Sprint SERO Premium coming to Pre and Pixi 44
Sun, 03 Oct 2010 12:38 pm EDT 
Remember the huge ruckus about SERO back when the Pre first launched on Sprint? For the uninitiated, SERO stands for Sprint Employee Referral Offer, and was a supremely good deal for Sprint customers that knew how to work the system (it wasn’t really that difficult, to be honest). SERO was discontinued a few years back, though subscribers on the plan at the time were grandfathered thanks to the magic that is a legally-binding contract between the cellular provider (Sprint) and the subscriber (a lot of you).
The ruckus was over the fact that Sprint would not allow SERO users to get a Palm Pre on their plans - Sprint required at the bare minimum the $70-a-month Everything Data package, even though the SERO plans generally equaled the data, minute, and text allotments for significantly less coin. Not wanting to pay hundreds more dollars over the course of a two year contract, many SERO owners loudly and stubbornly refused to upgrade to the Pre, only to find themselves locked out of pretty much every other new Sprint smartphone, which carried a similar Everything Data minimum requirement.
Sprint’s heard you, SERO subscribers, and they’ve listened. In a bid to get you to upgrade and stay with Sprint, they’re offering you a compromise: SERO Premium. The new SERO Premium plans, kicking in on October 1st, match current SERO plans on features and add in Any Mobile Anytime and unlimited Sprint Nav GPS navigation. The two options, available only to current SERO subscribers, clock in at 500 minutes plus unlimited data, texting, etc for $40 a month, or 1250 minutes plus extras for $59.99 a month.
Oh, and here’s the important part: you’ll finally be able to grab new smartphones while staying on SERO (at least in spirit). Yes, you’ll be able to get a Palm Pre or Palm Pixi, as well as a number of other Sprint smartphones (including the HTC Evo 4G and Samsung Epic 4G, for the requisite $10 more a month for that 4G suffix). It’s a compromise: Sprint keeps you as a customer, you get the phone you want, everybody goes home happy. Of course, you could just stick with your old SERO plan and your Treo 755p... we won’t judge.
Source: Sprint
44 Comments
Love Sprint.
... But again the tempting upgrade option knocking again.. Sigh.
too little too late sprint
"new" should be "knew".
Or, to make it more interesting, why not "gnu"?
;-)
Sometimes I feel extra smrt.
*accidentally replied to the wrong one*
ugh, such a pet peeve. this could fly in the forums, but not in the articles. and "they're listened" !??!?!?!
c'mon, a little proofreading, please!
I agree, almost every post has a type or two
a type or two?! har har!
I agree with the "too little, too late" comment... at least for Palm. I cringed (as a Palm shareholder) when Sprint was too stubborn to insist on customers changing plans in order to get the Pre. I knew it would severely impact the success of what, at the time, should have been a very successful launch of the Pre. Oh well, we know the rest. As a Sprint shareholder as well, I'm glad to see this change. In this economic time, value is most important to the customer. I expect to see Sprint reduce churn with this latest move and a $5 share price by the end of the month... but I really would've liked to see Palm make it as an independent.
Palm couldn't meet initial Sprint demand as it was. The Sprint launch and lack of SERO Wasn't what did in Palm, it was their marketing. And VZW's "buy a Droid" aproach to the Palm launch.
OMFG that makes me SO mad cuz I waited a month(when the pre came out) to decide if my super cheap Employee offered plan was worth giving up for the pre which meant I HAD to renew my contract and pay all this crap more....and look at the payoff...im stuck with a Pre...which I have loved...but a guy gets bored with a device eventually!
Are you seriously saying that sprint not allowing sero users to use a pre greatly impacted the success of the device? Lay off the drugs... The number of people on a sero plan vs the number of people not would be pretty damn small.
"where'd ya learn that, cheech? DRUUUUUG SCHOOOOOL?!?
lot of good this does me...i was one of these SERO customers and was forced to change to that Everything Data plan when I got my Pre, even though my original plan already had unlimited data, but it was costing me less than 50 bucks a month. I never understood why I was paying 25 bucks more a month for a plan virtually identical to my old one. They should at least offer this retroactively to those customers who had to change their plans.
I gave up SERO ($30) and went to the EPRP ($60) to get the Pre, anyone want to guess what my chances are of being able to move to SERO Premium?
Yeah, slim and none.
But since I've had the Pre for the last 16 months, it's been worth it because I'm still saving cash than if I was with VZW or ATT.
I gave up two $30 SERO plans to move my wife and I to a Pre and Pixi. I held out until last april because I so badly didn't want to lose the SERO plans. Even though I knew what I was doing this kind of bums me out to see that Sprint NOW is allowing this.
cool they cancelled my 25% discount and I'm pretty pissed about it. And isn't cancelling features a breach of contract because I signed my soul away for 2 years thinking I was getting a sweett discount the whole time. they didn't even tell me until I got the bill.....
hmmm.. strange. I've been on SERO since day 1.
i have 500 anytime minutes, unlimited data, unlimited texting, free pcs to pcs.
i pay $20 for the plan and $7 for the insurance.
i have a palm pre.
I've been on SERO since i had a dumb flip phone. then i had the treo 755p, then the palm pre.
this premium thing.. i see that we get our navy back, yay. but now it's $40 instead of $20?
i'd rather keep my SERO "non-premium."
OK... I'll bite.
How do you have a Pre on SERO Basic?
i think i might've mispoke. as soon as i posted this i logged in my account and actually talked to customer service. here's the deal.
my friend who is a sprint employee opened this account for me. i have sprint f&f 500 (which includes what i posted before).
but
it's not my account, it's an account under hers. i still manage it, i have my own account number, my own online id and password, my own bill, in my name, but it's like a ghost account under hers.
so technically i have an employee account, not a referrer account.
does that make any sense? is anyone else in the same boat as me?
@ mehigh you aren't on SERO, you're on SWAC (Sprint Wireless Advantage Club). Unlike SERO, SWAC accounts have always had access to any phone.
Is there any way to switch to a SWAC? Any info would be apreciated. Any Sprint employees here that can make it happen for me? I'll give you something extra for the effort...
mehigh - same identical boat as you! I tell you it IS fun to save a ton of money :) rafalc - real simple, find someone who works in Sprint - they would tell you everything you'd have to do.
"or 1250 minutes plus errata for $59.99"???
1250 minutes plus printing errors??? "Extras" maybe?
Damn, I failed hard proof-reading this one.
I was able to switch to the new sero plan when I got my pre but it was only a $5 difference from the normal plan, any chance I'll be able to get switched back to the 'old' new sero? Would love to save some money :P
My 25% discount has followed me where ever I go lmao.. Everything data family plan 2 lines less than $100/month can't complain.. The strange thing is that I got the discount for a job I work back in 2005 when I use to live in Florida.. And even with the jobs I worked since then moving back to NYC they never questioned it or taken it off.. Thank God.. Better yet thank you Sprint :D
Son of a bitch; and i just switched out from my old sero plan a few months ago just to get the pixi. Also this article is in correct in stating that the minimum price plan to get a pre or pixi was the 69.99 everything data plan; SERO customers were able to switch to the ERP(employee referrel plus plan) for 59.99 for 500 anytime min, and all the everything data stuff.
Either way im gonna be on the phone demanding they allow me to get this new sero premium plan, because i am going to be pissed that others can get pre and pixi for only 40 dollars a month while im paying 69.99. the reason i got 69.99 intstead of the referall offer of 59.99 so i can upgrade after a year instead of 2 years.
Maestro...please post update if you do do this. I switched from the beloved SERO back when the Pre came out and now this is pretty much Sprint kicking us in the groin. Would love to be able to get "back" to this SERO premium.
I am SO pissed they would do this NOW. I called in several times to ask if I could at least pay a premium for the data on my SERO plan. I will be calling them demanding that I be switched to the SERO premium plans.
Just to clear up what has been inferred but not clearly stated: Only customers who are currently on SERO can upgrade to the new plan. If you left SERO to get a pre or whatever, and have any luck returning to SERO, please let everyone know. I seriously doubt it can or will be done.
On another note, SERO is not really the absolute rock-bottom cheapest way to get a plan. Find a few frinds you trust and split the cost of a Family Share plan, and then add an easy-to-get employee discount of 25% or more. Of course you would have to share one 5gb cap on all your data, so you'll have to figure out how reasonable that is for all of you.
@amateurhack On a Everything Data family plan, the 5GB cap only applies to data cards. Data through the phones is unlimited still.
After you factor in up to 27% in employer discounts on a $69.99 plan on and the fact that it offers Any Mobile Any Time, SERO aint really the deal it once was folks.
You are absolutely correct!!
It's about a $15/mo savings, but those on ED plans get an extra $150 upgrade credit... so it's really closer to $8/mo in savings. Plus, ED plan holders do not have to be forwarded to a special department or special phone number just to get prompt service.
So is there any way to get into the SERO club?
People, SERO IS NO MORE. You can't get onto SERO, you can't get back onto SERO. It's done, over with, not coming back and not open to new subscribers.
i actually spoke to customer service today. sero premium is available for $40.
Hmmmmm ok, I"ve had my pre since the day it came out and I was able to get it on my Sero plan of 500 minutes for $59.99 a month. I wonder if I can call and get my bill lowered to this new $40 plan without renewing my contract... money is tight ya know lol.
@goodness You're on the new SERO, better known as EPRP (Everything Plus Referral Plan) which always has allowed for any phone. This article is referring to the old SERO. Since it doesn't seem like you were ever on the old SERO, I highly doubt that they'll let you onto it now....
I was on the old SERO plan for quite some time, I like to think that I know the plan I was on when I specifically signed up for SERO four years ago. And I still have a second phone on my old $30 plan.
When I upgraded to the pre from my 755p I called the SERO line to order the phone and received the phone and renewed my contract at a price $10 cheaper than the regular plan with 50 extra minutes. If you remember when the pre came out the everything plan was 450 minutes at 69.99 and by calling SERO I got 500 minutes at 59.99 and whenever I call sprint, they still refer to my account as an employee account.
When I call sprint care tomorrow I'll find out if I can get it or not.
If you're paying $59.99/mo, then you don't have the "original" SERO. You have EPRP (Everything Plus). Totally different.
If your plan says "SERO" or "SERO F&F 500" or something extremely similar... then, of course, you can switch to SERO Premium.
- SERO 500 is $30/mo
- SERO 1250 is $50/mo
If your plan does not match those specs, then disregard this teaser article
You *can* switch from SERO 1250 to SERO 500, which only makes sense, considering SERO Premium comes with the AnyMobile feature. $20/mo cheaper. :)
I used to have the SERO 500 from 07-09 and ending up switching to Sprint Everything Plus, which was sort of like SERO but more expensive and allowed phones like the Pre to be used on the plan. Well after reading this bit of info today I called Sprint and was able to have my plan switched back to SERO. So yes it is possible just call and ask.
I am currently on the 69.99 plan with a 25% employer discount. After the discount it comes out to the same thing as the 59.99 Everything Plus plan.
Is there any way to switch to a SWAC or any SERO plans? I would love ot pay 40/month. Any Sprint employees out there who can help??????
Awesome.. I was able to switch back out of EPR (which I was forced into from SERO in order to get the Pre) and back into SERO thru Sprint Support Chat. SOOOO happy to be saving $30/m