Retail Purchase

[shajan]

So when the Bionic is finally available, as much as I want this as the next person, I will have the unfortunate opportunity to pay for this at full retail price ( I have no upgrades available). I was wondering if anyone has purchased a smartphone before, where they bought it from, Verizon, Best Buy, Amazon? I know Best Buy offers a 30 day full refund if not satisfied. Does anyone know if one place has a advantage over the other in terms of price or return?

 

[mjforte]

I know Verizon only has a 14 day return policy, but their full retail price will probably be the lowest of anywhere else.

 

[p08757]

I believe cosco has the best return policy. I'm sure someone will chime in on the subject shortly....

 

[beermanmike]

So when the Bionic is finally available, as much as I want this as the next person, I will have the unfortunate opportunity to pay for this at full retail price ( I have no upgrades available). I was wondering if anyone has purchased a smartphone before, where they bought it from, Verizon, Best Buy, Amazon? I know Best Buy offers a 30 day full refund if not satisfied. Does anyone know if one place has a advantage over the other in terms of price or return?

Im not sure about the returns for amazon wireless, but i bought 4 phones over four years from them without a problem. They are usually cheaper there because if you break contract you not only owe Verizon X amount of dollars but you owe Amazon X amount of dollars. Wirefly is another place i heard of but don't know anything about. Verizon stores are decent but you're not going to get a "deal" on them usually. Don't buy anything at bestbuy, ever.

 

[shajan]

Checked out Costco; they only sell on contract not retail.

 

[Stang68]

So when the Bionic is finally available, as much as I want this as the next person, I will have the unfortunate opportunity to pay for this at full retail price ( I have no upgrades available). I was wondering if anyone has purchased a smartphone before, where they bought it from, Verizon, Best Buy, Amazon? I know Best Buy offers a 30 day full refund if not satisfied. Does anyone know if one place has a advantage over the other in terms of price or return?

Shoot for Costco. If they allow you to buy it outright, you're looking at a 90-day return policy.

Edit: Nevermind.

 

[radyoactive]

Best Buy will probably be about $100 higher than Verizon but you can get them to price match. They were a-holes about it when I bought my DINC, I wanted the points on my rewards card. The manager of the mobile department told me they don't price match phone prices because they don't make a profit on phones purchased without a contract. I asked him to show me where on the big sign up front does it say that. F*N manager says, I'll call one verizon store, the closest one and if its not in stock I won't match the price. Luckily the VZW store had one otherwise I was prepared to argue that any VZW store in the area should count.

Avoid Best Buy, not worth the hassle.

 

[radgatt]

I bought my dinc from best buy off contract. Best buy had it for more than Verizon but best buy matched the price on it. Only reason why I did that was so I can use my best buy credit card and have no interest for 12 months. Worked of for me. If you have a credit card with a certain company then try that place and see of they price match.

 

[mylasthope]

I would probably just wait for it to hit eBay/C-List. The Droid 3 is already on eBay and I've seen a few go for around $400. Savings of $59 + tax ($42 in California) compared to buying it straight from VZW. I imagine that the manufacturer's warranty will carry over too since the phone is new.

 

[csimme01]

Dont forget to check your employer for discounts. Different ones have different discounts through different carriers. In my house we can get between 18 and 25 percent off on different carriers. GM - 25% off VZW Payless - 18% off ATT, Lowes - 20% both Verizon and ATT

 

[dbdynsty25]

Keep in mind if you buy full retail from Verizon...you only get 14 days and you also have a $35 restocking fee. So make sure you like the phone before you buy from them or else it's a pretty expensive rental.

 

[masterxchief]

I can't wait for the phone to come out because I'm really not liking this Thunderbolt but I am scared to find out how much it's going to cost me at retail price.

 

[Jeryl31]

I talk to one Verizon employee and he said it would be under $600 FULL RETAIL, also look at the other LTE phone's full price. The Thunderbolt i believe is around $570 FULL RETAIL on the VZW site, so my guess is right around there for the Droid Bionic. I am also will have to purchase this at that price point

 

[Jeryl31]

I can't wait for the phone to come out because I'm really not liking this Thunderbolt but I am scared to find out how much it's going to cost me at retail price.

I hated the Thunderbolt because of it's battery, first full day i had it, only lasted 5 hours

 

[zr0ko0l#AC]

you can go to best buy and have them price match it, and if they try and give you excuses ask to speak with a manager. Also, the return policy for verizon is 14 days with a restocking fee, at best buy you have 30 days to return or exchange it for something else, with no restocking fee. the whole idea of using your best buy card is great because you will have no interest on that purchase.

 

[kca2000]

you can go to best buy and have them price match it, and if they try and give you excuses ask to speak with a manager. Also, the return policy for verizon is 14 days with a restocking fee, at best buy you have 30 days to return or exchange it for something else, with no restocking fee. the whole idea of using your best buy card is great because you will have no interest on that purchase.

I was not aware of this? 30 days at best buy includes Phones?

 

[D1andOnlyOmen]

Best Buy will probably be about $100 higher than Verizon but you can get them to price match. They were a-holes about it when I bought my DINC, I wanted the points on my rewards card. The manager of the mobile department told me they don't price match phone prices because they don't make a profit on phones purchased without a contract. I asked him to show me where on the big sign up front does it say that. F*N manager says, I'll call one verizon store, the closest one and if its not in stock I won't match the price. Luckily the VZW store had one otherwise I was prepared to argue that any VZW store in the area should count.

Avoid Best Buy, not worth the hassle.

Best Buy is one of several stores I refuse to shop and haven't purchased anything from for a number of years, specifically because of BS issues like you describe.

 

[DanSan]

best buy will have a 14 day return policy and a 15% restocking fee on certain devices. this includes cell phones.


tomorrow when im at work ill check the system and see if i can find the SKU of the bionic if it exists yet and see what info i can get.

 

[cmorty72#AC]

Another place you might want to check out in the very near future, is Radio Shack. Some time next month they'll be dropping TMO and picking up Verizon (yet again). Their prices are fair (in some cases), and also offer a 30 day return.

 

[bulvine420]

Best buy hell story:
i want to best buy when vhs was still a big selling item and bout a brand new VCR yes i said a VCR im old shut up! so when i get it home i open the box and inside is a used VCR with the wrong controller wrong brand everything and there was a tape stuck inside.So i return to best buy and go to return it
i get to the counter and tell the lady what happened and she tells me after i ask for a full refund that there is a restocking fee so i ask for a manager. He takes the VCR in the back and comes back insisting that i pay a restocking fee and i start cursing him to give me my money and making a seen
so he finally breaks and gives me a refund as i turn and walk away he says sir our tec opened the VCR and got your Porno tape out he said this as loud as he could without yelling so all the customers could here him i took the porno and my full refund and never shopped at best buy again:-$