Verizon unlimited data/new phone/no contract question

[sperho]

I'm currently on an unlimited (grandfathered) data contract through May 2012. If I were to buy a phone at full retail and not sign on for another 1 or 2 years, what have peoples' experiences been with Verizon changing the terms of a customer's plan if they are not on contract. I would hate to increase the chances of losing unlimited data if I were not to sign another contract. I'm going to be buying a Nexus when it becomes available, but I'm not sure that I want to sign up for another 2 years to get the discount... Anyone know?

I know that Verizon can pretty much do what they want when they want with their data plans, it seems, but...

[dezymond]

As far as I know, the phone doesn't matter, unless it's a dumbphone.

My friend bought the Bionic when it first came out at full retail and kept his unlimited plan from the D3. He recently switched back to the D3 and still has unlimited.

[sperho]

Yes, I've heard the same thing about keeping the plan you are on if you just get another smartphone, but I'm wondering what happens after my contract expires. Will they monkey around with a plan given that there is not contract in place? Perhaps the contract says they can do anything they want at any time anyway... But who reads those things???

[dezymond]

Yes, I've heard the same thing about keeping the plan you are on if you just get another smartphone, but I'm wondering what happens after my contract expires. Will they monkey around with a plan given that there is not contract in place? Perhaps the contract says they can do anything they want at any time anyway... But who reads those things???

If you buy full retail then it would just be another product sale to them.

So you're planning on buying it full retail and possibly moving to another provider? You should still be grandfathered into an unlimited once you get a new contract. However, if you go to another provider, say Sprint, for a year and then try to come back to Verizon I doubt you'll be grandfathered into unlimited plan.

[brandon9559]

You are grandfathered in. As long as you keep using a smartphone your unlimited feature will stay the same. Doesn't matter if you upgrade, but at full retail, or buy one from Craigslist. Whether you're under contract or not doesn't matter.

[sperho]

You are grandfathered in. As long as you keep using a smartphone your unlimited feature will stay the same. Doesn't matter if you upgrade, but at full retail, or buy one from Craigslist. Whether you're under contract or not doesn't matter.

Thanks - That's what I was curious about. There is a chance that my employer may eventually add the Nexus to their approved Android devices and if that's the case, I may buy one and then sell it and I don't want to necessarily be locked into a contract if I decide to go with the employer-provided\-unlimited-everything plan. Then again, my employer has rules (no root) on the phones that they buy for their employees... Decisions, decisions.