Not eligible to upgrade on your voice line? You may be in luck if you have an Airave!

[Vegasden]

Inadvertently, I stumbled into this. And he is right.

I went to RS to upgrade (after I had revised my plan w/Sprint on the phone earlier that day). When I gave the RS clerk my phone number she told me I wasn't eligible for an upgrade. At first I was kind of peeved as I thought I had it all worked out with Sprint. Then the clerk noticed I had a second number on my account (there was a drop down on their screen that showed a second number). When she pulled that number, it showed I was eligible for an upgrade for that number.

I had no idea what the number was. I assumed the Sprint CSR had did some trick when I changed plans and gave me a new number. But I didn't care as somehow, someway I had scored and upgrade and an Evo. Now, from the OP, I see where that second number came from.

So, if you do have an Airave (and had it for a while) ask them to check both numbers on your account..you might score the Evo.

Shall we call this the AirEvo Loophole?

[mlr_90]

I'm a little hesitant to do this. For one - I get a credit for the airave service so it's essentially free. I would probably lose this credit. Second - If this works as other upgrades do it will lock the Airave account into a 2 year agreement. Correct me if I'm wrong. Three - If you do this with the EVO you change the plan from a $5 month to a $20 month service plus the additional $10 "premium data" on that line. When you swap the phone back to your primary line and put the Airave back in place will everything be as it was? If you update using your Airave credit - can you just activate the phone on your primary line when you receive it and not touch the Airave line at all? I know you would lose your rebate but you would still save $150. You would just be locked into a 2 year commitment on the Airave line.

[boredandtattooed]

too bad its not gonna happen OP.. the minute you call your SERO people to put that ANdroid(remeber SERO and Android dont play well together) device on your SERO plan, their gonna tell you to piss off and wait till July like the rest of the employee plans.. (if i read the other threads properly about the employee plans)

[Mayonesa]

my upgrade is in September i think but im sure i can get the upgrade early... you just have to talk and ask... its about keeping the customer happy

[marctronixx]

i am in the same boat as you. i have 4 lines including the airave and am on a 1500 plan.

my airave is free thru the credit i get every month, just as you do.

once you put an actual PHONE on that line it goes under a 2 yr contract. the airave is taken OFF your account.

you WILL have to pay the 20 bux a month for the additional line. you may be able to sweet talk account services and they could reduce this cost over a 2 year period so you can pay LESS than 20 bux per month. i absorbed a line under my account and its only costing me 6 dollars a month extra instead of 20 (i am a premier customer and 12 year sprint user)

if you swap the evo off the airave line and want to put the airave back you remove the 20 dollar per month additional charge (or whatever you would pay for it if you sweet talked Account services) but you do not AUTOMATICALLY get your airave credit back.

just think of the airave as a broadband card for your laptop. they had phone numbers too and last year thats how i got my pro2.. i changed my aircard line to a voice line and got the reduced cost of it (99 bux.. you cats remember the verizon price match back then.. ).

so yea you can use your airave but do understand you lose the credit (and will have to talk to account services to restore it) and more hoop jumping to turn that line back into a airave line.... and who knows they may charge you a penalty for essentially "downgrading" the evo line (4g/20 bux per month charge) back to the airave... lots of what ifs...

Originally Posted by mlr_90

I'm a little hesitant to do this. For one - I get a credit for the airave service so it's essentially free. I would probably lose this credit. Second - If this works as other upgrades do it will lock the Airave account into a 2 year agreement. Correct me if I'm wrong. Three - If you do this with the EVO you change the plan from a $5 month to a $20 month service plus the additional $10 "premium data" on that line. When you swap the phone back to your primary line and put the Airave back in place will everything be as it was? If you update using your Airave credit - can you just activate the phone on your primary line when you receive it and not touch the Airave line at all? I know you would lose your rebate but you would still save $150. You would just be locked into a 2 year commitment on the Airave line.

[MidwestDrummer]

Originally Posted by boredandtattooed

too bad its not gonna happen OP.. the minute you call your SERO people to put that ANdroid(remeber SERO and Android dont play well together) device on your SERO plan, their gonna tell you to piss off and wait till July like the rest of the employee plans.. (if i read the other threads properly about the employee plans)

1. As stated in my OP, I am converting from SERO to EPRP.
2. SWAC plans are employee plans, but EPRP plans are not.
3. Many people have spoken with Care/Premier Care and been advised that an ESN swap to an line on an EPRP plan will not be an issue.

[mlr_90]

Originally Posted by marctronixx

i am in the same boat as you. i have 4 lines including the airave and am on a 1500 plan.

my airave is free thru the credit i get every month, just as you do.

once you put an actual PHONE on that line it goes under a 2 yr contract. the airave is taken OFF your account.

you WILL have to pay the 20 bux a month for the additional line. you may be able to sweet talk account services and they could reduce this cost over a 2 year period so you can pay LESS than 20 bux per month. i absorbed a line under my account and its only costing me 6 dollars a month extra instead of 20 (i am a premier customer and 12 year sprint user)

if you swap the evo off the airave line and want to put the airave back you remove the 20 dollar per month additional charge (or whatever you would pay for it if you sweet talked Account services) but you do not AUTOMATICALLY get your airave credit back.

just think of the airave as a broadband card for your laptop. they had phone numbers too and last year thats how i got my pro2.. i changed my aircard line to a voice line and got the reduced cost of it (99 bux.. you cats remember the verizon price match back then.. ).

so yea you can use your airave but do understand you lose the credit (and will have to talk to account services to restore it) and more hoop jumping to turn that line back into a airave line.... and who knows they may charge you a penalty for essentially "downgrading" the evo line (4g/20 bux per month charge) back to the airave... lots of what ifs...

The only way I see you could get around this is to order the phone on the Airave line through telesales or EVP and activate it on your primary line when you receive it. Just do the swap online. That way it never actually gets activated on the Airave line but you still have the 2 year contract on it. What do you think?

Oh - and you'll lose the rebate so you still only save $150. If your credit is like mine I think it's only there for a year. My Airave has never worked b/c I have Mobile broadband for internet. I've been hoping that we can get cable or dsl but it's not looking good. So when the year is up I'll probably return the Airave.

[boredandtattooed]

Originally Posted by MidwestDrummer

I've always prided myself on the extent of my wireless knowledge. I don't mean to sound ****y, but I, like many of you, scour tech blogs and forums to get the most up to date info, and to learn all of the tricks and trades of the industry. I've also been a VZW employee for a few years now, so I thought I had all of my bases covered. Well, I missed this one.

You might not have any voice lines that are currently eligible to upgrade, but if you're using an Airave, you may be in luck. An Airave requires a separate line of service, and it also has it's own mobile number. I'm not eligible to upgrade my voice line until August, but my Airave line is currently eligible, so come June 4th, I will be doing an alternate upgrade to get the EVO 4G for my voice line, but using the upgrade eligibility on my Airave line.

I've been familiar with the ability to do alternate upgrades for quite some time, but I never knew that Airave lines gained upgrade eligibility, until speaking with a Sprint rep yesterday (and then speaking with 2 more to confirm). VZW's network extender (same thing as Sprint's Airave) operates in a very different fashion. With VZW, you simply purchase the network extender, and as long as your have a high speed internet connection, your device works. VZW does not have a monthly feature cost to operate their network extender, like Sprint requires for the Airave. Likewise, VZW's network extender cannot gain upgrade eligibility, since it does not require a separate line of service.

Maybe this will help others out there who are limited on their upgrade options, but currently have an Airave in their home/work, etc.

EDIT: Really? I can't say c*ocky on PPCgeeks?

Originally Posted by MidwestDrummer

EDIT: The paranoid guy who doesn't wanna lose his job won out. I decided to clear all the number and the employee discount amount. I'll just say that I'm paying less with Sprint, than I would be with VZW, even as an employee. I mean, look at that EPIC WIN down there in my sig.

Originally Posted by MidwestDrummer

1. As stated in my OP, I am converting from SERO to EPRP.
2. SWAC plans are employee plans, but EPRP plans are not.
3. Many people have spoken with Care/Premier Care and been advised that an ESN swap to an line on an EPRP plan will not be an issue.

1. where did you say that? you reference your "EPIC WIN" in your sig, which is a SERO plan.. where do you mention changing to EPRP?
2. and 3. i know that stuff already..

if your switching thats fine, youll be all right, but as your OP and every post after stands right now, your little trick wouldnt work unless you did ditch sero first.. the airwave trick will work for anyone whos primary/or upgrade line isnt a sero line.. but yeah..

[marctronixx]

this will not work. when they ship the phone they will apply the ESN to that line. once you get it you would have to activate it on the line thats getting the phone. remember they will have to add the 10 dollar fee and convert the line before they can even attach a phone to it...

yes the phone would more than likely not be activated but if you dont activate it on the line its intended to be on, sprint will see this. all of this is automated...

Originally Posted by mlr_90

The only way I see you could get around this is to order the phone on the Airave line through telesales or EVP and activate it on your primary line when you receive it. Just do the swap online. That way it never actually gets activated on the Airave line but you still have the 2 year contract on it. What do you think?

[MidwestDrummer]

Originally Posted by boredandtattooed

1. where did you say that? you reference your "EPIC WIN" in your sig, which is a SERO plan.. where do you mention changing to EPRP?
2. and 3. i know that stuff already..

if your switching thats fine, youll be all right, but as your OP and every post after stands right now, your little trick wouldnt work unless you did ditch sero first.. the airwave trick will work for anyone whos primary/or upgrade line isnt a sero line.. but yeah..

Apologies all around. I'd assumed that I'd mentioned that in the first post, and clearly I did not. But yea, I'll be transitioning to an EPRP plan.