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Verno5x posted:This may not be the right thread for this, but I have a Thunderbolt and I love the Scenes that HTC included with it. Is there anywhere I can go to download more? There's only 6 on my phone but I would think that people must have made more. Can anyone explain to me the point of Scenes? It's basically just a quick way to switch between a few different Desktop layouts, right? I guess I can see why someone might want a certain desktop layout for "Work Widgets" (news, stocks, email, texts) and another set for "Home Widgets" (photo galleries, Facebook, games, etc) if they're a real power user, but it seems to me like if you can't fit all the widgets and shortcuts you need on a full 7 home screens, you might want to pare it back a bit...
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May 25, 2011 05:09
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Just a heads up to other Thunderbolt users: if you have an in-store associate witness you do a data Reset and note it on your account, the phone reps will mail you a replacement phone with zero hassle, if you continue having stability issues. The downside is that the new phone will probably be just as bad, if not worse than your old one. I got a tiny scratch on my screen so I thought I might as well get a replacement. The new one still has all the reboot & Sense crashes the old one had, and also has some construction issue where the right side of the screen isn't fully tightened down, so it sometimes "lifts up" above the side plastic bezel. Doesn't matter much if you use a case, but it's still concerning.
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Jun 3, 2011 20:00
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serewit posted:So everyone that's buying now in hopes of getting grandfathered unlimited - you guys are probably gonna get roped into a tiered plan when you upgrade again, you realize that right? As someone who recently switched from an original Pre on a corporate account on Sprint (pretty much the cheapest unlimited plan possible) I couldn't be happier that I'm with Verizon right now. I'm on a shared-minute family plan, so basically I'm just paying $30 for the unlimited data, unlimited texting, and enough mobile minutes to not have to worry about calls. The value & performance of our data and phone coverage are far better than I experienced with Sprint. Most shocking, I just checked my Verizon account page and I've only used about 300 MB of cellular data over the last 22 days. Disclaimer: 4G only became available in my area in the last week, but I've used plenty of 3G data. Even though 4G is usually 2-4x faster than my available WiFi, I'd rather connect via WiFi for the majority of the day, and save some battery life. So even if I paid $30 for a 2 GB plan, it wouldn't affect my daily life at all right now. And I'm probably a heavier phone user than 90% of the people I know. Just because goons have heavy data usage doesn't make that the standard for the average consumer, even if they do have smartphones. Most of "the rest of us" just want to do some Facebook/Twitter, play some Angry Birds, read some news, send some texts & emails, and maybe browse a few web pages per day. 2GB per month will probably be perfectly fine even if they don't have WiFi at every place they visit during a day. I guess the million-dollar question for the future of cell-phone data plans will be "Do you plan to watch streaming video or listen to streaming audio for hours per day, every day?" If so, either you need to buy an expensive data plan, or buy an expensive home internet connection and use WiFi (or leech off other people). So yeah, I'll happily enjoy my grandfathered unlimited 4G for as long as I can stand using my Thunderbolt (or whatever might be allowed as an upgrade afterwards) and if I have to upgrade to a $30 2GB plan and use WiFi whenever possible, I won't be all that upset.
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Jun 22, 2011 17:52
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bull3964 posted:Realize that a half hour of streaming netflix a day will exhaust the 2gb data cap before the month is over. Where exactly was I "quite being apologetic" to Verizon? All I wrote is what I use my phone for on a daily basis, and compared it to the other people I know. Maybe I'm just one of the lucky bastards who upgraded to a new 4G phone at the best possible time... these are just the hazards of the cell phone tech cycle.
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Jun 22, 2011 18:19
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bull3964 posted:I didn't mean to sound confrontational, but just because you don't personally use that much data doesn't mean it's gooney to use more than the 2GB cap. 2GB for the same price that we've been paying since the dawn of time for "unlimited" is entirely unreasonable. I wouldn't be nearly as pissed if the cap was something like 5GB, but as I stated before, there is no use case for 2GB. It's cool, I guess it's just a case of agreeing to disagree. From your own data, you can stream a 22-minute Netflix video every workday during lunch and barely come out over ~1 GB, with tons of data left over for streaming radio and apps and email and web browsing. So if using nearly an hour of streaming cellular video per day is considered "casual", what exactly would be considered "hardcore"? I watched a few NCAA basketball games during march madness and anything else I had the time to get my hands on, but came nowhere near averaging ~30 minutes per day of cellular data. And from your own stats, it would take nearly 4-5 hours of streaming video per day to approach the 10GB highest-end limit. All I stated is that I don't personally know anyone who streams 30 minutes of video per day on their mobile phone, whether it's via 3G, 4G, or WiFi. I'm sure some people do that -- maybe some of them are "goony", and maybe some of them are just regular dudes wanting to get the most out of their phones while they're riding the bus or being bored at work or are too cool to own a Television at home, but they're not lucky enough to have WiFi access wherever they happen to spend most of their time. It just sounds like the majority of Verizon smartphone users will see their data plans stay at $30/month, it will just go from unlimited to 2GB limits for new users. If anyone can show some stats proving me wrong that most Verizon smartphone users consume less than 2GB cellular data per month, I'd be happy to see them! I understand how it's annoying for the power users to be forced to upgrade to an $80/month plan when they were used to paying $30, but I guess that's just the trend these days -- you pay for what you use.
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Jun 22, 2011 20:32
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Acrolos posted:For those of you that have 4G in your area, how far away can you get and still retain coverage? The 4G rollout is kinda location-dependent, but the short answer is "Probably not" if you're in Asheboro. Verizon just rolled out 4G in a few Michigan areas, though they usually only extend about 10 miles outside of the city limits (mostly along highways and primary roads). The furthest "Extended 4G Coverage" zone is usually about ~20 miles away here. But it all depends on which towers Verizon chooses to upgrade and the topography of where you live. I'm not quite sure what "Extended 4G Coverage" is supposed to mean, perhaps that if conditions are perfect and you're standing on a roof with a clear line of site to a distant tower that you can get LTE connection, maybe? As I've said before, I'm quite content with my choice of the Thunderbolt, it's not perfect by any means but it's better than any other phone I've used so far even with its "quirks". The UI differences are basically just a personal choice, but I don't have many complaints about Sense. Just get an external battery pack for $40-50 and you don't have to worry about battery life -- it's a good thing to have anyway, in case of power outages and long vacations where you might not be able to leave your phone plugged into a power outlet for an hour or three. For example, I used my phone pretty heavily to record & upload some video during a U2 concert yesterday (with 70,000 in attendance) and mostly I was surprised that I could just get a Verizon cellular signal, let alone upload at nice speeds to facebook and send/receive some texts immediately. Used GPS navigation, the camera flash LED as a flashlight, streamed music, all pretty heavily all day long -- got down to 20% battery life at one point, then plugged my phone into the battery pack in my pocket and just kept cruising along. Usually when I go to college football games I just forget about being able to use my phone within a 2-mile radius of the stadium because the networks are so clogged that they're unusable -- my Sprint and AT&T experiences.
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Jun 27, 2011 19:58
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Flyboy925 posted:Any good recommendations for a case for the thunderbolt. Nothing bulky. I dropped it yesterday on concrete stairs when I tripped, and winged the corner. Now I'm looking for a case. I switch between two Thunderbolt cases and naked (with a screen protector) depending on my mood. http://store.androidcentral.com/mobi-products-hard-shell-case/4A123A8207.htm This one is nice and smooth, slides in and out of the pocket easily, not too bulky. The deep red color version is pretty sweet. Quite thin. Also have the Seido Surface case in Burgandy: http://store.androidcentral.com/seidio-surface-case/4A123A8059.htm The Seido is a bit pricy at $28, but I got mine on sale for about $12 which was a much better deal. It has some interior lining to keep the phone's main case from scratching with basic use, but is a bit thicker and "stickier" in your pocket. However, the benefit of "stickier" is that it's less likely to fall out of your hand accidentally. And if you don't care about the exterior black case getting scratched, a simple screen protector will keep your screen safe while staying as thin as possible. I still hate applying screen protectors though, I always get a drat piece of lint stuck under the fuckers no matter how careful I try to be, and if you don't get the application right on the first time, you may as well throw it away and flush $5-10 down the toilet.
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Jul 22, 2011 06:11
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EbolaIvory posted:To help you out. Scotch tape will pull lint off of a screen protector without loving it all up. Also. Put the phone higher than the surface you're working on. Like throw it on a book or something and be ocd as poo poo about dust before you lay it down. You can put those on and off 100 times if you keep the work area clean. Some screen protectors even come with an adhesive "lint remover" that usually works just as good or better than scotch tape. But it doesn't work 100% of the time, sometimes the lint just doesn't want to let go of the screen protector. And it also seems like every time I try to lift up the protector to remove a piece of lint, two more get stuck under it. I try to do the whole "apply in a fogged-up bathroom" trick, but I just have really bad luck with screen protectors, so I learn to live with a bubble here or there.
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Aug 11, 2011 14:08
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nickhimself posted:Man, I really like my ThunderBolt but I want to punch the design team in the face. Who thought that putting the charge port on the same side that the phone will rest on while the stand is propped up was a good idea? gently caress that guy. You *can* stand it up in portrait mode, instead of the landscape mode like in your photo. Doesn't help if you want to watch some video while your phone is charging, but it's something. Or you could do what I did: I just used a little cheap plastic cradle device that came with my CyberAcoustic speakers (meant for holding an iPod while plugged into the speakers' Aux-In port) to hold my phone in a slightly tilted landscape mode while plugged in. Not as good as using the kickstand if the usb port were in the right drat spot, but it works.
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Aug 11, 2011 22:04
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Codiusprime posted:Yea, you guys know I had pretty much written off the Bionic but this complicates things immensely. I can see this applying to future phones, but how does this affect production a phone that's basically ready to ship? Or are people expecting Google's ownership to dramatically affect the future upgrade support of the Bionic?
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Aug 15, 2011 14:54
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404notfound posted:Gotta say I'm kinda disappointed with this update. Still on Sense 2, and pretty much no visible changes whatsoever. Mostly all I see is a few new preloaded items, and the market notification icons look kinda different. I had to double-check the "about" screen to make sure the update actually took. It's not earth-shattering, but I'm already appreciating a number of changes, such as: Quick-settings pulldown menu Improved responsiveness That fancy battery meter utility Direct link to the Downloads folder (i had 300mb worth of junk in there I didn't know about) Search Button goes to Google Search and not HTC's slow app HTC's Twitter widget is far more readable Default browser actually does the double-tap zoom properly Sorting options for Programs list Some other bits & pieces.
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Sep 28, 2011 23:18
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Penguissimo posted:I've done this before, and as long as they can get ahold of the main account holder by phone for authorisation when you go to buy the new phone, you should be good. Just make sure to work it out ahead of time with the main account holder so that they'll be reachable while you're at the store. Or you could just have the primary account holder call in ahead of time and add you as an "authorized user" or whatever the term is to be able to make changes without having to ask for permission every time you want modify an account.
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Oct 12, 2011 06:12
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My wife owns an LG ENV3 that got ran over and is about to die. Any recommendations for someone who has no desire for a Smartphone but wants something with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard for moderate texting and taking semi-decent photos? She should be eligible for her 2-year upgrade now. The best phones for her needs look to be the LG Cosmos Touch, the LG Cosmos 2, and a "certified used" LG ENV3 straight-up replacement. Any opinions about these lesser-cared for phones from Verizon, or something similar?
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Oct 14, 2011 02:45
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LordOfThePants posted:We just had to move her into a nursing home, and it's likely she won't be able to go back home. She obviously doesn't need the cell phone anymore, so my Mom asked if I could cancel the line. Call them up and tell them grandma died so you need to have her line cancelled because she's dead. "Why are you giving me a hard time about cancelling this line, my Nana is dead, you rear end in a top hat!" Cell phone companies don't actually ask you to send in a Death Certificate for something like that, do they? Usually only financial institutions ask for that level of proof, but I guess cell phone companies have gotten pretty ruthless so you never know...
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Oct 30, 2011 19:59
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Boffo Beach Babe!!! posted:On Verizon, shes up for an upgrade BUT I'd rather have her hold on to it (and offer it to me, on the family plan) and just buy the handset from some internet retailer and have Verizon activate it with her number - they can do that, right? Holy crap, I had no idea this was possible. Let me know if I'm understanding this: You've got 2 people on a family plan. One bought an EnV3 years ago and has no desire for anything fancier. The other craves the latest smartphone, and got a Thunderbolt in April. The EnV3 got dropped on the ground and it's going flaky, and she has an upgrade available. Instead of using the upgrade discount to get a phone that costs maybe $89 new for $0, she goes out and buys another cheap EnV3 from Craigslist or Amazon. Smartphone user upgraded to a Thunderbolt in April, but is interested in a new phone this holiday season. Thunderbolt user can take the available upgrade to get a Galaxy Nexus (or whatever) and sell his Thunderbolt on Craigslist for a few extra bucks. So if I'm understanding right, upgrade Discounts apply to the Family Plan as a whole, and not to the individual sub-lines?
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Nov 18, 2011 16:45
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parasyte posted:The upgrade discounts do apply to individual lines; however, there's no requirement to keep the upgraded phone activated on that line (or at all), only that you keep the service for 24 months. So you upgrade a line but then activate another phone on it, and you have a usable phone that can be activated anywhere. When you say "keep the service", does that also include the data plan? Because we really will only need one line with an active Data plan, and my Thunderbolt line has the grandfathered-in Unlimited data which I really don't want to lose. I'm trying to figure out exactly how this could work: 1) Wife gets a new EnV3 from Amazon or Craigslist, takes it to a Verizon store and gets it activated so she has a working phone. 2) I find a new smartphone I want to upgrade to. Go to a Verizon store and wife asks to buy it for her line. Wife's account gets a data plan added to it temporarily. 3) Go back to the Verizon store a few hours later and say "Actually I don't want this phone but my husband does, please register it to his line and re-activate my previous phone." Her account gets downgraded back to dumbphone status with no data plan needed, and I get to keep my unlimited data. 4) Sell old Thunderbolt on Craigslist. Is this even remotely close? I know this sort of stuff can depend on who you're dealing with at the store, but it's good to know the best way to do this sort of thing. Rent posted:One thing to keep in mind because the dude might not know: if you do this at certain retailers, like Amazon and most online places, you will get hosed with a huge fee. Read the fine print. Yeah, I quickly learned that buying a subsidized phone through most online retailers usually means you need to get a brand new plan. Looks like as long as I'm just paying full price for a new (or used) dumbphone and I'm not asked to activate it with a carrier, everything's cool.
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Nov 19, 2011 15:46
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WithoutTheFezOn posted:"Alternate upgrade". If you have a family plan, Verizon lets you use line A's upgrade to get a phone and immediately activate it on line B. You can even do it on their website without going to a store. You guys rock. Thanks!
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Nov 19, 2011 23:04
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Evil Vin posted:What's the best dumbphone? My grandfather is in the market for something to replace his RAZR since it's battery is really on it's way out at this point. He doesn't text or anything, all he want's is some sort of camera phone on the thing and simplicity (so full keyboards and touchscreens are a no). If he likes his Razr I'd say he should just get a new battery or two and keep on trucking. If he's really set on getting a new phone I'd say just take him into a Verizon store and see which of the 3-4 phones in his desired category look the best to him. There's really not much to do in the way of "in-depth comparison shopping" in this area of dumbphones.
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Dec 6, 2011 05:32
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Lblitzer posted:I'll probably be getting a 4S this week, switching from a Bionic [..] I got the free 4gb data for getting a 4G phone but I'm wondering if Verizon will take that away for getting a non-4G phone? Has anyone used the mobile hotspot trick with the iPhone? Guess I'm wrong on this one! Second, I'm not sure what you mean by "free 4GB data". The now-defunct unlimited data plan that Verizon used to offer? Or the current "double data" special plan? Or something different? Endor fucked around with this message at 23:47 on Dec 12, 2011 |
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Dec 12, 2011 21:05
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Just got an email from Verizon that the Nexus is available, y'all! Holy poo poo guys, check it out, this phone has: Verizon's Press Release Email posted:Android 4.0 OS Hot drat, no other phone on the market has all those features! Why wouldn't anyone want this sweet-rear end new phone? Thanks for letting me know it's available, Verizon!
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Dec 15, 2011 07:41
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My 1500 minutes + unlimited data/text costs me about $40 since I'm just piggybacking on an existing Verizon family plan (4 people). $29.99 for grandfathered unlimited data, $10 for the line. About the same amount I was paying with Sprint for my Palm Pre on Sprint for an comparable individual plan with a corporate discount. I suppose a "true cost" might be closer to $60-70 since the minutes/texts are shared, but it's still a drat good deal.
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Mar 8, 2012 17:41
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ModestMuse posted:If it's for a non-technical wifey, why not iPhone? I think the point was saving money, and a similar iPhone plan will probably just cost as much as the existing Android plan. Using Google Voice for texts could save some money, and upgrading to an iPhone would cost more money. As long as I'm understanding him correctly. quote:the tablet (capable of 4g) was receiving 4g signal despite my location not being on any 4g maps. That's pretty common for Verizon. In my location in Michigan, I think the 4G signal for my phone went on & off for weeks (and in different locations and speeds) before it finally turned on full-time, accompanied by a Verizon Press Release.
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Mar 8, 2012 18:01
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Auron posted:If its the former, after porting my number to google voice would I have to call Sprint and cancel manually? I'm pretty sure that "Porting" a number generally involves an automatic cancellation of the old account. At least that's how it worked when I ported my Sprint number to Verizon. Unless it's a family line or some other non-standard single-person account.
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Mar 8, 2012 19:26
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c0ldfuse posted:I want her to get an Android. That's nice, but what does she want?
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May 21, 2012 01:51
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Strom Thurmond posted:Thanks. But I went to do it this morning and they want to tack on a one-time $30 up-grade fee. I'd rather go to the store since it's entirely the same price now. loving false advertising. You mean Amazon wants to add a $30 upgrade fee? Sorry to say, but Verizon is going to have the exact same fee, from what I know. So those basically become a wash when considering where to purchase from.
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Aug 23, 2012 18:39
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On Terra Firma posted:Razr HD is 150 on amazon and I think the Maxx is 180. I got the HD and I love it so far. Yeah $175 or so for the Maxx, which is my #1 choice right now. i just have to ask the required questions (that have probably been asked a dozen times already) which is that I've got unlimited data and want to keep it of course. My wife and I are on a family plan and both have upgrades. I'd like to do the usual deal of buying the Maxx HD on her line through Amazon Wireless with the 2 year upgrade, then transfer it to my line. I then get to keep my unlimited data. Then she can use the standard "alternate line upgrade" from my line, through a normal Verizon store, and get an IPhone 5 for herself. Cause there's no really any major online discounts for the iPhone 5, right? She has a feature phone now so there's no data plan to worry about losing. Is there an issue with doing this trick on amazon wireless compared to how I know it works at a normal Verizon corporate store?
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Nov 30, 2012 04:50
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On Terra Firma posted:I wanted to keep mine and there were no options on Amazon to retain it. Either you swap to a shared plan or do something in store and pay the extra money. I understand that there's no options on Amazon Wireless to retain the unlimited data. The idea is to do a standard line upgrade on my wife's line through Amazon Wireless to get the Razr Maxx HD, and she upgrades from her $10 dumbphone plan to a 2 GB tiered data plan. Then I take the phone to a Verizon corporate store and ask them to transfer it to my line, and activate my Thunderbolt on her line so it stays with the same smartphone plan. Once that's done, we use my alternate-line upgrade the next day (or whenever) to get her a iPhone 5 at a regular Verizon store. The only reason I can see that this wouldn't work is if there's some Amazon voodoo that prevents me from switching a phone from one line to another, if that somehow counts as "cancelling".
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Nov 30, 2012 06:58
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parasyte posted:I don't think this works. Using an upgrade from a line renews the contract on that line even on an alternate-line upgrade, which will then invalidate your unlimited data plan. There isn't a way for both of you to upgrade and also keep unlimited data. The only way to keep unlimited data and get upgrade pricing is to add a line and activate the dumbphone on that; the upgrade on your line is forever unusable if you want to keep unlimited data. Well that might not be a problem because we actually have a total of 4 people on our family plan, and right now I'm the only one with a smartphone, the other 3 have dumbphones. So we can use person #3's available upgrade instead of my smartphone's upgrade, and just leave my line's upgrade sitting unused for the forseeable future. And I'm considering calling Amazon Wireless's support line just to be sure, but the main thing I'm still trying to figure out is whether transferring an Amazon-purchased upgrade phone and changing it between lines on a family plan will invoke some kind of termination fee from Amazon.
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Dec 1, 2012 01:04
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