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Help Virgin Mobiles Service?

OK cool. Thanks for the advice. You brought up another interesting point. When I was with T-Mobile my phone was under warranty for 1 year, if anything was wrong, I could send it in and get a new one/or they would fix the problem. Does that also apply to the Optimus V? Meaning many stores have like a 30-90 day return policy. If it starts acting goofy after that can I send it in to VM and have them fix it. I guess like a manufactures warranty kind of thing?
 
Yes, you can send it in. However, be prepared to get a refurbished phone as a replacement. You can, if you make enough of a fuss and don't alienate the customer service rep on the phone, get a new phone as a replacement. Just remember that the 1 year warranty only covers the original buyer of the phone.. so a used phone is not going to have that warranty.
 
Apples to Apples comparison would really be two Android phone plans on T Mobile vs on Virgin Mobile. And I know the data plans those phones require add up to more than $50 a month per line.

T-Mobile family plans
 
dickalan said:
That's strange they send re-furbished phones.
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Most companies that do warranties send a refurbished phone. As I've said in other threads, most refurbished items have a more strict QC process than a new item. I have 2 refurbished Kodak cameras, a refurbished TiVo (still running flawlessly since 2005), a refurbished TomTom GPSr and a refurbished laptop (from 2006, hard drive is dying, but that was a new part).
 
I've seen a lot of negative things said about Virgin Mobile but I think it's mostly because people don't really understand their phone. I've had my Optimus for over two months and I love it. We've had Virgin Mobile for 7-8 years and have found it perfect for us since we aren't big talkers.

I often hear people complaining about their cell bills and I tell everyone about VM. Yes, the phone sells for $150, which sounds like a lot when you can get smart phones for free, but if you figure that my service is only $25 a month (I was grandfathered in when the new rates took effect because I'd been on that plan over a year) and I've had very few issues, it's a bargain.

Why isn't everyone on VM? I have no idea.
 
NoNameFace said:
Some. Not all.
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It is most common in the technology industry. Refurbs are actually more likely to work as they are put through some pretty good testing to make sure that they are up to they're standards.

Think about it. Do you know of a major cell phone company that does not offer a 30 day no questions ask return policy? Companies like AT&T, Alltel, Verizon, Sprint and others all offer this type of policy and need to do something with the cell phones they receive back from customers during this time period and legally they are not able to sell these phones as new, so they sell them as a refurbished cell phone.
Also, do you have insurance on your phone? If you ever had that Blackberry or Iphone replaced through an insurance program with your cell phone company, the insurance provider needs to do something with the phone. They do not just throw it away. In fact, if you received a replacement phone from your cell phone carrier, I can almost guarantee you that it is a refurbished cell phone.
Each year worldwide, upwards of one hundred millions phones are tossed away into landfills! If it was not for people buying used and refurbished cell phones this number would probably be astronomically higher.
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From here
 
AndyOpie150 said:
300 minutes is on average only 10 minutes a day.If you use it more than that the 1200 minute plan is 40 minutes a day. I think the "V" is a Great phone,but it does have it's limitations. You can't download Adobe flash player as it doesn't support flash content. You can download Skyfire web browser,which will convert it before it gets to your end. If you want to watch Video,it must all ready be converted by the provider,ie:TV.com,Netflix.The other noticeable limitation is the amount of application space. If you like to have a lot of apps but are not willing to ROOT your phone or change the stock ROM to one that will allow for significantly greater app space then this is not the best choice.The other problem would be the time off charge length. This can be fixed without modding with good WiFi and Data management,and fixing the 50% Time Without Signal bug(which you have to do at every power on of the phone)that takes about 30sec of your time.This is also fixed with a custom ROM. I like the "V",but that's because I did not have a problem with changing the ROM to one that was vastly improved over the stock ROM. That and I don't need to watch video that much on it so Skyfire works for me.
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what great information... Would it be possible to have you take me step by step through the processes of changing the rom & rooting my lg optimus v? I did web design about 8 years ago and had to give it & the internet completely up, Dr.'s orders, due to nerve damage in my arms & hands. About a year & half ago i couldn't stand it anymore and am totally overwhelmed by the advances in technology.
 
I don't understand how people survive on the 300 min plan for $35 ?!?! Do you seriously not talk on the phone--like at all? 300 mins I'm thinking would barely let me scrape by--"hey meet me here, ok gotta go bye!". Unless you still live at home, how do you keep any kind of relationship alive, whether family, friend, or intimate on only 300 minutes?

If you communicate to loved ones via facebook and texts only, I feel sorry for you. This generation's communication skills must suck! This will not benefit you. And that's the end of my rant.
 
koopakid08 said:
It is most common in the technology industry. Refurbs are actually more likely to work as they are put through some pretty good testing to make sure that they are up to they're standards.


http://www.thebluedot.net/why-buy-a-used-or-refurbished-cell-phone.html
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My x husband is an electronic technician, and has worked in the business for more than 40 years (his dad owned a shop, so he grew up in the business). Also working for many of the larger companies (Sony, Mitsubishi, Panasonic just to name a few). Sending refurbs is not the practice of all companies. I can assure you.
 
smankins said:
I have only seen it regarding cell phones. Who else does this so I can avoid that? Thanks.
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There is no need to avoid it. Refurbs are not a bad thing.

My x husband is an electronic technician, and has worked in the business for more than 40 years (his dad owned a shop, so he grew up in the business). Also working for many of the larger companies (Sony, Mitsubishi, Panasonic just to name a few). Sending refurbs is not the practice of all companies. I can assure you.
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I did not say all, I said most.
 
dickalan said:
I don't understand how people survive on the 300 min plan for $35 ?!?! Do you seriously not talk on the phone--like at all? 300 mins I'm thinking would barely let me scrape by--"hey meet me here, ok gotta go bye!". Unless you still live at home, how do you keep any kind of relationship alive, whether family, friend, or intimate on only 300 minutes?

If you communicate to loved ones via facebook and texts only, I feel sorry for you. This generation's communication skills must suck! This will not benefit you. And that's the end of my rant.
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I have a landline at home with unlimited free long distance. It's free with my broadband internet service so why not?

And i have Groove IP so if I want unlimited free minutes i can have them. But I really don't use it much, I got it for when I'm out of the country.

I've never used 300 minutes, usually not even 200.

Truth is, I really dislike talking on the phone. But that doesn't mean I FB or text, though I do those things too. I also see people IN PERSON :)
 
lizm said:
I have a landline at home with unlimited free long distance. It's free with my broadband internet service so why not?

I've never used 300 minutes, usually not even 200.
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Same for me.

I don't think I've ever came close to even using 30 minutes of my VM talk time hehe.
 
dickalan said:
I don't understand how people survive on the 300 min plan for $35 ?!?! Do you seriously not talk on the phone--like at all? 300 mins I'm thinking would barely let me scrape by--"hey meet me here, ok gotta go bye!". Unless you still live at home, how do you keep any kind of relationship alive, whether family, friend, or intimate on only 300 minutes?

If you communicate to loved ones via facebook and texts only, I feel sorry for you. This generation's communication skills must suck! This will not benefit you. And that's the end of my rant.
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Heh--until I got us these new-fangled Optimi, my husband and I used an average of 20 minutes a month *between us*. We shared 300 minutes with our other carrier for years and years and never once went over.

We communicate fine. But face-to-face is our preferred method. Neither of us talks on the phone much at all.

And I was an Eisenhower baby:p
 
lizm said:
I have a landline at home with unlimited free long distance. It's free with my broadband internet service so why not?

And i have Groove IP so if I want unlimited free minutes i can have them. But I really don't use it much, I got it for when I'm out of the country.

I've never used 300 minutes, usually not even 200.

Truth is, I really dislike talking on the phone. But that doesn't mean I FB or text, though I do those things too. I also see people IN PERSON :)
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So does that app work pretty well? As in, could it completely replace my regular 1200 minutes a month calling? Like, it might be novel and a "cool" app for about a 100 minutes of use, but is it practical and are there annoyances that the app might have to draw me back to using my regular minutes? If all is good, then obviously I would jump on the 300 minute plan.

--again, I don't even have the optimus or VM yet. That's why I'm asking these questions. I'll be getting it next month when my contract is officially over with Tmobile--

...this could potentially be the biggest pay-off of consumer research I've come across, I would be saving $628 every two years + have a data service I never had before :)
 
Hope it's not too late, but you might want to consider buying the phone at Best Buy and activating it there. I switched to VM this past Sunday 7/31 and was disappointed that I missed out on the old $25/$40 rates, however the guy at Best Buy said that he might still be able to grandfather me in through Best Buy's activation system, and he was able to luckily.

I was glad I did that because I almost always buy electronics through Amazon or at Costco. I almost pulled the trigger on the phone on Amazon because of no sales tax, but by getting the grandfathered rate through BB I'm paying a lot less in the long run. And actually the phone was $155 on Amazon when I was going to buy it, while it was $149.99 at BB (albeit with tax added on). So it wasn't that big of a difference.

Hope that helps!
 
KOAM said:
Hope it's not too late, but you might want to consider buying the phone at Best Buy and activating it there. I switched to VM this past Sunday 7/31 and was disappointed that I missed out on the old $25/$40 rates, however the guy at Best Buy said that he might still be able to grandfather me in through Best Buy's activation system, and he was able to luckily.

I was glad I did that because I almost always buy electronics through Amazon or at Costco. I almost pulled the trigger on the phone on Amazon because of no sales tax, but by getting the grandfathered rate through BB I'm paying a lot less in the long run. And actually the phone was $155 on Amazon when I was going to buy it, while it was $149.99 at BB (albeit with tax added on). So it wasn't that big of a difference.

Hope that helps!
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Wow! That's actually really good info! Thank you so much! Did the guy do anything "special" to figure that out or is BestBuy's system just not updated yet? - As in, do you know how he did that? Cause my brother actually works for bestbuy and I'm going to ask him if he knows anything about it...

The main Amazon merchant who is selling them just lowered the price to $120 + 5 shipping, today. http://www.amazon.com/LG-Optimus-Pr...8N78/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1312436817&sr=8-1

But of course like you said, if I can get grandfathered on the old plan I'd be saving way more money with BestBuy
 
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