[NorrisCell]

Effective January 27th, T-Mobile will begin allowing smartphone users to upgrade their phone every year at the new customer price. Additionally, customers with phone-first devices will be given the opportunity to upgrade to a smartphone at the new customer price.

I don't think I have to explain how huge this is.

[vanesserstation]

yay, I can finally upgrade to a 9700 or something else w/o paying the retail cost.

[Nissan4LIFE]

Wow that is great...I've had my Curve 8900 since it came out and my wife just got the 9700 and it kills me that I had to wait another year. I wish a T/S BB would come to TMO now.

[vanesserstation]

Wow that is great...I've had my Curve 8900 since it came out and my wife just got the 9700 and it kills me that I had to wait another year. I wish a T/S BB would come to TMO now.

I feel your pain. I would've had to wait til September to get a new bb, I got this BB 1.5 years ago. This is exciting news for me.

[aNbA]

sounds awesome!

.....is there a catch? like having to change our plans or buy a certain add-on?

[Insane06STi]

My phones dont last a year.

[NorrisCell]

Whether or not there are any special terms is yet to be seen. The info I got just says that the upgrade period has been shortened from 22 months to 12 for smartphones. If I find out anything new about it, I will post it here.

[Lorena79]

I hope this is true because I NEED a new BB! I went into a T-mobile store today (1/26/10) for issues that I've been having with the internet and asked about upgrading my phone....they never mentioned anything about the new upgrade policy.

Please keep us informed!

[Myveggies]

This is a great strategy for T-Mobile as this keeps people on the EM plans which is more profitable for TMO.

There was no incentive for people to sign a 2yr contract because it would cost people more in the long run compared to buying the phone at retail. Now there is a reason for people to sign a 2yr contract.

[syb0rg]

This means nothing to me, personally. I am on the Even More Plus plan and i have to pay full MSRP for every phone i buy.

Sounds good for those that like to be tied down.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[jdans431]

This is great news.. If only I wouldnt have upgraded last week with out a discounted price

[pricewc]

I was told about this yesterday by tmobile over the phone. I'm currently on the phone with them now and they are telling me I will have to change my plan since I have a suncom plan. I was told yesterday that I would not have. I refused to do this so I'm currently on hold and if nothing happens I will cancel. I'm so angry right now, I've wasted more time on the phone with these people.

[Denise in Los Angeles]

Thanks Norris!!

[pricewc]

The customer care rep connected me to the loyalty department and he got it worked out for me. So all is good, got the bold 9700 for $149 little more than I expected because the girl told me $129 yesterday but overall I'm pleased that'll have a working phone again.

[Kezza]

So what does this mean for people who are out of contract? I have been out of contract for 7 months. Would like to get the 9700 and am willing to sign a 2yr contract. I called retentions yesterday, and they offered me $129, no upgrade fee and no shipping fee. If people who have only fulfilled 1 year of their contract can now get the $129 price, it seems like I should get offered a better deal? Just wondering if this new policy will mean a change in retentions as well?

[Denise in Los Angeles]

So what does this mean for people who are out of contract? I have been out of contract for 7 months. Would like to get the 9700 and am willing to sign a 2yr contract. I called retentions yesterday, and they offered me $129, no upgrade fee and no shipping fee. If people who have only fulfilled 1 year of their contract can now get the $129 price, it seems like I should get offered a better deal? Just wondering if this new policy will mean a change in retentions as well?

I doubt that you can get a better deal. But, who knows... call and ask.

[pricewc]

Just call and tell them what your seeing being done for other people. My contract was up in July so I signed another 2 year contract, the new upgrade thing just started today and the girl I first spoke to didn't seem to know much about it because she was reading the notes out loud when she was trying to process the order.

[Denise in Los Angeles]

Norris, is this new policy available in the TMo stores too?

[eklisiewicz]

I bought my 8900 last February, and it has been almost a year since I extended my contract for another 2 years, so technically, I have 12 months left.

My plan is Even More Plus.

When I checked the web site today, it only had the 9700 at full retail.

No discounts offered.

Is the site not up to date, or am I not eligible for the discount?

[buddy816]

I checked my account and it is showing I can upgrade to the 9700 for 150 after renewing my account for only a year. I keep calling tmobile and one rep had no clue what I was talking about and the other rep said it just shortened it to 21 months. It doesnt make sense what they are saying seeing how i can get the 9700 for half price a year later.

[Denise in Los Angeles]

I bought my 8900 last February, and it has been almost a year since I extended my contract for another 2 years, so technically, I have 12 months left.

My plan is Even More Plus.

When I checked the web site today, it only had the 9700 at full retail.

No discounts offered.

Is the site not up to date, or am I not eligible for the discount?

I don't think you're eligible. When I checked my account, it showed the
new lower price for me.

[NorrisCell]

So what does this mean for people who are out of contract? I have been out of contract for 7 months. Would like to get the 9700 and am willing to sign a 2yr contract. I called retentions yesterday, and they offered me $129, no upgrade fee and no shipping fee. If people who have only fulfilled 1 year of their contract can now get the $129 price, it seems like I should get offered a better deal? Just wondering if this new policy will mean a change in retentions as well?

This bothers me. You have the best pricing available. In one year, you will have best pricing again. Yet you still want a better deal.

You are eligible for an upgrade. Due to policy changes, more people are eligible for an upgrade as well. This does not entitle you to a better deal. The price just dropped $70 last week to the $129.99 price point. Please be happy with that.

[NorrisCell]

I checked my account and it is showing I can upgrade to the 9700 for 150 after renewing my account for only a year. I keep calling tmobile and one rep had no clue what I was talking about and the other rep said it just shortened it to 21 months. It doesnt make sense what they are saying seeing how i can get the 9700 for half price a year later.

This is a new policy, so they may not be aware of it. This is a huge change. Give them time

[buddy816]

It is showing that Im eligible but it seems everytime I call tmobile to ask about the policy they seem clueless. They have no clue what is going on.

[NorrisCell]

I bought my 8900 last February, and it has been almost a year since I extended my contract for another 2 years, so technically, I have 12 months left.

My plan is Even More Plus.

When I checked the web site today, it only had the 9700 at full retail.

No discounts offered.

Is the site not up to date, or am I not eligible for the discount?

It has to be past 12 months, so you are not there yet. It should show on your one year anniversary.