ninjatutle
Premium
join:2006-01-02
San Ramon, CA | OMG
Like just because it works with purses and shoes doesn't mean the concept would work for phones  |
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RadioDoc
58ef2c0
Premium,ExMod 2000-03
join:2000-05-11 | Is this just equipment rental?
Sounds like you still have to have a service plan of your own.
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Toolmaster of La Grange. |
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RadioDoc
58ef2c0
Premium,ExMod 2000-03
join:2000-05-11 | reply to ninjatutle
Re: OMG
Wanna bet? I would venture a guess that many of the fashionistas have a drawer full of ex-trendy phone toys.
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Toolmaster of La Grange. |
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mlong
Premium
join:2000-05-27
Parker, CO
 ·Qwest.net
| I'd have to agree with you RadioDoc  . People are willing to rent in order to keep up with technology or just try out all the phones. A look at forums like Howard Forums and you see some people go through phones as quickly as the come out.
I think this is a great idea and it was just a matter of time.
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Make money on the stuff you never use: »www.crowdrent.com |
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Camelot One
Premium,MVM
join:2001-11-21
Sarasota, FL
clubs:
| reply to RadioDoc
Re: Is this just equipment rental?
said by RadioDoc :Sounds like you still have to have a service plan of your own. Yes, you are just renting the phone from them. Its a bring your own service type of thing.
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Intel Q6600 @3400Mhz/GA-EP35-DS3P/2x 2048Mb G.Skill/Seagate 750.10/EVGA 8800GT's SLI/Silverstone 850W/Custom water cooler |
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RadioDoc
58ef2c0
Premium,ExMod 2000-03
join:2000-05-11
2 edits | Thank you for the clarification. The website is pretty dense about it. I see Karl has edited the story to reflect that now too.
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Toolmaster of La Grange. |
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Fubar
join:2001-02-20
Phoenix, AZ
| reply to RadioDoc
said by RadioDoc :Sounds like you still have to have a service plan of your own. Correct, This only the Handset |
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pabster
join:2001-12-09
Waterloo, IA
 ·Mediacom
| Looks good.
Plenty of folks would like to toy around with the latest and greatest, maybe just for a one-month rental. See if they actually like the phone and would be willing to invest full price in it (for the folks who don't or can't get the cut-rate contract-extending subsidized pricing...) It's a neat idea. |
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Pv8man
join:2008-07-24
Hammond, IN
| you know
you know, I wouldn't doubt that there might be a market for phone rentals, with the mobile business growing every so steadily, and mediocre phones that some carriers are trying to con people into getting,
(Lookin at you wi-fi less blackberry storm) |
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iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Golden, CO
·Comcast
·Qwest.net
 ·magicjack.com
 ·BeeCreek Communica..
·Sprint Mobile Broa..
| Heck, I'll do it...
I'm well into my Sprint contract, but not at 22 months yet. $$34 ($24 + membership fee) to rent an HTC Touch Pro to see what it's like? Count me in...
No, seriously. I'll probably sign up pretty soon. Heck, I can see grabbing an account with these guys, then reviewing phones as they come out. The result: ad revenue from the reviews to subsidize the cost of the rentals, and all's cool.
Granted, 10 months of renting is about the same as the cost of actually buying the device, and some of these phones don't come out every ten months. But for short-term trial usage the concept sounds awesome. And if you want to try out phones for an extended period before upgrading and extending your contract, this is the way to go. |
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swilliams
join:1999-09-07
Mount Prospect, IL
·AT&T Midwest
| said by iansltx :I'm well into my Sprint contract, but not at 22 months yet. $$34 ($24 + membership fee) to rent an HTC Touch Pro to see what it's like? Count me in... No, seriously. I'll probably sign up pretty soon. Heck, I can see grabbing an account with these guys, then reviewing phones as they come out. The result: ad revenue from the reviews to subsidize the cost of the rentals, and all's cool. Granted, 10 months of renting is about the same as the cost of actually buying the device, and some of these phones don't come out every ten months. But for short-term trial usage the concept sounds awesome. And if you want to try out phones for an extended period before upgrading and extending your contract, this is the way to go. I'd do it too (the Touch Pro) for a month or two. Would be totally worth the $60 (or whatever) to make sure I really like the phone before dropping some serious coin on an upgrade.
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You can't walk a straight line girl... if you're wearin crooked shoes |
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keyboard5684
join:2001-08-01
Youngsville, PA
·Teliax VOIP
·WestPAnet Inc.
·WestPAnet Inc. CA..
| Why
People talk about doing it because of SAVING money? What carriers are you with? I guess I am not with the whole gotta be "fab" stylin mofo with the greatest new pink thing that comes out of Motorola's ass.
You know, I have had the same phone for over a year. I went to stores, looked at them, checked how solid they were (remember the razor - lol), and listened to people wither bitch about there phone or say it was great. Then waited to see if it was still great in 3 months.
I now have a Katana. It is solid, small enough (I hate Blackberries, had one, I feel it unnecessary to have a holster for my phone), and has lasted a long long time.
When my phone dies, Sprint will be drooling for me to renew my contract (they call me monthly now) and give me one hell of a deal on whatever phone I want.
Americans need to stay away from malls or something for a while. Geez, I just got a job offer in Belize, move my whole family there. There are no malls there, there are cellphone carriers, there are no fancy clothing stores, just normal shops. People there have lives and just do not spend that much time focusing on looking cool or having the latest features. They spend there money on things like the pool in there backyard or a trip to the beach.
Geez. Sorry, I am okay now. I just cannot believe people are so obsessed with the newest thing as soon as it pops up that they are willing to pay that much on top of there phone bill. No wonder the economy sucks, priorities. Give credit to people with screwed up priorities. |
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Jahntassa
What, I can have feathers
Premium
join:2006-04-14
Conway, SC
| I have co-workers (technically higher-ups) that switch phones every few months, contract or not. If they can rent the latest phone, especially Blackberries, that's a benefit.
If we need to check out a phone to see how it will hold up before we decide to purchase it for workers, this is a great idea. I could just rent a Storm and then give the go-ahead for people to get it.
Sure, this isn't great for everybody. For people who just want a phone that works (the free phones) or who don't need full-on blackberries, this is overkill. |
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sporkme
drop the crantini and move it, sister
Premium,MVM
join:2000-07-01
Morristown, NJ
·Optimum Online
| Any others?
I'm thinking of getting some kind of smartphone, but I can't plunk down that kind of cash for a phone/plan without checking it out. Two years is a long time to stick with a carrier/phone that may suck.
This place seems shady though. Anyone know of something like this? Ideally I'd like to test drive the iPhone and whatever the top competitor is. email+web is the main use, but an ssh client for emergencies would be nice, as would a vpn client and vnc/rdp support.
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with every mistake we must surely be learning |
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iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Golden, CO | reply to swilliams
Re: Heck, I'll do it...
Sprint, I presume? 'cuz I hear tell Verizon's model is pure crap-n-a-stick. |
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swilliams
join:1999-09-07
Mount Prospect, IL
·AT&T Midwest
| said by iansltx :Sprint, I presume? 'cuz I hear tell Verizon's model is pure crap-n-a-stick. Sprint for me, yes. |
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PolarBear
The bear formerly known as aaron8301
Premium
join:2005-01-03 | reply to keyboard5684
Re: Why
I agree with Jahntassa: I'd rent a smart phone for a month to make sure I damn well like it before not only paying for it, but renewing my wireless contract for it. |
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nekkidtruth
You fail at life.
Premium
join:2002-05-20
London, ON | reply to sporkme
Re: Any others?
What exactly seems "shady" about it? Just out of curiosity. |
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thatguy5245
join:2004-05-25
Dunbar, WV
·PHONE POWER
·Suddenlink
1 edit | reply to keyboard5684
Re: Why
I would definitely do this. The think people don't realize are these phones are out for like 6+ months in Europe before becoming "New" on T-Mobile, AT&T etc. The phones usually are retailing for around $800 before they get to the carriers and they subsidize them. So this would save people money who like to play with toys before they get retired to my ex smartphone closet.
Edit
Not what I was thinking. Not many Unlocked phones I was hoping to rent the Touch HD. Hopefully their selection will increase.
Sim Card Options available
AT&T: BB Bold, BB 8820, Iphone 16 & 8 GB, Samsung Epix (WM 6.1 Pro)
T-Mobile: G1 (Google), Sidekick (Tony Hawk Edition)
Unlocked: Iphone 16 & 8 GB, Razr2 V8 Luxury Edition, Nokia E90 Communicator, Nokia N95 8GB, Nokia N96 |
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rahlquist
Redeye
join:2001-10-30
Villa Rica, GA | reply to ninjatutle
Re: OMG
This could be a huge boon to homebrew cell phone developers. They can rent a platform and develop on it. Sweet.
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