Nexus 4 Purchase Tmobile vs. Google play

[mcshaggin]

Is there any benefit either way of purchasing the Nexus 4 through Tmobile or through Google play directly? It's more expensive to go through tmobile. Any more or less bloatware? Maybe wifi calling not available through google? Not really into paying extra to get one branded with a tmobile logo if it's no different otherwise.

 

[anon(847090)]

there is no difference except
Price (Play store is cheaper)
Delivery(play store takes 2 day for delivery)

 

[Greg C]

If you are going to use the Nexus 4 with T-Mobile on contract then buy from them.... it will be cheaper for you. If not, then definitely buy from the Play Store.

 

[6tr6tr]

If you are going to use the Nexus 4 with T-Mobile on contract then buy from them.... it will be cheaper for you. If not, then definitely buy from the Play Store.

TMobile doesn't have contracts anymore.

 

[return_0]

If you are going to use the Nexus 4 with T-Mobile on contract then buy from them.... it will be cheaper for you. If not, then definitely buy from the Play Store.

TMobile doesn't have contracts anymore.

Exactly what 6tr6tr said, T-Mobile no longer has on-contract plans. So there is literally no advantage in buying from T-Mobile.

 

[anon(5719825)]

You can get the Nexus 4 by paying $49 down and then a payment each month for 24 months on top of your monthly bill on the T-Mobile site. This was over the weekend so it may have changed for this week.

 

[mcshaggin]

Which comes out to something like $479 total over the 2 years when you can buy directly from google for $349. I guess if you don't have that kind of cash laying around it's worth it for a two year loan on a phone. Think I'm going direct to google.
On another note, looks like you can still go through places like wirefly and best buy to get a contract but I'm avoiding that. May even go with Straight talk and save another $5 a month. Curious if you can still tether with Straight talk or do I loose that feature that Tmo offers as part of their plan. I know I could always root.

 

[PWC Realtor]

I've also heard that Nexus 4s purchased from T-mobile are more likely to be flagged for tethering without the appropriate plan since they have the IMEI on file.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Android Central Forums

 

[saeufer]

I've also heard that Nexus 4s purchased from T-mobile are more likely to be flagged for tethering without the appropriate plan since they have the IMEI on file.

They might check up on you more often, but the method by which they catch you is the same for all phones not running a stock T-Mo ROM: they're snooping the user agent string from your web browser and blocking you if you get caught pulling http data through a desktop browser.

 

[return_0]

So the general consensus is that there is no advantage but there are lots of disadvantages for buying from T-Mo.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Android Central Forums

 

[thisfnguy]

The advantage is similar to buying a car outright vs. financing. It requires less upfront capital to finance it, but you pay back more than you would have if you just bought it.

 

[George Jetson1]

I was just in a T-Mobile store last week looking at the Nexus 4. I asked if a Nexus 4 bought from Google Play would work the same as a T-Mobile Nexus 4. He said that the Nexus bought from Google would only operate on 2G speed and not 4G like the one from T-Mobile. He said that any unlocked phone that works on GSM would only work at 2G speed. It sounds like salesman BS, but I have no idea. Thoughts?

 

[Mellimel22]

I was just in a T-Mobile store last week looking at the Nexus 4. I asked if a Nexus 4 bought from Google Play would work the same as a T-Mobile Nexus 4. He said that the Nexus bought from Google would only operate on 2G speed and not 4G like the one from T-Mobile. He said that any unlocked phone that works on GSM would only work at 2G speed. It sounds like salesman BS, but I have no idea. Thoughts?

Salesman bs. They are the same phone.

Sent from my Sprint Galaxy Nexus rockin 4.2.2 using Tapatalk 2

 

[anon(5719825)]

I was just in a T-Mobile store last week looking at the Nexus 4. I asked if a Nexus 4 bought from Google Play would work the same as a T-Mobile Nexus 4. He said that the Nexus bought from Google would only operate on 2G speed and not 4G like the one from T-Mobile. He said that any unlocked phone that works on GSM would only work at 2G speed. It sounds like salesman BS, but I have no idea. Thoughts?

An excellent example of a clueless employee.

 

[snookasnoo]

T-Mobile does have contracts and have been told they can no longer claim they don't. If you have to pay x amount of dollars every month for a phone or else pay the remainder if you leave that's a contract.

Washington Attorney General settles with T-Mobile over ad claims - Lexology
Washington Attorney General settles with T-Mobile over ad claims
The Washington Attorney General recently announced a court-ordered agreement with T-Mobile over the company?s new advertising campaign. T-Mobile has been promoting a new service plan that offers ?no restrictions,? ?no annual contract,? and no requirement that customers ?serve a two-year sentence.? The plan, however, does not include a phone. Instead, T-Mobile offers consumers an option to purchase a phone at a monthly rate over a two-year term. (They also offer other phone options.) Consumers who purchase a phone must pay the full cost of the phone if they cancel before the end of the two-year period.
The Attorney General alleged that T-Mobile misled consumers by advertising the absence of restrictions, an ?annual contract,? and a ?two-year sentence,? without adequately disclosing that customers who terminate their service before a device is paid off will have to pay the balance due on the phone upon cancellation. In some cases, the cost is higher than the early termination fee charged by other carriers. According to the press release: ?Instead of a ?two-year sentence? for wireless service, consumers face a different two-year ?sentence? to avoid a lump-sum balloon payment for the phone.?
As part of the settlement, T-Mobile agreed to change the way it advertises the plan, to contact customers who purchased phones under the plan and advise them of their right to cancel and get a refund, and to pay attorney?s fees and costs.
This settlement serves another reminder that companies need to clearly and conspicuously disclose the material terms of their offers. You can?t just highlight the benefits of a product or service, and bury the costs and restrictions in the fine print.

 

[gone down south]

T-Mobile does have contracts and have been told they can no longer claim they don't. If you have to pay x amount of dollars every month for a phone or else pay the remainder if you leave that's a contract.

Washington Attorney General settles with T-Mobile over ad claims - Lexology
Washington Attorney General settles with T-Mobile over ad claims
The Washington Attorney General recently announced a court-ordered agreement with T-Mobile over the company?s new advertising campaign. T-Mobile has been promoting a new service plan that offers ?no restrictions,? ?no annual contract,? and no requirement that customers ?serve a two-year sentence.? The plan, however, does not include a phone. Instead, T-Mobile offers consumers an option to purchase a phone at a monthly rate over a two-year term. (They also offer other phone options.) Consumers who purchase a phone must pay the full cost of the phone if they cancel before the end of the two-year period.
The Attorney General alleged that T-Mobile misled consumers by advertising the absence of restrictions, an ?annual contract,? and a ?two-year sentence,? without adequately disclosing that customers who terminate their service before a device is paid off will have to pay the balance due on the phone upon cancellation. In some cases, the cost is higher than the early termination fee charged by other carriers. According to the press release: ?Instead of a ?two-year sentence? for wireless service, consumers face a different two-year ?sentence? to avoid a lump-sum balloon payment for the phone.?
As part of the settlement, T-Mobile agreed to change the way it advertises the plan, to contact customers who purchased phones under the plan and advise them of their right to cancel and get a refund, and to pay attorney?s fees and costs.
This settlement serves another reminder that companies need to clearly and conspicuously disclose the material terms of their offers. You can?t just highlight the benefits of a product or service, and bury the costs and restrictions in the fine print.

Pretty sure everyone in the world understood that T-Mobile meant that you were no longer bound by contract to use their mobile services for an extended period of time



Sent from my Nexus 4 using Android Central Forums

 

[anon(5719825)]

Pretty sure everyone in the world understood that T-Mobile meant that you were no longer bound by contract to use their mobile services for an extended period of time



Sent from my Nexus 4 using Android Central Forums

That's right. No matter what plan you choose or what phone you choose to use on their network, financed or not, you can cancel at anytime. T-Mobile was just tole to be more specific because some clueless people sometimes don't understand what that means.

 

[Milindian]

>>>

 

[Milindian]

I was just in a T-Mobile store last week looking at the Nexus 4. I asked if a Nexus 4 bought from Google Play would work the same as a T-Mobile Nexus 4. He said that the Nexus bought from Google would only operate on 2G speed and not 4G like the one from T-Mobile. He said that any unlocked phone that works on GSM would only work at 2G speed. It sounds like salesman BS, but I have no idea. Thoughts?

Salesman bs. They are the same phone.

Sent from my Sprint Galaxy Nexus rockin 4.2.2 using Tapatalk 2

An excellent example of a clueless employee.

Actually, there may be SOME truth to it. Obviously, they are the same phone, but T-mobile DOES do some sneaky stuff. For example, I am currently using an unlocked HTC that I got whilst living in Europe. I got 3G when I was abroad but never on the T-Mobile network in the US..only EDGE (2G) at best...

 

[RumoredNow]

Actually, there may be SOME truth to it. Obviously, they are the same phone, but T-mobile DOES do some sneaky stuff. For example, I am currently using an unlocked HTC that I got whilst living in Europe. I got 3G when I was abroad but never on the T-Mobile network in the US..only EDGE (2G) at best...

That probably has more to do with the frequencies on the phone's 3G/H+ radio. In most markets, T-Mo is still using the 1700 MHz band for H+ and the majority of phones lack that frequency. The N4 from Play does have 1700 on the pentaband 3G radio. I'm using a Google Play purchased N4 on T-Mo and I have H+ with no complaints about data speed. Out of the 7 phones I currently own, only two have the 1700 MHz band. Both of those get H+ using my T-Mo SIM: Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 4. The other 5 have no 1700 band on board and only get EDGE: Motorola BackFlip, AT&T iPhone 3GS, Nokia E5-00, Palm Pre 2 and HP Veer. All of these phones are carrier unlocked and will accept any SIM... It's the radio that makes the difference. Once T-Mo finishes their refarm and shifts H+ to the 1900 MHz band they will probably get more aggressive about Bring Your Own Phone. Up till now the frequency they use has hampered that.