[JA_LDP]

I've been a lurker here for about a year and have searched the entire site for anything amazon and didn't find exactly what I wanted.

I have a really cheap Sprint corporate account and I want to convert over to a Blackberry.

Even though my sprint account says I am elligible, our company Sprint rep says that I am not allowed to get the upgrade price for a phone because of my plan. I need to buy my phone outright. Previously, I would just buy a phone (Sanyos and htc's) from a friend when I wanted a new one, but I don't know anyone that has a Blackberry they want to get rid of.

Obviously, I want to find a way around paying $500-$600 for a phone.

Amazon has the Curve 8330 for $300 without a contract. I don't really feel comfortable buying one off ebay or craigslist. I have purchased a lot of stuff from Amazon before but have heard horror stories with phones. This one actually says "Ships from and sold by Amazon.com."

I'd post a link but I'm not allowed to yet...

I am concerned about the pin being blacklisted or something. I'd like to hear about anyone's experiences buying a Blackberry from Amazon without a service contract. Has anyone done this? Are these brand new in box? Will I be able to get the Sprint monthly equipment protection even though I didn't buy the phone from sprint?

I appreciate any responses.

[jlsparks]

I've bought everything from software to motherboards to watches to pron to... you name it, I've bought it and NEVER with a problem. Amazon, IMO, does a great job at filtering their sellers. That said, if you find a phone you like it would be smart to ask the seller for the ESN of the phone. You can call the carrier and verify that the phone isn't reported stolen, or locked.

[pkcable]

PM the link to me and I will check it out, You can PM mods. Amazon is a legit phone seller, BUT generally they make you sign a even MORE restrictive contract than verison, usually with higher service levels. Meaning you may have to take more minutes than you need. Let me check out the link before you do anything.

[jlsparks]

PM the link to me and I will check it out, You can PM mods. Amazon is a legit phone seller, BUT generally they make you sign a even MORE restrictive contract than verison, usually with higher service levels. Meaning you may have to take more minutes than you need. Let me check out the link before you do anything.

Thanks pk

[JA_LDP]

Like I said, I would get this phone without any plan attached. I would buy just the phone for $300 and activate it through my company Sprint rep.

[xraytid]

I found a lot of loop holes in that. If u called telesales they'll usually do it (bypass ur rep) just make sure u tell them not to change your plan.

Or buy the phone as a new line on a 3rd party and do a esn swap then cancel the line. That's what I did for my tours

[JA_LDP]

I found a lot of loop holes in that. If u called telesales they'll usually do it (bypass ur rep) just make sure u tell them not to change your plan.

I have considered this and have friends do this. The problem is I currently do not pay for BIS/BES. With my corporate account I will only pay $15 a month for it when I have my blackberry. If I got the phone through Sprint, they want to charge me an extra $30 a month when they activate the berry. This is why I NEED to activate the phone through my company sprint rep, (or so I'm told).

If I got an older berry, put the BIS/BES on my account, then...say, when the essex comes out, I can go to a Sprint store and pay the upgrade price and tell them not to change my plan and I'll be golden.

[keepit dry]

I've gotten a couple of phones off Amazon. The first was unlocked and through a highly rated seller. It was shipped unlock on time and no problems I still use it from time to time. Earlier this year I got a BlackBerry Curve unlocked direct from Amazon and it works great. I have no contract with Amazon. I love shopping there and on the rare occasions I have a problem they send me something different or give me my money back.

[xraytid]

I can get you the tour for $75 not including shipping.. But like I said there would be passage through loopholes and such. Its too length to explain but if interested I can give u the jist of it via email. [email protected]

[JA_LDP]

Well, after talking with my Sprint rep more, I'll probably just get a 2nd line when the essex drops. She said if I add BIS, although still a cheap plan, i'll be forced to give up pretty much all my other benefits like unlimited data (for non blackberries), text and minutes with no way of getting those back in the future if I did ever switch phones. Basically, once I go blackberry, I can't go back.

This plan is too good to screw up, so I'll probably just get a second line totally independent of my place of work so I don't have to screw around with this anymore. Too much hassle. Thanks everyone.