I can understand and share in the frustration with Sprint right now. I think there are many factors causing a bigger problem with their customers right now.
For starters? the Echo is not my cup of tea. Say what you want, but it does look more like a cheap Chinese knock-off of a Nintendo DS than a cell phone. The specs are not only a bit under whelming, but some of them are just head-scratching, such as the typical ?average? size battery being used in a device with two screens? and the only quiet acknowledgement that this thing is indeed going to be a power-hungry vampire is the inclusion of a second spare battery. (Like I want to carry that around with me daily? )
In any case, Sprint did hype the announcement factor by having this as a separate special VIP style event and got everyone?s hopes up. Sure, the Blogs of the world aided in this, but only because they too figured that this must be something big, as we all did, because Sprint could have just announced the Echo at CES last month instead as they did with the Evo Shift.
And therein lies the second big issue? since Evo Shift was just kind of thrown out there at the start of CES, with no big hype, private event, or magic tricks, Sprint themselves set the bar for what the Feb. 7th announcement was going to be.
The Evo Shift, while it looks like a really great phone itself, was also a disappointment to many of the Sprint customers due to the lack of a FFC and a few other specs. Myself, I think the Shift may have been better off dropping the 4G to become a ?Hero 2?.
Which is where we come to issue #3? the Hero factor. While the EVO is loved, it is less than a year old. I think the big issue is coming from the Hero crowd on Sprint, which I believe launched back in Sept/Oct 2009, and announced several months earlier for pre-orders. The window of opportunity for the best upgrade offers to those customers is now? 12 months for the VIPs and almost here for the 22 month level. Those are the people gnashing their teeth for Sprint to release something better after seeing the EVO come out less than a year later. However, with the EVO came the $10 ?EVO Tax? which soon spread to the Epic. Many did not want to pay for 4G if they would not be able to use it? fair enough?
They then had had to sit through announcement after announcement for phones deemed to be sub-par to their original Hero since then: the Intercept, Transform, Optimus S and the Zio? and now the Echo. Meanwhile these same users, unable to unwilling to jump ship due to contracts, have watched other carriers offers a good number of phones that would have perfectly fit the bill. The HTC Incredible to many would have been a perfect follow-up to the Hero on Sprint, after all Verizon replaced the Hero?s twin, the Droid Eris with the Droid Inc. Why didn?t Sprint?
Now with the 4G tax spread across the board to all smartphones on Sprint, everyone has accepted that and moved on? and are now ready for a top tier phone like the EVO or Epic. But the EVO is 8 months old? surely an EVO2 must be on the way. The Epic is also grand, but Samsung has not held up their end of things as far as updates and have made it clear that Galaxy S2 phones are one the way as well, being the Epic will be old news before you know it. So now we come to issue #4. EVO Envy.
Most comments bring up the EVO, saying that the Shift and Echo announcements are a let down from the EVO. Yes, the EVO is loved. So much so that most of the carriers in the US went out and asked HTC to design them a their own new and improved versions of the EVO. Last month Verizon announced the Thunderbolt, AT&T showed off the Inspire at CES as well. Dual Cores and rumors of 3D displays from LG were also hyped as on the way in 2011?
Sprint was cryptically silent?
So when the announcement of a special event on Feb 7th was made, with a big name illusionist and all, following in the shoes of Verizon?s announcement about adding the iPhone, of course the world assumed Sprint would show off a mind-blowing new phone? or two? or even half a dozen to look forward to over the next 3-6 months. It was like it was going to be their own big CES style announcement platform? only all we got was the Echo, a phone that looks like more of a toy than a phone, from a company that doesn?t have a best reputation. Simply put? they disappointed at a time when the big assumption was that they were going to announce something like the Optimus 3D with dual cores and 4G. (Why else would David Blane have been there? Really? What else did Sprint think people were expecting?)
So now we all sit? and wait? and wonder? what is next?
Meanwhile, Issue #5 is looming large in the near future. For many Sprint customers their big $150 rebate offer from Sprint is on the verge of vanishing on April 1st when the Premier VIP lines are redrawn? and at this point we all know that nothing good is going to come between now and then. No 3D fun, no Dual Core goodness, and no Evo 2.
So like a frustrated teen at the school dance, you find out that you waited too long to ask the girl across the hall to dance, and now she?s gone off with someone else, leaving you to settle and pick from the less desirable leftovers or just leave the dance entirely unsatisfied.
I share the pain myself? as I find myself in the same boat.
My wife wants an EVO SHIFT, and I?m happy to oblige her with it. It would be a great first Android phone for her. I?m still rockin? the Hero myself? and while I was hoping for an EVO2 to make it my way sooner than later, or even an Optimus 2X or 3D, I now find myself trying to choose between the the EVO and the EVO Shift. (I?ll pass on the Epic I think?) Or I can simply opt to wait for my 22 month benefit to roll back around near the end of the year.
For starters? the Echo is not my cup of tea. Say what you want, but it does look more like a cheap Chinese knock-off of a Nintendo DS than a cell phone. The specs are not only a bit under whelming, but some of them are just head-scratching, such as the typical ?average? size battery being used in a device with two screens? and the only quiet acknowledgement that this thing is indeed going to be a power-hungry vampire is the inclusion of a second spare battery. (Like I want to carry that around with me daily? )
In any case, Sprint did hype the announcement factor by having this as a separate special VIP style event and got everyone?s hopes up. Sure, the Blogs of the world aided in this, but only because they too figured that this must be something big, as we all did, because Sprint could have just announced the Echo at CES last month instead as they did with the Evo Shift.
And therein lies the second big issue? since Evo Shift was just kind of thrown out there at the start of CES, with no big hype, private event, or magic tricks, Sprint themselves set the bar for what the Feb. 7th announcement was going to be.
The Evo Shift, while it looks like a really great phone itself, was also a disappointment to many of the Sprint customers due to the lack of a FFC and a few other specs. Myself, I think the Shift may have been better off dropping the 4G to become a ?Hero 2?.
Which is where we come to issue #3? the Hero factor. While the EVO is loved, it is less than a year old. I think the big issue is coming from the Hero crowd on Sprint, which I believe launched back in Sept/Oct 2009, and announced several months earlier for pre-orders. The window of opportunity for the best upgrade offers to those customers is now? 12 months for the VIPs and almost here for the 22 month level. Those are the people gnashing their teeth for Sprint to release something better after seeing the EVO come out less than a year later. However, with the EVO came the $10 ?EVO Tax? which soon spread to the Epic. Many did not want to pay for 4G if they would not be able to use it? fair enough?
They then had had to sit through announcement after announcement for phones deemed to be sub-par to their original Hero since then: the Intercept, Transform, Optimus S and the Zio? and now the Echo. Meanwhile these same users, unable to unwilling to jump ship due to contracts, have watched other carriers offers a good number of phones that would have perfectly fit the bill. The HTC Incredible to many would have been a perfect follow-up to the Hero on Sprint, after all Verizon replaced the Hero?s twin, the Droid Eris with the Droid Inc. Why didn?t Sprint?
Now with the 4G tax spread across the board to all smartphones on Sprint, everyone has accepted that and moved on? and are now ready for a top tier phone like the EVO or Epic. But the EVO is 8 months old? surely an EVO2 must be on the way. The Epic is also grand, but Samsung has not held up their end of things as far as updates and have made it clear that Galaxy S2 phones are one the way as well, being the Epic will be old news before you know it. So now we come to issue #4. EVO Envy.
Most comments bring up the EVO, saying that the Shift and Echo announcements are a let down from the EVO. Yes, the EVO is loved. So much so that most of the carriers in the US went out and asked HTC to design them a their own new and improved versions of the EVO. Last month Verizon announced the Thunderbolt, AT&T showed off the Inspire at CES as well. Dual Cores and rumors of 3D displays from LG were also hyped as on the way in 2011?
Sprint was cryptically silent?
So when the announcement of a special event on Feb 7th was made, with a big name illusionist and all, following in the shoes of Verizon?s announcement about adding the iPhone, of course the world assumed Sprint would show off a mind-blowing new phone? or two? or even half a dozen to look forward to over the next 3-6 months. It was like it was going to be their own big CES style announcement platform? only all we got was the Echo, a phone that looks like more of a toy than a phone, from a company that doesn?t have a best reputation. Simply put? they disappointed at a time when the big assumption was that they were going to announce something like the Optimus 3D with dual cores and 4G. (Why else would David Blane have been there? Really? What else did Sprint think people were expecting?)
So now we all sit? and wait? and wonder? what is next?
Meanwhile, Issue #5 is looming large in the near future. For many Sprint customers their big $150 rebate offer from Sprint is on the verge of vanishing on April 1st when the Premier VIP lines are redrawn? and at this point we all know that nothing good is going to come between now and then. No 3D fun, no Dual Core goodness, and no Evo 2.
So like a frustrated teen at the school dance, you find out that you waited too long to ask the girl across the hall to dance, and now she?s gone off with someone else, leaving you to settle and pick from the less desirable leftovers or just leave the dance entirely unsatisfied.
I share the pain myself? as I find myself in the same boat.
My wife wants an EVO SHIFT, and I?m happy to oblige her with it. It would be a great first Android phone for her. I?m still rockin? the Hero myself? and while I was hoping for an EVO2 to make it my way sooner than later, or even an Optimus 2X or 3D, I now find myself trying to choose between the the EVO and the EVO Shift. (I?ll pass on the Epic I think?) Or I can simply opt to wait for my 22 month benefit to roll back around near the end of the year.
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram