Also think of it like this. If you are in a sales type job, or something that you distribute a product and make money. Say you are a car salesman, and you work for Honda directly, and someone buys a car from Honda.com and not you, then 6monthes later brings it back for YOU to fix because they blew a transmission, arent you gonan be like what the hell you didnt even buy it from me?? Obviously its a weird scenario but you get what i mean right?
It doesn't matter if you buy the phone from Verizon or an authorized reseller. You will still get the (approximate) same level of customer service post-sale at a corporate Verizon store. Verizon wireless is a multi-billion dollar public company that has millions of customers. When you have a warranty issue and you walk into a store, the rep will look at your account to see if your phone is in warranty or out of warranty. If you buy your phone at a Verizon store, and go back there for a warranty issue 6 months later, what are the chances that you will deal with the same person who sold you the phone? VERY SLIM. Also, Verizon corporate stores have seperate technical support, customer service and sales associates in the store. The person you deal with will most likely have no idea whether you originally bought your phone there or not. Berry2Droid, what you talk about above does make sense in other situations, especially when dealing with smaller companies/less customers. When you buy a Honda, your 3 year/36,000 mile warranty will be honored at any Honda dealership in the United States. Now the dealer you bought your car from might remember you when you bring in your car for service and recognize you as someone who bought your car there. But if you just moved into the city and your car is in warranty they will still take care of you.
That said, OP, you should buy your phone where you will get the best deal. At a VZW corporate store, the Incredible is $199.99 after $100 rebate, and you will probably get a $50 credit for your new every 2, bringing your price to $149.99 + tax (you will pay tax on the full purchase price of $299.99 however). So you will pay about $270 out the door with tax, then get $100 rebate. If you purchase the phone directly from Amazon, you will pay $79.99 + tax with no rebate to deal with. Buying from Amazon will save you about $85 when all is said and done. That $85 would cover an extended battery, case, holster, car charger and then some.
Another deal to look at is the Samsung Fascinate. It is coming out on Monday, and is Buy 1 get 1 free right now. This could be a good deal if you need 2 phones. However I heard the UI isn't very good, and although it has a 1ghz processor, it doesn't feel near as snappy as the Incredible.
Smitty20, no matter who you buy your phone from, all of your post-purchase support will come from a Verizon wireless corporate store or customer support. If you need a warranty replacement, walk into a Verizon corporate store and they will give you a warranty replacement phone. If you need to talk to customer service, you call the same number that a person who purchased their phone from a corporate store would call. The only time you would go back to the authorized reseller after you buy the phone is with any problems within the first 30 days (either to return the phone, or if you have a defective phone in the first 30 days they will swap you out for a brand new full retail package phone)
