Tips buy a new phone

1. ALWAYS START ONLINE

Service provider Web sites often have promotions that don’t carry over into the carrier’s stores. Rarely, if ever, does it work the other way around. A quick trip to the provider’s Web site might very well save you the extra legwork along with some cash.

2. HAGGLE

In 2003, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled that service providers are allowed to engage in the ancient art of haggling with their customers. The court rejected the complaint of one woman that Verizon Wireless was discriminating against her by not offering everyone the same deals on service. This means that you can walk into your carrier’s store, and wheel and deal. It might not always work, but for the smooth talkers among us, it never hurts to try.

3. SWITCH PROVIDERS

One might expect that service providers would do anything within their power to make sure that their existing customers don't change teams. However, the most competitive prices on new handsets are offered to new members. If you're not too attached to your current service plan, the rebate offered on a new handset might be worth the minor headache of changing providers.

4. STICK WITH YOUR PROVIDER

If you’ve had a good experience with your carrier, it’s probably not worth the trouble of jumping ship. Carriers often provide incentive plans, which provide their customers with discounts after sticking with their service for an extended period. For example, Verizon Wireless offers New Every Two, which gives customers credit toward the purchase of a new handset at the end of a two year service plan.

5. TRY THIRD-PARTY WEB SITES

Third-party Web sites such as Amazon and LetsTalk have their own warehouses full of phones. While they go through the same carriers that the public does for service plans, they are able to set their own prices on phones, often times undercutting the post-rebate prices on handsets offered by service providers

6. CHECK OUT THE RETAIL STORES

Like third-party Web sites, retail stores such as RadioShack and Best Buy stock their own handsets, so they don’t have to adhere to the service providers’ phone pricing. The rub is that, unlike the service providers, the best prices are often not mentioned on the store’s Web site, and may actually require that you leave your house.

7. CONSIDER A USED PHONE

If you don’t mind second-hand electronics, the ever-growing marketplace for used handsets can provide a low-priced alternative to pricey new models. Cingular offers refurbished phones through its site. All refurb phones purchased through Cingular’s site are covered by a 90-day warranty. We found a used SLVR L7 for $99.99 with a two-year contract.

8. UNLOCKED PHONES

Unlocked cell phones are available through auction sites, such as eBay. Of course, unlike buying a phone though a provider, you’ll have to compete for a handset, and there’s always the distinct possibility of getting ripped off. Plus, unlocked models not covered by the provider may not offer all of the same features that a carrier-subsidized phone does.

9. GROUP RATES

Service providers have promotions from time to time, which allow users the ability to purchase multiple phones for a discounted rate, often two for the price of one. Promotions like these are especially fruitful for those with family plans.

10. READ THE BLOGS

Frequenting blogs like Phone Scoop and Engadget Mobile, which trawl the FCC’s site for the latest information on unannounced models (which the latter refers to as FCC Fridays) is a good way to find out which older models are going to be refreshed or replaced. Carriers often drop the prices on soon-to-be discontinued models.

11. E-MAIL ALERTS

Many online price comparison sites, such as PriceGrabber and NexTag, allow you to set target price alerts for products on their sites. Choose a product, set a price that you’re willing to pay, and the site will send you an e-mail, letting you know when one of their partner stores hits the price point, or dips below it.

source : LaptopMag.com