract and can quit at
> > any time.
> >
> Without a contract is there anything to keep VZW from raising rates?
Technically, no, except it'd increase your likelyhood to leave. No
contract customers are the most fragile- why risk losing you?
Leaving existing customers' rates alone has been SOP in wireless for a
long time, particularly since rates have tended to improve over time.
I'm sure Verizon would be thrilled if you were still clinging to a 1980's-
era 75 minutes for $40 plan!
"Carl" <crothman@NOSPAMoptonline.net> wrote in
news:4af459b9$0$4994$607ed4bc@cv.net:
> In addition, I thought I'd point out that you now own the phone(s).
> You can keep them and continue to use them, or sell them and use the
> money to buy another phone (or anything else you want). I usually flip
> my phones like that and, in the past, have often gotten all of my
> initial money back. That is harder to do now since the deals on phones
> have gotten so much better and the 2-year contract rate has been made
> progressively shorter (it's like 20 months now), but it can still be
> worth the try.
>
>
>
And, you can keep the phones, dump the overpriced Verizon/Alltel/Sprint
nonsense and in 5 minutes flat sign onto one of the prepaid carriers
like PagePlus Cellular who is selling unlimited talk and unlimited text
NATIONWIDE on VERIZON'S SYSTEM with the SAME coverage on the SAME towers
you're paying through the nose to use now.....really cheap...$39.95!
Pay for only what you use....5.3c/min. Just want to talk 300 min/month?
300 x .053 = a $15.90 monthly sellphone bill!...That's IT! No charges,
no contract, no credit check, no Verizon, no funny business, no monthly
bill! When it runs low, buy more minutes from a discount card seller
and just punch in the PIN code off the email they send you or straight
off the screen to add it to your account...with a bonus! Don't use all
your minutes in 4 months? No problem! Minutes ROLL OVER, NOT EXPIRE!
Use 1000 minutes per month and send out 800 picture and text messages at
VZW - 1350 minutes, unlimited text/MMS = $80/mo. Data $1.99/MB (50MB =
$99.50!) per minute over 1350 add 35c/min
PagePlus - 1200 minutes, 1200 text/MMS, 50MB of data = $29.95 TOTAL COST
per minute over 1200 add 12c/min, 10c/mms, 15c/text, 60c/MB data...NOT
$1.99.
Duhh.....(c; It's a no brainer!....no ETF!, no refunds, no "free"
phones, no Friends n Family, no unlimited M2M, no funny business fees,
no phone insurance, no $80/month! No $400 sellphone bill because Crazy
Eddie was watching web streaming TV on that trip to Peoria when you
weren't watching....
Your service is subject to our business policies, practices and procedures,
which we can change without notice. UNLESS OTHERWISE PROHIBITED BY LAW, WE
CAN ALSO CHANGE PRICES AND ANY OTHER CONDITIONS IN THIS AGREEMENT AT ANY
TIME BY SENDING YOU WRITTEN NOTICE PRIOR TO THE BILLING PERIOD IN WHICH THE
CHANGES WOULD GO INTO EFFECT. IF YOU CHOOSE TO USE YOUR SERVICE AFTER THAT
POINT, YOU'RE ACCEPTING THE CHANGES. IF THE CHANGES HAVE A MATERIAL ADVERSE
EFFECT ON YOU, HOWEVER, YOU CAN END THE AFFECTED SERVICE, WITHOUT ANY EARLY
TERMINATION FEE, JUST BY CALLING US WITHIN 60 DAYS AFTER WE SEND NOTICE OF
THE CHANGE."
Your "contract" is null and void if they want to dump you or increase
prices.....It's fake!
"ps56k" <pschuman_no_spam_me@interserv.com> wrote in message
news:hd28l3$8co$1@news.eternal-september.org...
> Part of my question was about Early Termination...
>
> Our son is out of the country since July - for a year -
>
> Both the cost of the basic family plan for my wife (until Jan 2010)
> along with the +$9.95 additional line for our son,
> adds up to money for idle or non-used service... about $70
> vs just a very basic plan for her - until our son come back,
> and then I guess migrate back up to the family plan ?
>
> I should have her try and talk to someone at the local VZ store
> and see what can be done.
>
> I have a work phone - so not part of the mix -
>
>
Isn't the minimum ETF still more than $70? Maintaining the status quo would
at most mean $30 paid for service not used, based on payments for November,
December and January. At that time, you would be on month to month and
could do whatever you wanted.
The idea of talking to a Verizon representative is certainly a good one as
far as seeing your options. It might be possible to suspend your son's
phone without payment for that period since it's so short. It would extend
his committment for that amount of time.
stevev wrote:
> "Richard B. Gilbert" <rgilbert88@comcast.net> wrote in message
> news:9LCdnS1n2up84mnXnZ2dnUVZ_uGdnZ2d@giganews.com ...
>>>
>> Without a contract is there anything to keep VZW from raising rates?
>>
>
> That's a fair question. I for one have never read the "fine print"
> in the contract, but I also have never had a rate increase during any
> period I was out of contract. I currently operate on a plan that is
> no longer offered by Verizon, so I think the answer for all practical
> purposes is no.
Further on this; we're also on a plan that is no longer offered. About a
month ago we upgraded one of our phones under the new every two plan & the
phone we wanted would have required us to change to a current plan.
We were able to get a similar phone, but I worry about what will happen when
we have to upgrade again. It won't be that big a dea, $10 more a month with
more minutes, but we don't need more minutes so why spend $10/mo more?
--
Owen McKenzie
Posting from Largo, FL
Limit all US politicians to two terms.
One in office and one in prison.
Illinois already does this!
"Owen McKenzie" <jomckenzie@escapees.com> wrote in news:7llg2rF3ctkqgU1
@mid.individual.net:
> It won't be that big a dea, $10 more a month with
> more minutes, but we don't need more minutes so why spend $10/mo more?
>
Owen, how many minutes do you use on each phone? Analyze your usage a
little. The dangling carrot of a "free phone every 2" is a complete scam.
You're just paying full price for it on a time-payment revolving charge
account called a "cellular account".
Multiply your phone usage by 5.3c/minute on EACH phone separately and let's
figure out what a prepaid Verizon-system-based plan would cost you with the
SAME coverage on the SAME system.
I was amazed at how much money I dumped, and I only had a $40/month plan
with $25/month data on Alltel. What a waste in these trying economic
times.
On Fri, 6 Nov 2009 16:40:32 -0600, "ps56k"
<pschuman_no_spam_me@interserv.com> wrote:
>Part of my question was about Early Termination...
>
>Our son is out of the country since July - for a year -
>
>Both the cost of the basic family plan for my wife (until Jan 2010)
>along with the +$9.95 additional line for our son,
>adds up to money for idle or non-used service... about $70
>vs just a very basic plan for her - until our son come back,
>and then I guess migrate back up to the family plan ?
>
>I should have her try and talk to someone at the local VZ store
>and see what can be done.
>
>I have a work phone - so not part of the mix -
I wasn't using my phone much for a while, and got several notices from
Verizon that I could reduce the rate to $20 or $25/month - plus tax,
of course, but I think even with the second line (assuming that still
qualified), you could get out to $40/month or so. Better than $70. I
wonder if they also might simply be able to suspend your deal for a
few months, if that's the case?
contracts, phones, 2yrs, etc 
Linear Mode
