Quote:
Originally Posted by darkjje
If I go to sprint.com and t-mobile.com and put in those plans, with two of each phone (family plans after all minimum 2 lines) I get the following...
T-Mobile
Total due today
$799.98
Total due monthly
$119.99
One time activation fee
$70.00
Mail in rebate
$0.00
Total for a 2 year time frame : $3749.74
Monthly Average : $156.24
Sprint
Total due today
$559.98
Total due monthly
$129.99
One time activation fee
$0.00
Mail in rebate
$200.00
Total for a 2 year time frame : $3479.74
Monthly Average : $144.99
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Yeah, obviously the more smartphones you buy without a subsidy the more it is going to cost you. But there is no law that you have to get your phones from T-Mobile. If you're not getting a subsidy then you might not want to get the phones from the carrier.
Run those numbers again and say the T-Mobile customer buys his MyTouch phones on ebay for the $275-$300 that they are currently going for (brand new, no contract).
Also- you are not factoring in the sprint activation fee in your numbers. Sprint doesn't charge you n activation fee when you purchase the device, they charge you when you activate it. So while you don't have to pay an activation fee up front form Sprint, it will be on your first bill. Once you factor that in, and shop for a good deal on a brand new in the box T-Mobile phone, T-Mobile is still cheaper.
This one is a buy it now, 2 available, for $275 each (and $10 shipping to me). So that would be $560 for the both of them, shipped. And that is the buy it now price, I'm not even talking about playing the bidding game.
http://cgi.ebay.com/Unlocked-myTouch...item3a56a7e47a
That is $239.98 cheaper than your numbers. So that would be $3509.76 total, or $146.24 per month. So that is $1.25 per month more than Sprint. Just Sprint's increased regulatory fee and extra fees for not having auto pay would more than cover that, plus when you get hit with the activation fee from Sprint it way more than covers that.
Also- Sprint charges sales tax on the full retail price of the device, and ebay charges no sales tax. So that should also push the numbers more in T-Mobile's favor...