Sprint has begun an internal campaign against Apple iPhone and A&T that consists of a series of employee aids designed to help Sprint employees counteract customers who, according to our sources, already canceling their service contracts with Sprint in order to prepare for Apple’s iPhone.
According to our sources, certain Sprint employees are being told to expect an initial drop of up to 6% of their current “smart phone” customer base (Treos/Blackberrys/etc.) as a result of a successful iPhone launch. Extrapolate this to the other carriers and you can clearly see how Apple iPhone has the potential to rock the entire industry.
The following is taken directly out of the Sprint document:
iPhone Talking Points Guide for Sales and Customer Care
Sales and Customer Care may use this reference guide to learn:
• Details about the iPhone
• Ways to favorably position Sprint to our customers
• Sample talking points
Marketing may use this as background material for other sales and marketing deliverables.
• Refer to the categories listed below for specific talking points.
• Always make it a point to understand the customer’s interest in a conversation about iPhone in the context of his / her account profile and specific business or personal need.
• Retail sales should use Maximize or sView to understand the customer’s current profile in order to fully understand the customer’s needs.
• The Sprint network is a significant differentiator especially when discussing iPhone features and functions.
• Always refer to network talking points at s.n.c >coverage>network information and updates>customer information during conversations with customers about the iPhone.
Sample Talking Points – iPhone:
• Apple positions the iPhone as a multi-functional device with these features:
• Phone with unique visual voicemail allowing users to scroll through voicemail similar to viewing email
• Camera (1.3 mega pixel)
MacDailyNews Note: Apple iPhone features a 2.0 megapixel camera.
• MP3 player (4G or 8G)
• Mobile Internet tool delivering desk-top like visuals
• Photo organizer
• The iPhone is only available through AT&T (Cingular)
• Operates on their Quadband GSM, EDGE network
• Sells for $499 or $599
Potential iPhone negatives:
• Most current Smartphones have secure email necessary for business functionality. The iPhone uses Yahoo and Mac email which is not secure.
• It does not have a keyboard. Users may find the virtual keyboard difficult to use.
• It has a non-replaceable battery.
• It offers no external storage.
• It operates on AT&T’s EDGE network, which is slower than Sprint’s Mobile Broadband network.
Sample Talking Points – Network Speed:
• Network speed is the main point of differentiation between the iPhone and any product Sprint sells.
• The iPhone only operates on the GSM, EDGE networks and therefore users will experience slower downloads than they would with smartphones that run on the Sprint Mobile Broadband Network.
MacDailyNews Note: Apple iPhone features Wi-Fi (802.11b/g).
• Sprint Mobile Broadband coverage is competitive with any other carrier.
• Reaches more than 208 million people across the country.
• Covers more than 11,000 cities and 1,000 airports.
• Sprint is the leading wireless provider to businesses.
• Mobile broadband service in 220 major markets and more than 870 airports coast-to-coast.
• “Great device, but slow downloads.”
• “Using the iPhone on the GSM/EDGE network may be like having a really powerful computer on dial up.”
• “Whether you want music, email, web surfing or business files, our phones will download everything faster.”
• “No matter what feature you are interested in – our network provides speedy downloads.”
• “Concerned about coverage? I think you’ll see that we are comparable or better than all other carriers. Let me show you the map on our Power Network Coverage Tool to verify your coverage area.”
Sample Talking Points – Music:
• Sprint offers a variety of phones that are also MP3 players:
• Upstage
• Fusic
• Fusic II
• MotoQ
• Blackberry 8830
• “We have many handsets that are MP3 players.”
• “You want to have music with your phone? Let me show you the new Upstage or the Fusic II.”
• “We also have PDA phones that are MP3 players if you want to combine lots of features.”
• “With Sprint, you can download music instantly without being tethered to a computer.”
• “With Sprint you can quickly download music or anything else you want.”
• “Any music phone from Sprint lets you download songs instantly – out of thin air.”
Sample Talking Points – International:
• Sprint offers several phones with international capabilities.
• Show them the IP-830W by Samsung.
• Blackberry 8830 works on CDMA/EVDO and GSM/GPRS
• “Let me show you the IP-830. It’s an international phone and Smartphone with many of the features of the iPhone.”
• “The iP-830 is a slider-style phone which people tend to prefer over the iPhone style.”
• “Plus with Sprint, you get speedy, untethered downloads. You don’t have to be wired to a computer.”
Sample Talking Points – Storage:
• Sprint offers a variety of phones with external mini-drives for unlimited storage:
• Upstage
• Fusic II
• Motorazer
• MotoQ
• Blackberry 8830
• (Or other products as appropriate.)
• “If storage is an issue for you, let me show you all the devices that have external mini-drives for unlimited storage.”
• “Did you know that many of our phones offer external storage? Unlike the iPhone, which is only available in 4G or 8G, our phones offer unlimited storage.”
• “Are you sure 4G or 8G is enough storage for you? To give you a comparison, most iPods/MP3 players hold 40 to 60Gigs or more.”
• “The Upstage takes external mini-disks for unlimited storage.”
• “Our full line of PDA phones also offers unlimited, external storage.”
• “And remember, whatever you download and want to store, you can do it instantly with Sprint.”
Sample Talking Points – Price:
• The iPhone will sell for $499 or $599
• Given this price range, many Sprint phones will appear to be a great value, especially since they offer similar features over a faster network.
• If someone is interested in the iPhone, show them the PPC-6700 or the IP-830. Highlight all the features:
– Email
– International
– Camera
• External storage (iPhone doesn’t offer)
• “Sprint offers a wide variety of comparable phones that are much less expensive than the iPhone.”
• “Sure we have less expensive phones than the iPhone. The MotoQ, for example, is only $79 and is an MP3 player, PDA, camera, mobile internet device, and of course, a phone.”
• “With the MotoQ, you can use the money you save to pay for the monthly service.”
Sample Talking Points – Mobile Internet:
• Sprint has the largest mobile broadband network.
• With the Sprint mobile broadband card and a laptop, customers can experience desktop quality internet almost anywhere.
• The iPhone allows desk-top like surfing, but is on a slow network.
• Show customers other phones with internet capabilities such as MotoQ, PC 6700, etc.
• “If you want desktop-like mobile surfing, you should check out our broadband card.”
• “With the broadband card and a laptop, you can be online just about anywhere, anytime.”
Sample Talking Points – New Technology:
• Industry analysts and publishers agree that Sprint leads the industry in technology and innovation.
• Wall Street Journal, IDC, Yankee Group
• Sprint is already building out the 4G network which will be four times faster than today’s network technology.
• “Have you seen the Upstage? It’s a two-sided phone.”
• “The iPhone is an Apple product and has some nice features. It also has a nice price. Do you really need all those features in one device?”
• “Sprint has a variety of innovative phones.”
• “Sprint is a proven leader of technical advances and you can count on us to bring innovative services.”
• “Our Sprint Mobile Broadband Network, for example, provides downloads five times faster than AT&T’s EDGE.”
• “We are leaders in the 3G, EVDO network and plans are underway to build out the 4G network.”
• “We will lead in the Wi-MAX deployment.”
View the PDF (124 KB) here.
You can almost hear the sweat dripping off Sprint executives’ brows.
And if all else fails, take their dog, Fluffy, hostage.
just stop, they’re so fscked it’s not even funny. they were barely hanging on in the first place with their shit customer service and funky phones. now, they’re all about throwing anything out to dissuade customers.
dead in the water.
MW – respect – they’re going to owe a lot of it to Apple/AT&T
Wow, I think I want to swig by a Sprint store on my way to AT&T just to mess with them.
“So it works with iTunes?”…”No?”
“The interface is easy to use?”…”Oh..”
Why does everyone try to fixate on the price? Quality is quality.
A few hundred dollars more or less is just a few hundred dollars. I want my stuff to WORK
Enjoy, see you in line on Friday in Bellevue
MDN MW: trying–> is that a pun? Sprint is ‘trying’ iPhone is ‘doing’!
As Steve said about Microsoft and The Macintosh,
“What’s a few percentage points between friends?”
I expect that most of the other carrier’s will be rolling out similar talking points over the next few days.
The big news is that Sprint expects as much as a 6% drop in customers. Even if that’s on the high side, it seems Apple’s goal of capturing 1% of the market by 2008 will be EASY!
Can *anyone* hear me now?
Hello?
I emailed a michelle.leff@sprint.com to let her know the talking points are pure and utter BS. She’s the Consumer Products head. You should email her too!
wow, running scared already
with good reason
iPhone, Bltch!
They do have one point, AT&T’s network sucks. Sprint has a much better network. Frankly, I wish the iPhone was on Sprint’s network.
haha, out of office reply
Thank you for your message. I am out of the office on business travel through Thursday, June 28, with sporadic access to e-mail. If you need immediate assistance, please call my wireless at (703) 928-3919.
If you are a customer, please call 1-800-SPRINT1 for assistance. For privacy reasons, only Customer Care associates have access to customer account information.
Thanks and have a great day!
Best,
Michelle Leff
Yo, ChrissyOne, where you been?
Here’s the best one by far:
“The iPhone is an Apple product and has some nice features. It also has a nice price. Do you really need all those features in one device?”
Let’s follow this logic thru, Sprint wants me to carry a digital camera, an mp3 player AND one of their phones? Hmmm, sounds so tempting.
The other major flaw with their talking points is that it takes a fleet of Sprint phones to fulfill the needs that the iPhone does alone.
@ Shogun
Contrary to publicized rumors, I actually do have a bit of a life. ;P
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”wink” style=”border:0;” />
Did some photography over the weekend, and my general curousing with sketchy types. I’m currently getting my camping gear ready.
“Let’s follow this logic thru, Sprint wants me to carry a digital camera, an mp3 player AND one of their phones?”
“Do you really need all those features in one device?”
“Sure we have less expensive phones than the iPhone. The MotoQ, for example, is only $79 and is an MP3 player, PDA, camera, mobile internet device, and of course, a phone.”
“With Sprint, you can download music instantly without being tethered to a computer.”
“With the broadband card and a laptop, you can be online just about anywhere, anytime.”
“Plus with Sprint, you get speedy, untethered downloads. You don’t have to be wired to a computer.”
========================
I’m very, very confused.
“The iPhone is an Apple product and has some nice features. It also has a nice price.”
So, what if it’s an Apple Product? I don’t understand what they are pointing out in that first part. Seems as though they are saying since its Apple then you should stay away.
“Do you really need all those features in one device?”
Now that is desperate, we can’t compare to the iPhone, take something cheaper we have, but it only sends sms via web and it, well turns itself all the time, but it’s cheaper.
Oh, the competition is so scared for Apple again. Nice to see it !
I love this:
“Have you seen the Upstage? It’s a two-sided phone.”
Customer’s reply: “Oh yeah? That sounds really stupid. So about iPhone…”
With Wi-Fi in so many areas, I will be using very little of the EDGE network… surfing and downloads being slow will be a mute point.
I enjoyed that they didn’t even bother to mention 802.11 on the iPhone when talking about speed
I give hackers one week and the iPhone will be cracked to run on anybody’s GSM network, just like normal phones can have their carrier exclusiveness removed. Linux will be on it in three weeks. A bluetooth micro-keyboard will take one month. Since it is OS X, the unauthorised hacks will be enormous – TV remote controls, widgets, games, Java, Flash, divX, missing link, VoIP, VPN, printing, etc.
Heard at Sprint HQ:
“Ah, Jones, we need you to put together a ten minute iPhone rebuttal for senior management. Make it hard-hitting, but leave the technical bullshit out.”
“Ah…”
“Remember, ten minutes. Just twenty good PowerPoint slides.”
Later….
“Jones, that rebuttal ready?”
“Oh, it was ready right away. Might not be ten minutes, though.”
“How many slides you got?”
“One. Here, have a look.”
Shows a single slide that says “We’re toast.”
“Jones, are you familiar with the Cobra program?”
“With a broadband card and a laptop, you can be online just about anywhere, anytime.” “What if I can’t afford to carry a device as large as my laptop around?”
“With Sprint, you can download music instantly without being tethered to a computer.” “So I assume this music is DRM-free?”
“Using the iPhone on the GSM/EDGE network may be like having a really powerful computer on dial-up.” “So what if I use it on a Wi-Fi network, faster than any mobile service out there? Can I use your phone on those too? Or do I have to pay for all the data transfer?”
These “talking points” seem geared towards uninformed customers. (Accidentally or not, they’re blatantly understating the iPhone’s capabilities.)
The same way The Steve rocked the sedate, crappy music industry with iPod, the cell industry will be shook up by iPhone.
Now that Apple will be holding the handle in the cell industry too, and the carriers the blade. My suggestion to Sprint, T-Mobile, ATT, blah, blah, blah: Take your time with your hand on the blade!
Very entertaining.
I agree with the complaints about EDGE (I’ll wait for an iPhone with HSDPA).
I liked the bit about “external storage.” I sort of agree–the 3.5GB iPhone (after OS X) is gonna be pushed pretty hard, IMHO. I have a 4GB iPod nano which has about 2.5GB of music and address book stuff. I haven’t dared put photos on it because I’d probably fill it up.
So if you want to bring some movies and music on your vacation, you’d best not figure you’re going to be taking a batch of snapshots with your iPhone.
…or you’d better buy the 8GB.
I agree that Sprint’s talking points do seem desperate, HOWEVER they are trying to protect their business from going under just like apple had to do in the ’90’s. They are simply trying to stay competitive, and I never saw anything in those points that was untrue. Yes Sprint does have phones with similar functions and Sprint DOES have a better broadband system. Pointing out a negative aspect of a competing product does not qualify them as losers. Before everyone rejoices at the impending doom of sprint simply for trying to persuade people to use their products think of this: They are a business just like Apple trying to protect their investment and make a profit. In all honesty, the iPhone is a way to make huge sums of money for Apple, they didn’t make it for some altruistic reason because the world needed this product. They made it to stay competitive. so don’t be grudge sprint the same thing.
No point in arguing this. Next Monday will speak for itself.
“Most current Smartphones have secure email necessary for business functionality. The iPhone uses Yahoo and Mac email which is not secure.”
Yeah, right.
IOW, iPhone can use industry-standard IMAP mail. What Sprint has syncs with Outlook and talks to Microsoft’s Exchange. You can tell people that Microsoft’s proprietary crap — Outlook/Exchange — is “secure”, but it’s the reverse of the truth. Jeez, the most damaging worm EVER — it caused an estimated $5.5 billion in damage — leveraged the insecurities in Microsoft’s phenomenally insecure email systems.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ILOVEYOU
Open standards are insecure and Microsoft’s crap is secure, says Sprint! Do you really think people are going to believe such lies, Sprint? If open standards are “insecure” we’d all best get off the Internet — the whole freakin’ thing is built on open standards.
It’s why it actually works.
Sprint is just doing what any business does… tries to keep customers. No big deal….
did Sprint completely forget about the part that it plays video? can you imagine a salesman with a couple short videos of his product on his iPhone, he can be ready when ever he needs to be to give a presentation. can sprint phones do that? didn’t think so. 😀 (actually I don’t know if they can or can’t I just know they can’t do it as well)
I don’t blame them either. But it’s still funny.
“But . . . um, the iPhone might kill kittens if left unattended. Our phones have been tested pet safe.”
As a major Mac user and a software developer, I WILL say I am waiting on the iPhone. First, past rule – never buy a first generation Apple product. Second, they’ve basically insulted develoeprs with their “development environment” by using Safari. I’m sorry, that’s webpages, not an application, and makes it difficult for me to do things like database synchronization to a desktop application, remote desktop connection, SSH client, etc. Particularly since there’s a lack of Java, Flash, etc.
Now, regarding Sprint, their network IS better. But, their phones generally are pretty lousy, and the Treo’s, though wonderful, are definitely dated interface wise. I’m still waiting though before i’ll even consider an iPhone until development is opened up, and I can also use the iPhone without spending $80 a month on a phone and data plan (I’ve got unlimited internet, messaging, as well as my basic phone service for $35 right now, so no way will I switch).
SO, though the iPhone is a great product, it’s still pretty limited at this point, and in the development/IT world, has got a LOT to prove and a lot of changes to be made before it’ll gain a huge amount of attention.
@ Jason
A major something, anyway.
p.s. A LOT of the points above that Sprint is trying to make really is nonsense. As I recall, ANY of these phones, and the iPhone, should support standard SSL encrypted IMAP connections – Yahoo may not use the most secure connection, but it’s not unencrypted necessarily. Honestly, the ONLY thing Sprint has going for them is their network. Email isn’t a great excuse, although if you do use Exchange (let bygones be bygones, Exchange works for most people, and that’s fine. CalDAV works for me, but Google Calendar works the best
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”smile” style=”border:0;” /> ), you just need a phone which runs Windows Mobile, available on any network.
SO, network is the ONLY point really that I see, and it’s not even a huge point. Price in combination with that may be more of an issue, particularly if Sprint offers unlimited data for half the price ($50 a month for a data plan is danged expensive for most people).
By the way Sprint, Apple sells BETTER laptops that you can get a real web-browsing experience with anytime anywhere. So what’s your point? People don’t want to always be carrying a laptop!
You people are going to be pwned. Your fear is showing. Never show your fear.
S.
JackSpratt Talking Points:
“with Sprint, you get speedy, untethered downloads. You don’t have to be wired to a computer.”
until Apple opens the iTunes Mobile Store.
seriously, how dumb are people? the thing has a fair amount of flash memory. do they really think the iPhone isn’t going to be upgradeable? do they really think Apple will release the first iPhone and go, “well, that’s it!” and leave it at that?
“Are you sure 4G or 8G is enough storage for you? To give you a comparison, most iPods/MP3 players hold 40 to 60Gigs or more.”
which is why sales of the iPod Nano — which at 8 GB holds up to 2,000 songs — are sooooooooo poor.
“The iP-830 is a slider-style phone which people tend to prefer over the iPhone style.”
because so many people have tried the iPhone and decided they like the slider-style better.
“Sure we have less expensive phones than the iPhone. The MotoQ, for example, is only $79 and is an MP3 player, PDA, camera, mobile internet device, and of course, a phone.”
full web page browsing and zooming with one of the more standards-compliant browsers in the industry. multi-touch. 3.5″ screen. CoverFlow music browsing. Mac OS X stability and security. proximity sensor. YouTube. visual voicemail. Mac compatibility. thousands of iPod accessories, many of which are already or will be updated to be compatible. got all that on one of those phones?
Mac1 “The big news is that Sprint expects as much as a 6% drop in customers.”
Yeah, that what it says in the headline – and in the good old tabloid style, the text is much less thrilling, that’s why you should never read the text:
“According to our sources, certain Sprint employees are being told to expect an initial drop of up to 6% of their current “smart phone” customer base (Treos/Blackberrys/etc.) as a result of a successful iPhone launch.”
6% of Sprint smartphone users translates into 95580 customers (53.1 million Sprint subscribers, 3% smart phone penetration in the US).
http://www.itireports.com/MIAs/usa_mia.htm
http://www.fiercewireless.com/story/trend-smartphones-moving-to-mainstream/2007-03-26
Here’s another one:
THE EARTH WILL EXPLODE TOMORROW!!!!
My sister heard on the train an elderly woman tell to certain persons that there is a 0.72% risk of a magnitude 6 earthquake in Little Rock during the next 20,000 years.
Peter said, “So if you want to bring some movies and music on your vacation, you’d best not figure you’re going to be taking a batch of snapshots with your iPhone.”
Using your figures, say you moved everything from your iPod to your iPhone, leaving you 1GB of free memory. Then you take FIVE HUNDRED photos, and at a reasonable size of 100KB each they would take up 50MB, still leaving you with 0.95GB of free memory.
So go ahead, take all the photos you like.
I’m going to go into a Sprint store and ask if they carry the iPhone. After the salesperson drones on and shows me all of their phones that they think compete with the iPhone, my reply will simply be, so you don’t have anything that competes with the iPhone and leave.
If they think that the MotoQ is comparable, even at $79, they are wrong. I have this phone and it sucks.
Like the folks in Redmond use to say ‘resistance is futile’.
• “The iPhone is an Apple product and has some nice features. It also has a nice price. Do you really need all those features in one device?”
Yes damn it, I do!!!
just to be the devil advocate, do you expect sprint to sit back and say oh well, let AT&T take our customers, its ok?
I have to agree though, Sprint has a faster network with CDMA but they will loose customers until all the iphone users clog up AT&T’s GSM network, they may win some back then.
Sprint can’t kill my desire for an iPhone unless they kill my brain first …and after all those sample talking points it’s almost dead …almost.
Remember, your connection to the internet will even be faster now that there are fewer people using Sprint (because they left us for the iPhone). And if you do join AT&A there now such a crowd that your speed will even be less.
“Are you sure 4G or 8G is enough storage for you? To give you a comparison, most iPods/MP3 players hold 40 to 60Gigs or more.”
“Most iPods/MP3 players” hold less than 8Gigs. The iPod mini and then the nano and shuffle have outsold the regular iPod by plenty. SanDisk is no.2 and almost all of its models are 8Gigs or less.
Bloody Dell Hell! how will their customers cope when the personnel can barely get all that round their heads to deliver a faultless sales patter?
Maybe I should deliver some Camels Milk to their sales rooms, that oughta sought out the palpable stress!!
I was with Nextel and they got bought by Sprint – boy does their customer service stink. I was paying a $150 bill per month and yet I got grief everytime I called customer service. They would send threatening collection letters (ofcourse automated) because THEIR automated credit card payment system was screwed – and not one apology. Now I’m with T-mobile and fairy satisfied – except for their coverage. So Sprint is trying to RETAIN customers – not me, I’ll never go back.
AM
I wonder what the iPhone will be like making CALLS. We don’t know yet, and wouldn’t that be a major kick in the teeth if it managed to drop service every 15 seconds of a conversation? That simply cannot happen. The extras are nice, but the fact that it is being sold as a cell phone means that it has to be a PHONE first, features second.
Apple, reading this post provides it’s sales people with counter-points. Brilliant (not) of Sprint to let this leak.
I love what I’ve seen of the iPhone. What has me worried is the AT&T peice. Has anyone got any hard info on the plans AT&T is going to have for the iPhone? I’d hate to see such an awesome product buggered by brain-dead, draconian “service” plans.
There are three big issues with the iPhone. No one knows how the public will react to these three issues, yet so many people act as if they can see into the future.
In its commercials about the iPhone, Apple overpromised and will underdeliver re the speed of web browsing. EDGE is FAR slower than wi-fi, and their misleading commercials included no disclaimer about that distinction. Most people only have wi-fi in places where they already have laptops with internet access: at home and work. They will be ticked off when they can’t duplicate the same fast browsing in the car or on the train.
How can anyone make projections about unit sales when we have no idea how much the monthly cellular service will cost. $50 a month for cellular service will result in vastly different sales numbers than $100 a month.
How well will the on screen keyboard work?
How many phones do sprint give away with their contracts? From the sounds of it at least 2 or 3 just to cover the iPhone, maybe people would stay with them if they did give 3 phones per contract, sell them, pay off the line rental and buy an iPhone!
The big talking points for Sprint is going to be the terrible price that AT&T charges the bleeding-edge customers for their monthly iPhone service. There is also a big chance that people switching to AT&T to get an iPhone won’t be able to purchase an iPhone for several months.
There are opportunities for all of the cell phone companies to start boasting about their handset’s features for the customers who didn’t get an iPhone on the first Friday of sales.
We’ll see Friday.
Gasp. I can not wait to loose my Palm Treo 700P (p-piece of $%^&).
If anything, Palm and Sprint have short of driven me to the steps of ATT. The Palm Treo 700P is so problem ridden. I have had this device since February. Palm makes it difficult to warranty (have to mail it back). Sprint wants to charge a fee to look at it.
Bottom line, the device sucks. Bottom line, I have to buy another device. If I am going to buy a smart phone. Why not buy the best. Apple iPhone!
Problem solved. Thank you Sprint for making the switch for me!
Final talking point by Sprint salesmen: “Yes, my breath smells like ass.”
What’s the bullshit about mac mail and yahoo mail not being secure? The only email worms that have ever existed have existed for Microsoft products. And as far as access security, all email servers are the same… if you know the password, you get in. If you don’t know the password, you don’t get in. I don’t see the difference.
Besides, I can access my company provided Outlook email account through Outlook Web Access via Safari, so I will be able to get my Outlook mail through my iPhone. The IT department also supports IMAP and POP3 access to the Exchange server. So quite the FUD, Sprint. You’re not fooling anyone.
Fluffy? Fluffy!!!!!
The reason I switched to Sprint is because AT&T Wireless was expensive and coverage was poor at my house.
Too bad the iPhone is only available through the new at&t.
EDGE is old technology. Sprint’s EV-DO is much better.
The reason I switched to Sprint is because AT&T Wireless was expensive and coverage was poor at my house.
Too bad the iPhone is only available through the new at&t.
EDGE is old technology. Sprint’s EV-DO is much better.
The reason I switched to Sprint is because AT&T Wireless was expensive and coverage was poor at my house.
Too bad the iPhone is only available through the new at&t.
EDGE is old technology. Sprint’s EV-DO is much better.
The reason I switched to Sprint is because AT&T Wireless was expensive and coverage was poor at my house.
Too bad the iPhone is only available through the new at&t.
EDGE is old technology. Sprint’s EV-DO is much better.
I’m actually a sprint user and I don’t want an iPhone bad enough to pay to cancel my contract… but there’s the REAL problem ALL the wireless companies have. We HATE them. All of them. They have spent years offering us stupid complex products (the most complex of is the selection of plan of course) all aimed at scamming even more money from us every month.
Like the time when I changed phone numbers (not plans or accounts or phones, just the number!) and somehow Sprint made that into a transition that cost me an extra month’s charges. And I naively called them thinking it was an error…
I’m sure Cingulair’s customers hate them just as much… the point is that these guys have used annoying shady business tactics for years, so when there’s a disruptor they have zero–no negative–credibility and loyalty to fall back on.
So the marketing people can do their jobs and come up with all the talking points (some true, some misleading, and a few revealing a downright challenged relationship with the truth)…it doesn’t matter. It’s not even that they have no credibility (though they don’t). It’s that we hate them.
Every month when I open my sprint bill I anticipate some other strange weird charge that I’m going to have to call them about. It is my most annoying purchase and one that requires care and feeding every month.
And on paper, Sprint would see me as a long time, loyal customer.
These guys have no idea how much we actually hate them.
Re the iPhone’s camera, am I alone in thinking that 2 megapixels is pretty crap for kit of this quality and price? That’s the same as my old and cheap Samsung…
Hey Mr. Sprintman, show me all your phones that run OS X.
Shawn wrote:
I emailed a michelle.leff@sprint.com to let her know the talking points are pure and utter BS. She’s the Consumer Products head. You should email her too!
haha, out of office reply Thank you for your message. I am out of the office on business travel through Thursday, June 28, with sporadic access to e-mail. If you need immediate assistance, please call my wireless at (703) 928-3919. If you are a customer, please call 1-800-SPRINT1 for assistance. For privacy reasons, only Customer Care associates have access to customer account information. Thanks and have a great day! Best, Michelle Leff
Too daggone funny!!!
“Sporadic access to E-Mail”
Coincides nicely with Sprint talking points about
their coverage
•Covers more than 11,000 cities and 1,000 airports.
• Mobile broadband service in 220 major markets and more than 870 airports coast-to-coast.
• “Concerned about coverage? I think you’ll see that we are comparable or better than all other carriers. Let me show you the map on our Power Network Coverage Tool to verify your coverage area.”
Actually I’ve been a very loyal customer of Sprint since 1996 (with my first cell, the Sony Z-phone. Yeah, baby!). I’d prefer that the iPhone worked with Sprint, _but_ I’ll be jumping ship in the next 4-5 months to go with AT&T and the iPhone.
I am exactly the customer that Sprint fears losing: I have used their service for 11 years, and now have 2 phones and a premium talk/data package. They lose folks like me, that hurts far worse than the fast turnover crowd that jumps to different providers every year.
I thought that list would never end!
Or is that they; Sprint-staffer’s are going tobe getting iPhones for them-self’s while holding Sprint costomer’s “Ransom” I mean “back”.
My wife and I both, will be dumping Sprint, in favor of iPhone/AT&T. Personally, I can’t wait to be rid of them.
@January 24, 1984
TOAST …. frik’n perfect.
iToast = iPhone bitch.
Chrissy . . . you rock.
The iPhone looks great, and the price isn’t a detractor. The three biggest factors that I see are the lack of a replaceable battery, the network speed, and the fact that AT&T is the only choice. I can just see having to send the phone back to Apple to have the battery replaced, or running out of juice with using the phone so much. The iPhone screams “use me a lot”. The battery can only last so long. As for the network speeds, edge is slow in comparison to EVDO. I tethered my Treo 755P to my MBP and got 1.2 MB/s downstream. We do not even know if the iPhone will allow tethering. It is great to see how fast Google Maps worked, but was that on a WiFi connection, or EDGE network? Safari beats anything out there, but will it be quick enough on EDGE? As for the AT&T issue, I used to use Cingular. I stopped using them. I do not see AT&T providing any better support or networking than Cingular did. I also know Bellsouth services also sucked. I will go out on a limb and say that the Apple/AT&T alliance lasts about a year, then it will unravel. My guess is that Apple will either tired of the AT&T complaints, or the glacial pace of AT&T network enhancements.
I went and bought a new Sanyo SCP-8400 two weeks after the iPhone was announced, and demo’d. Their talking points are 100% valid. Sprint does have a faster network. I wanted a phone I could tether to my laptop and get broadband speeds. That’s why I got the new phone, and it works 100%. Both my Sanyo phone and my BlackBerry can play both MP3’s and video … not to mention the three iPod’s I have … why do I need ANOTHER expensive first-generation gadget? Think of the first-generation iPod’s … they sucked … The iPhone is first-generation, and my bet is that it won’t be as great as all the fanboys think it will be.
Unfortunately the iPhone loses a good amount of potential market to businessmen. I have calls all day asking when I will be able to support the iPhone on our secured e-mail database, and it kills me to say not until Apple produces the enterprise software that gives me the capability. I’m not saying this is a bad phone at all, I just wish to inform everyone that it may not explode in the market because it can’t eliminate the need for blackberry’s and treo’s yet.
I dumped Sprint a few years ago because their network was so horrible in the Denver area. Even called a rep at one point and got the answer, “Yeah, our network coverage in Denver isn’t really that good.” From what I understand from friends who have recently dropped Sprint, things haven’t changed.
Sure it’s faster, if you can get a connection and keep it.
I don’t really care about the iPhone or Sprint. But you guys seriously need to shut up. Sprint is trying to keep customers, and is giving some selling points, whether or not they might not be the full truth, its a business, not a courtroom. Best part is that it’s not even advertising, it’s internal information which you probably shouldn’t even be reading. Go look at some of your precious Apple commercials for some truly pathetic business, as Apple continues to try and show that PCs are inferior. I have little respect for a company that makes fun of the other product to make sales.
Dude go hug a Sprint doll. I will tell you a great Sprint story. A couple years back I had Sprint for 3 years. I was paying about $100 a month for 2 phones. I even had them do direct debit so they just instantly got paid every month. So one day after 3 years of perfect payment history on what was a really high plan at the time I asked to add a 3rd line. They denied me saying that I didn’t qualify (credit maybe?). I said how could you possibly deny such a good loyal customer? I went as high up in the chain as I could and threatened to cancel. They wouldn’t budge. Screw you Sprint. I left then and there. I know own a company and we have 30 phones on our contract. Guess who lost out?
Hi, I am a current Sprint Customer (yes, I really am) and my 2yr contract conveniently expires this July. I have been with Sprint for about 8 years. I guess you can say that I am a pretty loyal customer. Even when they tried to screw me once with 2nd phone, I had to threaten them that I will complain to Better Business Bureau but still stayed with them. Now that the iPhone is coming out in few days, I can only guess what they will try to offer for me to stay with Sprint and frankly, there’s nothing Sprint can offer for me to remain their customer. The only drawbacks of iPhone are: non removable Sim Card (if it’s true), no external storage and EDGE being slower than Sprint’s EV-DO. Yes, valid points but for example when it comes to Sim Card, I could care less. I would never remove it anyway. Full functional browser on EDGE still beats pain in the a$$ browsing on any other cell phone. As for external storage, most phones have miniSD card, of which I can’t find larger than 2GB for around $15-$20 a pop. Are you going to carry 10 miniSD cards with you? How convenient is that? If you say your phone uses SD cards, 8GB SD card will cost you around $70 extra and also, how many of those are you willing to carry (and pay for) with you and swap around when you realize that MP3 you want to hear is on your 4th SD card and then mess around with that crappy interface to play it. Probably will be faster download it from the web using EDGE. Sprint, I stayed with you through good times and bad times and now it’s time for me to leave you for the uncharted waters of AT&T.
Now, I might be a little jaded because of working retail for so long, but step back from the hype a little bit everyone. I’m sure the iPhone will be a digital marvel. I’m sure it will revolutionize the cell phone industry like the iPod did to portable music. But it is not going to be for everyone. The cost alone will turn a lot of people away. Sure, people who are already thinking of replacing their current Smartphone should seriously consider the iPhone (if they can find one), but all things considered, this isn’t the be-all-end-all of cell phones.
I think the real killer device will be in generation 2 of the iPhone when they release iPhone Nano (or whatever they want to call it). Much cheaper, less smart phone features, less storage, smaller screen and a much better pricetag. Same great software (Apple has some of the best designers on the planet), but actually for everyone, not just the technophile, early-adopting elite.
I’m just glad there aren’t two big players (like Sony vs Microsoft in the videogame console arena), so we don’t have a constant battle between bitter fanboys from both sides lobbing flames back and forth. Don’t get me wrong, I would love to get my hands on one of these things, but it’s still a phone.
some of this sprint stories of how bad they are sound like sprint took advangtage of you when you were pure and innocent. ” so where did the bad sprint rep touch you??’.. lol! yall need to shut up too much hating up in here. how many of you have the iphone?? none! so plz wait for the phone to come out to say how great it is. on my part i aint going to hate on the iphone, sounds like an awesome phone but i wouldnt pay 200 for etf+600 for that phone no matter how great it is. oh yeah and some of you, i would advise to seek professional help to get rid of those sprint bad memories. ha ha. man!
Jobs could take a dump in an old iPod housing, paste a touchscreen and an Apple logo on it, and he’d have a legion of morons standing outside the store Friday to buy it. Maybe 70 comments here and roughly 5 people mention any potential issue that might, just maybe, present a problem for buyers of the iPhone, provided Christ doesn’t return Friday morning bringing Armageddon with him to get his hands on one. Let’s assume the radiation emitted from the iPhone does in fact cure AIDS, and it does turn out to be everything it’s promised to be: it costs $500. A year from now, Sprint or Verizon or God knows who is going to release a Linux-based phone that will eliminate your carbon footprint or some such nonsense, and you damned hippies are going to Segway your way over to Verizon to sign yet another two-year contract and pay yet another early termination fee. Step back, assume a Locust pose, quit breathing the methane from the compost heap, and give em six months to work the bugs out.
Sprint needs to change their attitude and play to their strength (no plural there. They only have their network).
The attitude that needs to change: “You can buy a good phone, but you can only use it by renting its features from me.” I have a Sprint phone with a camera but can’t download pictures to my computer; I can’t upload music from my computer to my phone; I can’t sync iCal or Address Book with the phone; I can’t use Bluetooth to connect with anything exept a headset; text messages will cost you an unlimited amount, unless you accept a 50% increase in your rate plan for unlimited messaging, etc, etc, etc.
If Sprint could figure out that the cell phone was not a connection to your wallet, but a connection to the world they could do very well. Their network would help them with that approach. But as long as they expect to niggle your wallet every month with surprise charges and then expect you to try to resolve your issues with a non-english speaking screen reader, and rent you the features that are built into the handset, they will continue to engender hate.
The search for consumers is to find the least bad provider. What keeps them switching is the hope that the next guy will be better. What keeps them loyal is the fear that the next guy will be even worse.
I’ve got Sprint’s EvDO service both through my Treo (kludgy, but not horrid) and through a USB dealie into my MacBook Pro. Their network is really pretty good.
Over the years, I’ve had TMobile, ATT, Sprint, Cingular, and Verizon. They ALL suck. All of them. There’s no functional difference between wireless companies as far as service goes, insofar as they are under no obligation to consistently connect your calls, yet you are under obligation to consistently pay them for poor service.
Once the GSM data speed gets an upgrade and the next generation of iPhones comes out, I will have no problem leaving Sprint to get an iPhone. I didn’t buy a first gen MacBook (thank goodness) and I sure as hell won’t buy a first gen iPhone. But the next wave will be sweet. I thank all you early adopter fanboys for finanancing the retooling of the iPhone in advance. 😀
ATT is going to sell a lot of iPhone. But it’s a hype product and not market proven. Certainly a percentage of them will get returned by dissatisfied customers and for the next # of months we’ll read about the problems which will be resolved in the next model. But I wouldn’t want to be the proud owner of the $500+ first release. Wait a few months and you can pick them up off Ebay for a fraction of the price.
It is interesting to see all the chest beating over the phone by people who have never held one.
Major drawbacks of the iPhone for me:
– Network speed / no 3G
– No MMS
But the biggest drawback is that with any Windows Mobile powered smart phone i can use all kinds of third party applications which is something it seems i can’t do with an iphone.
I’m really enjoying this. Do the people who run this website not realize what they just did by posting this? They just gave Sprint a free forum to access some of the most loyal Apple users to point out some very valid product flaws & competitive disadvantages that Apple clearly wants swept under the carpet. Sure, most of you are just going to criticize because you are Steve Jobs disciples whose brain-washed minds were made up without ever having even held the IPhone, so nobody really expects you to listen to reasonable arguments anyway. But as several others bloggers have already pointed out, Sprint makes some very good points. And those are just the folks who choose to post. I can only imagine there are several non-posters reading this and rubbing their chin saying, ‘you know, that is very interesting… Apple never mentioned that’
So thanks, MacDailyNews, for helping Sprint get the word out.
I agree with TR but I’m from the Baby Boomer era when the only ‘i’ in our vocabulary was me, myself and i.
You’re all wrong!
Everybody knows Sprint has the most powerful network. The only one that even comes close is Verizon.
AT&T! Seriously now. People just want the phone? There is going to be many disappointed AT&T customers.
I will never switch to AT&T. No phone will ever be powerful enough to make me consider it.
My Treo 650 does everything the iPhone does and more with 4 GB of external storage. Google Maps! Ha! I have Tom Tom on my phone. Did I mention VNC? I can do anything on my desktop from my phone anywhere.
I will admit that Apple products are great. I love my iPod!
I will wait to try iPhone when if ever it comes to my network (Sprint).
What’s a phone with a crappy network?
To all the Sprint Customers out there. “Hang in there and don’t forget the quality of the network that the iPhone operates on.”
Sprint’s network is better and they do have much better phones than AT&T. Honestly … I don’t want everything in one device. If I lose that iPhone and thats my life I am screwed. I prefer an iPod and cell phone. I think most people who will get an iPhone wont use half of the features that are available making it a waste of money. The only good out of this is that they are going to make cell phones more unique.
PS… who would want to be on the AT&T network? Have you ever tried calling them when you have a problem. *coughs* according to my phone i spent 3 hours and 23 minutes
If sprint is making it clear that they wont get the iphone, then ill make it clear i want one by going to at&t. You can wither give the customer what they want or fade away into bankrucpy
I have been a diehard Mac user for six years and I can’t wait till my two year contract is up in a year and a half so I can dump Sprint and go to AT&T. I recently talked with a Sprint CSR and with given the best reason to leave them that I ever could have asked for, the CSR thought the Trio was a Mac based product put out by Apple & Palm. I had to take 15 minutes out of my day to try and straighten her out using the minutes in my plan. Sprint is going to fall big time, I was already convinced to leave Sprint before this conversation, now I can’t wait for my7 contract to expire!
This trailer is similar to footage shown at Comic Con this past summer, but gives up more footage of Superman in action, and of this supporting cast. It’s a promising and effective collection of footage. Check it out below.Thoughts carried over with the first footage presentation: I hope there’s many less origin in this particular film compared to trailer sells. We’ve seen that story many times. But I really do like what I see here, just as I did right after the similar reel played at Comic Con, and suspect that inside the final edit this will likely be less of an origin retelling than this trailer seems to promise. There’s also the question of part of the details around the origin – what kind of person does Pa Kent hope Clark is going to grow into?
http://iddeenspeaks.com/network/index.php/blogs/4221/44516/palm-springs-spa-massage