AT&T in-store experience

[someoneinwa]

Great point and it needs to be made to all of the reviewers who report the price of the 1020 as though it were unprecedented. I freely acknowledge that people might be more willing to pay $299 for an iPhone than a Nokia Windows Phone at this point, but I'd really appreciate reviews based on observation rather than speculation. (WPC's review was one of the good ones.)

 

[ninjaap]

I don't think the next plan is a ripoff. I think its for people who rather pay full price for the phone to avoid the contract. On the next plan you're paying for the full price of the phone but in interest free installments. You can pay off the balance at anytime and become contract free. Or you can trade in your phone 12 months into your installment and end up paying only about half the value and get a new phone. All without an activation fee. So its cheaper than paying for full price up front.

But if you're into paying the discounted price and waiting for 2 years to be eligible for a discount then yes its a ripoff. On the other hand if you were to trade in your phone after 12 months you'd only have paid $396 (@$33/month) and get a new phone without the $36 activation fee. That sounds like a better deal to me than $299 + $36 + 24months before eligible for upgrade.

 

[bawboh86]

The problem with the Next plan is that you're still having to pay the subsidy on a phone you don't have. They don't remove that. So, you're paying full price for the phone you picked up, and a subsidy on an imaginary phone as though you picked it up for the special discounted price.

 

[ninjaap]

The problem with the Next plan is that you're still having to pay the subsidy on a phone you don't have. They don't remove that. So, you're paying full price for the phone you picked up, and a subsidy on an imaginary phone as though you picked it up for the special discounted price.

Do they remove the subsidy when you pay for full price of phone up front? I think people here in the US already know the answer is no. But people still would rather pay full price to avoid a contract and be eligible to get a new phone. I see the next plan as compromise between paying full price up front and paying a discounted price. Its great because now we have 3 options to choose from. And we can get whichever meets our needs.

I think the worst part about the deal is you have to decide if you're willing to trade in your phone to get a new one. Some people like to keep their old phones as back up or give to friends and relatives. Others like to sell them on eBay.

 

[jmerrey]

Concerning the $299 price point. Yes, I think the phone is worth it...and, yes, I think the general consumer will have a hard time swallowing that price. I recall a conversation I overheard in an AT&T store about a year ago. A guy was looking at an Android phone that was $249 on contract. He remarked "For that much, I might as well get the iPhone." Right or wrong, the iPhone has a mystique around it, one that implies the highest quality available. Again, I'm speaking about the general consumer. Of course, you'll always have enthusiasts for all platforms, as well as haters.

 

[petersun21]

About the $299 price point, it is worth it or not. My decision not to buy it is based on that. $249 with the camera grip would have made me buy two. The other day I bought a chromecast and posted something on this website. I was told that I can share my windows 8 on xbox. I tried and tried, I cannot share anything on xbox. I tried to watch msnbc, tried to use internet explorer and live gold membership is required. I mentioned chromecast to my colleagues, 4 of 8 people bought it the same day. MS and Google are competing differently.

 

[Arsenic17]

Well I went to the ATT store today (in Boulder, CO) and it was an overall good experience. They had a neat demo set up with the snow globe thing that someone else mentioned above. The sales person was very knowledgeable. And had nothing but good things to say about the camera and Windows Phone. Kinda weird based on all my other experiences.

Anyways, I wanted to pick up the camera grip. I couldnt find any online and checked ATT.com and they are finally listed and you can check store availibility. I found that every store around me had them available. Went there and I got a black one. Was debating yellow and black, but was leaning towards black. They only had black (all they received) and made a comment that they will not carry the yellow on ever. Oh well. Happy with black. So much so that I might actually use this as my everyday case. Still unsure. They only had the yellow speck case as far as real cases. Will look into one that covers the lens area when they become available.

 

[bawboh86]

Well I went to the ATT store today (in Boulder, CO) and it was an overall good experience. They had a neat demo set up with the snow globe thing that someone else mentioned above. The sales person was very knowledgeable. And had nothing but good things to say about the camera and Windows Phone. Kinda weird based on all my other experiences.

Anyways, I wanted to pick up the camera grip. I couldnt find any online and checked ATT.com and they are finally listed and you can check store availibility. I found that every store around me had them available. Went there and I got a black one. Was debating yellow and black, but was leaning towards black. They only had black (all they received) and made a comment that they will not carry the yellow on ever. Oh well. Happy with black. So much so that I might actually use this as my everyday case. Still unsure. They only had the yellow speck case as far as real cases. Will look into one that covers the lens area when they become available.

I've been thinking about using my camera grip as a case. The only thing preventing me is I like to carry my phone using a holster, and I don't have a big enough holster to hold the phone with the grip. I do carry a man bag with me everywhere, but that's just screen scratches waiting to happen...

 

[themobiledivide]

Picked up a 1020 in downtown Brooklyn AT&T store. The guys were all pretty cool, they knew about the camera and WP8, the manager had been using one and also had a Surface Pro which he liked. The original sales guy (before he knew I had a Lumia 920) pretty much said that all the high end phones at ATT were great, and there was very little to differentiate user experience. He was using an S4 but was going to switch to a 1020 for the camera. The store had the low light box setup and they were pretty friendly. Interestingly the iPhone section was tucked in a back corner barely visible, Android (S4, HTC one etc) had the most prominent stations in the center of the store, Lumia 1020 was on a side wall but not as hidden as iPhone.

 

[Duvi]

Great experiences. I'm still deciding whether or not I'm getting mine today (day off) or not...


As I typed it, my boy said he isn't at the store. So I'll wait. They were doing $100 trade-in for 900 and 920. Could have paid $100 for mine =(

 

[anon(27512)]

@duvi did you get your phone yet? What are your thoughts?

 

[Arsenic17]

Great experiences. I'm still deciding whether or not I'm getting mine today (day off) or not...


As I typed it, my boy said he isn't at the store. So I'll wait. They were doing $100 trade-in for 900 and 920. Could have paid $100 for mine =(

That is a horrible trade in. I just sold my 900 black for $160 on ebay, and my cyan 920 for $300 on craigslist. Basically ATT paid me to take the best smartphone camera ever!

 

[cj-m]

I know this post is late to the party, but I want to give a thumbs up to my experience in the AT&T store in Ketchikan today. I wandered over there to see if I could still get the charging plates for the L920 and on entering the store, it is a small store, I saw a small line up of smart phones. The Lumia 920 instantly stood out and to the left was a yellow Lumia 1020. My L920 is in the mail but I was so tempted to put the money down for a L1020.

From the line up of available smartphones, I would say it was evenly divided between WP and Android with 2 lonely iPhones stuck in between. All the WP phones were on and you could play with them, which from what I have been reading is a lot better than some of the other posters have been experiencing.

Anyway, one of the sales approached me and asked to help, he was very helpful, he saw me handling the L1020 and asked me directly if I was interested in that phone. No rival OS upsell here. I couldn't buy it on account as I don't have a SSN.

So we chatted about the L1020 and he said that it is his business phone and that he really enjoys it and appreciates the camera and said that the camera really benefits him in his daily tasks. He did ask me if I knew whether or not the L1020 could recharge wireless like the L920. So, from what I know and read told him what I knew.

But all in all, a really pleasant experience and one that I did not expect so far away from everywhere else.

 

[Duvi]

@duvi did you get your phone yet? What are your thoughts?

Love the phone. Light and thinner is all I really wanted, but the 41mp + awesome lens = icing.

Just saw your comment. Usually see quotes on my iPhone/iPad when someone quotes me directly.