Walmart's $30 deal vaults Pixi from 'meh' to 'sure, I'll take three'
By Chris Ziegler 
posted Nov 12th 2009 1:07PM
posted Nov 12th 2009 1:07PM
[Thanks, Snake]
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Incredibly cheap!
Totally cheap. I hope they sell the HD2 when it is released.
This offer is 100$x24+30$=2400$
I'm currently on a 35$x24+600$=1440$ unlimited data
So I still prefer my 600$ smartphone...
The real money spent is in the contract obviously.
I feel that with that contract mobiles should be free, ANY mobile!
You know, like in the UK...
so I'll just PASS
thanks
$69x24+29=$1685 is actually a better benchmark to use.
seriously... that's the way to sell smartphones!
Question for all of you "total cost" folks. Do you not have to pay the plan anyway? And don't most cell companies require you to sign a contract on any plan anyway (except the new T-Mo stuff)? So, regardless of subsidy, aren't you going to pay anyway?
@cashmonee:
No, you don't have to sign a contract. You can call up Verizon and have them activate any phone you ask them to. Or AT&T will provide you a blank SIM card with a plan.
The point is, some old unlimited plans are better than new more expensive ones, and if you sign a new contract you've lost that plan.
I see. It was my understanding though that most of these new phones, especially with Sprint, required you to get a new plan anyway. I know for myself, if anything AT&T is offering cheaper plans now than when I signed up with them in 2007. Just seems a little sensationalistic when people post the total cost when you are going to have to pay some sort of monthly rate irregardless. Come to think of it, how much cheaper over the long haul are most people's current plans than any new plan they may sign up for to get the subsidy? Does it significantly outweigh the subsidy on the phone, near $400 in some cases? Serious question.
I see. It was my understanding though that most of these new phones, especially with Sprint, required you to get a new plan anyway. I know for myself, if anything AT&T is offering cheaper plans now than when I signed up with them in 2007. Just seems a little sensationalistic when people post the total cost when you are going to have to pay some sort of monthly rate irregardless. Come to think of it, how much cheaper over the long haul are most people's current plans than any new plan they may sign up for to get the subsidy? Does it significantly outweigh the subsidy on the phone, near $400 in some cases? Serious question.
It surely is. But get Sprint's EPRP (new SERO) plan for $59. It offers the same exact things as the $69 450 Everything DATA plan but it's $10 cheaper. It's not widely known because it was mostly created as a ploy to get old SERO plan holders to upgrade from their dying $30 plan.
Heres the info you need.
Russ McGuire, Vice President of strategy for Sprint, was kind enough to revealed his email and CID# on his Blog just for us.
http://www.sprint.com/everythingplus
E-Mail: russ.s.mcguire@sprint.com
Last 3 of CID: 383
Ok $10/month savings over 24 months is $240. According to Sprint, the off contract price of the Pixi is $249. So, in this case at Wal-Mart the difference between your old plan and signing a contract for a new plan is a whopping $20. Am I missing something?
I switched three providers in the last year, just because of the cheaper/better fitting plans.
Being forced to use a provider for 2 years is a huge commitment. They better give me the phone for free + a free cake every month.
@cashmonee:
Actually, the above Walmart deal for a $30 Pixi seems to require the $100/mo Simply Everything plan. At $40/mo MORE than the EPRP Everything Data plan, that's $480 over the lifetime of a two-year contract.
Similarly with TMobile, you can get a $40/mo cheaper plan (assuming you want Data and Texts) outside of contract and pay for your phone outright and still have saved money over the same two-year contract period.
There are other more stark examples as well.
Fact of the matter is that the subsidies on the phone are just to get people to think they're getting a deal upfront, when in fact they're just locking you into a contract for two years at a higher price. If you break that contract, you pay fees for doing so. Rarely does one end up ahead if they choose a subsidized phone that's tied to a contract that has more features than they will actually use: i.e. $5 for 200 txt messages with AT&T ... I only ever send maybe 20 texts a month at 10c each, just not my thing. Stay out of the plan, save money, become rich.
@Banksta
Can I use my employer discount on top of the Everything Plus plan?
I understand what you guys are saying, and I don't disagree that it can be cheaper to buy a phone off-contract, however, it is not the gigantic gulf that people make out in these posts sometimes. Usually they act like you are not paying a monthly fee.
James, in your Sprint comparison you forgot to subtract the value of the subsidy from your $480 savings. That brings it down considerably, to $260. Nothing to sneeze at for sure, but also not as much as people are led to believe from the majority of posts above. You also assume that no one needs more than 450 minutes of talk time which may not be the case for everyone. Again, I agree that there are plenty of situations, maybe even the majority, where buying off contract may be the right way to go, but it is clearly not as cut and dry as people make out and the savings is often not nearly as much as implied. Also, don't forget that this is a relatively small subsidy for a smartphone. The Pre for instance seems to be $549 off contract, a difference of $400. The iPhone is similar. There are advantages to buying off-contract, namely no contract, but to act like you always end up ahead by a ton of money is plain false.
@cashmonee
>>You also assume that no one needs more than 450 minutes of talk time which may not be the case for everyone.
I'm pretty sure that all simply everything plans include unlimited mobile to mobile, so it's really 450 minutes for land lines. Not bad.
Nokia's 2690 is more than 40 euros, and it can't do jack compared to the Pixi; DAMN right I'll take three.
$99 monthly x 12 x 2 = $2400....
you can still change to everything 450 min plan ($69), with sprint's free mobile to mobile to any network, it will be much cheaper and better.
Figure that out all by yourself, Sparky?
oh, forgot to mention, with $69 plan, you still get $30 for the pixi.
The only people who need the $99 plan are the ones who spend hours calling landlines after 7 PM every month.
For most subscribers, the $69 plan that includes unlimited everything except landlines before 7 PM (for which you have 450 minutes) will do.
Whoops, meant "before 7 PM"
You can also get a 25% discount for free just by signing up for a certain credit union. I know, I did it a few months ago and get 25% taken off every bill.
My bill for two phones, unlimited text, unlimited data, 1400 minutes and free mobile to mobile is right at $100 a month.
Seriously, the $69 dollar plan includes Any Mobile, Any Time (which means unlimited minutes to ANY cell phone). To me, who calls cell phones almost exclusively, this is pretty much an everything plan. $99 dollar plan is for people that call LOTS of land lines and that is more of an exception then a rule.
that was at Piyo btw
At $30 - this shouldnt be considered a smart phone, but the greatest dumb phone in the world!!! Wow - I'm tied to BB for work, but I wonder how much this is off contract and I can just use one these when I don't need my berry. Shouldn't be more than what? 230? 30 + etf.
What's the minimum allowable price to be considered a smartphone?
I never knew smartness was measured in dollars. I wonder what other objects become smarter as they cost more?
Certainly scientists and doctors, maybe lawyers. What about models, actors, or strippers? Smarter?
OR wives.
Surely you guys aren't serious, or should I say Shirley.
I'm making a point that at this price level - it's competition isn't smart phones, but dumb phones.
So its safe to bet on these outselling the Centro?
3 phones with 2 year contract on each? nah, I'll pass.
Price changed. Now at $89.99.
i still see $29.
Then force a refresh. It's $89.99...
Defiler is right, this is not so hot.
nope, still $29, refreshed many times, changed contract options several times too, still $29
I see $29.99...still.
maybe its your area, zipcode.
Was just going to say that. Because as soon as I put a zip in, that's when it changed. Zip 33617 was entered.
I had no zip entered at all - $29.99. Entered 20001 - $29.99. Entered 33617 - $29.99.
Using multiple browsers.
OK. I'm a turd and can admit when I screwed up.
It was when I selected "Phone w/ Family Plan" the price changed to $89.99. My bad.
Still don't understand why it would raise the price if i wanted to go with a family plan though...odd.
Now that's a really Great Deal!
I have zero reservations about Plam's WebOS, but the (current) hardware here doesn't showcase it very well - IMO.
At US 30.00 dollars, the Pixi will find more than a few takers.
i also love plam
If I lived in US it would be a no-brainer. Sweet deal.
For $50 you can get the Droid Eris.
Is the Pixi at $30 still a no-brainer?
But then you pay outrageous amounts for a Verizon data plan.
I don't understand why people are so excited about this. The price you pay up front is meaningless compared to the monthly fees.
people are short-sighted, as always
but still. sprint's $60 everything data plan is the best you can get in the market now, save hundreds, if not thousands of $$$ over two years.
Sprint already has the cheapest plans. If it was free on verizon then you'd have a point.
Like clevin said, Sprint's everything data plan is the best in the market right now. If you get an employer's discount, the price drops even lower. My wife and I have two phones and we are paying $100 total. That's less than what Verizon or AT&T charges for one phone with comparable features.
SOLD!!!!
You sir, need to research. Sprint has the cheapest smartphone plans available. $69 gets you:
UNLIMITED CALLS TO ANY CELL PHONE (AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and of course Sprint)
Nights and Weekends start at 7PM
450 Minutes to call Land Lines
UNLIMITED DATA
UNLIMITED TEXT
UNLIMITED GPS
UNLIMITED SPRINT TV
Should've been free from the get go.
sprint's plans are unquestionably the best deal out there.. as long as you live in their coverage area which is most people.
my problem is, and i'm a sprint subscriber, the lack of decent high end phones to upgrade to.
an obsolete htc touchpro2 with winmo 6.1 and the promise there will be an upgrade sometime next year?
I fell for that before.. the upgrade came a year later.
htc hero that looks sick compared to droid and other better phones no doubt coming out soon?
the small screen cludgy palm pre.. no way... sorry
where's the iphone competitor? THERE IS NONE
asleep at the wheel sprint
GIVE ME A DECENT PHONE THAT DOESN'T MAKE ME WISH I HAD AN IPHONE
Umm, the Pre?
Palm Pre might be a substitute for something but is SURELY is not
a substitute for an Iphone
It's a SLIDER. Screen is too small. Keyboard (which i dont want) is useless
PALM PRE IS NOT AN IPHONE COMPETITOR
Blackberry competitor maybe. not iphone
$30 an overpriced meal for two?
Now I know where engadget bloggers gets their po'boy cynicism from.
Another phone that if it were 1) on Verizon or even 2) ran Android (since it can't run iPhone OS) I would buy it. It's a bummer they took out the wifi but, with unlimited data, who cares. I just think, design-wise, this is EXACTLY what I wish the Droid had turned out to be. I absolutely can not stand that stupid keyboard on the Moto Droid. The whole thing is hideous but the Pixi actually looks like someone put thought into the design. I realize its screen, processor, etc. isn't as up to snuff though. Or is it?
There's one thing nobody is talking about, and that's the LetsTalk discount. It's BAD BAD BAD! Call Wal*Mart and ask someone in electronics about it. Apparently, they buy a crap-load of a device, have Wal*Mart sell it for them super cheap, but with stipulations. There's only a 15 day return policy, you cannot return it to Sprint, nor to Wal*Mart, there's no warranty. Call for the details, seriously.
I can't even find the Pixi on the Walmart website anymore. Doesn't look like that sale price lasted for long. Did anyone successfully purchase it for that price?
okay, there are so many variables, yall make my head spin. You are also forgetting, with sprint unlimited data plans, you can upgrade every year. So you get the full discound yearly, of course you sign up for two more years. I pay 120 a month for 1500 min unlimited data. For two smart phones. you cand add more smart phones for 20 A month. So 180/5 = 36*24 = 864 + 99 = 963. So if you hook up with five people and all pay sprint price and slit the bill, you only pay 963 for the whole two years. Beat that.
That's what I'm doing except I've also got a 25% UPS employee discount.
The deal's dead =(
It's 49.99 on Amazon.