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DROID Bionic And Accessory Bundle Costco Discussion Thread (Including Q&A from YankeeDudeL)

Great information in this thread (and entire forum, of course)! Couldn't really decide on Bionic vs D3... 4GLTE not really around (or even 3G).

Went to costco yesterday to get the D3 for $129 vs VZW store @ 199. Once I actually handled the Bionic seeing it was not too large as I feared, and with the great bundle deal I learned about here, walked out with the Bionic! Had heck of a time activating it... VZW tech told me per their map I'm not even supposed to have 1x signal :) Turns out the weak 1x signal here wasn't enough to activate the 4GLTE sim card! Had drive down the mountain to get a stronger one, no problem once I did. No problems ever activating the Eris or wife's D3.

Huge upgrade from the Eris, obviously. Gotta mail in for the accessories but looking forward to getting those delivered.
 
Welcome to the forums, MechGator.

You went from an Eris directly to the Bionic? Quite a leap.. I thought my move from Eris to the Fascinate was a major upgrade. ;)
 
My upgrade date is Monday the 10th and I can't wait! Upgrading from an Eris also.

I'll be getting the Costco bundle too.
 
OBSPowerstroke said:
I picked up the Bionic on Launch Day from Costco and have been really enjoying the phone. I came from an OG Droid that I thoroughly enjoyed, so I was excited to hear the Bionic was coming when my upgrade notice arrived back in July. It's been a long wait, but well worth it!

Just a quick question: Does Wireless Advocates/Costco price match other retailers on the Bionic? I was just curious, because I noticed Radio Shack has the Bionic for $199.99, and I thought I saw Let's Talk or Wirefly was advertising the phone a couple days ago for $149.99 for renewals. I was told "no" when I stopped by the kiosk yesterday.

Either way, it's not a deal breaker, because I like all of the accessories that came with the Costco bundle, especially the Nav Dock. It would just be cool to get a few dollars back to pay for the Seidio case I just bought yesterday, as the cheap leather case from Costco isn't cutting it. My phone charger hasn't worked worked since Day One, so the guy I talked to at the booth yesterday filled out a form to get me a new one sent in the mail.

What a great forum to come across and an awesome phone!

Josh
Click to expand...

Glad to hear this thread helped you out. Just to specifically answer your question, Costco does not price match. Mostly that's because the price to be matched is usually Costco's :). Also, any phone you purchase from Costco is going to come with an accessories package (generally a leather carrying case, car charger, and screen protectors). As you already know, the accessory bundle that comes with the Bionic is why the phone costs what it does. I believe it's a $160 value. And they're all accessories that the majority of people would want to have. The extra battery and charger alone is worth it. Hope you're loving your Bionic as much as we all are.

rajaji said:
My Costco droid Bionic was $279.99 and of course the $150 accessory package came free. But Verizon online was $249.99 plus I could have got $30 off for the NE (new every two) discount. Ah, well. No regrets.
I got a Verizon belt holster case as like you said, the case from Costco, identical to what I saw someone get with their Sprint Evo also from Costco, was blah. Looks and feels cheap.

Costco would not transfer my 500 contacts on my previous phone so I went to VZ and they did it. However, those contacts, each one has a header that says Motorola Contact, and they won't sync with my Google account. I really would like this sorted about but nobody seems to know how to fix this.
Click to expand...

Ah yes, the contact transfer. We don't have a machine (or program) to transfer contacts, so we can not say we can do it. Generally, we just bluetooth the contacts over, but it appears your WSEs weren't aware you could do that. Still, as bigbabys pointed out, Verizon'z Backup Assistant is the easiest way to transfer contacts, and is a free service. Wish other carrier's made it so easy.

MechGator said:
Great information in this thread (and entire forum, of course)! Couldn't really decide on Bionic vs D3... 4GLTE not really around (or even 3G).

Went to costco yesterday to get the D3 for $129 vs VZW store @ 199. Once I actually handled the Bionic seeing it was not too large as I feared, and with the great bundle deal I learned about here, walked out with the Bionic! Had heck of a time activating it... VZW tech told me per their map I'm not even supposed to have 1x signal :) Turns out the weak 1x signal here wasn't enough to activate the 4GLTE sim card! Had drive down the mountain to get a stronger one, no problem once I did. No problems ever activating the Eris or wife's D3.

Huge upgrade from the Eris, obviously. Gotta mail in for the accessories but looking forward to getting those delivered.
Click to expand...

Another satisfied customer, so glad to hear it. Seems this thread has served it's purpose well.

4G activations do take quite a bit longer than the standard 3G, and it appears they need a strong signal. Launch day was especially rough for us as we have seven Verizon retailers in one small area, all trying to work off of one or two towers. Was a mess. Mine wouldn't activate until I got it home. I imagine as the technology develops further, we can expect faster activations. Hope they improve the signal in your area, sounds like activations could be the least of your worries.

Mer2112 said:
My upgrade date is Monday the 10th and I can't wait! Upgrading from an Eris also.

I'll be getting the Costco bundle too.
Click to expand...

And we should have plenty. Now that the initial rush is over, we've been restocked and getting them to customers have been manageable. Looks like they're straightening out the accessory bundle issue, too. The demand far exceeded the supply.
 
Yankee how long does the bundle take to get to the customer and was my WSE correct it comes with a webtop adapter? All I got was the phone and a leather case and screen protectors
 
bowsback said:
Yankee how long does the bundle take to get to the customer and was my WSE correct it comes with a webtop adapter? All I got was the phone and a leather case and screen protectors
Click to expand...

Hard to say. Our Costco has consistently got the bundle minus the extra battery. We've been told it can take a month to 45 days to get it, but people have already told us they've received it. As far as the entire bundle, I'm not sure.

In terms of an adapter, I'm afraid your WSE was mistaken. They must have been confusing the standard dock for the HD dock. As far as I know, all kiosks are receiving the same bundle.
 
Hello everyone,

I am new to these forums but I had a question...

I currently have the OG Droid and am eager to upgrade. I am up for an upgrade tomorrow and would love to wait for the Nexus Prime but the droid bionic seems great especially since its available now.

What I am wondering is 2 things:

1 - If I get this bundle at costco, will it take away my unlimited data plan since I am grandfathered in?

2 - If I get it at costco, and say the droid prime does actually come out at the end of this month, would I be able to return it at costco for the prime?

I know Verizon has a 14 day $35 re-stocking fee (worth it if the prime comes out and PROVES to be WAY better than the bionic), but I would be lucky if it came out by the 21st (rumored date).

I consider myself to be a techno-savvy individual but have never used a custom ROM on my droid before. The most I do is try out custom launchers but would like to get into modding / custom ROMs. I know the nexus is rumored to come with an unlocked boot loader which makes me want the prime more but again I am just impatient and know many times when a phone is released, even if the specs are great sometimes they just are not worth it for most.

Thanks everyone ;).
 
Anyone have an answer to my 2 questions above? I want to go purchase the Bionic today but would like to know about Costco's return policy w/ phones and if they will for sure still keep me on my unlimited data since I am grandfathered in.
 
jonathansullivan said:
Yes - make sure to tell them and they will grandfather in your unlimited data.

You have 14 days to cancel the transaction / 90 days to exchange.
Click to expand...


True.

But as has been stated many times in this thread however, the official policy is exchange for the same phone after 14 days. Most kiosks will give you a different phone it seems, but don'tbe upset if they don't. The official policy is they are not allowed to.
 
I just got 2 of them at Costco - for myself and my wife. The price was $279 this Wednesday but on Thursday it went $10 up and now its $289.99
All extra accessories (accept phone case and screen protector) available only via mail in rebate. Very decent deal. In case you dont want to keep accessories you can always sell them on eBay or Craigslist.
 
Question for Yankee Dude. If I get my Droid replaced from VZW but purchased it at Costco, can I rrturn it before 90 days and still be eligible to returnit?
 
Well good news. I returned to costco and returned the broken bionic and sold me a new one at the same price and i got to keep all my accessories. Without having to deal with those mail in rebates
 
Anyone else here get the Costco deal and have to submit the rebate for ALL of the accessories? Just curious if anyone has seen the bundle delivery yet...OR if you are seeing your rebate in the online tracking...

Coming up on three weeks... :-(
 
I returned my bionic to get this deal over a week ago but more rumors surfaced about Prime and Vigor so I've held off...Still hard to pass this deal because I know I would use the accessories. Only thing really holding me back is the locked Bootloader, other than that I really liked the phone.

To Yankee, any idea if Costco will have a similar deal on any of the upcoming Verizon beasts?
 
I work in the wireless kiosk at Costco. The accessory bundle is no longer available in store. when you purchase your phone, you get a mail in coupon for the accessories now. When we first got the Bionic, it was available same day in store, but the first week there was such a demand, they could not keep them in stock. Costco will continue to sell the bundle until the warehouse sells through. ( no immediate sign of such ) however the price has changed twice since we started carrying it. Sales of the Bionic have significantly dropped everywhere.

I missed out on the "Bionic Bundle" for a few reasons:
1- employees don't get discounts on phones
2- I had to buy my phone at VZW corporate because of my contract dates
3- I had to buy my phone at full price due to my contract dates,
( Costco does not sell any phone with out a contract to anyone )
4- Costco, and no one else, sells the bundle separately
 
jboku said:
Hello everyone,

I am new to these forums but I had a question...

I currently have the OG Droid and am eager to upgrade. I am up for an upgrade tomorrow and would love to wait for the Nexus Prime but the droid bionic seems great especially since its available now.

What I am wondering is 2 things:

1 - If I get this bundle at costco, will it take away my unlimited data plan since I am grandfathered in?

2 - If I get it at costco, and say the droid prime does actually come out at the end of this month, would I be able to return it at costco for the prime?

I know Verizon has a 14 day $35 re-stocking fee (worth it if the prime comes out and PROVES to be WAY better than the bionic), but I would be lucky if it came out by the 21st (rumored date).

I consider myself to be a techno-savvy individual but have never used a custom ROM on my droid before. The most I do is try out custom launchers but would like to get into modding / custom ROMs. I know the nexus is rumored to come with an unlocked boot loader which makes me want the prime more but again I am just impatient and know many times when a phone is released, even if the specs are great sometimes they just are not worth it for most.

Thanks everyone ;).
Click to expand...

Hey there, sorry to get back to you so late. Busy bee. Even though it's been answered, I'll confirm. If you have grandfathered data, you need not worry. As to the return policy, 14 days to exchange for any phone or to return and get your upgrade back. After that, you're married to it. You have up to 90 days to exchange for the same device. That is the policy. Now, keep in mind that the Nexus Prime announcement has been delayed, and there's no guarantee that we're going to have it on launch day if at all.

Welcome to the AF, btw!

Theshape said:
Question for Yankee Dude. If I get my Droid replaced from VZW but purchased it at Costco, can I rrturn it before 90 days and still be eligible to returnit?
Click to expand...

Another question answered, but I'll confirm it. We can only return the phone we sold you. If you do so, it'll be easier if you have your paperwork and accessories.

Nissan1973 said:
I returned my bionic to get this deal over a week ago but more rumors surfaced about Prime and Vigor so I've held off...Still hard to pass this deal because I know I would use the accessories. Only thing really holding me back is the locked Bootloader, other than that I really liked the phone.

To Yankee, any idea if Costco will have a similar deal on any of the upcoming Verizon beasts?
Click to expand...

While I can't say for sure, I'm 99% confident that we will NOT offer any similar bundle deals for the remainder of the year. I was told of this happening last year with the launch of the Fascinate, and the year before with the OG Droid, so it seems like one a year. However, the success of this deal may see more in the future, but I wouldn't count on it happening till next year.

ShanDroyd said:
I work in the wireless kiosk at Costco. The accessory bundle is no longer available in store. when you purchase your phone, you get a mail in coupon for the accessories now. When we first got the Bionic, it was available same day in store, but the first week there was such a demand, they could not keep them in stock. Costco will continue to sell the bundle until the warehouse sells through. ( no immediate sign of such ) however the price has changed twice since we started carrying it. Sales of the Bionic have significantly dropped everywhere.

I missed out on the "Bionic Bundle" for a few reasons:
1- employees don't get discounts on phones
2- I had to buy my phone at VZW corporate because of my contract dates
3- I had to buy my phone at full price due to my contract dates,
( Costco does not sell any phone with out a contract to anyone )
4- Costco, and no one else, sells the bundle separately
Click to expand...


Welcome to AF, brother! WA represent.
 
Thanks Yankee Dude! Now just waiting to see how the Prime is and if it will be worth the hassle of trying to return my Bionic at CostCo.
 
Theshape said:
Thanks Yankee Dude! Now just waiting to see how the Prime is and if it will be worth the hassle of trying to return my Bionic at CostCo.
Click to expand...

From what I understand after 14 days you can return your bionic for another phone and past that up to 90 days you can return your bionic for ANOTHER bionic only, not a different phone.

I am in the same boat but lost my patience and bought the droid bionic on Friday of last week. I am loving this phone and while the prime and razor will have better specs, this phone is lightning fast and I am very satisfied with it. Especially since it came with such a great bundle from costco.
 
@Jboku. I am hoping on the rare chance that the wireless advocates at costco will let me exchange the bionic. Not that im not totally happy with the Bionic from my OG Droid. Just want to be on the uo and up for a phone that will last another 2 years. I am alittle jaded at this Bionic since it fell out of my pocket 11 inches onto a rubber coated floor and the orientation sensor broke!
 
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