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Too frustrated to go into the whole story, but can I get some plan comparisons for your cellphone providers? I am looking to move 3 lines. With Sprint I am currently paying $185.36/ unlimited everything. We don't need unlimited, they (shockingly) do not have a better plan and will not work with me. And the reps I spoke with tonight were horrible, especially the escalation rep!! I am so frustrated I can just chuck the cellphones altogether.

And might I add Sprint coverage in Ohio's capital city is God awful. I defended them for years and they throw me to the wayside like yesterday's trash.

Story of crappy customer service (and I always try to give CSRs the benefit of the doubt):

To make a long story short I called the other day to see if they could do anything with my current plan. He told me about the family share, said it would drop my plan by $34 a month. I agreed to it, said sign me up. What he did NOT tell me: no discount on the upgrades. If we upgraded our phones we would either have to pay outright at manufacturer's price or be charged $30 a month, which would offset any savings. I only found out because I called tonight to get an idea of what my bill would be.

Oh, and he didn't change my plan as he said he would. He only left notes in my account. And he was suppose to read me some disclosure/script (obviously not done).

So I get transferred. Explained the story again. Girl apologized, said she would look at my plan and see what she could do for me. She said "I am going to place you on a brief hold and review your account" she even came back once and said: "I am still here, just want to let you know we are looking at your account to see what we can do for you."

Then suddenly a third person comes on the line and says: "I hear you have some questions about our plans?"

Noooo.... I was waiting on this girl who said she would see what they could do for me. He basically told me nothing. He was rude and condescending. He said Sprint was the best provider out there and we would not get a better deal. I am livid. I tried to cancel right then but need to port the numbers.

So frustrated!!!

I have nothing. Just want to tell you that Verizon is the same. Although coverage is great, never have a problem with that. CS no longer is interested in keeping your business.

I've actually had really good experiences with AT&T. I've been a cell phone customer for 18 years with no complaints (from southwestern bell mobile systems through Cingular to AT&T)

I have Verizon for 2 lines @ about $150 a month. That includes unlimited data and text. It was a lot cheaper before I got DD a smart phone, but I had to upgrade for that. I have not had issues with their service (either customer service or coverage). But I do think it is expensive.

Before that I had ATT. I hate ATT for a variety of reasons, not just their cell phones. At one point I had them for basic land line, DSL, long distance, and cell phone. Their customer service SUCKED all around. Every single time I had a problem I was transferred from here to there and no one seemed to be able to resolve my issue without charging me a fee. Plus I only had cell phone service if I was on the upper floor of my house. I slowly transitioned and now I have NO service with ATT. But that was a few years ago, so they may be better now.

You need to shop around. Right now the cell providers are really competitive. I have heard that T Mobile has some good deals right now and some of the smaller companies also have good deals. The only worry I would have with switching is coverage -- If I cannot get calls at my house then my cell phone is worthless!

Good luck

If you don't find a plan you like, I suggest calling Sprint and ask for their Customer Retention Department.

They're only job is to find ways to keep you from switching to someone else.

I called to cancel my account a year or so ago and got switched to this department. I ended up saving about $50/mo on my bill.

My husband and I use Republic Wireless for about $25 a month per person. We've been very happy with the service. You might also want to look at Ting and Freedom Pop. Good luck!

There's a secret to dealing with Sprint, and it works well when you have multiple lines.

But you have to be prepared to follow through on your threat.

Call Sprint, and say "I've been a customer for X years, and I want to drop my account and all my lines."

The normal rep is evaluated based on call volume, time spent on the phone with cusomers (longer calls, lower rating), and upsells.

If you mention cancelling upfront, you get transferred to a cancellation rep. He is rated based on customer retention, and they have a bit more latitude in the deals they can cut. And they're properly motivated to keep you in their system instead of just getting you off the phone.

But I'd never call like that if I wasn't prepared to follow through. I don't deliver idle threats.

From the stories I've heard, there's no such thing as a good cell phone provider. Just "least bad". So far, Sprint has been just good enough for me not to leave them. Not good enough for me to recommend them.

it works well when you have multiple lines

That sounds about right. I have 4 lines and was ready to cancel all four on the spot.

Check out Ting - www.ting.com. If you feed their comparison tool your numbers for call minutes, texts, and data, they'll tell you if they'll save you money.

They use the Sprint network for data (no Sprint, no data - but you can use Wi-Fi). Sprint for voice, but you roam at no charge on Verizon's network for voice.

They don't add any fees except the mandatory ones. Last month was our first on Ting. Our bill was under $40 - for 2 phones. But we text very infrequently, and we don't do much data.

You can probably use your current phones on Ting.

If you sign up, I suggest you go through wifehad5 or me or another Ting user, because both you and the person who refers you will get a $25 credit if you use the referrer's code. (WH5 introduced me to Ting, so I think he should get the credit.)

WRT service, Ting depends on Sprint, but if you call Ting for support, you'll talk to a live, knowledgeable person.

Ama converted me to Virgin and I couldn't be happier. I'm converting people too now

$35/month unlimited text and data and 300 talk. Initially I was nervous about the talk portion, but I never even come close to 300 minutes. Also buying a phone outright is really not that big of a deal when you consider the savings.

Are you still under contract? If so I think T-Mobile is running a promotion that they will buy out your contract if you switch so that might be another option.

I used to have Sprint back when they offered no contracts. They gave me a hard time about changing my account/bill to my married name. The manager actually yelled at me.

I've had AT&T ever since and have been happy with them. I get coverage everywhere. It is a little spotty in the condo but that's it.

I went from Sprint to Virgin. Great price, great customer service. I've never had a problem.

I went from AT &T to Sprint many years ago, partially due to AT&T sucktomer service, and coverage issues.

I have been content with Sprint, and was getting discounts for being employed with X company, and so forth, but I have been leary about switching because I live in the wilderness and fear that I won't have the coverage I need. We have unlimited data, and honestly with 2 teens we need it.

Thank you, everyone, for your opinions! Ting, Republic, and Virgin definitely sound like contenders and I think I am just going to have to go into the store for AT&T and Tmobile. My major hesitation with Tmobile is the idea of being on a financing plan or paying manufacturer's price for my phone (both of which I have never done). The thing is, we don't even upgrade our phones very often. I have been with Sprint for six years and we upgraded ONCE and that was to switch to smart phones, so I wonder if it would be worth it to just buy the phones... but the prices of some of these smart phones is enough to make me hyperventilate.

Two of the lines contract is up in June, the third in October. If I break the contract now it would be $100 a piece for the two in June and $350 for October phone. My husband wants us to wait until at least June. If push comes to shove we can pay the cancellation now, but frankly I don't want to. I hate to sound crude, but they have me over a barrel pulling my hair with this damn contract.

I recently watched a parody of the pizza delivery man "porno" in context with Time Warner. It ended with the woman in ecstasy and the pizza delivery man proudly saying: "Thank you for getting fucked by Time Warner." That is how I feel about Sprint right now!

From the stories I've heard, there's no such thing as a good cell phone provider. Just "least bad".

OMG!! That is one of the things we talked about! The escalation guy said: "We're a good cell phone company.." And I said "Good?? Have you looked at Sprint's facebook page recently?? None of you are good, it's just which one is the least evil!"

Dealing with cellphones has officially become worse than dealing with insurance. Even my credit card company doesn't give me this hassle.

Ama converted me to Virgin and I couldn't be happier.

Me, too! I checked out Virgin because of Ama's recommendation, and it's so much better than AT&T.

Virgin uses the sprint network so if your cell service sucks, you may pay less, but still have crappy service.

I have had Sprint for 18 years and have never had any problems. I have two lines, unlimited everything and even some huge discounts on International calls. Before that I had AT&T and had so many problems that I switched to Sprint. However, I have friends who swear by

AT&T.

[This message edited by Jeaniegirl at 11:12 PM, February 14th (Friday)]

You can probably use your current phones on Ting, but you'd probably have to have them rooted and custom-ROMed to use on Virgin, Boost, or another Sprint MVNO.

Moving a phone from Sprint to Ting is pretty easy, and if you do it during regular office hours, help is available as long as you have a phone that works....

The Ting savings calculator should be able to tell you if it's worth it or not to end the contract early.

I switched from T-Mobile exactly because they gouge customers on their phones, and because they charge for services I don't use. Compared to my old contract, they bumped their prices by 1/3. And industry 'pundits' never seem to mention that.