What Rogers don't want to tell you: iPhone 3G $250 + three-year $15/month contract
A friend of mine in Vancouver has recently managed to buy a new iPhone from Fido for $250 by committing to extend her existing $15 per month voice-only contract for three years.
It was only by perseverance that she finally managed to get them to admit she could do this, and only after contacting them on the phone. Trying to get an email confirmation was impossible.
At one point, she was told she could do it, but that without a data plan, she would not be able to download apps or upgrade the iPhone firmware. This either indicates a pitiful ignorance on the part of the Rogers agent or a deliberate policy of lying to customers in order to steer them towards the expensive data plan.
So she now has her 3G iPhone; the data service has been deactivated by Rogers and she uses WiFi for her Internet connectivity.
The extra $50 for the phone is nearly completely paid for in her first-month's savings ($60-$15 =$45) and she will save $1570 over three years, less the cost of any WiFi cards she may have to buy when she is away from her home network.
You can get any plan you want at all, and it's been that way since day 1, a $50 one time charge for anything under $35. It's pretty plain on their site too, anyone can do it, but make SURE you get them to BLOCK data... or you are screwed.
I disagree with you. The Rogers site is very carefully constructed to steer users towards the $60 per month data plan and the ill-informed/deceptive email feedback is designed to encourage people towards that plan.
Basically, unless you know what to ask for, they are going to charge you $45 a month for three years for a service you probably don't need. I've been using my 2G iPhone for over a year as a WiFi only device (no data plan where I live, even if I did have a 3G phone) and it is a perfectly satisfactory solution.
Elric,
I disagree with you. The Rogers site is very carefully constructed to steer users towards the $60 per month data plan and the ill-informed/deceptive email feedback is designed to encourage people towards that plan.
Perhaps the current site does...but it wasn't the case on day one.
Regardless, it's just marketing/sales grab like every other phone provider.
The local Fido salesperson told me I could get an iPhone for $199 on their $15/month voice plan, add data, then cancel data.
I am not interested in getting an iPhone, so I did not enquire further. But for those who do not want data, it might be worth pursuing.
If anyone else can confirm this, it would help lots. For example, if data is cancelled, is there a penalty? Can one cancel at anytime, or is there a 3 month notification period?
I'm paying like $100/month for something like 200 minutes UL weekend/evenings, plus an iphone bundle and the 6gb data plan which is about 5.5gb more than I need.
ask for the employee insider plan....i think that's what it is called. if you have a CAA/Costco or any other membership...its a voiceplan for $17.50 that will get you 200 mins UL eve/wknds. That should trim your monthly bill to about $80/mth. Not cheap but cheaper.
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