Switching from VZW to ATT

[schrochem]

I've been poking around here and participating in a few threads.....b/c i want one
I think I need to set a price point and see if I can reach it.
To do that I need to know the variables.
Someone mentioned ATT charged the transfer fee for the phone #
$36 I believe.
Let's say I get that current deal online for $240.
To have the phone in my hand operating costs what? 240+36?
Or do you pay for a month's worth of service also?
I know VZW will hit more for the early termination fee, but is that all they do or do they sneak in some other crap?
Right now I think it would cost $200 to terminate. If I could sell my Tbolt for that, I would just be paying the set up fee for ATT.
I'm also a very happy VZW LTE customer. Here in Austin, ATT does have LTE but do wonder if its the same....

 

[MOTH477]

I just recently switch from T-mobile to AT&T but then switched back. I bought mine from Best Buy and all I paid was for the Phone. AT&T sent me a bill for $36 and prorated charges for the plan I picked which are due one month after activation. So basically your out of pocket will be the $240 plus taxes then wait for the bill.

 

[jontalk]

What about sales tax.. I'm in CA where they nail you for tax at the FULL NO CONTRACT price unless you get smart and buy the phone from Amazon. I'm a long time ATT customer and even I have to pay the $36 activation fee, though unlike you, I have a free upgrade available. As to LTE, do you know if ATT has upgraded the towers in your area to LTE? We do have it here in the SF area and it's blazing fast. Just be aware that when you change to ATT you're going with a crowded network and you may experience dropped calls as a result. However, since there are so few LTE devices with ATT now, you're probably OK. And don't forget that ATT also offers simultaneous voice/data and rollover minutes which can come in handy

 

[schrochem]

Yea I was with ATT for years and switched to VZW three years ago.
BTW, does that make me a 'new' customer at ATT again?
I did have dropped calls on ATT and not VZW. However, I don't make a whole lot of calls.
Damn, I was thinking so much about the phone cost I forgot about the plan.....
I'm grandfathered in on VZW unlimited data right now, minutes aren't a problem because free mobile to mobile.
I'm paying 100/month. What does ATT cost these days? I'd say I use 2-3Gb of data normally.

 

[sbddude]

Amazon does not charge tax in CA.

At BestBuy, when I did store pickup, I was only charged tax on the purchase price. Ymmv.

 

[mojosingle]

Amazon does not charge tax in CA.

At BestBuy, when I did store pickup, I was only charged tax on the purchase price. Ymmv.

That is a change by them, perhaps to compete with Walmart. BestBuy definitely used to charge tax on the full ($600.00 +) retail value of their phones. It is a California law I was told by multiple BestBuy phone sales agents (I was a newbie to California at the time). Walmart in California eats the tax difference so that the cost to consumers in Cali will be the same as elsewhere in the US.

 

[jontalk]

I understand that in June or July Amazon will begin charging CA residents sales tax, much like ATT and others do, which is pretty good motivation to pull the trigger on a Note or other device before that happens. Just sayin'...

 

[schrochem]

Man I'm close to doing this....I even got pretty far in the amazon process
I will need to sell my Tbolt for this to be possible.
A main asset about my bolt is its rooted with a very fast rom.
Do I have to return it to stock to sell it?
Ie. will vzw care when the new owner comes in to activate it and its rooted?

 

[ScandaLeX]

Man I'm close to doing this....I even got pretty far in the amazon process
I will need to sell my Tbolt for this to be possible.
A main asset about my bolt is its rooted with a very fast rom.
Do I have to return it to stock to sell it?
Ie. will vzw care when the new owner comes in to activate it and its rooted?

Rather than put the new owner thru unnecessary problems have you considered unrooting before selling?

Every phone I've sold or gave away I've always reverted back to stock. IMO, that's just the right thing to do.

Sent from my rooted WHITE SGSIIE4GT via TapaTalk

 

[schrochem]

Well that was kind of my question.....
I would think some people would love to buy a phone already rooted and ready to flash roms.
However, I don't know if that's a possibility if VZW will turn them away.
I just thought maybe it would be a good selling point.

 

[PewterL31]

I would say leave it to the buyer put that it's rooted and what you are running if they ask to flash to stock you can do that before shipping it.

Sent from my Samsung Skyrocket

 

[schrochem]

How does this work if I buy the phone through amazon?
I went through the steps and it looks like they would port the number.
So do I not even have to contact VZW?
Will VZW bill me immediately for the ETF and I assume prorated monthly bill?
I just hate not knowing all the variables....
And it's looking more and more like I'm gonna pull the trigger

 

[DAS]

How does this work if I buy the phone through amazon?
I went through the steps and it looks like they would port the number.
So do I not even have to contact VZW?
Will VZW bill me immediately for the ETF and I assume prorated monthly bill?
I just hate not knowing all the variables....
And it's looking more and more like I'm gonna pull the trigger

You are correct. The number will be ported without you needing to contact Verizon.

The way this works according to the At&t rep when I did the same thing moving from Sprint to At&t was that there is actually a third party vendor that performs the porting function. At&t will only be allowed to pick up the number once the third party vendor verifies you are a Verizon customer and authorized to make the switch. This avoids At&t from stealing customers and people having their numbers ported without authorization.

Verizon will bill you for the ETF, and the prorated amount on your next bill.

I did the exact same thing when I switched from Sprint. The remaining ETF amount, and the prorated charges were on my next Sprint bill. Without contacting Sprint I was able to move my number from the Epic Touch to the Note with no hassle or problems.

 

[schrochem]

Thanks DAS
I guess it won't activate til I receive the phone and actually activate?
I'm assuming I would be considered a 'new' client because I've been away from ATT for 3 years?

DAS are you in a LTE area of tx? I'm in austin and from what I have found ATT LTE is the same if not better than VZW LTE. It's been said that this might be because there arent many LTE phones in use on ATT.

 

[DAS]

Glad to help!

I live about 35 miles east of Dallas, but I work in downtwon Dallas. My experience with At&t's network has been really good and fast. However, understand that I previously had Sprint's 3g network so from my perspective I'm light years ahead of where I was.

Don't get me wrong, I actually liked Sprint because I had unlimited data, text, and talk for my wife and I, for about the same price I'm paying At&t for just this one line.

But I wanted the Note so bad, that I was willing to make the switch and absord the cost. So for me the network was never factored into my decision. My motivation was solely access to this device. I had been watching and waiting for this device since it was announced back in September 2011, and was hoping and praying it would land on Sprint, but it landed on At&t and so I was forced to make the move.

This is the ONLY device that I would have ever left Sprint for, and I don't regret it one bit (even with the higher cost of At&t over Sprint).

 

[schrochem]

Thanks for the input. I'm also on unlimited right now with VZW.
However, I think I would be fine with 3Gb.
I seem to ride right about 2Gb.
When I was downloading roms like crazy (not through wifi) it was probably higher.
It was $250 at amazon. I might wait for ATT/Best buy to have another sale but I'm getting anxious...

And yes going to 3G is pretty hard after being at LTE speeds. I've been with LTE since Sept of last year.
I hear ya on the device as the decision. An example would be that I wouldn't upgrade to a Rezound. It's a better phone than my tbolt but offers little in the way of where I want to go.

 

[schrochem]

Oh yea.... did it!!!
Sweetness.
I actually couldn't decide between white or black.
Fry's made my mind up because they had the white for $230
I did get charged $7 for the SIM though.....
$256 out the door with no accessories.
I'm happy already.

 

[DAS]

Fry's made my mind up because they had the white for $230
I did get charged $7 for the SIM though.....
$256 out the door with no accessories.
I'm happy already.

That's a great deal. We early adopter types that jsut had to have the device on day 1 got charged $299.00. It's all good though. The price was solid and I have no buyer's remorse.

Now comes the fun part for you. Setting up your device and making it truly your own and experiencing what 5 million others worldwide already know; the Samsung Galaxy Note is a device like no other!