EVDO Shutting down

[Shane]

Greetings,

I just received a letter saying that Telus is shutting down the EVDO/CDMA network, and that my phone will no longer function as of March 31, 2014.

I'm in the middle of a three year contract.

The BlackBerry Style 9670 had just come out when I bought it, and its the best phone I've ever had. Its the only flip/clamshell that I'm aware of. All of the new phones are slates, so getting a newer or better phone isn't really possible. Most likely I will be forced to buy a new phone, while I'm still paying for my Style, which will stop working soon.

I'm really pissed because I like my existing phone. I purchased a bunch of accessories for it, which will also be useless when I have to stop using the phone.

Shane.

[Jonathan · Accepted solution]

That's really unfortunate. This is the side effect of advancing technology.

Wasn't there some type of migration offer from Telus for customers still on CDMA? Like a bill credit or something?

What I would do is talk to the loyalty and retention department and see what they'll do for you in regards to getting a new HSPA phone since you have a point here (paying for services you can't use with an outdated phone). Perhaps the Q5 would be good for you? Just a thought.

[Jonathan · Accepted solution]

That's really unfortunate. This is the side effect of advancing technology.

Wasn't there some type of migration offer from Telus for customers still on CDMA? Like a bill credit or something?

What I would do is talk to the loyalty and retention department and see what they'll do for you in regards to getting a new HSPA phone since you have a point here (paying for services you can't use with an outdated phone). Perhaps the Q5 would be good for you? Just a thought.

[Shane · Accepted solution]

There were two phone offers:

• Huawei Y210 for $0
• BlackBerry Curve 9320 for for $49

The Huawei doesn't really work for me because I'm locked into the BlackBerry ecosystem. The Curve doesn't support BlackBerry 10 or 4G. Since the problem is that my phone is obsolete, it seems strange that they are trying to sell me a phone which is also obsolete.

Shane.

[Jonathan]

Did either of those require a DB repayment? If so, wouldn't the Q5 be the best option for you? It's an HSPA and LTE capable BlackBerry 10 device that would suit your needs as long as you hit the plan requirements.

Again, I recommend calling the loyalty/retention department for a deeper analysis of your situation.

[Shane]

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@Jonathan wrote:
Did either of those require a DB repayment?

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I'm not sure what a "DB repayment" is. The prices didn't include a contract.

The Z10 is the same price as the Q5, so I might go with that. Or maybe the Q10. All three devices require a two-year contract.

As far as I know, the Loyalty department doesn't have a direct number. In the past I've called the main number and asked to be transferred to the Loyalty department, but the person I was talking to kept asking why I wanted to talk to them, and I wasn't able to get through. When my friends have called and said "I want to cancel my service", they get transferred to the Loyalty department right away, but I don't know another way of talking to them.

Shane.

[Jonathan]

Ah okay. I guess it's different for you regular folk 😛 I work for the Mobile Shop and whenever I call into our channel support line, one of the menu options is a direct access to the loyalty team (there never used to be).

A DB repayment means that you have to pay back any remaining Device Balance on your account in order to upgrade your phone, unless it's close enough to the end of your contract for Telus to waive it for you to renew. Do you see a number like that anywhere on your account?

Just keep in mind that as of right now, the Q10 is considered a premium device and as such, requires a minimum $70 plan to get it on a subsidy. The Z10 and Q5 only require $45.

[Shane]

The "Unlimited Talk and Text 2GB" plan I'm on right now is $70. The bill also shows my device balance and expiry date.

Do you know if the Loyalty department has a phone number that the public is allowed to use?

Thanks,

Shane.

[Jonathan]

I don't have access to the # directly. I don't think I'd be allowed to give that out, either.

Looks like you have a special plan that isn't offered anymore and it qualifies for full subsidy so I would keep it and take an upgrade. You can go on a new 2 year term after repaying your old DB, which gets invoiced to you from the rep in a store that sells Telus postpaid or you can pay with your credit card there too.

I don't know what else to suggest really. You can bite the bullet and repay the DB and get a new phone... Or call them and see if there's anything else they can do. You've actually got a better deal than any newer clients because they can't get 2GB of data for $70 on Telus anymore so take that into consideration!

Best of luck to you, my friend.

[Shane]

When I last changed my plan, the $70 plan included 1 GB, but there was a special promotion that included 2 GB, which I signed up for.

I was only looking for a Loyalty department number that the public was allowed to use.

Thanks for your help.

Shane.

[NFtoBC]

There are a number of further suggestions including numbers which can be found by searching for the term "loyalty number"