Verizon has ended the DPP.

[anon24860]

You are paying twice for the phone because you are paying for the subsidy in your monthly charge and then not getting the subsidy but paying full price for the phone.

If you are rich enough to **** away money, have at it. I prefer to get the subsidy I am paying for from verizon.

What you are forgetting is that the phone still has value. If you cycle every year, you don't lose all of your money. I don't use a subsidized phone now because of unlimited data. That's the only reason. I have the added advantage of not being locked in for 2 years. That's worth something too.

 

[anon24860]

Different strokes for different folks. We all decide what's valuable to us personally.

My complaint is VZN ending this program as a way to close a loophole around 6 months after they started it. Plus the idea that they gave pretty much no advance notice.

 

[JulesJam]

What you are forgetting is that the phone still has value. If you cycle every year, you don't lose all of your money.

I buy iphones with my upgrades and sell them. Then pay cash for the android I want. I end up making money on the deal.

I don't use a subsidized phone now because of unlimited data. That's theonly reason. I have the added advantage of not being locked in for 2 years. That's worth something too.

not any longer - read the fine print at the end of your august bill, starting 10/1/14 Verizon will throttle you if you have fulfilled your minimum contractual requirements, have udp and use more than 4.7GB per month if you are on a tower that verizon deems is congested.

If you are on contract, no throttling.

 

[JulesJam]

Different strikes for different folks. We all decide what's valuable to us personally.

unthrottled unlimited is valuable to anyone who uses more than 4.7GB of data per month.....

 

[anon24860]

Yes, I know all that. I also know that I'm on a relatively non-congested tower at home. That's where I do most of my Internet use. How do I know? Because I test my speed fairly frequently. I live in a low density residential area (read light industrial). This morning and afternoon, I was getting almost 70 mbps during peak times.

I'll worry about that when the time comes. If it's onerous, I'll be free to change carriers, add a wired Internet line and go back to a subsidized phone, or whatever works best.

At least this way, I didn't even have to cough up the subsidized price up front. Just less than half of it. It worked for me.

 

[anon24860]

There will be value from the 10 months that I've had unthrottled Internet. Not have to worry about using 40 - 60 gigs if I want to watch a few movies on Netflix is valuable.

If that equation changes in October, I'll recalculate. It may be worth it to me to sell the Note3, get a Note 4 subsidized (or keep the Note 3 for as long as I want), and use the freed up money to get a wired connection.

 

[JulesJam]

Yes, I know all that. I also know that I'm on a relatively non-congested tower at home. That's where I do most of my Internet use. How do I know? Because I test my speed fairly frequently. I live in a low density residential area (read light industrial). This morning and afternoon, I was getting almost 70 mbps during peak times.

verizon is free to throttle as they see fit unless the fcc decides to get involved and monitor them. Not holding my breath for that to happen. And verizon is on a mission to eliminate udp's, especially if you use more than 4.7GB of data per month.

I'll worry about that when the time comes. If it's onerous, I'll be free to change carriers, add a wired Internet line and go back to a subsidized phone, or whatever works best.

what works best is to get a subsidized phone, keep udp and stay on contract. there are true loopholes that allow you to do that.

At least this way, I didn't even have to cough up the subsidized price up front. Just less than half of it. It worked for me.

I am able to flip iPhones in a matter of days. I sign up for the best buy reserve gift card so that is a $50 bonus and the best part of the best buy method is you don't get charged the upgrade fee!!

Example - come 9/9/14, I will use my upgrade to buy an iPhone 6 for $200. Where I live tax is only charged on the upgrade price, not the full price, which of course is another advantage over the DPP (in which you get charged tax on the full price as well as the finance charge). So I end up paying $216 for an iPhone and get a $50 BB gift card to boot and no upgrade fee.

swappa/shipping/paypal fees run about $50 if you insure for the full value so that brings out of pocket to about $270 (actually less, but I am rounding up).

You can sell a new iPhone for a minimum of $600 when they are first released and usually even more. Within days I get the cash for the iPhone so I end up with $330 or more plus the $50 best buy gift card, which can be used to purchase an amazon kindle gc (which can be used to buy anything on amazon). So I net a minimum of $380 on the deal.

 

[anon24860]

Too much fuss for an every two year deal. It works for you, cool.

 

[JulesJam]

There will be value from the 10 months that I've had unthrottled Internet. Not have to worry about using 40 - 60 gigs if I want to watch a few movies on Netflix is valuable.

If that equation changes in October, I'll recalculate. It may be worth it to me to sell the Note3, get a Note 4 subsidized (or keep the Note 3 for as long as I want), and use the freed up money to get a wired connection.

there is value in the $380+ I will net when i use my udp upgrade to buy a subsidized iphone 6 in a few weeks. Plus my udp line will be on contract so no throttling for 2 more years!

 

[anon24860]

Plus, you wouldn't have netted that much butting a Note 3. So there's that.

 

[anon24860]

And you'll be stuck for 2 more years waiting on your next windfall. That's cool as well.

 

[anon24860]

10 months of equivalent wired Internet is about $600 when you factor in the price increases after the initial offer. If you don't count that, it's still at least $300 for the first year and that's only up to about 45 mbps. Anything more and the price goes up pretty quickly.

 

[JulesJam]

Plus, you wouldn't have netted that much butting a Note 3. So there's that.

well actually, I did buy a subsidized note 3 when they were running the $200 comcast gift card promo and returned it so I netted $200 on that transaction.

 

[JulesJam]

And you'll be stuck for 2 more years waiting on your next windfall. That's cool as well.

but I will put the $380 towards a new phone, which if I wait until cyber monday will likely cover a large amount of the cost of the phone. Then I am free to pay full price for another one the next year the difference between you and me is if you want a new phone each year, you pay full price each year. I only pay full price every other year.

 

[anon24860]

well actually, I did buy a subsidized note 3 when they were running the $200 comcast gift card promo and returned it so I netted $200 on that transaction.

There you go.

 

[anon24860]

but I will put the $380 towards a new phone, which if I wait until cyber monday will likely cover a large amount of the cost of the phone. Then I am free to pay full price for another one the next year the difference between you and me is if you want a new phone each year, you pay full price each year. I only pay full price every other year.

That's what I'm saying about my purchased phone. I'll be putting $400-500 toward the next phone.

 

[anon24860]

I'd have more options if I weren't tied to Dish Network for my TV. I've been with them for over a decade. I have about a terrabyte's worth of saved video that I'm not crazy about giving up (I could buy my Hopper and leave and use it as a simple player to view my TV programs but I'd lose any movies that I've saved). So, bundling TV and Internet is out. That's where you get your biggest bang for the buck when it comes to spending the least amount of money. But currently, I still only pay about 160 for Internet, phone, and satellite which isn't horrible (not counting the cost of the phone which I don't include because I don't know how much I might get back if I decide to sell or whether I keep it for a full 2 years, at which point, it obviously won't be worth that much when it comes time to get a new phone).

As I said, I might have to recalibrate if I get throttled, but I won't know anything until that time comes. My location is in my favor though.

 

[anon24860]

Not especially worried about a congested tower.

 

[JulesJam]

That's what I'm saying about my purchased phone. I'll be putting $400-500 toward the next phone.

but you will be putting $400-500 of your own money toward your next phone. I will be putting $380 of someone else's money toward my next phone.

 

[JulesJam]

Not especially worried about a congested tower.

that assumes that verizon will define congested tower the same way you do. with no oversight by the fcc, they are free to throttle at will and call anything they want a congested tower.