We are a few weeks away from the launch of the Sprint HTC Hero and we still do not have confirmation from Sprint as to whether the legacy SERO plans ($30/$50) will be compatible. The Palm Pre and Samsung Instinct were Sprint exclusive devices and subsequently required a Simply Everything Plan of $69.99 or higher in order to activate the device. The entire Sprint community was really hoping that the HTC Hero would not fall into this category.
A glimmer of hope
Earlier today Engadget noticed that a small regional carrier, Cellular South, had launched a landing page for their own Sprint-style HTC Hero. While the carrier is not a national carrier like Sprint, it does pose the possibility that the HTC Hero will be coming to other carriers, dismissing the idea that the device would be a Sprint exclusive.
A brighter light at the end of the tunnel
To add more fuel to the fire of possibility, a leaked rebate form was posted over on sprintusers which shows the HTC Hero is in the $100 Mail-in Rebate Smartphone category. The category heading says “requires voice plan with data or data plan of $25 or higher”. The Palm Pre, Samsung Instinct, Instinct s30 and Instinct HD all say “requires activation on select voice plans with data” which suggests that the HTC Hero does not require a special plan to activate.
The beginning of the end
The combination of Cellular South and the leaked rebate form had us ready to confirm the HTC Hero would work on SERO $30/$50 plans, but late last night we were sent some terrible news direct from the Sprint website. The PDF clearly states that “SERO rate plans are NOT compatible with the Samsung Instinct, HTC Hero or the Palm Pre. If you have one of these devices, the best plan options are the Everything Plus Data rate plans. Sero and Everything Plus rate plans are not available in markets served by our affiliate partner iPCS.”
Still a shot in the dark
While the PDF from the Sprint website is a serious blow to our dream of using the HTC Hero on the $30/$50 SERO plans there is still hope. If you look closely in the documentation they refer to the SERO plan by a different acronym than we use “Separating Employee Retention Offer”. It has always been Sprint Employee Referral Offer since I began using the plan back in 2004 so either we have a typo in the PDF, an unannounced name change or they are talking about a different plan.
At the moment we have sent out emails to Sprint and their Media Contacts in hopes of getting our readers a definite answer. Until we have confirmation as to whether the Sprint SERO plans will work with the HTC Hero we hope that you will stay optimistic with us and cross those fingers. Also feel free to put the power of twitter behind you and tweet @SprinT to let your voice be heard.
Update: It looks like Verizon Wireless is also going to release the HTC Hero… could we be in store for a Sprint HTC Hero that works with SERO plans, I hope so.
Update: It has now been confirmed that you will not be able to use a legacy (grandfathered) plan or the SERO plan with the HTC Hero. You will need an Everything Plan or the Simply Unlimited Plan in order to activate your phone. You can still buy the phone without switching plans, but since you need to login to a Google Account to be able to access the phone’s menu the device is pretty much useless without cellular service. Sorry guys we tried.
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doesn’t sound too hopeful, but that’s the only way I’m getting my upgrade to become a Hero! Sprint’s gotta listen to the feedback, especially if the phone isn’t exclusive to them.
It’s a coin toss… Unless all SERO $30/$50 subscribers start a campaign.
Stop being a cheap @$$ and just get a $70 plan. Tired of hearing people complain about the SERO’s… you are luck you are still allowed to even have them!
Mattemer is obviously a jealous douchebag who DOESN’T have a sero plan.
Nick,
Any new news from Sprint on the HTC Hero compatibility with Sero Plans? I mean just because we have a discounted plan, we cant have access to a phone? We are still paying for the phone! Thanks!
Still haven’t heard word from Sprint PR, but I’m sure it’s in their best interest to keep an official comment delayed until right before the HTC Hero release date. That way they can keep the buzz building for the device and shatter the dreams of SERO subscribers as usual.
I hope Sprint doesn’t require an Everything Plan. This phone isn’t Exclusive to Sprint anymore so I don’t see why they would do it. I mean requiring a Data Plan I’m totally okay with but not requiring an Everything Plan since I have a Family Plan. Hopefully Sprint means only requires a Data Plan and not an Everything Plan.
It will be interesting to see if Cellular South offering the HTC Hero constitutes a non-exclusive device since they are only a regional carrier serving the Memphis metropolitan area / Jackson, Mississippi /Coastal Alabama / Florida Panhandle.
The coverage area of Cellular South is very limited http://www.cellularsouth.com/coverage/?v=stores
We’ll just keep our fingers crossed until October.
Knowing Sprint, their gonna be g*y and require an Everything Plan even though it’s not a Sprint Exclusive.
I called the other day and the lady rep told me (not that it matters) it probably wont need an sep…We’ll see.
I agree, they’re tightening the screws on SERO account holders. I spoke to a retentions rep and she knows that Sprint is aggressively trying to get SERO account holders to switch their plans. It’s all a matter of profit and that’s why no one can get a straight answer from anyone in customer service. It’s greed folks, plain and simple.
Thanks for the info. I really hope SERO works with this phone. The Hero press release definitely left me under the impression that this phone would be compatible with SERO. I guess we will all find out in a few days. My fingers are still crossed!
man i really hope i can keep sero and get the htc hero, if they dont let us do this. then its gonna suck, cause all there new “good” phones are limmited to everything plans and what not.
I don’t understand the big deal.Why should I have to pay double for the same plan sprint offered me to stay a customer!? I want my Hero with my SERO!
I dont know about you guys, but I have been TOTALLY upset about them not offering the Palm Pre with the sero plan. I could never justify spending twice the amount every single month just for a different phone. Really, what is their deal with all this animosity toward their own SERO customers? We are still paying sprint money each month aren’t we? Its not like we are getting free service, why not treat us like customers. I am so close to switching to a different carrier because their service is horrible! The only reason I dont is because of the SERO bang for the buck. I mean really, if I cant get the Pre, AND I cant even get the HTC hero, I may just throw in the towel. Is anyone else feeling this way or am I the only one? Come on Sprint; get your act together. Dont be an AT&T, offer phones straight across the board! A customer is a customer, you just may loose us!
I can’t wait til it comes out so we can be sure. Different things that i dont know how much it would help. As we all know they stopped offering the SERO plan a while ago, but last month my mom was able to add my dad to her acct with the SERO $30 plan, and my brother was able to do the same with his wife. So in 2 days Sprint opened a brand new SERO acct and the other one just changed it (my brother’s wife, because she was already a sprint customer but was paying more). That alone says that not all sprint employees know what they’re doing and its hard to tell if they even know exactly what can and cannot be done. Today i called sprint and spoke to 2 different ladies and they both told me i would need to upgrade my plan…about 30 min ago one of those ladies call me back and told me that she was looking at more info and she told me that the same thing was said about the Pre and Instinct but after a few months they worked with other plans, so to just wait until the Hero comes out to know for sure (im not exactly sure what she meant by the Pre and Instinct though). Last thing, a guy at the sprint store told me he would get his Hero this week and told me to go so i can check it out..maybe if he lets me i can try to activate my acct on his phone to see if it works. If i do, i’l let you guys know!!!
Juan Gualan,
The Sprint Palm Pre and Instinct have never opened up to other plans. They both still have the same plan requirements they did from day 1, a “Everything Data” or “Simply Everything” plan. I would like to know what other plans that rep was speaking of that eventually opened up to the Palm Pre and Instinct after a few months.
The Advantage Club plans works with the Pre and Instinct, not sure how to get onto one of those plans though.
Advantage Club? Never heard of that one. Are you talking about the new renamed SERO plans that Sprint now calls the Everything Plus Referral program?
Nope, Advantage Club is a program for actual Sprint Employees. You can see that it is compatible with the HTC Hero on the PDF from Sprint.
https://www.sprint.com/webconversionform/Separating_EPP_Plan_All_Options.pdf
How a normal Sprint customer can get that plan is the million dollar question…
You can see on the .pdf above: Note: SERO rate plans are NOT compatible with the Samsung Instinct,® HTC Hero™ or the Palm® Pre™
I also have the sero plan and am SOOOOO disappointed!!!! So, dont hold your breath; say goodbye to the Hero, unless you are going to switch your plan.
From the PDF file above it looks like you can get a HTC Hero, Palm Pre, and Instinct for a minimum of $30/month on a Advantage Club plan. There appears to be no mention of restricting those 3 phones from the Advantage Club program rates, but not being individual liable is not good. $20/month for 500 minutes and another $10/month for the Premier Data Add on…not a bad deal at all…I would be a very happy camper if Sprint would just make the data premier add on an option for the general public to activate one of the 3 phones I mentioned above. It probably would not be only $10/month but maybe more like $30/month for plans offered to the general public if Sprint ever finally decides to do this. They are bleeding customers like crazy and have been for 2 years. Sprint, I hope you are watching this discussion.
I have been with Sprint for 10 years and I have a a low rate ($65/month 1000 minutes, nights and weekends free after 7 p, internet/texting/mobile to mobile, 3 shared phones with these minutes, taxes already included in that amt). This is called “retention.” I have been faithful, so my payoff is getting a good deal. However, I wanted the Sprint Pre and now am looking at the Hero. I will be upset also as many others will be if you have to have the “Special Packaging” in order to get the phone. Also my plan, they said, was exactly like the Anytime Mobile plan they have now where you can dial from mobile to any mobile which does not count against your minutes. Even though mine is identical to that, they say I have an “old plan,” that I can’t take advantage of that, and I would have to change to new plan, which is EXACTLY the same that I have now EXCEPT less minutes and more money! What’s up with that?! Anybody else experiencing this??
Sprint will classify your plan as a ‘grandfathered plan’ since it receives permanent monthly discounts that have been applied to your account from a combination of retention offers as well as loyalty perks. My recommendation is that you should find out if the discounts being applied to your bill can be maintained if you switch to a new plan. There will be an increase in monthly bill, but at least it would minimize that cost.
Sprint’s 69.99 unlimited plans do offer the best value out of any major U.S. carrier, but at the same time existing users already have the same features for lower prices. I don’t think they took into account their existing subscriber base who has unlimited text and data on their account with more minutes and pays less than 69.99/month.
I think you need to weigh your options by finding out how much your plan will increase after switching to a traditional unlimited family plan while maintaining your discounts. You should also factor in how often you want to upgrade your devices since family plans of $99.99 or higher allow you membership into Sprint Premier (yearly upgrades @ new subscriber prices, instead of every 2 years $150 off).
If you wanted a new phone but were not eligible for an upgrade the retail price of some of these devices is upwards of $600. By being part of Sprint Premier you would save nearly $400 by purchasing the device for the new subscriber price of $199. Over the next 12 months you would save 33/month (400/12) by having Sprint Premier on a family unlimited plan. It makes sense to me to switch to the new plan if you upgrade yearly and the increased monthly fee would be less than $30/month.
Cellular South looks like they are offering the HTC Hero phone. Its not exclusive to Sprint. Does that mean Sero will work with the Hero?!!
Cellular South is only a regional carrier serving the Memphis metropolitan area / Jackson, Mississippi /Coastal Alabama / Florida Panhandle. The device should still remain exclusive to Sprint until a national carrier offers it as well.
I spoke to a service tech from Sprint and he explained that the Hero is EXCLUSIVE to the Big 4 national carriers. There are often times where regional carriers who are considered to be in a different tier will carry a phone thought to be exclusive. Tier 1 vs. Tier 2 I believe is what he told me.
Seems like verizon’s version of HTC Hero will be available in upcoming november. is this exclusive now?
Confirmed Hero will not work with legacy F & F sero 500. Tried to activate with no luck
Just spoke to Sprint Chat Support and they said it’s a no go with the SERO.
Wow… first site on my google journey to give me a confirmed answer. Cellfanatic knows what the mobile users need to know!! 3 Cheers