I speak to hundreds of customers every week, from coast to coast. Number of calls taken this week regarding the Thunderbolt? ZERO, not one. Passionate customers? Passionate in your endeavors for sure. You see a phone revealed on Engadget or CNET. You call a call center or store and ask about it. The reps are unaware because it hasn't even been introduced. But it's on the internet, so it must be true. So the reps are stupid because they aren't aware of it. Then the phone gets revealed. The speculative websites start throwing out dates of release, and when it's not released on those dates, you're all pissed off. And then come the "rah rah we're all leaving Verizon" comments. All while Verizon hasn't released any date at all. The phones eventually released. It's released early and you're pissed because it has flaws. It's released late and you're pissed because you've been admitted to the hospital for convulsions caused from waiting so long. It's the same old scenario over and over with the release of a major new device.
I'm sorry that your company communicates information to Retailers and to the media but does not provide you with enough information to answer the inevitable customer questions.
Have you considered the fact that no one would call you with a Thunderbolt question because they know you're ill informed and unable to help?
No one is advocating the release of the phone before it's ready. Everyone is advocating that Verizon say SOMETHING. What have they said about Thunderbolt? They talk about it at trade shows, put out commercials, have sign up pages, tease it on Twitter and then say nothing.
How about a status update? Or a confirmation that it is on track for this quarter? Or this year? Or ever? That's what our issue is.
Your melodramatics about how upset people are is very troubling. I don't think anyone is going to the hospital or convulsing but ignoring the fact that you're alienating your customers is pretty sad.
Also, I find it frightening that you speak to us as customer service (when we call) and seem to have such little empathy for customers. Yikes.