[mingus007]

* Mods: If I've put this in the wrong place, please feel free to move or delete it!

So as one of the CB-nutters eagerly awaiting the 99xx's arrival, and seeing the recent spate of carriers around the world making their announcements, I thought I'd swing through the GoWireless (VZW "secondary" vendor of sorts) that had treated me well over the years and given me great service. (Specifically b/c the local corporate store is SUCH a mess and...a little shady, frankly.)

I noticed the man previously referred to as the "VZ rep" was there, so I asked if there were any announcements to be made for the new BBs. He looks me straight in the eye and says there's none. Only OS7. I say, yes...I know...so what about the new BBs. He repeats "only OS7 is coming out," followed by, "not new Blackberries." I politely tell the man that OS7 IS the new BBs as none of the older units could be upgraded.

"Why do you want a BB, anyway?" this snot asks. (I call him snot at this point for reasons that will become evident.) I still try to stay polite and say the Bold keyboard is the best I've ever used, and I wanted to know when I could return to it. The snot-man sends one of his minions into the back telling me there's a phone with a keyboard "just as good as the Blackberry."

The minion returns with...wait for it...

...A PALM PLIXI!!!!

I sh!t you not. A friggin' PLIXI! I looked at the guy incredulously as he launches into his pitch, at which point I cut him off and rail against them trying to sell me a discontinued platform that's having a hard time in HP's hands for adoption (citing Staples' recent $100 coupon for their tablets), and overall dropping of the ball with the WebOS purchase. The "rep" vanished into the back along w/another store minion and they left the first guy to burn in my insulted fury.

Done and done. Should the 9930 ever come out and the ONE GUY who was always straight w/me is there, I'll give him his kill fee. Else, SCREW these guys to tell me a PLIXI was going to be just as good as a friggin' BB...and a BOLD, at that!

VZW: If you're lurking, you'll want to talk to these guys in Rancho Bernardo, CA. If not for the whole "best signal where I go" aspect, I'd have jumped carriers outright just to make a point (I have 3 lines and the full $100 New Every Two left up my sleeve).

Thank you CB for keeping us as close to in the loop as we'll ever get. And thank you for allowing the vent!

All I know is the 9930 is in my future... I also know who WON'T be getting my business when I acquire it!

[ADGrant]

It's a PIXI

[ratchetjaw#AC]

Its Pixi not Plixi . It actually is a good keyboard too lol. Have owned a Pixi and Pixi Plus. Not as good as the Bolds but a very good one despite its looks. Not defending them just stating experience with it

[ratchetjaw#AC]

It's a PIXI

You beat me to it lol

[waterfrontmgmt]

why is the typical conversation a horror story? i must have missed the punchline

[Sharma15]

I guess for people who dont follow bb news or cb forums, they could have been easily push to buy a pixi instead of a bold. Maybe thats the horror story?

[Sharke]

To me the "horror" part of the story is when one of these customer service reps BS's you as if you're stupid. As if you'd believe him that there's no new Blackberries coming out. I hate it when they do this. The worst part is when they continue to lie even when you insist you know for a fact. It's almost like a sadistic attempt to gaslight you, lol.

It reminds me of when I take an out of date carton of milk back to the bodega and they guy goes "no no no no is not out of date" and you say "Look! Look at the date in front of your eyes! It says May 30!" and he says "no no no is not May 30 no no is good is good"....you just want to smack them in the face.

I once had an AT&T store give me a refurbished Bold that had a green screen. When I took it back they denied it was green, tried suggesting that there was something wrong with my eyes and then suggested maybe my green shirt was reflecting in it. It was only when I got two other customers in the store to agree with me they conceded they'd been BSing me.

Lying cheating ****'s - I hate them!

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[Babybananaa]

Reminds me of yesterday, I talked to CPW about new blackberrys and they were like oh yes yes new touch, bold and the other ones are coming out soon hopefully before end of this month. Tried to do the same in Phones 4 U and they were adamant that there was no blackberrys phone coming out at all only OS7.

I've decided there and then, not to go to Phones 4 U when buying my next phone.

[BBThemes]

Reminds me of yesterday, I talked to CPW about new blackberrys and they were like oh yes yes new touch, bold and the other ones are coming out soon hopefully before end of this month. Tried to do the same in Phones 4 U and they were adamant that there was no blackberrys phone coming out at all only OS7.

I've decided there and then, not to go to Phones 4 U when buying my next phone.

my advice would be dont go to p4u ever, doesnt matter what phone lol.

[mingus007]

Oh, heck! Thanks ADGrant and ratchetjaw... I MEANT to say "Pixi." I was angry-typing, and I apologize for that. (I actually like WebOS and had high hopes for it at one point, but this isn't then, and these turkeys were being little sales jackals.)

Makes me feel a bit better knowing they weren't "ALL" full of crapola (if the PIXI's keyboard was indeed that nice). One also had the strong suspicion that the device he was showing me was returned (the bag it was in was kinda beat up). Just not right all around. Had to take a shower after getting home to get the oily sheen off of me, as it were...

Honest employees for an honest company. Is that too much to ask? (VERY rhetorical.)

[xBlackBerry]

A lot of the Verizon reps know nothing about phones. I dont know how half of them even have jobs

[pythons]

I can't count the times our "Business Reps" from Sprint & AT&T have tried to steer me away from blackberry over the last couple of years - I'm one of the last guys on a BB where I work and THE LAST in Mgmt.

The business community has essentially cuckold RIM and it's now going after the youngsters - the torch is the phone to have from what I understand in Junior High School.

RIM just needs to hang on enough to get it's QNX line out - I'm thinking the tide will change once that happens...
...Until then RIM will be in a chair next to the bed watching Droid and Apple do stuff to / for the woman it was once exclusive with.

[mountainman]

I had a rep tell me just this week that they "don't make Blackberries anymore".

The Horror is the horrible knowledge that these reps seem to have. Not all are total dolts, but a lot are. It's just silly, silly I tell you....

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[scubbie]

I went into an at&t store today and asked if they had a set date for any of the os7 devices, he informed me that the torch 9810 was set for release this month and the 9850 and 9900 were set for release in 2011 sometime, the funny thing is that he asked me after telling me about releases, why I would want a blackberry, he said that they have had nothing but problems with the torch and the iphone 4 was their most reliable phone and never hears about problems with them, i promptly asked him about the antenna issue and he said all it takes to fix that was a case, so I stated, so in order to make a phone work I have to buy extra accessories? he had nothing to say. then I asked about the problem with the cheek dialing, muting, call ending problem with the no screen lock when in calls, he said he had never heard of that problem(this may just be a verizon iphone issue I haven't looked into it far enough to know).

I then asked the rep if he was an iphone user, he told me that he was a big apple user, so i asked him if he likes being an idrone and paying for overpriced outdated units (this is just my opinion of apple as a whole not just with the iphone). he had nothing to say to me about that except that they had more apps and itunes, I just told him that I hated itunes, laughed at the ***** and walked away.

I know about 20 torch users and have heard very minimal complaints about it but everyone that I know has been happy with it and wasn't gonna switch away from it.

[mingus007]

I have to admit, I didn't expect to see this kind of discussion on what is effectively the Cornholio'ing of RIM. That it's endemic at every level is the most worrisome (I leave the "market trying to kill RIM" for other threads), but the sales reps being such twips.

My rule of thumb for any tech related buy (in particular phones, laptops or photography stuff) is to see if the sales rep will ask, "What will you be using this [whatever] for?" If they fail that and immediately launch into a sales pitch for the hot item of the day, I move on. (Best Buy deliberately turning off their demo PlayBook was also interesting, although not surprising.)

Suffice to say, this means ditching a lot of sales people, though a handful do seem to care enough to do right by the customer. (They usually whittle things down to what my homework indicated, as well.) I will oftentimes pay sales tax to make sure this sales guy/gal gets their "kill fee." (When I can afford to, anyway!) What kills me is the doucherie store I spoke ill of USED to have a sterling example of this. He was the one who suggested the BB since my key concerns were email and a reliable phone...and also pointed out I'd be shaving $15/mo. off the WinMo data plan I was on. Never looked back after the "conversion."

[mingus007]

I have to admit, I didn't expect to see this kind of discussion on what is effectively the Cornholio'ing of RIM. That it's endemic at every level is the most worrisome (I leave the "market trying to kill RIM" for other threads), but the sales reps being such twips.

My rule of thumb for any tech related buy (in particular phones, laptops or photography stuff) is to see if the sales rep will ask, "What will you be using this [whatever] for?" If they fail that and immediately launch into a sales pitch for the hot item of the day, I move on. (Best Buy deliberately turning off their demo PlayBook was also interesting, although not surprising.)

Suffice to say, this means ditching a lot of sales people, though a handful do seem to care enough to do right by the customer. (They usually whittle things down to what my homework indicated, as well.) I will oftentimes pay sales tax to make sure this sales guy/gal gets their "kill fee." (When I can afford to, anyway!) What kills me is the doucherie store I spoke ill of USED to have a sterling example of this. He was the one who suggested the BB since my key concerns were email and a reliable phone...and also pointed out I'd be shaving $15/mo. off the WinMo data plan I was on. Never looked back after the "conversion."

[KodyShadow]

My teenage son keeps telling me "RIM is bankrupt and out of business, none of my friends at school have BB any more.'' Then yesterday I was driving a group of them (aged 16-19) and they were chatting about getting ipads for school. I asked them if they'd tried the Playbook and they didn't even know what it was. My son chimed in and said we'd had one and he thought it was better than ipad.................then one of the kids commented "oh, you mean that thing by Blackberry..............nah, they aren't very good and I heard BB was out of business, nobody buys those any more."

I corrected them about BB not being out of business, but I admit I was pretty shocked at how sure they all were that RIM was finished.

[Mvor7]

More stories about bad sales people. Seriously, if a customers walks into a store ASKING for a specific product, WHY WOULD YOU ARGUE?!
Tell them what they wanna hear, confirm their preconceived notions, ask for and CLOSE THE SALE!
Lol.
No wonder there is always a different phone rep at these stores every time I walk in. High turnover rate due to flat out incompetence.
And WHY THE HECK would you not read up on your product line?!
Again, what's more frustrating is the lack of competence, not which product they fail to push.

[pythons]

More stories about bad sales people. Seriously, if a customers walks into a store ASKING for a specific product, WHY WOULD YOU ARGUE?!
Tell them what they wanna hear, confirm their preconceived notions, ask for and CLOSE THE SALE!
Lol.
No wonder there is always a different phone rep at these stores every time I walk in. High turnover rate due to flat out incompetence.
And WHY THE HECK would you not read up on your product line?!
Again, what's more frustrating is the lack of competence, not which product they fail to push.

I think generally the people on the floor are so poorly paid there is no incentive for them to learn product - most of them are just there for a paycheck that comes with a free monthly service.

That and to a degree they have been instructed to bad-mouth RIM...
..I've head it from the big three carriers and just from US cellular two weeks ago when I was helping my Mom out with her acct.

[curlyt1]

First off I think my co-worker secretly works for google. She pitches her Verizon thunder bolt that it's so good but can't seem to stop charging it all day...

Anyway...an uninformed consumer is a hazard to themselves. A useless Salesman is one who will pitch a product blindly w.o realizing you are sold on a different product and s/he would know that if they only asked a few questions in the beginning. This type of salesperson couldn't close a deal if it closed itself.

[BergerKing]

It's for these reasons I stopped going to purchase my phones from the carrier store. Stupid MIRs where they're hoping I'll forget to submit the paperwork while they are clutching my hard-earned cash. The incessant pimping of the Droids, the yada-yada of ignorance often supported by gross incompetence. It's enough to turn a bright moment into a week-long bout with the trots.

'Oh, you need this new 3D thing, or you need this, it's our fastest ever'. Asking if they provide the backpack battery makes their eyes glaze over....

I started getting my phones at Best Buy, get Rewards Points for the purchase, no MIR hassles, and a person who is happy to sell me the phone I came to buy.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[Siiid]

who the **** hires these incompetent idiots?
their jobs are simple enough, they just need to learn about phones and be able to help people get what they're looking for and yet they fail on that level.

[olblueyez]

I did sales for 14 years. I stopped because lying was the key to financial success. I knowingly made decisions when selling that would eliminate paths to putting more money in my pocket. I enjoyed my customers and worked hard to put the correct product with my customers. I am a walking talking lie detector, and I absolutely Hate people who lie.

Because of this I have completely scratched out some companies. Not because they had one or two sour grapes but because they purposely and knowingly use dishonest business practices against their customers.

Mercedes Benz
Volkswagen
Toyota
Verizon
Buy.com
LetsTalk.com

If it sounds strange, like a Jumbo Jet disappearing into a 10 foot hole and leaving no wreckage, then it's a lie.

Buy your stuff online. Do your own research. If your trusting to support your laziness then so be it.

[olblueyez]

who the **** hires these incompetent idiots?
their jobs are simple enough, they just need to learn about phones and be able to help people get what they're looking for and yet they fail on that level.

The people who entrust the hiring duties are the people who always put themselves at the front of the line, leaving nothing to entice decent people to sell phones, or hire decent people to sell phones. It's unfortunate but the American business model is based on greed and not responsibility. This is why a Volkswagen may be a great car to own in Europe but here in the US Volkswagen people will try to bang you and steal your wallet at the same time. Its the same in the phone business, only difference is you don't have to be sharp to sell a phone like you do to sell a car or screw a customer on service.

[qbnkelt]

The other day I went into the Union Station Verizon store while I waited for my train...was in the middle of a BBM conversation on my Torch so I obviously had my Torch in my hand. Walk in and there were two reps at the door with iPads. When I told them "not interested" the woman said with an incredulous look in her face "Really?!!?" and never mentioned any other possible tablet. Inside I was looking at the phones killing time, Torch in hand. Rep comes over and tries to sell me one of several Androids on display. Told him "not interested, just killing time." Same reaction "You don't want a Droid?!?!? It's got a keyboard." Never mentioned a 9650.
Those guys are pushing Apple and Android into the face of any customer who walks in, it seems. Even one obviously interested in BBerries.