$10 extra charge mandatory?

[dre3k2]

Wow, so Dan Hesse lied. A few months ago I remember he said wimax wouldn't cost extra. What changed?

He looked at his company's bank account.

 

[bucc0303]

They need money for all those towers they want to put up

 

[dfine1966]

Phil Nickinson is at the Sprint hosted event and is talking directly with people way above CS

Thanks for clarifying. I've been with Sprint 12 years, and have never got a correct answer from Sprint's CS's. My account is a little weird and get all sorts of multiple discounts, and if they made me switch to another plan, plus add the 10, I would lose my discounts. The phone I am upgrading is the secondary phone, not the main phone. The second phone is eligible for an upgrade, and was wondering how they would handle that?

 

[bucc0303]

I think they would just treat it like a regular upgrade unless you add on the 4g if its in your area.

 

[r-nice]

Me want Evo 4G. Gotta wait until July.

 

[tojoe616]

I live in Michigan and I don't see 4g happing here for a short while. I do not mind the upgrade fee if it makes things faster but if it is a fee for 4g then I don't have that here. I will call and let them know that it is unfair to charge a customer for a service that is not in the area.

Actually Grand Rapids is one of the next expansion cities that they had announced, I think it has something to do with the fact that they were one of the selected google fios cities. Maybe clear towers going up already to support the city wide wifi.

 

[dre3k2]

Spokesman for Sprint/Nextel:

More Detail on the Sprint EVO 4G $10/Month Premium Data Charge - John Taylor's posterous


$10/mo is NOT optional.

 

[rem_kujawa]

I hope its not manditory, I'm still see 1x every day.

 

[Mystic205]

am gonna pass... lost a sale here!

 

[Mitalis]

am gonna pass... lost a sale here!

Yeah seriously me too... That is bullcrap.. If they offered the Nexus One as an alternative, I'd stick with Sprint, but since every reliable news site says Sprint dropped it for the EVO. Whether the device uses more data or not shouldn't be the excuse. I'm already paying $70/month for unlimited 3G data, and tacking on $10 with the claim "But you'll be using more data" is a bull**** marketing tactic to get you to pay more for absolutely nothing. If Sprint had worldwide 4G coverage, I wouldn't be having this conversation right now.

 

[Mystic205]

bye bye EVO

I am not paying $10/mo more when my usage will still be far less than others with different phones....i dont stream videos, rarely use pandora so wtf.. .its a matter of principle.

These plans are misguided...bye bye EVO

 

[xorg]

Sounds like it's optional. If you don't need the high speed, you don't need to get it.

 

[thehoffaman]

It says on this page- in the yellow box- this phone requires a data add on. So the 10$ charge seems to me to be obviously required. Which def sucks.


Sprint - HTC EVO?„? 4G

 

[Jared DiPane]

Sounds like it's optional. If you don't need the high speed, you don't need to get it.

Unfortunately, Sprint has announced it will be mandatory at this point. The front page entry was updated.

 

[dre3k2]

It's still cheaper than any other comparable plan on other carriers right now.

I just don't see the reason people would "jump ship" from Sprint.

But anyways, anyone know if a rooted Evo has the possibility of hotspot capability? It's not a service I'll use everyday, but it'll be nice to have in sticky situations.

 

[hampstenj]

IF it's required which All signs are pointing towards, then it's a piece of crap deal for those like me who only have 3G and quite frankly will possibly never see 4G to have to pay this extra $10 fee. I feel hey if I lived in a 4G market then I wouldn't mind the $10 charge. it's not about the money to me, it's about paying for what I'm supposed to get. if I have to pay $10 a month no matter where you live, then Sprint better be putting 4G antenna's up on towers everywhere not just in the big cities and now!

something tells me the FCC is going to get involved in this, I wouldn't say that but with the reports out this week about the FCC investigating the wireless carriers for their fees, I don't think this 4G fee will last long.

 

[jam4775]

It is definitely mandatory, check out this link:
More Detail on the Sprint EVO 4G $10/Month Premium Data Charge - John Taylor's posterous

I agree with Mystic... it's a matter principle! I would not use the data on this phone anymore than I would on the Hero or any other Smartphone, especially since it'll be several years at least before I see 4G. I was going to be buying this phone as soon as it came out but now I'm not sure anymore. Sprint has totally ruined they hype on this phone for me now, it's really a shame!!

 

[dre3k2]

Pro: It's still cheaper than all the other carriers.

Con: You feel cheated for paying the same as everyone else when you're not capable of getting the same 4G experience as them.

 

[letsgoflyers81]

I don't like the $10 and I disagree with it, but I can accept it since I'm in a 4G market and plan on using the hell out of it. However I think someone should be able to buy the phone without 4G access whether they're in a 4G market or not and not pay the $10. It would be one thing if the N1 was coming to Sprint but since this is the only current generation Android phone Sprint is getting, I think the mandatory feature is wrong.

 

[Complex Pants]

I am not pleased by the premium data plan. If it is $10 to use 4G, then I understand, but it is stupid to pay for a service you can't use.