Sprint pulls connection kits off the shelves!!!

Coporate bandits!!! They're trying to squeeze more profit out of their customers. Sprint's corporate execs must lust after more $Christmas$ bonuses for themselves. Don't they have any shame?

Are they going to improve customer service with this extra cash?....Hint: 1/2 hour wait to reach live CS.

 

ok coporate bandits.. I'd say any company would LOOSE money offering unlimited access to the internet for of $10 a month. that would even cover their cost to support it, so then they would have to raise pricing plans, and then ya'll would complain about that. get over it.. nothing is FREE stop acting like some drugged out 70's hippie downgrading corporate america. everyone is out to make money. even YOU!

 

LOL....SprintGuy, I am still trying to find the pamphlet that stated the $99 for laptop users. I still ask what were some of these people using before vision. They are treating it like someone gave them something then took it away.

Who in their right mind would think that $10 a month for unlimited did NOT mean via the phone?

 

The people who are mad at Sprint about this are the same people who get mad because Walmart fixes a pricing error on a DVD player that should be marked $100 and not $10.

Not that the $10 plan was an error, but people will always find the holes in the best laid plan. Sprint was just trying to make using data from a handset easier on the mind (stop keeping track of how long you are online) and on the wallet, but people want to take advantage of that creativity.

(I must not be feeling right...defending Sprint!) Must be the Christmas Spirit!!!

 

This all sort of reminds me of cable tv theft. "Well the cord was there and when I plugged it in it worked... "

In other words, if you must steal it while you can get away with it, then do so quietly, but don't complain when you get caught! Anyone who is savvy enough to connect their laptop to Vision using a phone, without the help of Sprint's support services, is savvy enough to know that they are not supposed to be doing it. It would be pretty naive to think that they won't eventually catch up with it.

I'm not saying that they are going to be tracking all customer's Vision usage - the whole reason they switched to unlimited plans is because they don't have support systems in place to measure and bill for data usage. But let's face it, they can EASILY track ESN numbers associated with network usage. So when they find their data network is bottlenecked in specific areas, they will be able to research it and know who is using excessive bandwidth, or in their words "abusing" the system. They know that a phone cannot browse the web at the same capacity as a laptop running an IE browser. They WILL be able to track down the offenders that stick out like sore thumbs.

In my opinion, anyone who plans to use their phone as the primary web connection for their computer is bound to get caught eventually. I can guarantee that these folks will be screaming the day they turn on their phone to a message that says their service has been terminated and they need to go in to a store to get it back on.

 

Wut most of them did was wait till they got off the plane and to the hotel and then jacked into the hotel phone line. or found some nice little Coffe shop that offered free wireless internet access via a wireless network card.

 

In all actuality.. They do have a way to Track and bill the usage.. The WHOLE point of offering it Unlimited to to presuade customers to come to Sprint instead of being LIMITED with carriers such as Verizon and others... How do you think they bill and Track the Data Only plans??? they still have the 20mb, 40mb, and 80mb Vision Only plans.. Plus Offering it unlimted give customers the chance to experiance the Vision service to its full capabilty without being limited.

 

SPRINTPCSGUY2002--Don't you know it is not smart to "wiz on the electric fence"????

 

I didn't say that they didn't have a way to track it... I said that they don't have support systems in place to track and bill correctly - I should have added "on a large scale." Sprint had major problems even in the first month with their data billings and they had to reconcile many billing errors.

Remember that When Vision launched in August the initial promo was Unlimited Vision for 3 months then switching to billing based on mb or kbps. Well some people bought those plans and their 3 months is up. So there are customers out there who are currently paying mb and kbps. There are also customers with Vision phones that do not have Vision plans - they are currently being charged kbps if they access Vision through their phone.

I had 2 Vision plans in August - a Treo and a Novatel Connection Card, and both were billed incorrectly for the first 2 months. What a mess that was. I can't imagine what they had to go through on a national scale.

Because their focus right now is refining the general billing processes for Vision, I really don't think that they will be proactively monitoring for Vision abusers... yet. But when they detect a network backup or slowdown, you know that they will be able to pinpoint the cause.

And yes - you are correct, they are also trying to appeal to the masses with the unlimited plans - so that customers do not have to worry about how much data they use through their phone. Too many people asking how 20 mb of data translates into web pages and emails.... hmmm... is it even possible to answer that question?

JillD

 

From the site http://www.commverge.com/

"Limited Vision"

Sprint gives cellular another black eye

Maury Wright, Editor-in-Chief -- CommVerge, 12/18/2002


As much as we depend on cell phones these days, for everything from tracking kids to working on the road, the cellular carriers remain barely competent-at best-at their chosen business. Indeed, although they're fond of saying that retaining existing customers costs less than winning new ones, they rarely take actions that would make you believe their claim.

I've been quick to criticize the policies of these carriers in the past (see "Days off," October 2001, and "Out of options," January 2001). But the recent actions of Sprint PCS in regards to its Vision wireless data service just may be the most appalling yet-especially because many people have been counting on wireless data to be the salvation of the cellular industry in North America.

I don't begrudge Sprint the right to charge a fair price for its service. But the way the company is handling the situation is deplorable. Sprint made one mistake and has now compounded it with more.
Sprint launched the 2.5/3G Vision service with great fanfare late this past summer. New phones and PDAs accompanied the service rollout, along with push email service and a richer Web experience. For notebook users, the company offered both PC Cards to connect to the Internet and data cables that allowed Vision phones to act as wireless modems. You'll find a range of Vision connection speeds quoted, but the data rates regularly hit 144 kbits/sec-three to five times better than dial-up connections.

When I met with Sprint PCS executives at September's DEMOmobile show, they made it clear that they expected subscribers who wanted to regularly use the network for Internet access to buy wireless PC Cards and subscribe to a data-centric service. Subscribers who wanted to use Vison phones for limited email and Web surfing, and to sporadically connect a computer to the Internet, would be encouraged to buy plans that were voice-centric but included data service metered by the megabyte. At the time, I thought the data prices were a bit out of line, but the Vision service seemed quite compelling.

After Labor Day, the Vision phones hit the stores, and I went shopping. Actually, I wasn't lured by the expensive data services but by the new generation of color screens, which I can read while walking through an airport without having to fumble for my reading glasses.

I was already a Sprint customer. So, per the usual backward thinking in the industry, Sprint immediately turned me off. If I were to buy a new phone, I learned, I wouldn't receive the rebate or accessories offered to new customers. However, Sprint would offer me a free month of service if I committed to a two-year contract. See, they really wanted to keep my business.

Meanwhile, Cingular was offering a GSM world phone with a color screen free to new subscribers. I wanted to take that offer, but my company has a corporate discount with Sprint, so that was out of the question.

I bought a Sanyo 4900 Vision handset and have been happy with it as a phone. When I chose a service plan, I added 8 Mbytes per month of data for experimentation. However, the data cables that would link the phone to my notebook hadn't arrived in the store.

Later, Sprint PCS decided to offer unlimited Vision service to new subscribers-presumably due to low take rates. One day I was pleasantly surprised when a Sprint rep called to tell me that my plan now included unlimited data service at no extra charge.

I've been on the road constantly, so I just recently got around to shopping for the data cable. A rep at the local Sprint store claimed that data cables had never been offered for Vision phones, only for earlier-generation phones. I knew this to be a lie, so I immediately hit the Internet newsgroups.

It turns out that the unlimited-access offer quickly burned Sprint. Subscribers with data cables and Vision phones were surfing away on their voice-centric plans. The steps that Sprint took as a result can't be clearly documented, and an interview with Sprint only resulted in hand waving. But here's my best guess as to what happened.

Sprint first pulled the data cables off shelves-this despite the fact that the company still sells a PIM (personal information manager) synchronization package that requires such a cable in order to transfer your contact list from your PC to your phone.

The cables have also disappeared from the Web sites of phone manufacturers. Sanyo's site, for example, claims the cable will be out-of-stock until February, making me believe that Sprint has garnered the company's cooperation in not selling cables. Those who act fast may find a cable at www.futuredial.com or Radio Shack.

In addition, newsgroup postings claim that Sprint is threatening users who "abuse" the data service with disconnection of their accounts; presumably, fine print in the Vision agreement limits data usage. Sprint claims it is offering such users a chance to trade their phone for a PC Card. Unlimited data service for the cards costs $100 per month. Yet just weeks ago, Sprint reps in stores and on the phone were advising potential customers to buy a phone and use the unlimited data service.

I don't begrudge Sprint the right to charge a fair price for its service. But the way the company is handling the situation is deplorable. Sprint made one mistake and has now compounded it with more. And having reps tell bald-faced lies to deny that data cables ever existed is really scraping the bottom.

Meanwhile, cellular gets another black eye. Unfortunately, the trickle-down will go all the way to the vendors that make chipsets and the software gurus designing new wireless applications. In a downturn like the one we're in, we can't afford such mistakes. Some people believe the cellular market is poised to lead the upturn. But it won't if carriers continue to screw up clearly compelling service offerings.

 

Hi

Just before Thanksgiving, I upgraded to the Sanyo 4900 with the $85/2000 minute Vision plan. I was using my old Qualcomm 2700 to get on the internet while at work (I work on a ship). I am on the ship half the year. While at home, I use my house line. Here on the ship, there are several of us that have laptops with the old sprint 14.4 setup. Of course, the new service sounded good to us to get. I purchased my connection kit in Texas, and then called a co-worker in Florida to tell him about the deal. He went out to try to get it but could not. That is when we found out that they were pulling this stuff off the shelves. I was still able to get the kit for him in Texas, so I did so. We are on board the ship now, and have been using this setup and trying to iron out the bugs... and there seem to be quite a few. When working well, the connections we are getting are anywhere from 40kb/s to 100kb/s. With my phone and laptop, I usually cruise at 70kb/s.

Since we've been on board, there have been 3 other guys here that wanted to get this new Vision plan and kit for their laptops. Three days ago (Dec 20), those three crew members went ashore in Lake Charles, Louisiana to get the Sanyo 4900 and respective connection kits. They were told IN THE SPRINT PCS STORE by Sprint personel that this would enable them to access the internet with their laptops via the 4900 phone. This makes 5 of us now that use the 4900 with our laptops. We all have the $85/2000 minute plan.

I am not sure just how much usage we get out of this on board ship. Actually, half the time it seems it doesn't work right and usually have to either restart the program or the entire computer. In a month's time, there is about 3 weeks that we are in port or in phone range to be able to get online. Our general usage is for emailing friends and family, and for "general" internet cruising. Keep in mind we did not get the el cheapo bargain plan... we signed up for the next-to-highest plan there is... mainly for the 2000 minutes because our cel phone is how we keep in touch with the world while on board ship. Before, all of us used the old 2G phones with our laptops to get online at 14.4. I myself have been a Sprint customer for 4 years, and have paid a lot of money over time to use my PCS phone to get online. It makes me kinda wonder if Sprint is going to consider the 5 of us faithful Sprint customers to be "abusers" and want to pull the plug on us.

Now, this is my question... If Sprint doesn't like the can of worms they have opened by offering this unlimited plan, then why are their stores still selling the USB connection kits in some states? My co-worker in Tampa was not able to get the kit almost a month ago, but yet they can still be bought in Texas and Louisiana today! We did question the folks in the Sprint Store here in Louisiana and in Texas about this issue of connection kits being pulled from shelves. So far, these Sprint stores have not heard anything about it, and continue to sell the kits. Sprint still continues to make $70 for each kit sold here in this area, and yet they plan to pull the rug out from under our feet?

As far as the performance of this setup, it works well when it works. Sometimes after going "asleep" after so many seconds, it doesn't seem to want to wake back up. I myself have to restart the Sprint program. The 2nd mate here onboard finds that he has to restart Windows on his pc to get back online. Has anyone here had similiar problems? We thought perhaps one of those "ping" programs might help... then it wouldn't get a chance to go to sleep.

SailorBoy

 

One other thing I forgot to mention, and this is actually something good. Sprint DID give me my 4900 phone for free. When I was looking at the selection of phones, they pulled my account up on the computer. The lady told me that because I was a customer for 4 years, I had a $200 credit that could be applied to any phone in the house. In most cases, the phone would be free since most of the phones were under $200. Being that the Sanyo 4900 was $150, I would pay nothing. I asked if I could apply the remaining credit to the cable/software kit, and she said it could only be used for the phone itself. I didn't mind paying the $70 for the kit since the phone was free, so at that point in time, I was a happy customer. Of course, now that I hear all this hubba about them possibly yanking my unlimited Vision service, I'm not as happy as the day I got the phone.

As far as the other guys here on the ship with me, they all got in-store discounts on their phones as well. They got anywhere from 100 to 200 dollars credit. Those four guys were also existing Sprint PCS customers.

My co-worker that was unable to get his connection kit in Tampa was told this by the Sprint Store salesman... "Sprint has realized the screw up they've made by selling the connection cable, software and unlimited Vision service. Now they don't want you to have it. That is why we are no longer offering the kit."

My hat's off to that particular Sprint salesman in Tampa... because he was honest and didn't try to feed someone some BS excuse.

 

I've been a Sprint customer for almost a month now, and I managed to obtain a data cable for my Samsung N400.

I agree that it's not reasonable to expect Sprint to offer truly unlimited internet access for $10 per month. My phone's connection speed is comparable to low-end DSL which usually starts around $50/month.

On the other hand though, if Sprint doesn't want to offer connection kits and unlimited access, why haven't they offered some kind of alternative plan? I need a phone with vibration functions, that's always ready to take calls, and allows people to reach me wherever I am. So a laptop PCS connection card is not sufficient for me, even if it has voice services. But I also need a mobile internet connection for my laptop, it's essential for my business. I can't afford to spend $100 per month on internet access AND $30 for my phone. So why doesn't Sprint offer me something else? I'd be happy to pay $20 or even $30 a month for unlimited access for my phone. Or maybe to prevent people from hogging bandwidth they could impose a megabyte-per-day limit, or something like that. Why can't Sprint give me a plan that allows me to get everything I need from one source? There's got to be some compromise between phone-only access and $100 per month, right?

Of course I have unlimited access with my laptop right now, and I use less then 1MB per day on average, so I don't expect them to shut me down, but Sprint's decision to yank all connection kits and support for them has me worried.