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Where to buy Evo.. Dilemma!?!!

jabbahoo

Lurker
May 14, 2010
8
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KCMO
First let me say..Great site! I have been a long time reader on here and first time poster. I am a current Sprint Premier custom with full upgrade.

Here is my Dilemma:

(A) Do I buy the phone from sprint? Best Buy? or The Shack? My current contract is full of credits from my company. Do I go to the Sprint store because they know me and are good at hooking my phone up with all the credits... But I'll have to fork out another 100 and wait till (forever) to get my rebate.

(B) Go to Best Buy or The Shack and pre-order, set up an appointment, don't have to fork over the extra 100 bucks because of their instant rebate and hope the clowns get my contract straight? What would you do???
 
I would go to Sprint and be sure everything is correct on my first trip. Granted, now I have to part with the $100 for about 6 weeks but to me it's only $100 and it's only 6 weeks. My reason is I'm a little older and my free time is worth a little more to me. If I have to make a second trip to Sprint to straighten things out, that's 1+ hours I'll never get back. I'd rather spend that time with my wife doing "whatever". Now if I was younger, (like I assume many on this forum are) then the $100 might be more important than the 1+ hour of your time.

I guess bottom line, everyones situation is different, so there is no one answer that "fits everybody".

Good luck with whatever way you decide to go.
 
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If you are planning on buying an Evo as an existing customer, not eligible for an upgrade(like myself), then I think your best bet is buying from one of the smaller Sprint authorized dealers as opposed to a main Sprint retail store. Where I live there is a big Sprint retailer with a Sprint authorized dealer literally two storefronts away. The official Sprint store told me $449.99 straight up, but the authorized dealer told me he would cut me a break and give it to me at $20.00 over cost + buy my Hero from me for $63.00(which you can do at any Sprint store I believe). He said he would also get me an additional discount on my monthly bill.
Point being, the smaller authorized dealers need the business and will go to greater lengths to make the sale. The larger stores and places like Radio Shack generally have their hands tied and can't really give you a break. I would go to a smaller Sprint store and ask them what they can do before committing to anything, it's worth the try and you might save $50-$100 depending on your situation.
 
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Well I am signing up 5 new people on a family plan, I kind of want to get the $36 activation fee waved on all the phones as that would be a lot better than a $20 EVO accessory credit. I heard they often do that at Sprint but they can't do it at Best Buy, Radio Shack or Walmart. That might make doing the mail in rebates worth it.
 
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On my way this morning to Best Buy to pre order the Evo..not a current Sprint customer...will the people at the phone department sign me up for Sprint service right there?...I'm not sure how this all works and I dont want any screwups..or at least as few as possible.

I would like to buy the phone outright, no 2 year plan, then get a month to month deal but it seems that with this phone, Sprint wants to lock you in for 2 years,
 
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Go to a Sprint Store. I'm getting my activation fees waived and my girlfriend gets an 18% discount through Arbys. After two years I'll save over $300 dollars.

If your a student you can get 15% and if you are apart of a credit union.

yea, too bad its only off the bill and not the phones. i just rather save money instantly. i always forget to do the rebates. plus i have insurance anyways, so if anything ever happens i can just et it replaced through sprint. i see it as win win.
 
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Think I'll go to both...Sprint first..and then Best Buy if Sprint wont/cant take a pre order from me...my experience has been you cant always count on all outlets, even corporate ones, to be consistent in policies.

I've been oscillating back and forth like this since the release and preorder info came out. No matter where I get it I'll be dealing with Sprint in the end..and lucky the cost is not a factor...I can wait for rebates too.

I JUST MUST HAVE IT!!! hahahah

Thanx
 
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yea, too bad its only off the bill and not the phones. i just rather save money instantly. i always forget to do the rebates. plus i have insurance anyways, so if anything ever happens i can just et it replaced through sprint. i see it as win win.

But you'll get that rebate money eventually and save quite a bit in the long run. Lets say you got it at the Sprint Store saved 15% off every bill and lets say the Evo 2 came out before your 2 year contract was up. With that money you saved you could buy out of your contract and still have some money over to help pay for the Evo 2 :D
 
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Just got back from my little Evo pre order trip...went to Sprint on PCH in Torrance, no preorder or reserving a phone for release day...first come first serve... nice staff nonetheless, best news out of that was a 20% discount on the plan getting it to 63$ a month...continued on down the road to Best Buy, also on PCH...completed the preorder in 3 minutes...phone guaranteed on June 4...several people asking the staff if they had an Evo to look over...folder containg Evo preorders looked to be about 15 or 20 orders...I dont see an appointment time on my receipt...pretty sure you just get there and line up.
 
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Yea. I'm debating between RS and BB. I'm in NYC. RS concerns me because there are tons of them on every corner in the city. I worry each one might only get 5 or less and then I might not get the phone right away.

well i spoke to reps from both BB and RS and they pretty much had the same answer.. depending on how many evo get pre-ordered is how many they get plus maybe a few more for release day. hope this helps.
 
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Best Buy is about volume, volume volume...so I went with them even though they're 8 miles away, while we have 2 Shacks in my little town, both less than 2 miles from me.
I just see BB as having a track record that hasnt failed me yet...not shilling for them either. It's really hard to determine just how in demand the Evo will be with so many devices out there so I just played it safe...I bet when the numbers come up in the future, BB will account for more Evos than anyone. I'm not worried they will run out or sell mine...the Shack said they would hold it for a couple days...then...what? I didnt want to find out what.
 
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well i spoke to reps from both BB and RS and they pretty much had the same answer.. depending on how many evo get pre-ordered is how many they get plus maybe a few more for release day. hope this helps.

true. My situation is slightly complicated since I'll be gone that weekend until Sunday afternoon, so I need place to hold one. I'll prob go with best buy just because even if they run out, they'll probably restock quicker
 
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Best Buy is about volume, volume volume...so I went with them even though they're 8 miles away, while we have 2 Shacks in my little town, both less than 2 miles from me.
I just see BB as having a track record that hasnt failed me yet...not shilling for them either. It's really hard to determine just how in demand the Evo will be with so many devices out there so I just played it safe...I bet when the numbers come up in the future, BB will account for more Evos than anyone. I'm not worried they will run out or sell mine...the Shack said they would hold it for a couple days...then...what? I didnt want to find out what.

RS will be getting all the pre-orders fulfilled.
 
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The Shacks here are my last resort backup desperation plan...if anything goes wrong at BB, I know the people who work at both Shacks here...everyone here knows someone who knows of someone you know...I can make a call from BB and be back in 10 minutes.

This is a fairly high end device and I dont see the general public here going all out like the people on this board and in the know. Odd how Sprint itself cant or wont do what BB and RS are doing as far as preorders for new customers like me.
 
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