That's an interesting idea that the Nexus is "Google's way of showing handset manufacturers what hardware they recommend for their next iteration of Android OS" - I think that in the long run Google is going to jump into the mobile market themselves. If I was Google I'd buy T-Mobile and move it to a data-only network after two years, whereupon I'd sell phones that treat everything as data and offer reduced rate plans with adverts. I think they have a very real opportunity to turn the cellular market upside down if they do this.
Meanwhile, back on the planet Earth, Best Buy at Millerville have only two working phones on display - the Nexus S and an iPhone. They seem convinced that they can't sell the Nexus S on anything except T-mobile and T-mobile won't approve a contract at the advertised $199.99 price and won't sell you a pay-as-you-go plan for it. One of the sales people at Best Buy remembered selling a single Nexus S before Christmas ... However the AT&T store on Corporate was more than happy to put a pay-as-you-go sim in it and port my number over inside 5 minutes so I now have the puppy running (it's nice) and as a bonus, the Geek Squad never touched it. I fired it up, created a Google account and 10 minutes later the phone downloaded a software update and installed it. As Karthik pointed out, I'm probably not saving much money but I'm not tied to a plan for 2 years either. Edmund Cramp -- "What is art but a close clinging to a bit of life that you have looked into most deeply?" - Louise Brooks | -----Original Message----- | From: [email protected] | [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Jordan Scott | Sent: Thursday, January 20, 2011 8:52 AM | To: [email protected] | Subject: Re: [brlug-general] Nexus S ... Catch-22 | | From what I understand, on T-Mobile the unlimited plan is $20 | less per month (or $480 total less over a typical 2-year | agreement) than with a contract where you get the $200 phone | with the 2-year agreement. So, if a you buy the phone at | retail (~$530), you're actually saving about $150 over two years. | | That said, I don't think the idea of the Nexus phones is to | be big sellers. If they wanted to push more units, they | would sell them with 2-year agreements through Verizon or | AT&T. I think it's basically Google's way of showing handset | manufacturers what hardware they recommend for their next | iteration of Android OS. | | | Jordan | | | | ----- Original Message ---- | From: Karthik Poobal <[email protected]> | To: [email protected] | Sent: Thu, January 20, 2011 6:12:16 AM | Subject: Re: [brlug-general] Nexus S ... Catch-22 | | Neuxs S has Quad band GSM but only has Tri-band HSPA | (900/2100/1700) and will work only on Edge when you are on | ATT. My opinion of T-Mobile network is that its a great | network when you are right under one of their towers. I mean | standing right under one of their tower. ATT does not have | any good Android phones. You are probably better off staying | with Sprint and possibly getting the Evo or Evo Shift. | | | I bought the original Nexus One on ATT when it came out last | year and to off set the price full price I got the | Iphone4(when it came out) and sold it on Gazelle for about | $575. It does not make any economic sense to buy an unlocked | phone here in the US. | | | Also, if you are certain that your credit should be okay then | make sure that all | 3 credit bureaus have the same info. Few years ago I was | denied a very small personal loan and it turned out my | identity was stolen and Transunion listed me on defaulting on | a $70K loan. Both Experian and Equifax did not have that loan | default information. Needless to say I had spent the next | couple of years trying to remove that entry. | | | | -- | Karthik Poobal | Louisiana Board of Regents | [email protected] | [email protected] | 225-341-5855 | Skype: poobal | | | | On Jan 20, 2011, at 3:39 AM, Edmund Cramp wrote: | | > I've tried both bestbuy.com and tmobile.com - the Google page just | >directs you to bestbuy.com. The phone does not appear on | the T-Mobile | >web site. I'm starting to think that the only way that you | can get a | >Nexus S is to buy it unlocked from BestBuy and with SIM card | from AT&T | >to use it as a pre-paid phone which is no big deal really - | the cash up | >front isn't a problem. I'm pretty certain that my credit is OK. | > | > It looks to me like the T-mobile stores just don't want you | to get the phone. | > | > I've always been a cell phone plan subscriber (I like the | convenience) | >so moving to unlocked SIM is a big step - it's hard to see | just how the | >economics will work out at this point. Is it cheaper or | more expensive | >as a prepaid customer? | > | > From: [email protected] | [mailto:[email protected]] On | >Behalf Of Clay Smith | > Sent: Wednesday, January 19, 2011 6:55 PM | > To: [email protected] | > Subject: Re: [brlug-general] Nexus S ... Catch-22 | > | > Are you trying to buy the phone through bestbuy.com or | tmobile.com or | >are you trying to get it through google.com/nexus/ ? I am | only curious | >because there might be a difference through how they are | processing your credit. | > | > On Wed, Jan 19, 2011 at 6:50 PM, Edmund Cramp | <[email protected]> wrote: | > | > Has anyone managed by buy a Nexus S phone yet? | > | > Best Buy are advertising the Nexus S at $529.99 or $199.99 | with a new | >2 year contract. I've been with Nextel/Sprint for about 12 | years and | >it's time for a change - and I really like the new version | of Android | >so I figured I'd buy a couple of new Nexus S phones... | > | > The Nexus S is ONLY available through Best Buy and you can | only buy it | >at the | >$199.99 price on the Internet. I've been trying to order | through Best | >Buy for the last few days (signing up as a new T-Mobile | customer) and | >they keep saying that "there is a problem with the order" - | talking to | >Best Buy it is seems that T-Mobile will only approve me for | a pre-paid | >plan (flexpay). Oddly enough, Verizon approved me for a $80 | phone plan | >last week for my daughter and didn't even blink using the | same information. | > | > But you only get the $199.99 price on the Nexus S phone if | you sign up | >for a two year contract ... but T-Mobile say that my credit is not | >approved for a contract phone. They'll only offer me a | pre-paid plan if | >I want a Nexus S. They say that they have lots of phones that are | >"better" than the Nexus S and they're happy to sell me one of those | >with a plan, but not a Nexus S. I pointed out that all of | the phones | >they offer have appear to have old versions of Android and T-Mobile | >appear to have no plans to update their phones to the | current version of Android. | > | > So basically they refuse to sell me a Nexus S (at 199.99) with a 2 | >year contract but they are happy to give me a G2 phone for | free with a | >2 year contract - so my credit problems seem to be specific to an | >attempt to purchase a Nexus S phone. | > | > I've been on hold a lot the last few days. | > | > It looks like I have to buy the Nexus S at full price and | then use the | >pay-as-you-go plans - which seem to cost more than a plan where they | >give me a free phone. | > | > [RANT]I can see why the iPhone is selling so well - Steve Jobs | >understands that people buy phones, not cell phone plans ... and the | >cell phone companies are all about selling plans and see a | phone only | >as bait to lure the customer.[/RANT] | > | > Even the sigmonster is pissed. | > -- | > "It is explained that all relationships require a little give and | >take. This is untrue. Any partnership demands that we give | and give and | >give and at the last, as we flop into our graves exhausted, | we are told | >that we didn't give enough." - Quentin Crisp | > | > | > | > _______________________________________________ | > General mailing list | > [email protected] | > http://brlug.net/mailman/listinfo/general_brlug.net | > | > _______________________________________________ | > General mailing list | > [email protected] | > http://brlug.net/mailman/listinfo/general_brlug.net | | | _______________________________________________ | General mailing list | [email protected] | http://brlug.net/mailman/listinfo/general_brlug.net | | | | | | _______________________________________________ | General mailing list | [email protected] | http://brlug.net/mailman/listinfo/general_brlug.net | _______________________________________________ General mailing list [email protected] http://brlug.net/mailman/listinfo/general_brlug.net
