• After 15+ years, we've made a big change: Android Forums is now Early Bird Club. Learn more here.

Ready to Upgrade - 2 year contract, edge or buy outright?

CharlieD

CharlieD

Well-Known Member
Now that Verizon has the Nexus 6, I might consider upgrading. My wife and I are currently on a family plan - 700 minutes, pay for text. She has 2 GB and I still have unlimited. She rarely if ever uses more than 1 GB (often a lot less than 1 GB) and I use between 1 and 2 GB, sometimes less than 1. We never go over the minutes but we are texting more and more. I have a RAZR MAXX and she has an iPhone 4S. As I said, I'd prefer the Nexus 6 (already have a Nexus 7 (2013) tablet and love it and use it rather than the phone for Internet access whenever I can) and she'd probably go for the iPhone 6.

We're not early upgaders and don't always need the latest and greatest. The big question is what do we do. Do we get discounted phones with a 2 year contract and pay for the phones forever? De we go on the edge plan and pay for the phone over 24 months and probably not upgrade until sometime well after that? Do we buy the phones outright (somewhere around $1300) and go off contract? I am willing to give up the unlimited data since I don't use it and go with the unlimited talk and text plus whatever data seemed ok for us. We might be able to get by with 2 GB, certainty no more than 3.

I'm not up on all the pros and cons of the various options. My googling so far has brought me to Verizon pages and I'd prefer not to take their word for anything. So, I'd appreciate any pointers or things I need to consider and think about from others. meanwhile, I'll keep googling.

Thanks for any insight.

Charlie
 
Last edited:
You said you don't need the latest, greatest phones so you won't have to pay $600+ if you don't want to. Check swappa.com, they have some great deals. You can also find good prices for new phones on ebay. I'm a little skeptical of used on ebay, but love swappa. If you go with something not 'hot off the press' it will be much less, new or used. And, just because I love mine, you can get a brand new '13 Moto X Developer Edition for $229.99 on ebay. I got one from that dealer for one of my lines a bit ago, great deal for a new older super phone :p

Don't sign a contract, ever. If you feel the need to stay with Verizon (I have to, traveling kid and best service at my house) you can save $15 a month per line by using your own phones off contract. So, a 3 GB share plan for both of you would be $100/month before taxes/fees ($50 plan + 50 for 2 lines). If you get a discount through your work it's still good. Verizon pre-pay plans won't save you much at all, they are not a good deal. However, Straight Talk is better when you compare data amounts, $45 for 3GB per line. Even Verizon MVNO's are pricey.

If you can use AT&T then look at Cricket. 2.5GB on 2 lines would be no more than $70, no taxes/fees (either 2 lines auto pay or the group plan thingy).

Yeah. No matter what you do, don't sign a contract. See what service you need for your area and see what MVNO you can use. If you want to stick to a 'real' carrier, don't sign a contract or use Edge/whatever they offer. Up front phone costs suck, but not as bad as being stuck somewhere for more $ over the course of 2 years.
 
Thanks for the advice so for. I appreciate it. I have a followup question.

Just to see, I went shopping on the Verizon web site. I chose a Nexus 6 and an iPhone6 and 3 GB of data. At one point I had the choice of discounted phones with 2 yr contract, the edge plan or paying full price. In the first try I chose the discounted phones. The end result was a monthly charge of $130 ($40 for each phone + $50 for the data). I then went pack and chose full price for each phone. The end result of that was a monthly charge of $130. Same as with the discounted phones.

I thought you got a break on the monthly charge if you payed full price. Is that not true? I know so far I've been advised to never sign a contract. However, if the monthly charge is the same either way, it's cheaper to go with the discounted phones. I must be missing something here.

Charlie
 
The price will be less with Edge (the cost of the phone gets added back in of course) or buying in full. It may not be showing on the order screens, but it will reduce. Now that I think about it, it may not be automatic either. I had to call CS when they first started it with off-contract lines. When my sister's three phones recently went off contract I had to go in to her account for her and click around until I got a pop-up saying there were discounts available, did I want them! Must be their greedy, clever way to keep more money.

At any rate, the answer is yes, the lines will be discounted. You may have to call to get it, but you do get it.

OH and and...save yourself the activation/upgrade fees by making any changes online. It's really easy to change/activate on their site. I think fees are waived on Edge (triple check that) but not if you go in w/a phone and get it activated or renew/upgrade. I just hate paying them anything extra. They'll send you a free SIM if you get a phone outside of Verizon and need one, just call and ask.
 
I have been a Verizon user for 20 years now.
I have found that when going online, depending on the status of your browser cache, that you will get different offers from Verizon.

ie, 1st time I check and there are $99 phones available for me... well, I want to look around a bit and compare different things. Then I go back and that offer is suddenly gone, can't find it again anywhere.

I usually call Customer Service and keep leaning on them until I finally get the best deal. I quite often get a $30 Customer Appreciation bonus applied to my account to offset their "Upgrade Fees".

Those "Upgrade Fees" are a bit of crap IMO, it does not cost them to change your IMEI number to a different phone. You can do it online yourself sometimes. (I say sometimes because some phones just refuse to work via the online method)

I have phones on contract, and off contract. I do both to keep my cash outlay at the cheapest possible point. I never, ever, go for the prepay plans. they will cost you more money in the end.
____________________________________
2 ea. Verizon Galaxy S5, 4.4.4 forever!, ART
MyPhoneExplorer lets you access a broken phone while locked
Nova Prime, Textra, Blue Mail, Qi wireless equipped
MacroDroid can help extend battery life
MacroDroid senses Screen off, turns Wifi & Data OFF
MacroDroid senses Screen UnLock, turns Data ON
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom