Sprint employees don't like to sell Windows phone

[avaryj]

Wow! I went into my local Sprint store to look at purchasing the Arive and asked the employee if they had any in stock and the sales rep fround and asked me why do I want a windows phone. I told her that I think that her attitude on windows phone is why they are not selling them against the Android and IOS competition. I asked her had she even used the new os and she said no because they had so many customers bummed from WM6.5. I told her that I have been at ATT playing with WP7 and in my opinion it is way smoother than Android and she couldn't respond in a positive manner. She told me that she thinks I should go with Android. I said no and she still insisted that I go with the E4GT and I told her I already have that phone and didn't like the OS. She basically told me to really think hard about purchasing WP7. What a wierd experience.

 

[11B1P]

Then what happened? Did they have any phones in stock? Did you take the opportunity to show one to her?

 

[aubreyq]

Wow! I went into my local Sprint store to look at purchasing the Arive and asked the employee if they had any in stock and the sales rep fround and asked me why do I want a windows phone. I told her that I think that her attitude on windows phone is why they are not selling them against the Android and IOS competition. I asked her had she even used the new os and she said no because they had so many customers bummed from WM6.5. I told her that I have been at ATT playing with WP7 and in my opinion it is way smoother than Android and she couldn't respond in a positive manner. She told me that she thinks I should go with Android. I said no and she still insisted that I go with the E4GT and I told her I already have that phone and didn't like the OS. She basically told me to really think hard about purchasing WP7. What a wierd experience.

Dude this is so EFFED UP. It really irks me, man. I would link this post on Twitter, etc. Copy @windowsphone, etc. That store manager would have some explaining to do if their employees are asking questions like "why would you want a Windows Phone?"

Also, why does WinMo 6.5 have to do with anything? They can't tell a customer that WP7 is a completely different OS?

Man, Microsoft has a LOT of work to do. A LOT.

 

[aubreyq]

Did she even articulate the reasons as to why you should go with garbage, I mean, Android?

 

[theefman]

I still find it shocking that anyone would even talk, let alone listen to a sales rep. When I went to buy my HD2 I walked in, said what I wanted, paid and was out the door. I bought my DVP from Dell so didnt go to a store but I dare any sales rep to try this BS with me, they'd get a stern talking to!

 

[canesfan625]

There use to be a place where you could report things like this. Microsoft was looking into it because its a pretty rampant issue.

 

[Mr.Moonlight]

Unfortunately, yours is not an isolated incident. But...

Justified or not, the generally negative perception of Windows Mobile over the last few years is still indelibly branded in the minds of many salespeople. Few have even bothered to even look at a WP7 device (let alone try one out) and dismiss WP7 as simply the latest incarnation of Windows Mobile...WM 6.5 + 0.5, if you will. Few even realize it's a completely new OS built from the ground up and has absolutely nothing to do with the old WM.

Until the retail employees get a clue and realize that Microsoft has taken a new and innovate approach in creating a mobile OS that (refreshingly) breaks with the "grids of countless icons"-paradigm, emphasizing ease-of-use and productivity, potential buyers will be forced to do their homework beforehand and resist being bullied into buying something they specifically don't want.

I suspect this will change over time... but for the moment, we'll have to put up with disinterested salespeople who choose to remain oblivious to new developments in the smartphone market.

 

[jake69]

I went to ATT store last night to check out the Focus S. I was surprised that I saw an Iphone 3s sitting in a WP section right next to Focus Flash...when it should be across the other side of the store with the rest of the Iphones. The Iphone 3s is FREE by the way. Something is fishy if you ask me.

 

[mmbond]

the site for reporting stupidity is...

Welcome To Windows Phone Tattletale - Windows Phone Tattletale

 

[donnydonny#WP]

I can confirm the OP's experience. In the San Francisco Bay Area, I went to FIVE Sprint stores (2 in San Francisco, 2 in Daly City, 1 in Emeryville) and NONE of them had an HTC Arrive (the lone WP7 phone on Sprint) on display or in stock. The salesperson at the one of the San Francisco stores then recommended that if I just want to play with the OS (since it's the same on every phone) that I go to an AT&T/Verizon/T-Mobile store and just play with any of the available phones.

Every salesperson I spoke to at every store asked me why I wanted WP7. When I responded with, "Because it's not Android", their jaws dropped every time. Every time I ended up talking to two people explaining to them how much I thought Android sucked and I wasn't going to get a BlackBerry. They all asked me if I'd even heard of the EVO and several other Android phones. What part of "no" don't they understand?

It wasn't until the SIXTH store that I went to (San Mateo, CA), where they actually had the phone on display and in stock, and the salesperson happily sold me the phone without question.

As much as I love WP7, I am pretty unhappy with the troubles that I had to go through just to get this phone. I am happy, though, that I was able to stick to my guns and eventually get what I wanted.

 

[cckgz4]

I wish there was a way to bypass the reps to activate a phone, in which I think you can over the phone

 

[mcwop]

Why buy a windows phone when you won't have any decent apps or may never get an update when its released. The native Bing search engine stinks, the native map app stinks, and the phone crashes more than Win 95. Android and iOS run circles around this OS. I have used all three, I like the Metro UI paradigm, but my Focus 1.4 just does work well in these key areas mentioned, and still no Mango for Focus 1.4 folks. Trust me, get the iPhone 4S and use it, if you do not like it return it for a Windows phone before 30 days.

 

[cckgz4]

Why buy a windows phone when you won't have any decent apps or may never get an update when its released. The native Bing search engine stinks, the native map app stinks, and the phone crashes more than Win 95. Android and iOS run circles around this OS. I have used all three, I like the Metro UI paradigm, but my Focus 1.4 just does work well in these key areas mentioned, and still no Mango for Focus 1.4 folks. Trust me, get the iPhone 4S and use it, if you do not like it return it for a Windows phone before 30 days.

you sound like that sales rep that serviced the op

 

[mcwop]

you sound like that sales rep that serviced the op

Its true. I am sitting here with a Focus v1.4 and still no Mango, and no faith I'll ever get it soon, and I have have had no luck with force updates. Not much more I can take from MSFT at this point, and un-threaded email is beginning to seriously annoy me, in addition to a substandard browser (which won't do the nice threaded web based Gmail), terrible search etc....

I bought the phone for a few reasons. 1) Saw the Metro UI dev utility at the Web 2.0 conference, and liked the UI and people-centric aspect. 2) Knew Mango would be coming 3) Test drive WP7 because I need to know each UI experience for work. Well, this experiment is an epic fail so far, and MSFT is in dead last in the mobile space (I do not even count Balckberry/RIM).

 

[Matthew Mazzenga]

I find it funny that because the Mango update hasn't happened yet for a small group of users (one specific phone), that WP is a complete failure....yet the whole Android update process is a complete cluserf**k, and those things sell like hotcakes.

mcwop...I understand the frustration that you must be going through waiting for the update, but it's not a problem that the majority of us are experiencing, so I hardly think it's enough to dismiss the OS entirely as a failure.

 

[wolf1891]

I find it funny that because the Mango update hasn't happened yet for a small group of users (one specific phone), that WP is a complete failure....yet the whole Android update process is a complete cluserf**k, and those things sell like hotcakes.

mcwop...I understand the frustration that you must be going through waiting for the update, but it's not a problem that the majority of us are experiencing, so I hardly think it's enough to dismiss the OS entirely as a failure.

agreed. blame Samsung for changing the specs on the Focus partway through the year and not properly testing/clearing it with Microsoft. Don't blame the O/S.

 

[ninjaap]

I wish there was a way to bypass the reps to activate a phone, in which I think you can over the phone

There is. Buy it from AmazonWireless: Cell Phones and Plans

For the past 3 upgrades, I've gotten my phones through them. They usually undercut carrier pricing. After a month or so, prices usually drop to a penny for a 2 year contract.

 

[Winterfang]

To be honest, the arrive is kinda meh.

 

[theefman]

Why buy a windows phone when you won't have any decent apps or may never get an update when its released. The native Bing search engine stinks, the native map app stinks, and the phone crashes more than Win 95. Android and iOS run circles around this OS. I have used all three, I like the Metro UI paradigm, but my Focus 1.4 just does work well in these key areas mentioned, and still no Mango for Focus 1.4 folks. Trust me, get the iPhone 4S and use it, if you do not like it return it for a Windows phone before 30 days.

Your update is late, not withdrawn. Mango was released on September 27, so its just about 6 weeks old. The Focus 1.4 update is in testing according the the "Where's My Update" page so all that is required is patience. However if you feel the OS doesnt work for you, there is nothing bad in going for another platform, especially if your device is otherwise not working properly.

 

[Apoc]

Its true. I am sitting here with a Focus v1.4 and still no Mango, and no faith I'll ever get it soon, and I have have had no luck with force updates. Not much more I can take from MSFT at this point, and un-threaded email is beginning to seriously annoy me, in addition to a substandard browser (which won't do the nice threaded web based Gmail), terrible search etc....

I bought the phone for a few reasons. 1) Saw the Metro UI dev utility at the Web 2.0 conference, and liked the UI and people-centric aspect. 2) Knew Mango would be coming 3) Test drive WP7 because I need to know each UI experience for work. Well, this experiment is an epic fail so far, and MSFT is in dead last in the mobile space (I do not even count Balckberry/RIM).

Sorry to hear of the bad news, but it's Samsung to blame, not MS. Like mentioned before, Samsung, did not clear everything with Microsoft before hand and now they are trying to fix the situation(which at this point, they(Samsung) should swith all the trouble 1.4 handsets to the problem free sets)