View Full Version : Verizon Smartphones without dataplans workaround
Bikeguy
03-27-2010, 09:18 AM
I hate anyone forcing me to spend more than necessary, including Verizon. I need the scheduler function of a smartphone, but have no desire to surf the net or read email from my phone. So, spending $30 a month for the wife and I to get scheduling capabilities was unreasonable, IMHO.
Verizon switched to a no smart phone without the data plan as of Nov-08.
Previously, I had got a Palm Treo 700 from them and had the data switched off after the first month.
My new every two was up, and my wife wants a phone with scheduling capabilities. Verizon wants an extra $30 a month per phone for the data package which I don't want, but would be forced to sign up for to get a new phone from them with scheduling. I currently have a Treo 700 with the data shut off. Was shut off after the first month.
The salesperson's suggestion was a (new or used) Treo 700, 755 or a Centro, purchased someplace other than Verizon. She said Centro was the latest version of Palm that would not be forced into a dataplan. She also said if someone acquired a newer phone than that, Verizon would force them to take a dataplan. This would be based on ESN and the device it's attached to.
Also, you definitely can't do Blackberry's as they ping for new email every 6 seconds, so a dataplan would be required, or you'd end up with a huge bill. I'm sure there's some techie disable on some forum, but not for me.
My wife and I aren't going to win a latest tech fashion contest, but with an extra $60 in our pocket a month, I'm good with that.
Looks like NIB Centros are currently going for $125 shipped on ebay. I'm sure 700s and 755s are less.
Hope this helps someone save some money. And if anyone has any warnings or improvements to this, please post, as I haven't purchased anything yet. Knowing my wife, I can only hold her impatience for a new item off only for a few days.
And i tried to add this info to a relevant thread, but because it was over a year old, i wasn't allowed, hence teh new thread.
PhoenixFP
03-27-2010, 11:30 AM
So you decided to use a 3 year old phone to avoid paying an extra $10 a month?
And yes, plenty of cool smartphones from Verizon only need the $10 a month data plan.
acesmuzic
03-27-2010, 11:55 AM
So you decided to use a 3 year old phone to avoid paying an extra $10 a month?
And yes, plenty of cool smartphones from Verizon only need the $10 a month data plan.
:facepalm2:
PhoenixFP
03-27-2010, 12:11 PM
:facepalm2:
What?
I'm just confused here. The OP doesn't like Verizon's policy so he decided to go around that policy by using an old phone.
Sure it sounds like a good idea, but really, is it worth it in the long run to save a few bucks and be forced to use something as shitty as the Centro?
Personally, I'd have told Verizon to shove it, and saved a ton by switching to Sprint, since their ED plan is cheaper than Verizon with a $30 data plan addon
its $30 data plan
Really? Thanks for pointing that out, cause you know, I didn't know that from the OP's bitching about it....
What?
I'm just confused here. The OP doesn't like Verizon's policy so he decided to go around that policy by using an old phone.
Sure it sounds like a good idea, but really, is it worth it in the long run to save a few bucks and be forced to use something as shitty as the Centro?
Personally, I'd have told Verizon to shove it, and saved a ton by switching to Sprint, since their ED plan is cheaper than Verizon with a $30 data plan addon
Really? Thanks for pointing that out, cause you know, I didn't know that from the OP's bitching about it....
From the OP...
... So, spending $30 a month for the wife and I to get scheduling capabilities was unreasonable, IMHO....
....Verizon wants an extra $30 a month per phone for the data package which I don't want, ....but with an extra $60 in our pocket a month, I'm good with that.
$30 x2=$60 btw since he's also doing this for his wife. It was only mentioned three times...
I personally wouldn't mind using a 700W or 700P..but a Centro is as pure crap as it gets honestly.
PhoenixFP
03-27-2010, 12:30 PM
From the OP...
$30 x2=$60 btw since he's also doing this for his wife. It was only mentioned three times...
I personally wouldn't mind using a 700W or 700P..but a Centro is as pure crap as it gets honestly.
I actually read the OP ;).
Point is that he's bitching about something that he's not forced into. If you don't like the extra data requirements, don't get a phone that requires a data plan. Sure, Verizon seems to think a bunch of their phones are data hungry users when they aren't, but my point is that if you want the super-awesome-chocolately-fudge phone, you have to pay for it.
And note I didn't say anything bad about the Treo ;). Just the Centro.
Bikeguy
03-27-2010, 05:03 PM
plenty of cool smartphones from Verizon only need the $10 a month data plan.
Thanks for this tip. I can't argue that spending $20 a month for something I don't need or want is better than spending $60 a month. :confused:
The Verizon rep said although the $10/month phones had calendars, they weren't as good as the Treo 700 scheduling app I currently have.
If people are interested in a phone and scheduler, I believe this is the way to go.
And thankfully, my friends won't judge me as uncool for having a 3 year old phone.
dzap, thanks for the heads up on the Centro. Looks like it's another Treo 700 for the wife.
buyyoudrink
03-28-2010, 09:13 AM
Thanks for this tip. I can't argue that spending $20 a month for something I don't need or want is better than spending $60 a month. :confused:
The Verizon rep said although the $10/month phones had calendars, they weren't as good as the Treo 700 scheduling app I currently have.
If people are interested in a phone and scheduler, I believe this is the way to go.
And thankfully, my friends won't judge me as uncool for having a 3 year old phone.
dzap, thanks for the heads up on the Centro. Looks like it's another Treo 700 for the wife.
Hey dzap what are you doing try to break OP decide. I think centro is better them treo.
Dzap you are the trouble .:mad:
Hey dzap what are you doing try to break OP decide. I think centro is better them treo.
Dzap you are the trouble .:mad:
Are you alright? :lol: :comfort:
:lmao::lmao::lmao: I've been a loyal Palm user since 2004 with my first Tungsten E and know my way around the Palm OS platform pretty well.
I've used a Centro and Treo personally, and the Centro was pretty much just a cheap tween phone to keep Palm afloat during their dire times, just to keep in business.
It isn't really a business smartphone like the Treo line, since it was pushed towards the teen market. It was a gimmicky phone that really showed Palm's downfall.
Personally I would go with the 755 since it is the newest OP (of the 700 series with Palm OS...)
The 800w would be my first choice since it also includes wifi, but it was only on Sprint and never made it to Verizon.
emelvee
03-28-2010, 12:08 PM
I've used a Centro and Treo personally, and the Centro was pretty much just a cheap tween phone to keep Palm afloat during their dire times, just to keep in business.
like today?
:popcorn:
like today?
:popcorn:
:huh: Don't understand what you're implying...
emelvee
03-28-2010, 12:16 PM
:huh: Don't understand what you're implying...
I thought they were currently struggling... while you were mostly using past tense. :dontknow:
linly (http://money.cnn.com/2010/03/19/technology/palm_target_price_zero/)
I thought they were currently struggling... while you were mostly using past tense. :dontknow:
linly (http://money.cnn.com/2010/03/19/technology/palm_target_price_zero/)
Haha..well yes. Right now they are..but that is more recent. Before they launched the Pre they weren't doing well( okay let's says "worse")..they had to split up their company a while back into two entities..to where they didn't own Palm OS anymore.
At one point they were called "PalmOne" (It says it on my Tungsten T5 to prove that :lol:) because they didn't want to confuse it with the company that now worked on the Palm OS.
They were really in shit imo and were a huge mess. I was dumbfounded when they decided to re-merge all the crap together and call it just "Palm" again. Ugh.
Just instill consumer confusion..that will help sell your products!! :lol:
Then they dumped everything and took the largest gamble they had and launched the Pre.
And now they are stuck allover in where they started. Maybe Microsoft should just buy them or something at this point :lol:
PhoenixFP
03-28-2010, 12:28 PM
Centro: Making people pissed off at Palm, one user at a time.
I find it amazing my local Sprint store still has Centros.
Just to clarify..I did dump Palm though back in '08. I was sick of waiting for their crap to launch Palm OS 6 Cobalt..LOOONNNGGG overdue...and they just dumped it altogether to which I said "fine..I'm dumping yo Palm. I'm tired of waiting.."
Now that I'm finally comfortable with Windows Mobile and know the ins and outs..Windows decides to dump that and come out with Windows Phone 7 and make everything incompatible. Ugh. Awesome. Doing the exact same thing Palm did. I think I'll just switch to Android soon enough..
PhoenixFP
03-28-2010, 01:09 PM
"fine..I'm dumping yo Palm. I'm tired of waiting.."
Ghetto moment? :lol:
Now that I'm finally comfortable with Windows Mobile and know the ins and outs..Windows decides to dump that and come out with Windows Phone 7 and make everything incompatible. Ugh. Awesome. Doing the exact same thing Palm did. I think I'll just switch to Android soon enough..
Isn't that the standard technology law? As soon as your customers are finally beginning to learn and become satisfied with your product, switch it up and make the new products incompatible with the old?
shhaggy
03-28-2010, 04:55 PM
This isn't really a 'workaround', old devices are always grandfathered in when there're major policy changes like that. I had a Motorola Q that wasn't required to be on a data plan for ages.
In any case, there're plenty of phones will simple schedule programs that don't require a full $30 data plan, some of them only require the simpler $10 dataplan.
Majide
08-26-2010, 10:04 AM
So, I was hoping to hear back from the OP to see how this has worked for him.
Our New Every Two is available now, but it's really not worth it to upgrade for me. I just have some lame LG phone with a camera - and not even video. Their newer version of what I have still doesn't have video. My sister got the new LG Chocolate, but it requires a $10 data plan that sounds fairly useless.
I don't like the idea of adding on money to my monthly bill, so I was hoping you'd let us know how this is working out. Maybe I could go this route and buy an older version of the LG Chocolate somewhere. This is what my sister had before, and didn't need a data plan - but it was unfortunately stolen from her Sunday, along with her purse.
Thanks!