What Do You Think About Sprint's "BIG" Industry First Announcement?

[BlackDynamite]

Now that Sprint's 3G smartphones and 4G smartphones incur the same $10/month adder (since 1/30/11), I think most people who are in the market for a Sprint smartphone will be willing to spend a little extra up-front in order to get a more feature-rich, future-proof 4G phone, regardless of whether 4G service is available in their area. The 4G phones available for Sprint are just a better bang for the buck.

Ironically, it isn't any more up front. The 3G only Echo will be the most expensive phone in Sprint's lineup.

 

[MissJennell]

lol the things people say on these forums/blogs

Idiots...No...Again who defines intelligence based on smartphones?

Uniformed...yes

lmao. this is why i love this site!

I never said I was basing intelligence on a smartphone. Being an informed consumer is what I said. If one is an uniformed consumer on something that most will use for their whole contract (so 2 years) is an idiot.

Some of us would rather worry about making money or spending time with family than scrutinizing every single purchase we make. If you've ever bought food from a fast food restaurant, your just as guilty as the rest of us.

I never said to analyze every purchase we make. Most consumers will use their phone for the full contract. That is a decent amount of time. A person should be informed on such a purchase. And what I buy from a fast food resturant I actually do know what I am buying. I am a health nut. I also worry about making good money and spending time with my family. I actually picked my job because of pay and the fact that I could take my kids to school everyday and pick them up everyday and also be home to make them dinner every night.

Did you just tell me you'd take a Geo over a Lamborghini for the same price? In the same post where you say you know about cars and are predicting what consumers will buy? lol, wow. Look, add up all of Sprint's customers that don't ever travel to a 4G area. Now add up all of Sprint's customers that do travel to a 4G area at least every once in a while. Care to make a bet which number will be significantly higher? In case you haven't noticed, Sprint has over 120 million people covered with 4G now (almost half the population of the USA) in over 70 markets. It may not be in your area, but don't think for a second that everyone is in that same situation. And, again, just because there is no 4G there today, doesn't mean there won't be for the length of a 2 year contract. People do care about 4G. and the number of people who care about it grows every day.

Those same people who fall for gimmicks will immediately notice that it doesn't have a front camera or 4G. Also, in your other post you said 4G is not a big deal... If that were true, you wouldn't see AT&T advertising about the simultaneous voice and data on their iPhone (Sprint 4G does simultaneous voice and data). People absolutely care about that. Especially if they are doing something that requires fast 4G data (tethering, etc). So in addition to the video chat, higher quality videos, faster data speeds, and so on, it also does simultaneous voice and data. May not be important to you, but it certainly is to a lot of people- especially people that would get sucked in by a gimmick.

I do know cars and I did tell you I would take the Geo. For one the Geo is much cheaper and easier to fix. It is also better on gas. The cost to maintain a car and the cost to drive that car are very important to informed consumers. This is why I would take the Geo over the Lamborghini. And I travel to 4g areas pretty regularly (well 2 anyways) but it's still not worth picking a phone with 4g just because I travel sometimes. I would much rather pick a phone based on things that I actually use on a regular basis. And trust me 4g will not be where I live for more than 5 years. We didn't have 3g until recently.

 

[IOWA]

I never said I was basing intelligence on a smartphone. Being an informed consumer is what I said. If one is an uniformed consumer on something that most will use for their whole contract (so 2 years) is an idiot.



I never said to analyze every purchase we make. Most consumers will use their phone for the full contract. That is a decent amount of time. A person should be informed on such a purchase. And what I buy from a fast food resturant I actually do know what I am buying. I am a health nut. I also worry about making good money and spending time with my family. I actually picked my job because of pay and the fact that I could take my kids to school everyday and pick them up everyday and also be home to make them dinner every night.



I do know cars and I did tell you I would take the Geo. For one the Geo is much cheaper and easier to fix. It is also better on gas. The cost to maintain a car and the cost to drive that car are very important to informed consumers. This is why I would take the Geo over the Lamborghini. And I travel to 4g areas pretty regularly (well 2 anyways) but it's still not worth picking a phone with 4g just because I travel sometimes. I would much rather pick a phone based on things that I actually use on a regular basis. And trust me 4g will not be where I live for more than 5 years. We didn't have 3g until recently.

Most people will use their car for the entire term of the contract. Doesn't mean they need to know how many hp and ftlbs of torque the engine kicks out.

 

[BlackDynamite]

I do know cars and I did tell you I would take the Geo. For one the Geo is much cheaper and easier to fix. It is also better on gas. The cost to maintain a car and the cost to drive that car are very important to informed consumers. This is why I would take the Geo over the Lamborghini. And I travel to 4g areas pretty regularly (well 2 anyways) but it's still not worth picking a phone with 4g just because I travel sometimes. I would much rather pick a phone based on things that I actually use on a regular basis. And trust me 4g will not be where I live for more than 5 years. We didn't have 3g until recently.

You're throwing a bunch of conditions (if this, if that) that contradict the original analogy.

The Echo requires the same exact plan as the Evo/Epic/Shift. It isn't any cheaper on gas/maintenance/whatever. It is either more expensive, or the same price. It is not cheaper than any of them, in any way.

So, again, when Joe Shmoe comes in off the street and looks at the most expensive phone that requires the most expensive plan, and he sees the phone right next to it has a big ole 4G printed on it, and a front facing camera for that video chat he has seen all the commercials about, that WILL be an issue.

I'm sorry, but if you would choose a Geo over a Lamborghini even though they were the same price, then the entire store would be laughing at you and you would probably be the only person they ever see who picked the Geo. Don't think for a second most, or even a lot of people would make that choice just because you would.

 

[carmendiva]

Also, in your other post you said 4G is not a big deal... If that were true, you wouldn't see AT&T advertising about the simultaneous voice and data on their iPhone (Sprint 4G does simultaneous voice and data). People absolutely care about that. Especially if they are doing something that requires fast 4G data (tethering, etc). So in addition to the video chat, higher quality videos, faster data speeds, and so on, it also does simultaneous voice and data. May not be important to you, but it certainly is to a lot of people- especially people that would get sucked in by a gimmick.

But i do not think they are marketing 4g to mainstream consumers...I think they are marketing it to power users like Iowa, like you and the majority of the ppl on this site. So no i do not think 4g is that important...yet

Phones like the Atrix....They are not marketing that towards everyday consumers....

The iphone example doesnt apply here as i was talking about 4g devices...of course they are going to do whatever they can to prove that their network is better with iphones than verizon with iphones...Iphone is their most popular cellphone and a phone that both power users and newbs gravitate towards the most...it is a totally different marketing scheme

 

[BlackDynamite]

But i do not think they are marketing 4g to mainstream consumers...I think they are marketing it to power users like Iowa, like you and the majority of the ppl on this site. So no i do not think 4g is that important...yet

Phones like the Atrix....They are not marketing that towards everyday consumers....

The iphone example doesnt apply here as i was talking about 4g devices...of course they are going to do whatever they can to prove that their network is better with iphones than verizon with iphones...Iphone is their most popular cellphone and a phone that both power users and newbs gravitate towards the most...it is a totally different marketing scheme

Just about every T-Mobile commercial I have seen in the last few months says "Video chat without needing WiFi, on the nation's largest 4G network."

I see that like 10 times every day. That is absolutely being marketed at the every day users. The Atrix may or may not be, I don't know because it isn't out yet and I am not seeing 10 commercials every day for it. Once it is out, we'll have a better idea.

The Atrix is only 1 phone though. AT&T has several all hitting the store shelves in the next month or 2 (and something like 12 before the year is over). So they will have plenty of 4G and video chat commercials in the near future.

Same with Verizon, who will have their first 4G phone soon (and several before the year is over). They will have plenty of 4G and video chat commercials too.

PS- is that picture in your avatar you or just some random pic?

 

[MissJennell]

You're throwing a bunch of conditions (if this, if that) that contradict the original analogy.

The Echo requires the same exact plan as the Evo/Epic/Shift. It isn't any cheaper on gas/maintenance/whatever. It is either more expensive, or the same price. It is not cheaper than any of them, in any way.

So, again, when Joe Shmoe comes in off the street and looks at the most expensive phone that requires the most expensive plan, and he sees the phone right next to it has a big ole 4G printed on it, and a front facing camera for that video chat he has seen all the commercials about, that WILL be an issue.

I'm sorry, but if you would choose a Geo over a Lamborghini even though they were the same price, then the entire store would be laughing at you and you would probably be the only person they ever see who picked the Geo. Don't think for a second most, or even a lot of people would make that choice just because you would.

I think the average consumer who comes in off the streets won't care at all about whats in it. They will care about all the bs that a sales person will tell them. You can get most people to just buy whatever you tell them. If Sprint pushes this phone (which isn't really my cup of tea) like VZW pushed the original droid then the average person will buy it. Most people are generally dumb and believe what they are told by sales people.

And people could laugh me out of the store all they wanted. I would be laughing when their car is parked because they can't pay for insurance, gas or maintnance. I actually think about those things. It is why I drive what I do.

 

[BlackDynamite]

I think the average consumer who comes in off the streets won't care at all about whats in it. They will care about all the bs that a sales person will tell them. You can get most people to just buy whatever you tell them. If Sprint pushes this phone (which isn't really my cup of tea) like VZW pushed the original droid then the average person will buy it. Most people are generally dumb and believe what they are told by sales people.

And people could laugh me out of the store all they wanted. I would be laughing when their car is parked because they can't pay for insurance, gas or maintnance. I actually think about those things. It is why I drive what I do.

1: The people that buy whatever is hyped or shown to them or whatever, will be the same people who have been watching video chat and 4G commercials the last few months. They will be looking for video chat and 4G for sure.

2: The price is the same. Of course we know a Lamborghini costs more in real life. But this Echo (the Geo) is the same price as the Lamborghini (the Evo/Epic/Shift). So no, it would not cost any more. In fact, in some cases the Lamborghini (Shift) is cheaper than the Geo. so while you were laughing at the Lamborghini owners for paying too much, they'd be putting you on youtube for everyone to see that someone actually paid more for a Geo than the Lamborghini sitting right next to it.

 

[dbpaddler]

Can we get off the 4g? It's so not the point. Let's take the Atrix you point out. Where is it's 3g only counterpart? Nowhere. There is no premium non 4g phone, period. So if the consumer can take a look at the Atrix (for a whopping $150 mind you and thank you Shack). Knowing your monthly bill would be the same regardless of your choice, would you rather have the Atrix that can make you a four course dinner, light your cigar and pour you a glass of port; or would you rather have the Sanyo Zio that struggles to make toast? The argument of, well I'm not in a 4g area so... is pointless. I started this tangent discussion mentioning 4g because those are the only phones that have the premium specs, period. Now everyone wants to make it a 4g/non 4g decision and it's not. The 4g phones are the Lambos, and the 3g phones are the Geos. If your monthly upkeep is the same for both, why in God's name would anyone pick the Geo unless they were a product of brother and sister? (disclaimer...physical size of the phone notwithstanding. not everyone wants a 4" slate to carry).

Say you have a choice between the Shift, Epic (after Monday of course) and Transform? Even if you're not in a 4g area, would you pick the Transform? Say there's only a $50 difference at signing? 90% of the people will plunk down for the Shift or Epic if their monthly cost is the same.

How about the Evo vs the Optimus S or Zio? Again, does 4g even matter?

So can we toss the 4g discussion aside already? It's for the most part irrelevant. It's premium/high end vs midgrade/low end when the cost of service is the same. I could see going low end if it would save me money in the long run, not just $50 or so up front. But if not, I might as well go a little luxe and get something a little more fun and useful.

Phones like the Atrix....They are not marketing that towards everyday consumers....

 

[MissJennell]

1: The people that buy whatever is hyped or shown to them or whatever, will be the same people who have been watching video chat and 4G commercials the last few months. They will be looking for video chat and 4G for sure.

2: The price is the same. Of course we know a Lamborghini costs more in real life. But this Echo (the Geo) is the same price as the Lamborghini (the Evo/Epic/Shift). So no, it would not cost any more. In fact, in some cases the Lamborghini (Shift) is cheaper than the Geo. so while you were laughing at the Lamborghini owners for paying too much, they'd be putting you on youtube for everyone to see that someone actually paid more for a Geo than the Lamborghini sitting right next to it.

1: If a sales person tells them they don't need 4g and won't be able to use it where they live or work then they won't care about it.

2: This is the dumbest thing ever. That doesn't even really make sense. The point is that the uniformed consumer will buy this phone because a sales person can sell it to them because of their idiocy. An informed consumer will know what they want before they go in and can't be swayed because of some idiot who never even got a GED telling them bs.

This phone will obviously not sell like the EVO but it won't be as bad as the Kin either. It will sell. There is a crowd for it.

 

[carmendiva]

PS- is that picture in your avatar you or just some random pic?

Random lol but it's mine...I need(and will hopefully) update it this weekend(it's so warm)

dbpaddler, you are speaking for yourself it sound like in the argument below. You wouldn't do that...You wouldn't buy a shift 4g if a epic 4g was the same price but who'd to say a customer might not? And it has nothing to do with being an idiot like MissJennelle(spelling) makes the customer seem like.

Case in point...I originally came to this site using a Droid(OG) back in November 2009. I hated the og droid and it's look...So i got the Droid Eris.
True the price tag was cheaper but even to this day if both were free and my only options for phones I would always choose the Eris.

It's Smaller, It's slower, It's camera last flash and the DVD quality video recording, it will not EVER get anymore updates(that are stable), etc but the phone itself is much more attractive to me then a droid...Even knowing it is lesser in virtually every way to a Droid, I'd still choose the Eris because i dont need the extra "features" of the Droid

Bringing it back around....Shift vs Transform. If they are both the same price
the person might not like the look and feel of a transform, or they might not care about the 4g of the shift or might not need the video chat of the transform...it doesn't make it stupid for them to buy the lesser device...it makes it their decision and their decision alone

Kyocera Echo, Evo, and Epic...I'd choose the Echo.. In this day in the age. it's different and I think with the right Developer it will take off and they will make it better....4g is not a killer feature for me, a keyboard is whatever and the video chat...I have a laptop if i need to video chat. I didnt even use it THAT MUCH when i had an Evo or Mytouch 4g...and even then i could have just used my laptop. Android video chat sucks.

I'm not stupid by any means...i know the echo is a lesser device but i might end up falling for the less is more and go for what I want to try out

 

[carmendiva]

and we are comparing phones to geo and Lambo's now-a days? Lol the elitism and the significance people give these phones is Baffling and amusing.....

 

[dan330]

i cant believe this discussion has gone so long....

 

[dbpaddler]

I didn't compare the shift to the Epic. I compared both of those two to the Transform. Epic/Shift compared to the Transform. Zero reason to buy the Transform, and it has ZERO to do with 4g. Two premium phones, one mediocre phone.

The original Droid and the Eris aren't really a fair comparison either compared to today's premier phones and midgrade models. You're comparing a slate to a slider and both were never really touted as premium and midgrade considering they were the only options at the time. Yes, the Droid had a better processor and a few extra features, but there wasn't really the phone options then like there are now. It was more a personal preference of phone type like choosing between the Epic and Evo.

I'm also the one that started this whole argument. and everyone fixated on the least important aspect of it, 4g. Why, I have no idea. The point was about a premium phone and a midgrade phone. It just so happens that the only premium Android phones on Sprint are 4g. The Echo isn't a premium phone spec wise yet it's priced like a premium phone for the sole reason it has two screens because NOTHING else about it spells premium except for the price. So you and missjennell are assuming that one is buying the premium phone for 4g and not buying the premium phone because of the faster processor, nicer screen, more memory, front facing camera and so on and so on. 4g is but ONE feature in a list of many on a premium phone and one of the many that are lacking on the midgrade phones.

At least you finally brought the argument to where it should be at the end of your post. And regardless of who I call stupid in the midst of trying to make a point, the average person in comparing the shift to the transform will most likely choose the shift if prices are similar. And never did call you stupid, but if you want to make that big stretch from me making a general point, then be my guest. And I did say most people would choose.

And you make an assumption about the Echo...a good developer? Goes back to the argument of buying a phone for what it is or for what is said it will become. We've seen how long it can take to update highly modified versions of android, and htc tends to do it right, or as close as right in comparison to the other mfg's. So I'm not plunking down a premium price on a mediocre phone hoping it will be made great by Kyocera when the following year will bring about a successor that will easily trump it since it won't be much of a stretch to do so.

I have the Shift and the Epic. I could give a rat's patoot about video chat, self pics and the like, but I still would buy the Epic because of the other features. There are features that are needs and ones that are wants. Harping on one feature (video chat) at the exclusion of other features

dbpaddler, you are speaking for yourself it sound like in the argument below. You wouldn't do that...You wouldn't buy a shift 4g if a epic 4g was the same price but who'd to say a customer might not? And it has nothing to do with being an idiot like MissJennelle(spelling) makes the customer seem like.

Case in point...I originally came to this site using a Droid(OG) back in November 2009. I hated the og droid and it's look...So i got the Droid Eris.
True the price tag was cheaper but even to this day if both were free and my only options for phones I would always choose the Eris.

It's Smaller, It's slower, It's camera last flash and the DVD quality video recording, it will not EVER get anymore updates(that are stable), etc but the phone itself is much more attractive to me then a droid...Even knowing it is lesser in virtually every way to a Droid, I'd still choose the Eris because i dont need the extra "features" of the Droid

Bringing it back around....Shift vs Transform. If they are both the same price
the person might not like the look and feel of a transform, or they might not care about the 4g of the shift or might not need the video chat of the transform...it doesn't make it stupid for them to buy the lesser device...it makes it their decision and their decision alone

Kyocera Echo, Evo, and Epic...I'd choose the Echo.. In this day in the age. it's different and I think with the right Developer it will take off and they will make it better....4g is not a killer feature for me, a keyboard is whatever and the video chat...I have a laptop if i need to video chat. I didnt even use it THAT MUCH when i had an Evo or Mytouch 4g...and even then i could have just used my laptop. Android video chat sucks.

I'm not stupid by any means...i know the echo is a lesser device but i might end up falling for the less is more and go for what I want to try out

 

[viber]

i cant believe this discussion has gone so long....

It's bordering on amazing at this point...

I've never seen so many people personally morally offended by a phone they don't intend to buy...

I could probably fry up some Panda steaks made by illegal child labor and people would care less.

 

[MissJennell]

It's bordering on amazing at this point...

I've never seen so many people personally morally offended by a phone they don't intend to buy...

I could probably fry up some Panda steaks made by illegal child labor and people would care less.

This cracked me up!

 

[EarlyMon]

Further responses to IOWA are unnecessary.

When a poster is offensive, use the !Report button to the left of the post in question - do NOT respond to it.

Thank you - that is all.

 

[carmendiva]

But i do agree with Viber's last post lol
This has become quite a spirited debate for a phone that no one in this thread is planning to buy...even me as i try to look at it optimistically!

Also, it looks like kyocera is not the only person who is trying to make a dual screen android phone

Another Dual Screen Android phone pops up … sort of | Android Community

 

[BlackDynamite]

Wow, as I'm typing this, I just saw another T-Mobile 4G commercial. Pretty funny too. Found it on youtube, check this out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W22JccSTDtk

So MissJennell keeps saying there are a bunch of idiots who will walk in off the street, without knowing any better, and agree to a 2 year contract for Sprint's most expensive phone on an "Everything" plan with premium data fee.

I actually agree that there are people who will do this. However, I think those are the same people that will have been watching all those 4G ads. And there will be plenty more of these ads when AT&T and Verizon launch 4G phones (both are due to launch 4G phones before the Echo is released).

So when those customers come in and see the Echo doesn't have 4G, it will probably be a deal breaker.

 

[carmendiva]

yeah the tmo ads are cute but i dont like the model

but i dont think 4g is going to be a deal breaker...especially when people find out they probably dont have 4g and wont have it for quite some time

especially with the issues Sprint is having with 4g now and possibly a move to LTE

 

[BlackDynamite]

Okay, any of you people that said this phone would be hit want to change your stance now? lol

 

[carmendiva]

Um...No

I don't think to many people really care either way

 

[dbpaddler]

This thread still exists?