Thunderstruck by Verizon's lack of customer focus - good bye after 20 years

[Scoobysnack]

After suffering with no bluetooth, little support, and a weak processor/memory combo from the otherwise flawless TP2 and waiting for a phone that could roam globally with 4G speeds I tried to catch the brass ring this morning only to find that the global phone has no global calling plan and the new wireless data is usage based as opposed to "unlimited".  Tried to get some appreciation from customer service to have my current plan transferred so I can at least use it in other countries but no love.

20 years with this company (counting Cellular One) and I am done.  Time for me to evaluate other options and take advantage of that nice number transfer option that Congress helped us get.

[Scoobysnack]

After suffering with no bluetooth, little support, and a weak processor/memory combo from the otherwise flawless TP2 and waiting for a phone that could roam globally with 4G speeds I tried to catch the brass ring this morning only to find that the global phone has no global calling plan and the new wireless data is usage based as opposed to "unlimited".  Tried to get some appreciation from customer service to have my current plan transferred so I can at least use it in other countries but no love.

20 years with this company (counting Cellular One) and I am done.  Time for me to evaluate other options and take advantage of that nice number transfer option that Congress helped us get.

[ibanez737]

I'm not too sure what any of those points about the TP2 have to do with Verizon, especially since almost all of those things are known before you buy the phone.  Anyways, the Tbolt isn't a global phone (at least GSM capable).  What global packages are you referring to?  The unlimited global data packages?  Need some more information to maybe help you out here.

[budone]

Good luck finding another carrier with unlimited Global. VZW did away with it January 16.

[rcschnoor]

---

ibanez737 wrote:

 Anyways, the Tbolt isn't a global phone (at least GSM capable). 

---

Verizon's 4G LTE is GSM, so yes, the Thunderbolt is a GSM phone. It also will be compatible with Verizon's CDMA signal when not on GSM.

[rcschnoor]

---

Scoobysnack wrote:

After suffering with no bluetooth, little support, and a weak processor/memory combo from the otherwise flawless TP2 and waiting for a phone that could roam globally with 4G speeds I tried to catch the brass ring this morning only to find that the global phone has no global calling plan and the new wireless data is usage based as opposed to "unlimited".  Tried to get some appreciation from customer service to have my current plan transferred so I can at least use it in other countries but no love.

20 years with this company (counting Cellular One) and I am done.  Time for me to evaluate other options and take advantage of that nice number transfer option that Congress helped us get.

---

I was able to utilize bluetooth on my TP2.

As to being able to use the Thunderbolt globally, you may want to read through this thread, which describes the steps to take for unlocking your sim card to use out of country less expensive than the Verizon plans.

[rcschnoor]

After suffering with no bluetooth, little support, and a weak processor/memory combo from the otherwise flawless TP2 and waiting for a phone that could roam globally with 4G speeds I tried to catch the brass ring this morning only to find that the global phone has no global calling plan and the new wireless data is usage based as opposed to "unlimited".  Tried to get some appreciation from customer service to have my current plan transferred so I can at least use it in other countries but no love.

20 years with this company (counting Cellular One) and I am done.  Time for me to evaluate other options and take advantage of that nice number transfer option that Congress helped us get.

[Ann154]

Verizon 4G LTE is at 700 mhz. Do you know of any place that is using that frequency?

[GinaH_VZW · Accepted solution]

Scoobysnack, we regret to hear you feel we don't value your loyalty. Your satisfaction is important to us and we hope you will give us a chance to discuss your concerns before making your final decision. We will be sending you a message to personally assist you further.

I also want to clarify the Thunderbolt's international roaming capabilities to avoid any misunderstanding. That is correct to what ibanez737 mentioned, the phone is spec is CDMA/LTE which means it can roam globally in countries that use CDMA technology only. The Droid 2 Global can roam globally on networks that use GSM + UMTS/HSPA. For a list of countries that use CDMA networks, click here: 

http://b2b.vzw.com/international/technology/cdma.html

Also LTE technology is projected to be the global standard for 4G. VZW and other wireless companies across the globe have committed to rolling out LTE in the coming years. This means you will be able to take your VZW 4G phone globally and have 4G speeds.

[Jax_Omen]

Indeed, just because LTE is GSM-based does **NOT** mean that an LTE phone like the thunderbolt has the EDGE/UMTS/HSPA radios that other GSM phones have. It has a CDMA 1xRTT radio, an EVDO Rev.B radio, and an LTE radio. Even getting the sim card slot unlocked would not change this simple fact.