Stay with Verizon or jump ship? *UPDATED 8/3/06

Well today I am offically eligible to either drop Verizon or renew my contract. I've been with them for 3 years and there customer service has been nothing but outstanding. Service has been good as long as I don't use the phone in TRU/CC/BB or worse at home. This is where my phone drops calls or gets no service at all

The other problem I have had is the plan.. Currently I am at 34.99 plus tax for 300 mins Unlimited Nights and Weekends. Problem is I never, ever use 300 minutes...the longest I have used is about 120-170 minutes... most of my minutes have been used after 9pm (UN&W)... At home we now use Vonage..which is basically free anytime long distance...which I use to use my cell phone for. With Vonage, I no longer use my cell phone for long distance calls.

I have noticed sprint has a plan right now for 29.99 + tax for 200 minutes and I think UN&W which seems perfect. As someone who use to sell cell phones for radio shack 3 years ago, I have heard so many complains about Sprint's service in my area Vs Verizon's and found Verizon's service and support to be a lot better then Sprints Support and service.

Prepay I don't really like that idea...

Some people think I should negotate with verizon to give me a lesser plan/cheaper plan, but I have tried that before 2 years ago before I signed up again with my new phone.

Suggestions??

UPDATE 8/3/06:

Ok people the chocolate phone is not out yet..however I was able to play with an active model from a CSR and found it kinda small and not sterdy enough
plus it looks like it can be strached easily....and with the fact there is no case atm, i said screw it.

as recommended I got the LG 8300... picked up the case, charger, stereo headset, 1gb mini sd card, music kit...... the rep gave me a discount on the card and music kit so I saved 20 bucks on those two items together

All I have to do is send this rebate off and the phone is free..yay.. i am a bit confused why didn't I walk out with the phone for free as i am eligible for 100 off for my new every 2.... hmm..

anyways i have 15 days to try it and i am trying the vcast service free for 30 days.

Could give a prepaid plan with some of them a shot. Just to give you a headsup though, Boost Moble is really Nextel, Virgin I believe is Sprint.

ive never had any problems anywhere using virgin but i know people that have sprint that have problems in the same area I dunno how to explain that I heard virgin is sprint as well.

I guess id just try to talk them into a better plan if not walk why keep service that doesnt work at ur own home? Seems like a deal breaker to me regaurdless if theres a good secondary phone or not.

Actualy id go for sprint.

Honestly, your talking $5 a month. Sure, it's $60 a year, but it isn't that much money. If you like Verizon, and you've had issues that they've handled well, that can be worth the extra money. Also, on the off-shot that you have to use more minutes during the year (sounds like you get reasonably close a few times), it's nice to have that buffer.

Honestly, $5 isn't worth the potential hassle if your happy. You could go in and ask to see what they can do (they can probably give you a little something extra. Might not save you money, but you might get some accessory for your phone or something).

Just my 2cents.

As others have said, if you've had little to no trouble with Verizon, there's no reason to change. You might end up needing those minutes at some point, too. Also, like the poster above me said, if you show interest at the store but remain hesitant, they will do something in your favor to have you sign up.

Example: I went into the VZW store yesterday to buy a new phone since my New Every Two plan was up. I stood around for nearly 45 minutes and then decided I would just get the phone online since it was cheaper because I wouldn't have to worry about mail-in rebates. They saw me walking out, called me cell and asked if there was anything they could do to help. I told the guy that I could get the phone for free online, he talked to a manager and 25 minutes later, I had a shiny, new phone for free.

[quote name='senorwoohoo']As others have said, if you've had little to no trouble with Verizon, there's no reason to change. You might end up needing those minutes at some point, too. Also, like the poster above me said, if you show interest at the store but remain hesitant, they will do something in your favor to have you sign up.

Example: I went into the VZW store yesterday to buy a new phone since my New Every Two plan was up. I stood around for nearly 45 minutes and then decided I would just get the phone online since it was cheaper because I wouldn't have to worry about mail-in rebates. They saw me walking out, called me cell and asked if there was anything they could do to help. I told the guy that I could get the phone for free online, he talked to a manager and 25 minutes later, I had a shiny, new phone for free.[/QUOTE]

yep thats what I thought about doing... online is faster and free... match the deal or walk ...but it really sucks having to wait 45mins to an hour to see a rep at the verizon store arghh

It does suck having to wait, but at least you won't have to pay shipping/handling...unless there are no s/h fees on the VZW site and yesterday was a waste of time. Ah well, I'm happy with my phone so I don't care.

Do it! D

[quote name='senorwoohoo']It does suck having to wait, but at least you won't have to pay shipping/handling...unless there are no s/h fees on the VZW site and yesterday was a waste of time. Ah well, I'm happy with my phone so I don't care.[/quote]

wait...why would they rather you buy it instore rather than buying it on their website?

I didn't want to pay shipping/handling fees...but I would have bought online if they didn't give me an INSTANT rebate. There was no way they would have let me just leave though, those bastards need the money.

[quote name='senorwoohoo']I didn't want to pay shipping/handling fees...but I would have bought online if they didn't give me an INSTANT rebate. There was no way they would have let me just leave though, those bastards need the money.[/quote]

oh i see...i thought you were gonna buy another phone from another company or something...it's all comin back to me

sprint is ing horrible. I switched from sprint to nextel 2 years, ago, and then sprint goes and buy them. My contract is up in 14 days, and I am switching to verizon. If you a looking for cheap plans take a look at cingular/t mobile...my wife has one of them, and she gets a ton of minutes for cheap.

my verizon contract expires in january, and i'm lookin for good service at a good price (and a nice phone to go with the contract)...might look into cingular or tmobile then...i always liked tmobile phones

I'd say stick with them. They have very good service in my area, which most providers dont do (Cingular and Metro PCS are horrible around here), customer service is helpful and they just gave me a RAZR free after rebates for being with them and having my old phone for like 3+ years. They are pretty expensive though but if you can afford it then you should stick with them.

Stick with verizon. Unless you looking for something special & it sounds like your not Stick with them. However, make sure you get you a new phone even if its a free one. You get a free phone when renewing your contract.

BTW I have sprint and love it. Only two small problems in 2 years..
I have found from selling phone a couple years back like you OP. The people that hate sprint are the ones that can't keep track of their bill or minutes.

i guess i'll try to get a razr when i renew

ok, called verizon.......... tried to negotiate but no go... they said if I leave now (22 months), i have to pay 175......... can anyone confirm this? As someone who use to work for radioshack 3 years ago, I could have swarn that they said 22 months and you can get out no charge...things might have changed.

Anyways.........

here are my two choices based on reviews

LG 8300=Free with new every 2 years and another 2 year sign up
accessories=30 bucks

LG Chocolate=50 bucks (online) with new every 2
accessories=50 bucks

Both phones reviews as great..and I was tending to lean towards the chocolate one, however online it says I am forced to pay for a higher plan to get it where as the other phone (8300) i can stay at my 35 a month for 300 mins... I don't want a higher plan period.

Im going to try what the other guy did, walk into a VZW corp store, ask for the chocolate, if they don't match the online price and force me to upgrade my plan to the higher one, then I walk.

Do I what I did, I'm the other guy you're referring to. The LG8300 is pretty nice though, that's what I just got.

[quote name='senorwoohoo']Do I what I did, I'm the other guy you're referring to. The LG8300 is pretty nice though, that's what I just got.[/QUOTE]


its a strong possibility that the lg8300 is what i am going to get... i will let you know in a few hours.

where is the update?

[quote name='ryanbph']where is the update?[/QUOTE]


oh such suspense! check my original post on top.

[quote name='swetooth9']my verizon contract expires in january, and i'm lookin for good service at a good price (and a nice phone to go with the contract)...might look into cingular or tmobile then...i always liked tmobile phones[/QUOTE]

I've had both Cingular and T-Mobile in the past; Cingular was alright, but T-Mobile was awful. It was bad enough I couldn't get a signal in my dorm, but the worst was when I was riding with my friend down a road late at night in the middle of October, and her car broke down...and I had no ing signal. Luckily (after a half hour of Central New York's autumn) some kind soul with Verizon finally stopped to call AAA, and it was shortly after that I made the switch.

I've been with Verizon for a while now, and I can't think of a single time I've been without service. Never been happier with a cell provider.