High interest in the 810, wary of T-Mo....Help.

[Dr. Impossible]

I really like this phone. I have looked at them all in-depth, and really started looking at the 810 yesterday when it went up for free. That being said, I have questions...

I've heard (and read) CS for T-Mo is horrible, i'm coming from Sprint where it's quite good, can anyone chime in about experiences?

Service where I live is spotty for TMo(living on an island 30 miles off the coast) so that may ultimately steer me away, am I better off buying this phone outright with the possibility of unlocking in the future? (which is the direction I think I'm moving in general-MVNO's and such)And subsequently taking it to another carrier? I have thought about buying it from the online Microsoft store for $449, i'm assuming it is still locked/attached to TMo.

I almost pulled the trigger last nite on the 810, but they wanted a $100 DEPOSIT on the phone and were a little vague on the particulars of the return of said money(I did this online as I wasn't up for swimming over to go to a TMo store) so I just decided to wait.


I feel this is the best all-around option phone wise for WP8: removable battery and storage, solid camera in back AND front(no VGA like the 820) and different back plates on the way, so I'm exploring all ways to get at it.

Any thoughts/opinions/suggestions welcome. :smile:

Thanks

-Doc

 

[palandri]

I had T-Mobile for a couple of years and their customer service was fine. I never had an issue with it.

 

[TexasLabRat]

Yes the phone is locked to T-mobile even if you buy it outright from the MS store. Another thing to consider: even if you get it unlocked you might not have full use of it on another network as there is currently no way to modify the APN settings for data. Long story short...don't get this phone unless you are planning on using T-mobile. That said, like palandri I have had t-mobile for a few years and have been very happy with them...though it helps that I live in an area where their coverage is pretty good and I've always had positive experiences with customer service on the very few times I have had to call them.

 

[dainla]

I was on Sprint for 10 years. Switched to T-Mobile last year. There is no difference in CS.

 

[kbagrows]

I've been with TMo for 10+ years - great CS. One of the reasons I've stayed with them.

That being said, I'm in Chicago - my parents are in rural Ohio. When I visit, I literally have no service. If I still lived there, that would, of course, be a deal breaker.

Don't know about buying and getting the phone unlocked, but I do know that TMo has the reputation of being much more friendly to that sort of thing than AT&T. Good luck!

 

[kittengirl]

I have been a t-mobile customer for about 12 years, and have never had a complaint. The CS has been excellent, in my opinion. Agreed, the coverage is not as good as some carriers, but that's not an issue for me really, since if I'm travelling I just make sure I don't use data while roaming. Usually if I'm in an area where there's no T-mobile data, I'm in a pretty remote place where other carriers don't have coverage either.

As I said, the CS has been amazing. We have poor coverage at our house, just based on the geography and the home (poor coverage with other carriers too), and I recently called them and asked for a signal booster, which they'll give out for free in certain situations. The rep warned me that it would reset my contract date, and then when he put the order through, it didn't actually reset it - he figured that was because of being a good customer for so long. Also, we get a better deal with them than we would with anyone else. We have 5 lines, 2 of which are smartphones with 5 GBs data each and an unlmited messaging plan for all lines, and the cost is only around $150 per month on the Value Plan (even less with a corporate discount). I wouldn't be able to beat that anywhere else.

 

[metalchick719]

Customer service is actually great with T-Mobile. The reps are extremely helpful and never rude. I can't imagine where you would have heard their customer service was "horrible."

 

[Dr. Impossible]

Thanks to all, that is very helpful information. Glad to hear the CS is so great, very encouraging.

Customer service is actually great with T-Mobile. The reps are extremely helpful and never rude. I can't imagine where you would have heard their customer service was "horrible."

Not really having anyone I know personally here that uses them, before I asked here I binged for some TMo CS reviews, typical stuff. Glad that was wrong, I trust the WP community more.

Thanks

-Doc

 

[Nogitsune Micah]

TBH, T-mobile's customer support is sort of crappy.
Let me explain.

I used to be a T-mobile Monthly 4G customer(their Prepaid side) and i had a few android phones on their prepaid side.....It was a rough experience dealing with the language barriers since t-mobile outsourced their prepaid. i've used Virgin mobile(Sprint Prepaid) and it was equally as bad. i've also used Sprint's actual network when i had an Evo and that was a brutal experience.

That being said, I've actually been pleased using T-mobile as a Classic Plan Customer. it is day and night from their prepaid side.
I can understand the reps i speak to, they can understand me and they are very personable and i have yet to have any issues with them in the 3 weeks i've been with them.

 

[metalchick719]

I think it depends on the individual and the situation. I have always had good customer service with T-Mobile over the phone in the nearly 11 years I've been with them. In the store is a different story, though. I've had customer service reps in store screw with me and take advantage of me. Over the phone, reps have been a pleasure and very helpful.

 

[scrannel]

I've been with T-Mo usa since they started service and have been very happy. I'm in So Cal, but service is spotty where I live. However, T-Mo usa has one service the other big guys here do not offer: wifi-calling. This means you can connect with the cell network through any good wifi connection. Not only has this been a godsend where ever there is spotty service, but it's free. So when I'm overseas I can make and receive calls when I'm on the hotel wifi etc. On my wife's BBerry the service (UMA) is flawless. I have a Kineto version on my Android phone and now T-Mo has gone over to IMS. At present the Windows phones do not have wifi-calling. But, theoretically, IMS should allow this as a software upgrade. But don't hold your breath. They did Kineto upgrades on Android phones in the past, so it's possible.

 

[jodahav]

I will also add my support for Tmo. Customer service- both in store and on the phone is top notch... Plus I got this "No Strings Attached" Reward flyer in the mail. They gave me the option of a free month of service (would have been Jan 2013), $200 towards a new phone, or something else (like free visual voicemail for a year or something). I used it to buy my wife an HTC OneS since it (the free phone option) expired prior to the WP8 launch. Then when I called customer service to make sure I was doing it right, the rep told me that since I was extending my contract he would give me my next month for free! I wasn't asking for anything- I just wanted to make sure I was going through the steps right and I had already told him I was going to use the full upgrade pricing for the phone. I was blown away.

That being said, coverage- especially data coverage- can be spotty outside of larger metro areas. Especially when compared to Verizon (but really who doesn't have spotty coverage compared to Verizon). The coverage is great for me where I live, but you will want to make sure you get good coverage where you live/work.

Now if only they would get the Lumia 910 already...

 

[KLinCHI]

I'm going to chime in and agree that T-Mobile's CS support has been great for me, and I've been a customer for almost 10 years. That said, I also had their prepaid service for a few years, and the CS support for their prepaid division is spotty - sometimes great, other times not so much.

I spent a week in Nantucket back in 2008 and thought service was fine in town. However, it got spotty further away from the center of town, which is the case with T-Mobile anyway - great reception in large populated areas, and not too great otherwise.

 

[Guzzler3]

Meh... I think it really depends on what plan you have then. If you are a pre-pay monthly customer then CS is ... how should I say it... An adventure. Especially if you call them from your phone. I think you get the new hires by default, with really bad accents. They stick to their scripts as much as possible, if for any reason you they have to deviate from it, you're on hold for quite awhile till they get back to you.

BUT, if you go into a T-mo brick-n-mortor store, HECK YEA!! Awesome service.

 

[Dr. Impossible]

I'm going to chime in and agree that T-Mobile's CS support has been great for me, and I've been a customer for almost 10 years. That said, I also had their prepaid service for a few years, and the CS support for their prepaid division is spotty - sometimes great, other times not so much.

I spent a week in Nantucket back in 2008 and thought service was fine in town. However, it got spotty further away from the center of town, which is the case with T-Mobile anyway - great reception in large populated areas, and not too great otherwise.

I actually live right in town and I know the reception will be great at home, thankfully, and was figuring it would spot out as I got to the nether regions of the island. That's good to hear as I don't know anyone here with TMo, strangely enough.

Thanks

-Doc

 

[Nogitsune Micah]

Honestly i had verizon and where i have t-mobile at now, t-mobile is actually better.
Idk if it is because I had a Samsung phone(My motorola Droid did better than the Samsung Gs3 did for reception...but not much better) but I could not even hold a consistent convo on Verizon with my gs3.

Now with t-mobile, coverage is still spotty...it's rural around this area and there are a lot of tress but at least i can actually hold a convo with 1 bar and less likely to drop a call.

But I do want to add that the three times i went in store, they were absolutely amazing to me as well