Salty and Sprint

[meyerweb]

Originally Posted by Salty Off-Grid

Actually I can see where you would think that with not much information. Here are the facts, I have asked Sprint for nothing other than to cancel my service. Period. I did not ask for a Palm Pre or any other phone. When they told me to pay full price for a replacement, I asked them nicely to consider whether that was all they could do and to consider that my positive review for the battery life had just been Tweeted by Palm only 30 minutes earlier. Just give it a look-see and see if there is anything you can do. They offered nothing. So I said, I'd take a dixie cup and a string or any old refurb or anything and they offered nothing. After I said, "Ok, let's just go ahead and cancel and I'll pay the $400 cancellation fee" they said, "what if we knock off $90 but you'll have to pay it all up front. I said NO. So then I got transferred to a manager who was not in and who has not called me back.

So frankly from Sprint's point of view all I have done is asked to cancel and give them $400 which hardly sounds like a spoiled brat. I mean just because I turn down their weak full price/rebate scheme in favor of giving them $400 and dropping them doesn't really make me spoiled.

I only mentioned ON PRECENTRAL that if they were smart they would help a guy out. I never threatened or asked for anything at all from Sprint. Most of my above statement was sarcastic and for humor purposes. It was not a transcript.

I hope that clears it up.

Michael (Salty Off-Grid)

Boy, you sure have a different interpretation of what you wrote than I do. It's clear to me you asked Sprint to do you a favor, and give you a special deal that you know you're not really entitled to.

You knew when you bought a phone that you got a subsidized price for signing a long term deal, and that the subsidized price is only good every 2 years (or maybe every one, if you're a "Premier" customer). Apparently you haven't had the wife's phone that long, so you're not entitled. You had the option of getting insurance when you got the phone, and chose not to.

In spite of the fact that you have no entitlement or right to a discount, Sprint offered to give you a phone for well under half price, but that's still not good enough for you.

And, apparently, because you got a little web publicity you think you're famous, and that entitles you to something special. Hate to tell you, bud, everyone gets their 15 minutes of fame, and a couple of weeks from now no one will remember you at all. Get over it.

All I see here is a good faith effort by Sprint to keep you as a customer and make you happy, and a greedy customer who thinks contracts don't apply to him.

[Dan000]

Originally Posted by meyerweb

Boy, you sure have a different interpretation of what you wrote than I do. It's clear to me you asked Sprint to do you a favor, and give you a special deal that you know you're not really entitled to.

You knew when you bought a phone that you got a subsidized price for signing a long term deal, and that the subsidized price is only good every 2 years (or maybe every one, if you're a "Premier" customer). Apparently you haven't had the wife's phone that long, so you're not entitled. You had the option of getting insurance when you got the phone, and chose not to.

In spite of the fact that you have no entitlement or right to a discount, Sprint offered to give you a phone for well under half price, but that's still not good enough for you.

And, apparently, because you got a little web publicity you think you're famous, and that entitles you to something special. Hate to tell you, bud, everyone gets their 15 minutes of fame, and a couple of weeks from now no one will remember you at all. Get over it.

All I see here is a good faith effort by Sprint to keep you as a customer and make you happy, and a greedy customer who thinks contracts don't apply to him.

i agree with this post.

[mattaspira]

I didn't dig through most of the posts on here, but I was in a similar situation and honestly how hard is it to just get a used phone like that on e-bay for less than 50$ even. And when you activate it put insurance on it.

I know you're dissapointed but Sprint doesn't really owe you anything for at-fault accidents. But I have been in the situation and it can get quite frustrating.

However you asked for alternatives, and they gave you "buy the phone at retail", so get on ebay or something and get a cheap used phone and sell your old one for parts to make up some of the cost. :]

Just my thoughts.

[Goyena]

Originally Posted by GMoney749

So if I kidnap the CEO's daughter and it gets my wife a new phone does that mean they agreed with me as well?

You betcha. (seeing as his compensation package totaled more than 19M$ in 2008 I'd say you're shooting a bit low though.)

Originally Posted by GMoney749

Salty, you seem like a really nice guy...

I love this thread. Even better than the "you're whiny and not special, just like the rest of us posts" are the ones start with "you seem like a really nice guy" and finished with a few tonsil-knocking backhanders. Ow.

Even better are the ones basting Salty with invective for having shattered their "image" of him. Also don't miss posts where complainers complain about how they dislike complaint-y type threads.

Somebody ban this thread to off-topic land. Another squirrely comment to help it on its way: If Salty had presented himself as a dirty scumbag letting us in on a way to get free stuff from Sprint, he'd be hailed as hero. Anybody for a 2 for 1 touchstone pack?

[lulugirl896]

From Salty's twitter feed:
"@palm @sprint Shockingly, I am on hold with Sprint considering canceling
service because Sprint is wanting to screw me on a replacement. "

So to me it seems quite clear that there was an agenda right from the start. The problem is, moves like that are what makes reviewers and bloggers seem suspect to the general population.
Had it been that you reached out to Samsung, as the makers of your wife's phone, that would even have been a bit more relevant.
All the references to being 'raped' and wanting to take it to the streets a la Jesse Jackson- ouch.
I'm not attempting to attack you personally, but I do want you to understand where my irritation is coming from in this situation.

[GMoney749]

Originally Posted by Goyena

You betcha. (seeing as his compensation package totaled more than 19M$ in 2008 I'd say you're shooting a bit low though.)



I love this thread. Even better than the "you're whiny and not special, just like the rest of us posts" are the ones start with "you seem like a really nice guy" and finished with a few tonsil-knocking backhanders. Ow.

Even better are the ones basting Salty with invective for having shattered their "image" of him. Also don't miss posts where complainers complain about how they dislike complaint-y type threads.

Somebody ban this thread to off-topic land. Another squirrely comment to help it on its way: If Salty had presented himself as a dirty scumbag letting us in on a way to get free stuff from Sprint, he'd be hailed as hero. Anybody for a 2 for 1 touchstone pack?

Get over yourself, Batman.

[Typo Lad]

Yeah, sorry, but with all respect, I think you handled this wrong. Not in terms of asking for something, but in terms of flocking to the internet right away, and in using some fairly offensive terms like 'rape". You lose a lot of credibility when you do that.

I'm glad it all worked out for you, but I don't think you initially presented yourself in the best light.

[Phenom]

Originally Posted by Salty Off-Grid

If you think I demanded anything from Sprint or from Palm you have a completely wrong idea of what happened. There is a big difference from me saying on a discussion board my opinion of what someone ought to do, and what was said in discussions with Sprint. I have listed those discussions in depth on this thread. I never demanded anything accept my right to disconnect service and pay $400 for the right. Period. Sprint asked me what I wanted and I told them only after they asked me. I never once contacted Palm ever. Still haven't. They contacted me after they read what happened.

Repeating an untruth will never make it true.

Salty

I've been following this thread and it all boils down to symantics. You basically made an indirect ultimatum to Sprint. The ultimatum was "give me a free or cheap phone, or I will cancel my service." People use these tactics all the time. When your introductory cable bill runs out, you call and say, I want to cancel and they offer to extend the deal or give you the newfangled one. When your magazine subscription is up and they want you to renew for full price, you say "no", knowing they'll offer you 60% off to stay as a subscriber. And the list goes on...

In this situation, Sprint balked. They followed their book. No insurance, locked into contract (I guess), they didn't feel compelled to offer you a free/reduced phone. The simplest and most-drama free solution would have been as others have suggested, buy a phone off eBay or maybe search your local craigslist. You could've easily found a nice phone for $50 or less.

But I can tell that you enjoy writing and enjoy communicating with "the public." That would have been a less-than-exciting, run-of-the mill-story. "Wife breaks phone, I bought a replacement for $25 from eBay." Ho-hum. That thread would've gotten 65 views and three or four replies. Instead, you chose to bash Sprint (saying they wanted to "screw you") and make an online plea to get a free or heavily discounted device (clearly that was the intent, whether it stated or not). In addition, I'm sure you knew that it'd attract attention, reads and replies (almost 2k views and nearing 100 replies). Congrats. You win. Although I wouldn't call it "stepping up to the plate" on either Palm's or Sprint's behalf. It was moreso a low-end PR move.

To be honest, it doesn't matter to me either way. You got your phone. I'm happy for you. Your phone doesn't affect me at all, so I have no emotional investment. But your posts are a bit diva-esque and I do think those who said you feel a sense of entitlement are on to something. But in the end, you got your phone, your attention, your opportunity to write & interact. Palm & Sprint get to avoid a few negative posts. Guess it's a win/win.

Just my take on the situation.

[ecb1171]

Originally Posted by lulugirl896

From Salty's twitter feed:
"@palm @sprint Shockingly, I am on hold with Sprint considering canceling
service because Sprint is wanting to screw me on a replacement. "

I have no issue with Salty wrangling a new phone from Palm.

Clearly, Palm made a business decision that the value of having Salty as a Pre user/advocate was more than the cost of providing Salty's wife with a new phone. Honestly, I can't say that I agree with the logic, but I don't know the value of Salty's reviews so it's not my decision to make.

The only issue I have is Salty's post that Sprint was ripping him off. I think that Sprint's offer to reduce the cost of the replacement by a $90 rebate was a fair one (given the fact that the damage was caused by his wife) Clearly, Salty was not happy with that deal, but it's hard to argue that Sprint did nothing.

It's true that Salty did not make demands to Sprint. In fact, from his transcript, he was very courteous to the Sprint reps....which was appropriate behavior since the Sprint rep was also very courteous and professional.

A poor business decision by Sprint would have been to not offer any rebate for the phone. I agree that losing a customer by not offering some concession on a new phone would have been short sighted by Sprint. Offering a $90 rebate on a $150 phone may not have made Salty happy, but it seems like a very fair offer to me given that Sprint was under no obligation to do anything.

In the end everyone was happy but my the point is that, even though Salty may not think so, he was treated very well by Sprint from the get go. Salty's original post in this forum and the Twitter quote from above (which does show that Salty made some effort to reach out to Palm) make criticisms about Sprint that just are not accurate.

[mrsyeltzin]

So, did you sign up for TEP or what?

[jack87]

okay i really dont feel like reading all of this thread but i read the main post.. here is what you do. get on craiglist find someone selling their centro they got for 100 bucks for about 70 if lucky maybe 60 and pick up one of those. a lot of people got a centro and then jumped on the lame black berry wagon so you can buy a practically new 500 dollar phone for as little as 60 bucks

[mardbrown]

If you were not eligible for upgrade rebates, then you were told exactly what you should have. This was one long waste of space, no legitimate complaint at all.

PS Verizon and AT&T would told you the same exact thing and probably would not have said anything about the $90 credit.

People are amazing!!!!

[mrloserpunk]

ATT exception upgrade policy is 1yr pricing on the phone plus a $75 early upgrade fee..

Regardless of who salty is, his decision to hold "sprint" responsible for his wives error is wrong. Seriously wrong. His integrity has been challenged and he failed.

The good news is that it does not make him a bad person, just someone who made a bad decision, and I would hope he see's this as a calling to do the right thing the next time his integrity is called into question.

[lordelfkin]

I love how people expect sprint or their carriers to pay for their mistakes... sprint provides you a service, you get a discounted price on the phone because its subsidized over your contract... So because you break it sprint is supposed to just give you a deal on a new phone?

Thats like totalling you mustang then calling ford asking for a new one or 50% off? im mean really?