thecaringkind

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Friends, Romans, Countrymen...lend me your phones!

I know just a bad bit of levity but I find that I have to try to laugh these days to keep from crying. Has anyone else noticed how HORRIBLE a job Verizon is doing when it comes to selling the Lumia in its brick and mortar stores?! Its absolutely a joke! I went into a Verizon store today to check out the new Lumia Icon and I walked around the store for a good few minutes before I could actually find the Icon on display. There was NO branding or placards or signage AT ALL. Just two Icons, one white and one black laying on a shelf with a BROKEN display kit. It was PATHETIC.

Seriously, what the heck is the deal when it comes to the relationship Microsoft and Nokia have with Verizon?! I mean its EMBARRASSING the way these phones are just not featured in any meaningful way in their stores. Its like the new phones aren't even a decent afterthought...

OK Im sorry about the rant but it just irks me to no end the way the Nokia phones are treated by Verizon.

As for the Icon itself? What can I say? Absolutely GORGEOUS display and a clean solidly industrial aesthetic design on the phone itself. By they way. Is it me or does the Icon actually feel LIGHTER than the 928? I may have to check the specs again to be sure but any way you slice it the phone does not feel bulky or heavy in the hand at all. It really is a great phone. Looking forward to getting mine via FedEx tomorrow.

As far as being a WP fan, i will continue to press on because I truly believe that the WP OS will only get better and better.


 

menghai

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The local verizon store has it IMMEDIATELY in front of you when you walk into the store. No other products anywhere near, just the icon. First thing every person sees.

p.s. this is in stark contrast to every other terrible Verizon W/O experience I've ever had.

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thecaringkind

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That seems to be the exception Menghai. I wish every store were like that! Its really amazing when you take the time to think about it. There are three major Phone operating systems that most people in the states are aware of. Apple iOS, Android and Windows Phone 8. There are pluses and minuses to each platform however at this stage the way technology advances there is, (in my opinion) no clear cut miles above the competition winner when it comes to the most compelling OS. Windows is legit and viable and growing and I think Verizon continues to do a disservice to itself and its customers by constantly shortchanging Windows Phone.
 

spicypadthai

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That's why I went to a MS store to get mine. Last year I stopped by a Verizon store to check out the 928, right after the Samsung S4 launched, and the employees couldn't answer a question without steering the conversation to the S4. The best part was when I asked two guys their opinions of the 928 and Windows Phone in general. They both said, at the exact same time, "Windows Phone is only good for business transactions." I asked what that even meant and they stared at me and then each other and one of them said, "You know, business transactions" and I laughed and suggested they add some more stuff to their script.
 

Kage Maru

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Your experience mirrors a lot of the other visits discussed in other threads we've had. I won't go into detail, but the one lady who first helped me with the Icon should have probably been fired because of how she acted when discussing WP.


Seriously, what the heck is the deal when it comes to the relationship Microsoft and Nokia have with Verizon?! I mean its EMBARRASSING the way these phones are just not featured in any meaningful way in their stores. Its like the new phones aren't even a decent afterthought...​

I think the relationship between MS and Verizon went south after the whole Kin fiasco.
 

srmccoy

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My local Verizon company store is set up so that all of the devices are around the perimeter of the store. Starting to your immediate right is the Lumia Icon, followed by the Moto X and GS4, iPhone 5 (S and C), then a section for the Droid brand, followed by BlackBerry and other misc. junk at the back. The way the store is laid out you are pretty much funneled in direct to the right, as the left wall contains hotspots and accessories.

The sales staff in my local store all seemed knowledgeable about the Icon, and seemed to enjoy the device. Several staff noted that they requested them for their work phones. Just the other day I went back into the store to pick up a case and they were setting one up for an older gentleman that came in to buy a smartphone and they ended up guiding him to the Icon based on his needs.

I think it's really based on the manager of your local store or possibly even the region.
 

falconrap

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It looks like placement is more a function of that particular store's manager. The one I went to had it in a display that featured the Moto X with the BB10 devices, and the 928 and Odessy, to the left, and the 8X and Icon to the right. The sales rep that handled me said he had one and didn't like the OS but loved the camera. He didn't say anything negative to me about the OS at all and was generally upbeat about the phone. It's kind of funny that some of these stores are hiding the device a little. After touching a lot of the other phones, most felt like toys. The Icon was probably the most premium feeling/looking handset in there. The iPhones are similar, though the 5 and 5S seem toy like in their lightness.

I'm really amazed at how great this phone feels in the hands, how sturdy and well built the device feels, and how nice the display is in both looks and touch. My fingers just glide effortlessly across the gorgeous screen. If these reps would learn the OS more, and understand who they should steer toward it, they would probably sell these things with ease. I have a hard time keeping my hands of the phone as it is!
 

anon(7901790)

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Yeah. That's why I did my research on-line and actually went to our local MSFT store to play with the device (although I did check it out at a couple Verizon stores too). The ladies and gentlemen that work at the MSFT store here in Honolulu were very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the devices they were selling. Once I determined that I wanted to dump my trusty 928 for an Icon, I went to the local Verizon store, walked over to the Icon display (all the way in the back corner), and said, "I want that one." In less than 15 minutes I walked out with a brand spanking white Icon. I didn't give them time to try to sell me anything else, nor did I ask any "how-to" questions. I knew they weren't going be able to answer them...

I will say this, I visited two different Verizon stores to play with the device. Both stores that I visited had Icon fairly prominent, with placards and advertising in plain view. The third store, the one I bought mine at (it was the only one that had any of the white models left), had the display all the way in the back corner, without a lot of advertising. They ALL had working models on display. I guess some stores are a little better at new items than others. Even though Verizon corporate may say, "Look there's a new Windows Phone coming out, sell as many as you can."; it really boils down to the individual store managers being knowledgeable and caring enough to push them. I guess, because Hawaii is primarily a service based economy (more so than on the mainland), the store managers across the board here are better at it.

For the record, the Icon is both slightly heavier and bigger than a 928. But not by much.
 

savagelizards

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I spend a lot of time at the Verizon store. I have a work account with seventeen phones, so a lot of the staff know my face.

When I was off contract last fall and waiting for a next-Gen WP (the 928 was pretty long in the tooth even then), the staff felt I wouldn't like it. The day the Icon was launched, I stopped in and they had a display and were even well stocked with accessories, but after talking with them, it was better for me to buy at the Microsoft store and get the free QI charger, which I did.

Buying at the Microsoft store was a better choice for promotions, but it took nearly two hours from the time I entered until I left, mostly to get the phone authorized. The staff said I was the only customer for the Icon that day, even though the product just launched.

I suppose that's par for the course when you are buying the 1% product no one spends as much time on it. Why would they?
 

jmshub

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We have been hearing this since day one. Some sales people are awesome, and some are complete tools. The guy that sold me my Lumia 920 on launch day of that device was really cool. He was knowledgeable and interested in WP8. The person that sold my wife her 920 months later in a different at&t store made one of the most irritating retail experiences ever.
 

DaT Franchise

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It ain't just Verizon, around here every att and Verizon tries to cram an iPhone down your throat and are absolutely clueless about the products they sell. Go into any att store and ask for a 32 gig 1520 and a nano SIM for it and watch them struggle hahahaha its sad.
 

g808

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Verizon stores here in Northern California have them displayed next to the latest Android phones, and the staff is fairly knowledgeable. They are friendly and have asked what I like about it in a nice conversational way.

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