Topic 'Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband' in forum 'Sprint Mobile Broadband' - dslreports.com

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Wed, 30 May 2012 18:09:00 EDT

criggs posted : Understood; thanks for the clarification. I'll keep it in mind if I need to switch plans for some reason in the future.

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Wed, 30 May 2012 17:58:16 EDT

jandrfas posted : No, your stick is the device of record with Millenicom. The CTR is just a router which receives the internet signal and then distributes to as many devices as you wish. It has a USB slot in it, so you plug the stick in just like you would plug it into a PC. I believe the CTR35 is limited to 32 devices or something like that, but it's still far more than the 5 or 6 that your hotspot can handle. It's also a really small device - roughly 4.5" x 2.5" x .25" - and I've found Cradlepoint routers to be quite reliable. Unfortunately as you said you're stuck with the hotspot for now, but definitely something to consider the next time you make a change.

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Wed, 30 May 2012 17:39:28 EDT

criggs posted : If I understand you correctly, I would have to register the CTR35 with Millenicom. Once that's done, I can then coonect any device to the CTR that I wish, and the CTR would continue to be the device of record with Millenicom, meaning that switching to the Hotspot to the US stick, then back to the hotspot, then (who knows?) maybe even a third device, etc. etc. would have no effect on the Millenicom account, since that would be registered with the CTR and the CTR only. Have I got that about right?

If so, it's a neat idea, but unfortunately it's now too late. I already have the Hotspot registered with Millenicom, and whether I switch to the CTR or the USB stick, it still means getting stung for an additional $50. So it would no longer pay for me.

But thanks for the suggestion. I appreciate the thought.

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Wed, 30 May 2012 17:29:41 EDT

jandrfas posted : I'll keep a close eye on the situation and let the forum know if anything changes. I figure it's either a lucky oversight on Sprint's part, or they're just waiting until their LTE is rolled out here so they can switch me over and cap me. Time will tell. I won't make any moves until I have to.

BTW criggs, I saw your earlier post about wanting to use both the USB stick and your hotspot with Millenicom. Have you considered using a travel router as an alternative? Cradlepoint has a new travel router, the CTR35, that's really tiny and runs on a battery. Retail is $79 but I just bought a "used, like new" one on Amazon for $29. It was actually brand new in its original packaging but the outside of the box was not in pristine condition, which would have made it a tough sell on a retail shelf. It accommodates most USB modems. I got it primarily for its "WiFi as WAN" feature. Essentially it lets me connect to a hotel WiFi (I travel a lot) and repeat the connection so I can use all of my other devices. It comes in very handy for hiding multiple devices from the hotel (hotels that don't have free internet charge access per device, but this is the perfect way around that). I also hook up a WDTV streaming device behind it so I can watch Netflix and the like, which is otherwise hard to pull off in hotels.

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Wed, 30 May 2012 16:53:07 EDT

criggs posted : It looks to me as if you're the beneficiary of a bureaucratic snafu. You're the very first case of its kind about which I've heard. So congratulations and enjoy; your situation may be quite unique!

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Wed, 30 May 2012 15:34:30 EDT

jandrfas posted : I'm a little bit confused. I have been on a Sprint 4G WiMax plan since March 2011. My 2-year contract ends on April 3 2013. With all of the talk of Sprint terminating unlimited 4G as of December 1 2011, I am still getting unlimited 4G. My account details on the website still show me as "unlimited" and I use 20 - 30 gigs per month. Sprint is still only billing me for the $49.99 unlimited 4G plan that I signed up for a little over a year ago. Nothing has changed. In fact my WiMax is perhaps a little bit faster, maybe because of people jumping ship.

I live in the greater LA area and have really enjoyed my Sprint WiMax. I could certainly get faster internet from wired services, but I had bad experiences with DSL and have heard mixed reviews on Time Warner. My 4G has been unbelievably reliable. It just doesn't go down, period. In fact I have even used it during power outages a few times thanks to a small UPS on my Cradlepoint router.

So why hasn't my 4G been capped? Is Sprint just slow in notifying me? Or are they grandfathering certain contracts in? Or maybe they're hoping to phase in LTE in the L.A. area and switch me over to a capped LTE plan when the build-out is complete? Obviously I'm not in a hurry for them to cap me, but if anybody has insight I'd sure like to know their intentions so I can plan my next move. A 10 GB plan doesn't cut it for me.

I figure my next move would be to take my Sprint modem and jump over to Millenicom, but of course there's no guarantee they'll continue to offer unlimited data either.

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Mon, 02 Apr 2012 12:10:06 EDT

criggs posted : Well, my part in this drama of Sprint's baiting-and-switching on their Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband has come to an end.

I had a long talk with my lawyer, reviewing my various options: we narrowed it down to two:

1) Switch to Millenicom's BYOD Sprint 4G/3G plan and take Sprint's ETF waiver offer or

2) stick with Sprint and pursue a legal case based on the premise that what they did in cancelling the Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband service was a termination, not a change, outside of the Terms and Conditions, and therefore an illegal violation and breach of contract.

My lawyer still believes I may have a case. Furthermore, on the premise that Sprint's violation nulls the no-class-action provision in the Sprint T&C, he has given me the name of a class-action lawyer who is also interested in the case.

However he also told me that the odds of our winning this case before my contract is up in March of next year are slim. In addition, even if I win the case, the cost of the case compared to the $120 I need to pay Millenicom for making the switch is not competitive; the Millenicom option is loads cheaper.

So I have accepted the Sprint ETF waiver and I have switched to Millenicom's 4G Sprint plan with the soft 50 gig cap.

While I have chosen not to fight the war, I can console myself with the thought that I won some good battles. First, my usage in December triggered overage fees which I then contested. My contest was successful, through the complaint I filed with the FCC.

And not only did Sprint withdraw the overage fees. They even renewed the ETF waiver, which supposedly was only available through December 1st.

Essentially, I prevented them from taking about $500 from me all told, the overage fees plus the Early Termination Fee, that they wanted to steal. That's a small victory, even though I decided not to fight the overall war.

Also, I gotta say that I'm so impressed with what I have now that I'm thinking it's a deal you might want to consider also, if you too are a Sprint Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband subscriber who feels stung by Sprint's bait-and-switch (who wouldn't?).

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Tue, 27 Mar 2012 09:54:05 EDT

criggs posted : Thanks for the clarification. Sounds like their case is not really analogous with mine. But I appreciate the time you took to describe it. Thanks again.

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Tue, 27 Mar 2012 09:38:25 EDT

dib22 posted :

said by criggs:

Or do they fire them from all accounts? Or does that vary from case to case?

I only know one person who was "let go" :D

They gave them 30 days to port their number out, waived the monthly charge for that last month, and waived the ETF.

I suspect that if they are loosing money on one account and the other account is making them some money... they would only terminate the one that is loosing them money... but it's just a guess.

The person I know was let go for roaming voice minutes I think... or perhaps roaming data... can't recall accurately.

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Tue, 27 Mar 2012 09:31:01 EDT

criggs posted : In my case, I have two Sprint accounts, the Simply Everything voice account and the Mobile Broadband account. When Sprint fires customers, do they fire them just from the account over which there is contention, in my case the Mobile Broadband account? Or do they fire them from all accounts? Or does that vary from case to case?

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Tue, 27 Mar 2012 03:55:57 EDT

dib22 posted :

said by criggs:

And when they do so, do they still sting you for the ETF?

Nope when sprint fires its customers, the ETF is waived :D

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Tue, 27 Mar 2012 02:31:10 EDT

criggs posted :

said by mix:

What you are going to find out if you push this thing is that Sprint will simply terminate your contract and disconnect your service....Sprint reserves the right to terminate your service for pretty much any reason it wants it seems.

And when they do so, do they still sting you for the ETF?

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Sun, 18 Mar 2012 14:47:22 EDT

espaeth posted : Mostly the carrier direct options are bleak, although even the Millenicom offering is $10/mo more than I'm paying now, and I get service on 2 devices.

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Sun, 18 Mar 2012 06:02:34 EDT

criggs posted : Would you also characterize this new 50-gig 4G option from Millenicom as bleak? If so why?

Thanks in advance for your thoughts on that question.

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Sat, 17 Mar 2012 22:57:35 EDT

espaeth posted :

said by criggs:

said by 25139889:

Clear offers 3g as well on the mobile cards.

No, they don't; you're wrong, as of "a few months ago," according to the Clear representative to whom I just spoke.

In fairness, they do as long as you already have it; they just stopped offering the option to new subscribers.

The thing that has changed is they implemented a usage meter for 3G and will start billing at $0.015/MB after 5GB.

I'm happy with the pricing of my "Pick 2" plan which includes both mobile hotspot 3G/4G service and home modem service, and I'll be riding it out as long as the company can hang in there. My usage is fairly limited so I can make most current plans work if I had to, but I agree if you're a heavy user the options out there now are pretty bleak.

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Fri, 09 Mar 2012 19:34:32 EDT

criggs posted :

said by 25139889:

Clear offers 3g as well on the mobile cards.

No, they don't; you're wrong, as of "a few months ago," according to the Clear representative to whom I just spoke.

Sorry for the bad news. They did offer it, but the rep told me Clear is "no longer partnered with Sprint" and, as a result, has removed the 3G availability.

Which leaves the Clear 4G service worse than useless, since their network looks like a piece of Swiss cheese.

The viable unlimited 4G options at this point therefore are the plan from Wireless 'N' WiFi (WnW) for $58.99, what sounds like an identical plan from Millenicom (M) for $69.99, and the BYOD plan from M, also for $69.99.

In other words, if one wants unlimited 4G, whether WiMax or LTE, on one's laptop, at this time the only option is WiMax, and the only option is through those two resellers, WnW and M.

So the next question to resolve is the situation with the 3G. We already know how it works with WnW (see »WiMAX Plan 150; $40/month , and scroll down to cellguru's first posting; it's basically a soft 15 gig 3G cap). How does it work with Millenicom?

Well, I just called them and they confirmed that the ONLY cap on the service, either on the 4G or 3G side, is the soft 50 gig cap of which most regular readers of this Millenicom forum are already well aware.

So it would appear that the Millenicom service is superior, for that reason, to the Wireless 'N' WiFi service.

Hmmm. It's becoming awfully difficult to come up with a reason why I shouldn't simply switch, at this point, from my current Sprint 4G to Millenicom's BYOD plan.

A word on the BYOD plan: It not only accommodates the 250U device. It also accommodates my Sprint hotspot, which I frequently use when I'm volunteering with folks who also need to connect to the Internet.

The only reason I happen to also have the 250U is because the latter works a little better with the 3G network than does the Hotspot. So if I find myself for a long period of time out of touch with the 4G network, I tend to switch it (Sprint allows unlimited switching between devices on an account).

Of course, the Hotspot compensates for that slight deficiency with its greater convenience in terms of providing networking with fellow volunteers.

Ideally, I would like to be able to use both. But I can't with Millenicom. Every time one switches to a different device on the BYOD plan, it counts as a brand new plan, and one gets charged another $50 every time. Ouch.

So I would have to commit to one device or the other, and then stick with it, and having to make a decision like that I find a bit troubling.

Guess I've got some thinking to do. Feedback welcome.

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 11:31:21 EDT

criggs posted : Thanks for the thought. I presume they're using Sprint's 3G network, correct?

With regard to Clear, I obviously am not dealing with the potential problem of a reseller who doesn't own a network. But with Clear I get the distinct impression there's a whole other set of issues apparently.

I'm referring to the fact that, if one goes by what one reads on line, there is massive dissatisfaction among Clear's customer base, far higher than among Sprint's customer base. The web is replete with horror stories galore concerning Clear's customer service, their billing, their throttling policies, etc. etc. If one goes by that info, signing up with Clear could be the equivalent of buying into a hornet's nest.

With regard to Clear's 3G availability where 4G is not available, I just went to their page at »www.clear.com/plans to get some info about that, and came up empty. They don't even MENTION 3G!!! So can you tell me, please, what's the story with that? Is the 3G usage capped? Is it free below the cap, meaning there are no additional charges for using 3G unless one goes above the cap? Assuming there is a 3G cap, how much is it per megabyte once one gets above the cap?

Thanks in advance for answering these questions; appreciated.

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 10:58:30 EDT

25139889 posted : Clear offers 3g as well on the mobile cards.

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 23:47:29 EDT

dib22 posted :

said by criggs:

I'm also a bit surprised I hadn't heard about Millenicom's offer before now. Does anyone know how long it's been around?

I think they added the Verizon one in November 2011, and the sprint one in the last few months.

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 21:38:12 EDT

criggs posted : With regard to reseller options, I just discovered something that quite startled me.

The last time I checked, Millenicom offered two 3G plans, one capped at 20 gigs and one capped at 50 gigs. However I thought they offered no 4G plans.

But just now I took a look and it looks like they now offer a 50gig 4G plan. Their price is a little higher than WNW. M offers it at $70 while WNW offers it at $60.

I wonder if they're both offering the same thing. If they are, it is odd that WNW offered it almost a year before Millenicom offered it.

I'm also a bit surprised I hadn't heard about Millenicom's offer before now. Does anyone know how long it's been around?

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 21:22:46 EDT

criggs posted : Yes, I've been keeping that option in my back pocket all along.

I'm not prepared, however, to give up on Sprint yet. My lawyer still thinks we have a case. So he and I are prepared to keep up this preliminary sparring to see how it all works out. My lawyer has warned me that, at some point, the two of us will have to sit down, game-plan out our legal case and work out how we're going to make it fly. Mind you, he still thinks we have a clear path to a persuasive case, in small-claims court or wherever; but he has always said that we should be prepared to consider any alternatives that might be offered.

My lawyer believes it may not even come to a court case. After a few more months of this headache, he suspects Sprint will try something different to make it all go away, perhaps a quadrupling of Sprint's maximum data cap, e.g. approx. 50 gigs per month, or something like that, accompanied by some sort of increase of the monthly fee, perhaps doubling it to $120 or something like that.

The exact details of any deal are very murky obviously, as my lawyer guesses we're still one or two months away from that. But he expects that some offer like that is more likely than a court case.

Personally, after reading that AT & T case, I think we can win in small claims, but I'm perfectly happy with some other outcome as long as it acknowledges either that cancellation of the Unlimited 4G and its replacement by a 5-gig-capped 4G connection is not covered by the TAC and constitutes an illegal and fraudulent termination of service rather than merely a change in service, or that such a termination, and replacement with a data-capped service, constitutes an alteration that is not covered in the TAC, and which therefore requires my consent.

Also, with regard to Wireless 'N' WiFi (WNW), I have always had some misgivings, even though everyone I've spoken to there seems really nice. My concern is that, in today's bitter economic climate, they may go belly-up, leaving me high and dry.

I'm also concerned that they are dependent on the good graces of Clear for their 4G Wimax network and on Sprint for their 3G network. What if one or both of them simply tells Wireless 'N' WiFi to take a hike, that they no longer want their product to be resold by WNW? Once again, I could be left high and dry.

So that's another reason why WNW, while the most obvious alternative to my current situation, remains less than an ideal solution for me, in my opinion.

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 21:05:51 EDT

Max Signal posted : Here you go.

»www.wirelessnwifi.com/Unlimited4G

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 20:33:33 EDT

criggs posted : Considering that AT & T case that exploded this week (see »How to Beat AT&T in Court For Throttling 'Unlimited' Service ), I suspect they may be treading more carefully than that now.

In addition, keep in mind that I've made it very clear I'm ready to push this thing to court if need be. I don't know how they feel about lawsuits (they obviously have the money for them), but I'm sure it's not something they relish, particularly if it gets them negative publicity.

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 20:28:13 EDT

mix posted : Ah well okay then. What you are going to find out if you push this thing is that Sprint will simply terminate your contract and disconnect your service. They did this to hundreds if not thousands of people not that long ago because they were calling into customer service and complaining and trying to finagle their way into service credits. Sprint reserves the right to terminate your service for pretty much any reason it wants it seems.

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 20:04:18 EDT

criggs posted : Because the Clear 4G service is not available throughout New York City. I need the availability of 3G as well as a backup.

Re: Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 19:41:14 EDT

mix posted : Why wouldn't you just cancel and use Clear unlimited 4G service? Sprint is just reselling this service to you for probably more money than you'd pay getting it direct from Clear.

Sprint's Bait and Switch on Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 14:34:39 EDT

criggs posted : I wanted to bring you guys up to speed with regard to my ongoing dispute with Sprint concerning their decision to terminate the Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband service mid-contract and replace it with a 5-gig-limited 3G/4G Mobile Broadband service.

Briefly, I got the notice on my bill last fall that the termination/replacement was taking place. I contacted a lawyer, and we concluded this quite probably an illegal and fraudulent breach and violation of contract. I so informed Sprint. I also informed them that I would not be paying any overage fees in the future, and would challenge them if levied.

Last December, Sprint chose to levy overage fees on my account.

I filed a complaint with the FCC.

This morning a Harold Eatman from Sprint, at 2019648084, contacted me. He informed me that Sprint had decided they had ERRED in the way they notified customers. Consequently ALL OVERAGE FEES LEVIED THROUGH MARCH 5, 2012 ARE BEING WAIVED!!! Furthermore, they are reopening their offer for folks to cancel without paying an ETF. That offer will be open through the end of the month, after which they will start levying the ETFs again.

Hopefully there will be other Unlimited 4G Mobile Broadband customers here who will be able to benefit from this information.

For myself, I reiterate what I have said many times previously: I have received legal advice indicating that Sprint is on shaky legal ground in making this change in mid-contract. So I chose to decline their offer for a free cancellation (I declined it when they offered it to me last fall as well), and affirmed that I intend to dispute any overage fees they choose to attempt to levy on me in the future.

Mr. Eatman did NOT like that. He got hostile, loud, and repeatedly interrupted me. But I finally got him to shut up and understand my position, even though he did not say he agreed with it.

Hopefully this info will be of use to some people. Forewarned is forearmed, as they say.