After my frustrations with the two Instinct phones (documented here and here), I finally switched to two iPhone 3G's. I will be doing more reviews later but here is the bottom line based on my experience (after owning Instinct's for over 2 months and 3G iPhones for about 10 days):
iPhone 3G - Great (some third party apps crash though) but no turn-by-turn navigation or live TV. Free AOL radio and Pandora radio better than Instinct's radio and stitcher is nice for over the air (OTA) news podcasts. GPS with Google maps is ok but not great.
Instinct - OK phone but low on memory and has memory leak issues. Has nice voice-guided turn-by-turn navigation (not reliable on my Instinct, crashes after a while) and live TV (not reliable on my Instinct, crashes after a while).
AT&T 3G network - Not too good but iPhone does have wi-fi if you are near a free hotspot or at home.
Sprint 3G Network - Excellent.
AT&T rates - High
(I am using the free text messaging workaround - Yahoo push email between two iphones, works better than text messaging but will only work with properly setup iPhones and blackberry devices with data plans)
Sprint rates - Best (cheapest!)
After being a loyal Sprint customer for over 8 years, I just canceled my 2 month old renewed Sprint contract and will be paying $200 per line early termination fee. Sprint practically made me leave after the hassle I went through to get the defective Instinct phone replaced (Instinct apps crashing didn't help much either). Halfway through the hassle, I decided it wasn't worth it so I walked into AT&T store and the store manager gladly offered me the iPhones. But I persisted with Sprint before canceling and finally got the defective Instinct phone (was still under 1 year manufacturer's warranty) exchanged for $55+tax. Now I will try to sell them after I receive the $400 early termination bill (for 2 lines) to recover some of these costs.
This blog will stay alive with the coverage of latest toys and I will do more Instinct vs iPhone reviews as I have the privilege of owning 2 Instinct phones (3 if you count the one before the replacement; until I Master Reset and sell them all) and 2 new 3G iPhones!
If you are considering switching to iPhone and are already past the 30-day contract period, my recommendation is to wait until HTC Touch Diamond is released on Sprint and give it a try first (if Sprint will let you exchange it without paying the full existing-customer price). It will be much more comparable to iPhone. I couldn't wait that long because one of my Instinct's wasn't working and wife was without a phone and Sprint was making me go through too many hoops so I ended up getting iPhone half way through the process of getting Instinct replaced. I will still give it to Sprint that they have the best phone replacement policy among all US carriers because if it happened to my iPhone, I will be going to local Apple store to fix it under their 1 year warranty and not AT&T (which I don't like much anyways). If I drop and damage my iPhone, I will be SOL (actually Apple might repair it for an out of warranty fee as long as it is not liquid damage or beyond repair). Or I might go with the Squaretrade iPhone warranty (which one should be able to get on Instinct phone or anything else as well!)
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10 comments:
well, I can't say I blame you. Sprint have really left a bad taste in my mouth over the Instinct. If it wasn't for the fact that it was marketed as an Iphone killer then it wouldn't be so bad.
I can't afford to pay 400 bucks to get my two sprint lines out of contract, so I'll just have to hope that Sprint eventually get their crap together and deliver the phone that we were promised. I have an iPod touch, so at least I get to use that.
I hope you'll keep us updated with any news of the instinct, like you have been. Good luck with the Iphones!
I am hoping that I will be able to sell these Instinct phones for a decent price to get some of that $400 (+ $55 replacement fee) back. And hopefully there will be no other big surprises in the last bill from Sprint. If you have iPod touch, you are in good shape because AT&T's 3G coverage is not as good as Sprint's anyway and you can take iPod Touch to a hotel and use free wi-fi with the better browser.
And yes, this blog still lives :-)
I took your advice and attempted to exchange my Instinct for the HTC Diamond once it was released later in September.
I spent 2 hours on the phone being routed through various departments, then finally after saying the "word" (cancel) they put me through to customer retentions. This is the department that can make things happen. I stated our simple case: The Instinct was advertised as being MIDP 2.0 compliant, and after several committed dates for an OTA update to bring it up to compliance, the announcement that there is no ETA for the update. I need a resolution. They then persisted that they knew nothing of the issue, so I pointed them to the developers forum (devoloper.sprint.com) and showed them that this was a hot topic ready to blow, and to get ready for a revolt. They then questioned where I got the spec that the phone was advertised as MIDP 2.0 compliant. Again, I directed them to the developer site, look for Devices, then Instinct. Right there, MIDP 2.0. They came back and said they understood, but could still do nothing for me since I had not called in a ticket for the issue within my 30-day return window. I stated that I had been monitoring the forums and that SPRINT EMPLOYEES had posted these claims of updates. They requested my username and a link to the posts I made regarding the issue. I told them that it is general forum etiquette not to repost existing issues, but to monitor the thread and only post updates or other insights to the issue. After all this, they finally offered up resolve and asked what they could do. I told them that I was willing to pay the difference between the Diamond for it's released, rebated price and the $130 I have invested in the Instinct. The rep said he could not do this because the phone was not yet released, but perhaps his supervisor could. Unfortunately the supervisor was out of the office (it was a Saturday) and that he would heavily note the account, whatever that means, and gave me the direct line to his supervisor for me to call on Monday. I called Monday and to my surprise, the guy was happy to oblige! He must have read the case, seen that all the evidence and diligence was put forth by an honest customer and that in order to make things right, make the exchange.
It's not like were asking for a handout, here. Simply to have a phone capable of the claims that the Instinct had made: Smart phone (which they have since reclassified as multimedia), MIDP 2.0, Fast web browser (when it doesnt crash), etc.
I'm not saying that we all have a case to get an exchange, but depending on what interaction you have had with Sprint regarding this issue, whether it be online, chatting with support reps or making a call to customer service, there is a good chance they will accept your exchange. Be polite, but firm, and state your case as it has unfolded in your respective experience with the Instinct.
In fact, it was the fact that I owned the Ipod touch in the first place that made me choose the Instinct. I couldn't see the point in owning two almost identical devices. Needless to say, I quite often think I made the wrong decision on that one. As far as swapping the Instinct for another phone, the Sprint store I went to wouldn't even let me swap my Instinct for the older HTC Touch. They insisted on giving me a new Instinct instead. I was a little confused with that one...
Maybe the 9/17 (?) fix will pan out, and then who knows - maybe we'll get our Java keyboard fix before the end of the year as well! I'm crossing my fingers, toes, eyes and pretty much everything else I can cross on this one!
I'm switching to the Android as soon as it comes out and I get the money. I'll probably sell some stuff to get it. Stupid Sprint f*cked me over. I e-mailed customer service and all they can say was "you have my sincerest apologies", no, not good enough. This is the last time I'm going with Sprint.
So hey blogger, did you pay an early termination fee to switch to AT&T or what?
When I called to cancel, I was told that the early termination fee is $200 per line with Sprint.
In comparison, I was reading about AT&T's early termination fee and it is $175 and I think they will take off $5 per month of contract to pro-rate it.
Sprint is supposed to do the pro-rated thing from 2009.
I'm happy for you, but sad to see that the content on this blog will greatly change. Best of luck and hopefully I can get the new touch in the near future.
This is from the guy who says...
"I frequent your blog at least 5 times per day, looking for updates"
thanks, and good luck. I'll still check out the bloog.
Does the iPhone have a "Live Search" -type feature like the Instinct?
I frequent your blog often. Will be sorry to see it change. Good luck.
I am not an attorney but suggest you consider fighting to not pay the fee or insist on a refund if you already did. I honestly feel it was a breach of contract and/or false advertising etc. Also point out the recent court rulings on ETFs. Of course watch what they try to do to your credit rating.
You might try your state's consumer protection dept? I suspect a class action could also go far.
How about a local TV or Newspaper?
Of course I know these fights can wear you down and it's easier to just give in. Only you can decide if it's worth the time and hassle. Take care.
buckjohnson,
iPhone has google maps app integrated with GPS and you can search for say "Hospital" and it will find hospitals on the map on your screen. You can zoom out to cover greater area or zoom in to focus on a specific area. You can click on them to get driving directins. There are also tons of other free and paid apps on iPhone for such search.
But keep in mind that iPhone currently doesn't have turn-by-turn navigation like Sprint Instinct's Telenav app. However, if you check out a newer blog post on this blog, you will see that Telenav has a better turn-by-turn Nav for iPhone ready. Hopefully Apple and AT&T will allow it. But my guess is that AT&T could charge extra for it per month.
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