Need a new cell phone, where to buy?

[vinolover Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close vinolover]

This isn't a computer question but I didn't know what forum to post this in.

We are former AT&T customers who have been going month to month with Cingular for a while now. It's time for us to buy new phones and it looks like we'll stick with Cingular (who will now be AT&T again )

We have only bought our phones with a new contract from the Cingular store but I see much better deals from 3rd party retailers (Overstock seems to have what we want) at a MUCH better price.

Is there any difference in buying our phones (and renewing our contract) via one of these sites versus buying it directly from Cingular? Is the service the same? Will we have trouble porting our numbers?

We don't have a land line anymore and my DH is self employed so we can't afford to be without cell phones (or cell phone coverage) if anything goes wrong.

[Luanne Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Luanne]

I should know the definite answer to this and I'm embarrassed that I don't. If you want to keep the same calling plan then you would need to keep your contract with Cingular. The phone you can get anywhere, you just need to take the chip (or whatever it's called) out and put it in the new phone. One of my co-workers buys her phones on ebay, or wherever else she can find a good price and then switches the chip. That way you keep your number and all of the info you have on your phone. I have Cingular and just replace when my contract is up. Depending on how fancy I go with the new phone I either pay nothing or more.

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

When ever I need a new phone I call the company itself and ask for the cancellation department. They are the ones that can give you the best deals on remaining a customer. If I want a new phone they will mail it to me. If I need a car plug or case they credit my account. I then go to a Sprint store and buy it there and have the store bill it to my account. I have been with Sprint for so long that they keep giving better deals and credits to my account to remain on.

[lawren2 Malibu Beach Barbie & A Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close lawren2]

I had AT&T for years because of the employee discount. There are a lot of dead zones around here with that service but it served it's purpose.

No longer being an employee made me re-evaluate my carrier. Most, if not all of my friends <except Frank> and all my family have Verizon service and I can talk to them all at anytime for no charge.

I guess I'm not fussy over my phones. They do the job I got them for and the latest one, which is nearly 2 years old, is pretty sturdy and doesn't weigh in like a brick.

As LuAnne states you can get them from anywhere and just switch the chip. But you SHOULD call your carrier and see what they will offer you to remain a customer.

Have fun shopping.

[vinolover Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close vinolover]

We've already been to the Cingular store and the deals they have aren't as good as what we can get on-line with someone like Amazon or Overstock. We don't want to switch to Verizon since they don't have GSM phones. Plus the activation fees are more expensive if we change carriers.

We've been pretty happy with our phones (and liked not having a contract since our two year deal expired ages ago). But two things happened. One, DH got in the hot tub at the Kona Village Resort with his phone in his pocket . Then Cingular started taking down the AT&T cell towers so our coverage is getting worse and worse.

It seems the only way to get an inexpensive NEW phone (DH will NOT consider EBAY) is to sign up for a new two year contract. He has his eye on one of the Motorola RAZR phones which are quite expensive otherwise.

I don't really care about any bells and whistles in my phone, won't use the camera, play the games, etc. Just want a phone.

I'm leary of using a third party since we will have to rely on them to handle the contract, port the phone numbers, etc. But their prices are SO much better.

Has anyone used Amazon or Overstock to buy their phones (and renew their contract)?

This is driving me crazy .

[Thirsty Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Thirsty]

I am with Sprint and I might call them to see if I can get a new phone for next to nothing. Do you have a name of a person to contact?

Mike

When ever I need a new phone I call the company itself and ask for the cancellation department. They are the ones that can give you the best deals on remaining a customer. If I want a new phone they will mail it to me. If I need a car plug or case they credit my account. I then go to a Sprint store and buy it there and have the store bill it to my account. I have been with Sprint for so long that they keep giving better deals and credits to my account to remain on.

[Luanne Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Luanne]

Has anyone used Amazon or Overstock to buy their phones (and renew their contract)?

This is where I keep getting confused. Can you renew your contract (which I think of as the calling plan) through Amazon or Overstock? With Cingular I have a calling plan that gives me service for a certain amount per month. What would you get if you went through Amazon or Overstock?

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

I am with Sprint and I might call them to see if I can get a new phone for next to nothing. Do you have a name of a person to contact?

Mike

If your current contract is done you have leverage. Just call up and ask for the retention department. Be up front with them with out being to upfront. Tell them that you can get a good phone and a better deal on a plan from another carrier and they are throwing in a car cord and case.

[vinolover Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close vinolover]

This is where I keep getting confused. Can you renew your contract (which I think of as the calling plan) through Amazon or Overstock? With Cingular I have a calling plan that gives me service for a certain amount per month. What would you get if you went through Amazon or Overstock?

Yes, you can renew your contract (calling plan) with the third party retailers. I just spent some time looking at the Best Buy website at what they offer for Cingular service plans.

They all have some different choices in phones and different prices for the phones (but all MUCH cheaper that buying it from Cingular). The calling plan rates are all the same as what you get from Cingular (or any carrier) so I assume the retailer just sets up the paperwork for you via the carrier for the actual calling plan.

It could save us as much as $100 as far as I can tell. BUT, I don't want to do this if they aren't reliable for porting our numbers in a timely manner. We can't be without service for even one day while we wait for phones to arrive in the mail.