You must live in California. In New York I have only paid tax on the subsidized price at Verizon and Best Buy. It's like buying a car here. We only pay sales tax on the difference between the negotiated price and the trade-in. It was the same in PA when I lived there.
Comcast offers any customer either $10 off their comcast bill for a year, or $100 visa debit card by mail. Both take two months to activate.
Contract is on phone only and is no different than regular verizon contract. Must purchase through comcast promotions. New device fee is the same. Fed ex 2 day shipping is included.
If you paired this with the moto trade up rebate, that's a droid maxx for 99 bucks.
FYI, if you have a Best Buy credit card you can purchase it at Best Buy and use the 18 month 0% financing. It is $749 but they will price match Verizon's $499 sale price.
Make sure to pay it off before the 18 months are up. For me it is about $30 a month.