posted
I currently have this crappy old phone from a couple of years ago. It doesn't do anything except make calls, store addresses (very poorly, I might add), play games, and surf the Web. (Why the hell I would ever want to surf the Web from a damn 1.5-inch cell phone screen is beyond me, especially when they charge you $40/month for access and 3� per kilobyte!) I've occasionally toyed with the idea of upgrading, but I never pursued the idea very far for two reasons: first, I use my cell phone only very seldom, and two, I share a plan with my family, so I have to make changes through my dad's account.
But recently, I discovered that the company I work for has a promotion plan with Cingular. (My family used to be on AT&T until we were grandfathered into Cingular with that big buyout.) So, I try to log in through the Cingular website from work. No can do � they want our billing number just to show me a list of damn phone prices! So I get home and get the bill number from my dad, but now I can't get access to the promo site, because that has to go through my company firewall! So I figure, okay, I know what the percentage discount is off of new equipment, so I'll just browse as a regular customer and then calculate the rough price for myself.
But no! First they want to know if I'm a new or existing. Existing. Am I regular Cingular or AT&T leftovers? AT&T. What's my current phone number? [You think I'd post that here?] What's the last four digits of your Social Security Number? ... The fuck? They want to know the last four digits of the customer's SSN just to browse for a new fucking phone?
I give up again. At least until I move to a new apartment and give up the land line entirely. God damn, I hate corporate America!
-------------------- “Those people who think they know everything are a great annoyance to those of us who do.” — Isaac Asimov Star Trek Minutiae | Memory Alpha
Registered: Nov 2000
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Shik
Starship database: completed; History of Starfleet: done; website: probably never
Member # 343
posted
Smaller companies are better. I went to Jersey 2 weeks ago & wanted to actually be able to have a phone that worked there. My plan for the past 2 years has been a very local "works in 5 counties only" one. I went to talk to them, they said, "Oh, man...you've paid on time religiously for like the past 2 years. Yeah, we can upgrade you no worries!" Boink! No problems or anything. And the kicker is, even thought it's not unlimited, with the few options I signed up for it's effectively unlimited AND only like $10 a month more than before.
Now to eventually get a Razr & see if I can make it emit communicator sounds when I flip it open.
-------------------- "The French have a saying: 'mise en place'—keep everything in its fucking place!"
Registered: Jun 2000
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posted
*just got a pink Razr today* It's pink. That makes me happy.
I use verizon, BTW, and I find their webiste to be very easy to sue, whether I log into my account, or not. Also, the employee discount part (my company does employee discounts through Verizon) is really easy to use, too.
-------------------- "You are anal twattypoo who has ruined my good mood" PsyLiam to TSN May 01,2006.
Registered: Mar 1999
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posted
I currently have a Motorola v551 through Rogers, which is Canada's GSM provider. I actually have two SIMs for it at the moment, which is odd, but my brother is the manager of a Rogers Plus! store so manages everything on the account for me... I find the phone is good and the website is pretty easy to use. For the most part, anyways.
-------------------- I haul cardboard and cardboard accessories
Registered: Mar 1999
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-------------------- "You are a terrible human, Ritten." Magnus "Urgh, you are a sick sick person..." Austin Powers A leek too, pretty much a negi.....
Registered: Sep 2000
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Cartman
just made by the Presbyterian Church
Member # 256
posted
error 400: bad request
Registered: Nov 1999
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quote:Originally posted by LOA: *just got a pink Razr today* It's pink. That makes me happy.
I think it's well understood that the pink Razr is by far the coolest phone on the planet. So manly it doesn't even use the letter "O" and yet... pink.
Registered: Sep 2000
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Saltah'na
Chinese Canadian, or 75% Commie Bastard.
Member # 33
posted
I don't see why they need the last 4 digits of your SSN. Phone number, I understand. They need to know the hardware and the plan you're on right now to see what kind of upgrades you are eligible for. Existing customers usually don't get the promotions that they are targeting towards new members. Or maybe not. I too was with Rogers for 5 years. Last year, they gave me a Motorola V551 for the same price that they were giving new customers, plus 1 year off the contract (the V551 was being offered with a 3-year contract for that price). And a kickass plan to boot.
But yes, phone number, yes. SSN/SIN? I have no idea why.
-------------------- "And slowly, you come to realize, it's all as it should be, you can only do so much. If you're game enough, you could place your trust in me. For the love of life, there's a tradeoff, we could lose it all but we'll go down fighting...." - David Sylvian FreeSpace 2, the greatest space sim of all time, now remastered!
Registered: Mar 1999
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Shik
Starship database: completed; History of Starfleet: done; website: probably never
Member # 343
posted
Probably to keep your ex from fucking up your phone service.
-------------------- "The French have a saying: 'mise en place'—keep everything in its fucking place!"
Registered: Jun 2000
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posted
But I just wanted to browse their wares! Obviously there should be some greater protections around actually making changes to the plans... but why do they need such ridiculous identification just to look at their crap?
-------------------- “Those people who think they know everything are a great annoyance to those of us who do.” — Isaac Asimov Star Trek Minutiae | Memory Alpha
Registered: Nov 2000
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posted
As Shik said, it's probably to verify that you really belong to that account....
I mean, yes... you were only going to browse. But how did they know that? Many people browse, then buy, all in the same trip. And most of those people just have all of their new equipment charged to their account. So the company probably wanted to make sure that you belonged on that account before you started browsing with the potential to buy....
Why you can't browse without logging into any account though, I don't know... that's weird. you'd think they'd just let you look as if you aren't a customer, just for the hell of it.
-------------------- "You are anal twattypoo who has ruined my good mood" PsyLiam to TSN May 01,2006.
Registered: Mar 1999
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-------------------- "You are a terrible human, Ritten." Magnus "Urgh, you are a sick sick person..." Austin Powers A leek too, pretty much a negi.....
Registered: Sep 2000
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posted
Both, I guess. O2 are reputed to have the best coverage. But she really likes the colour. I just make do with a nice black SLVR. It's astonishingly PADD-like. . .
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