Don't need the free phone with cellular contract

When you sign up with cellular carrier, you usually have to agree to a
1 or 2-year contract, which comes with a stiff early termination fee.
As an incentive though, the carrier offers a new phone for free or
provides a handsome rebate for the phone.

Suppose though I already have a phone, and I don't want a new one.
What incentive does the carrier then have? Can I subscribe but get
them to waive the 1-year contract, so that I can quit at any time (just
like a pay as you go plan, but without having to prepay in advance)?
Or like a sucker, am I still locked into a 1-year contract whether I
like it or not---and they keep the phone?

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› See More: Don't need the free phone with cellular contract

On 31 Jan 2005 03:22:28 -0800, [email protected] wrote:

>
>When you sign up with cellular carrier, you usually have to agree to a
>1 or 2-year contract, which comes with a stiff early termination fee.
>As an incentive though, the carrier offers a new phone for free or
>provides a handsome rebate for the phone.
>
>Suppose though I already have a phone, and I don't want a new one.
>What incentive does the carrier then have? Can I subscribe but get
>them to waive the 1-year contract, so that I can quit at any time (just
>like a pay as you go plan, but without having to prepay in advance)?
>Or like a sucker, am I still locked into a 1-year contract whether I
>like it or not---and they keep the phone?

Depends on the carrier. Some of them will, some of them won't. But if
they require a 1 or 2 year contract, they won't offer you anything
else if you don't want the discount on a phone. So take the free phone
and sell it on eBay.
--
To reply, remove TheObvious from my e-mail address.

Evan Platt wrote:
> On 31 Jan 2005 03:22:28 -0800, [email protected] wrote:
>
> >
> >When you sign up with cellular carrier, you usually have to agree
to a
> >1 or 2-year contract, which comes with a stiff early termination
fee.
> >As an incentive though, the carrier offers a new phone for free or
> >provides a handsome rebate for the phone.
> >
> >Suppose though I already have a phone, and I don't want a new one.
> >What incentive does the carrier then have? Can I subscribe but get
> >them to waive the 1-year contract, so that I can quit at any time
(just
> >like a pay as you go plan, but without having to prepay in advance)?
> >Or like a sucker, am I still locked into a 1-year contract whether I
> >like it or not---and they keep the phone?
>
> Depends on the carrier. Some of them will, some of them won't. But if
> they require a 1 or 2 year contract, they won't offer you anything
> else if you don't want the discount on a phone. So take the free
phone
> and sell it on eBay.
> --


Interesting. Can anyone name a carrier, which does not try to lock you
into a 1 or 2 year contract if you don't need a free phone?

<[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> When you sign up with cellular carrier, you usually have to agree to a
> 1 or 2-year contract, which comes with a stiff early termination fee.
> As an incentive though, the carrier offers a new phone for free or
> provides a handsome rebate for the phone.
>
> Suppose though I already have a phone, and I don't want a new one.
> What incentive does the carrier then have? Can I subscribe but get
> them to waive the 1-year contract, so that I can quit at any time (just
> like a pay as you go plan, but without having to prepay in advance)?
> Or like a sucker, am I still locked into a 1-year contract whether I
> like it or not---and they keep the phone?

If you can't get them to drop the contract, don't buy direct from the
carrier. Go to Amazon.com or some other online shop that will pay you to
take the phone after rebates. Sometimes you get more than $100 back in
rebates (net including the price of the phone). Then you wouldn't have to
e-bay your brand new phone for much to make the total payout match an early
termination fee. And if you don't end up canceling before the year is over,
you are $100-200 ahead.