Samsung Nexus vs iPhone on Verizon. My Rant and Review

On January 14th 2012 I bought the Samsung Nexus on Verizon. This is the new flagship phone that has the latest Android OS called Ice Cream Sandwich.

It’s a very pretty phone and the screen is amazing. The speed of the network is fast. The battery is poor. It was a nice phone but I was just not impressed by it.

On Saturday Jan 21st 2012, I decided to return the phone and then go back to AT&T and upgrade my account with an iPhone 4S. Here is where the problems started.

When I went to return the phone I expected a hassle free return. I had done this 2 years ago with Verizon when I tested a Droid Eris. The Brea, CA Verizon store returned my phone no problem. This time I was informed of a $35 dollar restocking fee PLUS a $100 dollar “smartphone” restocking fee. I’m ok with the $35 fee, but the $100 ‘penalty’ for a smart phone has just PISSED ME OFF.

Since they would not waive the $100 dollar fee for smart phone I got the iPhone 4S from Verizon. Yes, their network does seem to be better but in my house it’s still spotty service just like AT&T. The next thing I was reminded about is that I cannot make a phone call and use internet at same time. I’ve never had this problem because AT&T doesn’t have this problem. Yes, I heard about this problem with Verizon but never experienced since I’ve been on AT&T for over 10 years, even when it was Cingular.

They DID NOT tell me about the restocking fees when I got the phone on the 14th. I will swear to this. They said I initialed the document but did not pull it out to prove it. If I had known about the $100 RoShambo fee I would NEVER have even bought the Nexus. Now that I know of the fee and got the iPhone 4S on Verizon on screwed out of $135 bucks if I return it.

I also learned something interesting from the Verizon reps about how Apple has Verizon (maybe others) by the balls. If a customer comes in and purchases a new phone at Verizon and say for some reason do not like it, they can return the phone but CANNOT exchange for ANY OTHER PHONE. This means that if you got new service at Verizon with iPhone and returned phone you would have to cancel the new service because you are not allowed to exchange for another phone. Yes, there is probably a way around this but it’s interesting none the less. This is what Verizon reps told me so I take as fact from their mouth.

See attached to see note about not be able to exchange for anything else.

So now that I’m not happy at all and want to return the phone and go back to AT&T what do I do? If I can’t get out of the RoShambo Fee I guess I’ll just have to be have to suffer with the $135 dollar being ripped from my arse and then spend another $200 at Apple/AT&T for a shiny new 4S.

I don’t know what I’m going to do yet. I’m just bummed that I can’t use internet while on phone. Does it matter? I would say yes for me. There has been innumerous times where I have taking a support phone call and need to look up info while on the phone because all I had for internet is phone.

You tell me, what should I do. Return the phone and go back to AT&T or stay with Verizon?

Moral of the story. The iPhone is still the best phone and Verizon kicks you in the Balls.

Updated 1/26/2012: The store I visited was a 4G wireless store which is a “Verizon Wireless Premium Retailer” not a Verizon company store. I guess what the “premium retailer” means is that they like to kick you in the balls when you return products and charge you a premium for the priviledge. 

7 Comments

  1. Jeff Turner on January 24, 2012 at 8:43 am

    Suck it up and get the phone you want. In the end, $135 is a small price to pay for satisfaction.

  2. Carolynn Santaniello on January 24, 2012 at 11:24 am

    Verizon is on my bad list as well. When my laptop and MiFi were stolen they insisted I had to pay the $300 non discounted rate to replace my MiFi unit. They said people get their electronics stolen everyday and it didn’t matter if I had a police report. I called customer service and told them if they did not give me the discounted rate of $50 then I would have to pay the service cancellation fee and move my business elsewhere. They caved, but it was a huge battle.

    I agree with Jeff.

  3. Loren Nason on January 24, 2012 at 7:41 pm

    So i returned phone to Verizon and of course they still wouldn’t give up on the RoShamBo restocking fee. I sucked it up and then went straight to Apple store with shiny new 4S.

  4. Dean Gittleson on January 25, 2012 at 3:41 pm

    As we discussed previously., we all need to read the various fine print or we get screwed. Google the Apple EULA controversy for a great example of the might tech giants have attained given the size of the consumer market and the development community that supports the hardware. Amazingly self serving.

  5. Derek Loseke on January 26, 2012 at 7:58 am

    I checked your image and did about 2 minutes of research……looks like you went to a Verizon retailer called 4G Wireless, not an actual Verizon store. And it appears that this is THEIR restocking policy. I checked Verizon’s return policy (http://goo.gl/S7iZw) and I see no mention anything regarding the iPhone or a smartphone restocking fee…

    “You may return or exchange wireless devices and accessories purchased from Verizon Wireless within 14 days of purchase. A restocking fee of $35 ($70 for netbooks and tablets) applies to any return or exchange of a wireless device (excluding Hawaii).”

    In fact, your contact specifically states “4G Wireless will apply a $35.00 (thirty-five) dollar re-stocking fee for any items returned, plus an additional $100 (one hundred) dollars for any NetBooks, Smartphones, Tablets or iPhone devices.” I also can’t find anything from Verizon stating you can’t return an iPhone for a different device. Again, this looks like a 4G Wireless policy. I don’t think you can really blame Verizon here.

    • Loren Nason on January 26, 2012 at 5:09 pm

      Yeup you are right. I never even noticed that. Funny how the store was branded everything Verizon. I didn’t even catch it on the receipt. So I updated the post. Still sucks though. I guess being a “premium retailer” means taking more of your money than a Verizon Company Store.

  6. Jon Brown on January 30, 2012 at 7:54 pm

    The only company worse than Verizon is AT&T except for Verizon which worse than AT&T… (yes, that was deliberately circular). All their contracts are onerous and abusive.

    It is an interesting lesson on “company stores” vs. “3rd party retailers”. It’s rather like getting the company cable guy vs. the independent contractor a lot of the time…

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