[swollenostrich]

Update: I called my Sprint store back to find out if I would be stuck with whichever phone I decided to let them trade me up to (HTC Snap or Palm Pro) or if I would be able to switch for another within 30 days, as is customary when you buy a new phone with Sprint. The answer was no - so not wanting to risk getting stuck with a phone I might end up not liking, I called Sprint and gave them the whole rundown.

The rep said that I could possibly get Assurion to trade me up to a HTC Hero or Samsung Moment, but I would have to pay a $100 deductible. It made more sense at the point to go ahead and bite the bullet and get either the Hero or Samsung deal that Sprint is offering with a 2-year agreement as they are offering an additional $100 rebate off of the $179 price. So... $79 sounded better than $100 along with the ability to change phones within 30 days if I am not satisfied.

While I didn't quite accomplish the best result - like not having to pay a single dime to get a better phone, I don't have to waste another minute of my time dealing with this. It does suck a bit though that essentially I have wasted a bunch of time as it is, and essentially my insurance has done me absolutely no good at this point. But, as I said, it isn't worth it to me at this point to spend any more time and effort on this to save $79. Hell, just posting my updates here is costing me valuable time. I could be wasting time in a much more wasteful but enjoyable way! :P

So... it was a tough decision, but I am going to try out the Samsung Moment. The selling point over the Hero was the faster processor and the slide-out keyboard. Even though it is slightly ugly in comparison to the Hero, and left stock, doesn't seem to have as many whiz-bang features, I feel that the faster processor will come in handy once we start seeing custom ROMS and processor intensive applications/games. 30 days should be enough time to try it out, then try out the Hero, and then switch back if needed.