Researched possible new phone... concerned

[StoneRyno]

After researching to see if I were to replace my LG G4 today what devices would they be. Preliminarily that is looking like the pixel 4 or or oneplus 7 pro. The concern here is that the MSRP for the oneplus 7 pro $649 and the pixel 4 799. So why does sprint think the price of the oneplus 7 pro is $840? And what's stopping me if anything from just buying it directly from oneplus for $649 and calling sprint to switch my line to it? My price point for phones has always been $500-600. $649 isn't far off from that to get a phone that I really feel would be a great fit for me in replacing my LG G4. The thing that I really missed with the LG G4 was being able to customize the heck out of it, in fact after having to have my original purchase warranty replaced I was forcibly unable to go that route because out of the box the replacement was a version that could not be rooted and as far as I'm aware still isn't. Now the pixel 4 could be an option with a wait for the price tag to drop in relatively short order in my book. Except from what I read is that the specs etc of the oneplus pro are better and overall between the two the better option expecially for those who want to customize the heck out of it.

But anyways I wanted to post here with this concern so that I could move forward on a decision to replace or wait some more. And believe me considering how long I have waited so far is a good indicator of just how long I'm willing to wait for a device that really fits me. Prior to now I have replaced about every 3 years. Thanks for any info or feedback.

 

[msm0511]

Supposedly Google is gonna knock $200 of the Pixel 4's for Black Friday.

 

[swebb]

And what's stopping me if anything from just buying it directly from oneplus for $649 and calling sprint to switch my line to it?

This is definitely an option, but from my experiences with Sprint (2 years ago but I don't believe anything has changed since then) it can be a painful process. They need to register in their system any phone that was not bought directly from Sprint. How well it goes depends on the ability of the CSR you get. It's a much easier process with GSM carriers.

If you're interested in the Pixel, definitely wait for Black Friday as mentioned by MSM0511. Google did $200 off last year and I can see that happening again this year.

 

[StoneRyno]

Ok so I have decided I'm going to buy the oneplus 7 pro. Sprint says i need to get a BYOD sim kit. Is this for sure something I need to get or does buying the device from oneplus come with that? Or is that something I even need at all. My current device is the LG G4 which also has a sim card in it. I purchased the G4 from sprint years back when it first came out. Thanks.

 

[swebb]

You do have to get the kit. There will be a Sprint sim card plus instructions on how to activate it online. Hopefully it works online for you. If not, you'll have to work through customer service and YMMV.

Unless oneplus specifically states that they're including a Sprint sim, you'll need the kit.

 

[StoneRyno]

I finally got a rep that knew what a BYOD sim kit is. Going through the process of getting the kit they had to run the EMIE etc numbers to find out that even with the BYOD I would not be able to use the device on sprint. So much for all the effort between the two support oneplus and sprint prior to the purchase. The result though is that it took this happening for sprint to simply offer me a comparable deal on the device from them. All that could have been avoided when I asked them to do some sort of price match or what not deal in the prepurchase phase of contact. Basically what sprint told me is that based on the numbers the device is not unlocked etc. All contrary to what oneplus told me. I even acted as liaison between the rep from sprint on the phone and oneplus rep to verify if the numbers were unlocked etc but was stonewalled by oneplus support with we can't do that and that there is nobody else that can help you with that and you need to call sprint despite several places in the conversation I relayed that I'm on the phone with them trying to get the device setup on sprint. I have requested the return with oneplus and awaiting the email with the details to send it back.