Ongoing Cingular Wireless problem - What would you do?

[Warik]

Ok... history for those who didn't make fun of my problem yesterday. =)

Problem: My phone sucks. No service in many areas, bad service in those areas in which I actually do get service.

So, naturally I want a new phone. I call Cingular and tell them that I want phone <X> and that AT&T/VoiceStream are offering it for $Y and if they could do the same.

They told me that they could not and that I'd have to pay $200 for the phone. They said that I still have 6 months left in my contract, but if I were at the end of my contract and they were at risk of losing me to another provider, then maybe we'd be able to negotiate something.

In other words: "If we were at risk of losing a customer, then we'd be glad to help you, but since you're stuck with us for 6 more months, you can fuck off or pay $200."

Quite frankly, I'm pissed. Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't cell phone providers NOT make a significant amount of money off of phones? No one has a successful business by losing money, so if AT&T and VoiceStream are giving these phones away for $50, then obviously Cingular wouldn't be losing big by giving me the same shit.

I have several options at my disposal:

1) Bitch and complain and do nothing.
2) Pay $60 to buy out of my Cingular contract and go with AT&T or VoiceStream who will give me the phone for FREE.
3) Threaten to pay $60 to buy out of my contract and see if I can get the phone for much cheaper.
4) Accept the fact that I'm screwed and wait until December and
4a) leave Cingular and go with AT&T or VoiceStream solely on principle.
4b) haggle then for a new phone after wasting $180 over the course of 6 months for shitty service and then sign myself into another contract when I get a new phone.

or, my favorite, 5) Kill everybody at Cingular Wireless and claim they were discriminating against me so it's their fault.

What you think?

-Warik

 

[doc_pup]

definitely #5

 

[danielson]

leave cingular

money for shit service. fuck it. threaten them forst



but would a new phone really give u better service? find a friend with a nice super duper mobile,switch SIMM chips with them, and see if the service is any better for say a week. if it is, then push for a new phone.

if u can;t then leave

 

[Warik]

but would a new phone really give u better service? find a friend with a nice super duper mobile,switch SIMM chips with them, and see if the service is any better for say a week. if it is, then push for a new phone.

I have a Nokia 8260 right now and my sister has a Nokia 3360 or 3390 - whichever one is small kind of like the 8260. I get like 2 bars of signal strength (out of 4) in most areas, and I get either 1 or "No Service" anywhere with a lot of powerlines. In those same areas she gets 3 or 4 bars. Shit, I leave the gym and I don't get any service until I get out of the parking lot. My friend has the phone I want, with Cingular, and he claims to have never had less than 3 bars of service except in elevators or at the bottom of really tall buildings. So, if both others use the same provider, then there has to be something wrong with my phone (either the phone sucks or it's broken somehow, but either way if I have to get a new phone, I'd rather get a different one... this internal antenna sucks anyway).

It's really ridiculous though. The part that pisses me off the most is that they euphemistically told me "you're in a contract so we don't give a shit about your wants." If my contract were ready to expire tomorrow they'd be all over my cock and offering me a free month of service and shit. It's funny how cell phone companies work... new customers get the red carpet and praises - 6 year customers get told "too bad." Oh, and you want to hear another good part?

Warik: "VoiceStream would give me 200 more anytime minutes for the same price I pay you now."

Rep: "What good are the 200 minutes if you don't use that many?"

Uhh, hello? Yeah... that's like selling a 3 bed 2 bath home for the same as a 1 bed 1 bath home and telling the guy: "yeah well you're a bachelor so you don't need so many rooms or bathrooms." Fucking bitch! The minutes are good because they give them to me and you don't!

-Warik

 

[gotmilk]

Could be worse...you could have WorldCom service.

Watch them tomorrow....

 

[madbomber31]

threaten them and see if you can get free months from them (sprint did it for me)... if no, then tell them you are leaving them... talk to some att agents and see if they would do some sort of buy back...

but hell, you get a free phone with att ( i have them, no problems yet) cheaper service that is good, and 50 percent more minutes free with a 2 year agreement... its not bad.

 

[danielson]

Uhh, hello? Yeah... that's like selling a 3 bed 2 bath home for the same as a 1 bed 1 bath home and telling the guy: "yeah well you're a bachelor so you don't need so many rooms or bathrooms." Fucking bitch! The minutes are good because they give them to me and you don't!

-Warik

the only reason i ask is it would suck geting a new phone only to realise u have the sdame problem

id network switch. see what u can get out of them. but 'cos they have u on contract theydont care

 

[XBiker]

The carriers I have used and their rankings.

AT&T - Great coverage, at the time their plans were not competitive. Very good at screwing up billing and totally screwing the programming on your phone/voicemail.

Verizon - Absolute worst service (cell strength) out there. Dropped more calls than I care to elaborate.

Cingular - Another name for SWB Corp, sucks, period.

Sprint - They won't give away free phones, but their service (at least in my area) is the best. Few, if any, dropped calls. Decent plans, and no roaming on their network.

End of post.

 

[VicTusDeuS]

It depends on where you are. Verizon here is the best with ATT a close 2nd. A few of my friends have Nextels and the service is garbage although it is slowly improving..

 

[underguy77]

Could be worse...you could have WorldCom service.

Watch them tomorrow....

worldcom has to be the shittest company ive ever had to deal with. I have not had a correct bill since I got the phone over 6 months ago...they switch my plans on me, they will charge me for voice mail....call waiting ext. ifs fucking ridiculous. Hmmm...wonder why they went bankrupt? assholes

peace