Herman I. May
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Hollow offerElizabeth and I have been the owners of a matched pair of Sony Ericsson T68i cell phones for a little over one year. We purchased them as mutual gifts for one another Christmas 2002 in order to upgrade our existing handsets. On the whole, they have been great devices and we have loved having them. There has, however, been one drawback. This model of phone was the first offered in the U.S. for use on the (at the time) fledgling GSM network. Though in widespread use throughout Europe and Asia for several years, the Global Systems for Mobile Communications standard is new to wireless telephone customers in North America. One of the problems with adopting new technologies is the lack of permeation. We quickly discovered that the reception on these handsets is atrocious. Signal strength was directly related to one's proximity to a major metropolitan center or a primary Interstate Highway. From the beginning of ownership, Elizabeth complained regularly about this limitation. While I shared her lamentation, I was (and to a certain extent, still am) willing to await wider saturation of the technology. I love the GPRS and BlueTooth capabilities; and the size of the device cannot be matched. Elizabeth, on the other hand, has less patience on the matter. Apparently, sentiments similar are somewhat the norm ... "FREE Phone For Our Valued Customers..." AT&T Wireless and Sony Ericsson have heard the cries of the impatient masses and have collaborated to rectify the problem; or have they... On Saturday (28 February), we each received a small 4x6 bi-fold postcard from Sony Ericsson. On the cover was the image of a T226 and the title "FREE Phones For Our Valued Customers..."(above) "...ABSOLUTELY no strings attached!"(below). Inside the brochure are all sorts of statements attesting to the superior quality and feature set of the T226 as well as an invitation to visit a web site "for more information". Who are they trying to kid! Upon first glance, both the brochure and the web site convey a sense of privilege to those customers that have been invited to participate in this exchange program. Three points touched upon in the brochure are "better ringtones", "better image quality", and "ready for your Communicam". The web site is equaly optimistic with complimenting verbiage and tutorial on moving your contacts. There is a catch, though several of them. Taking the time to move past the cheer, the discerning customer is well advised to take the time to read the side-by-side comparison. The T226 lacks many of the features upon which many of the more savvy T68i users have come to appreciate and rely. Lacking on the replacement device are a calendar, seven field eMail database (the T226 has only three), voice activated dialing, IR and BlueTooth!!!, a modem, shortcuts, profiles, and an image editor. Oh, and it has half the dymanic memory. Reading through this list of deficiencies, I was perturbed to say the least. I immediately rang the provided toll-free number and picked through the tree to a live person. "Crissy" was on the receiving end of my discontent. She listened calmly and at several times throughout the conversation explained that she understood my frustration. Further conversation indicated that the exchange program was a result of numerous complaints (much like Elizabeth's one would assume) and that this was the solution to which AT&T and Sony Ericsson could agree. In addition, she acknowledged that the T226 was not really an upgrade and that many, more advanced users would find it quite the opposite. It was also explained that the exchange program was strictly voluntary. That, while the phones would be sent to all registered T68i owners, the recipient was free to return the T226 instead of the T68i. To her credit, she also mentioned that there are plans to attempt to negotiate an alternate exchange program with Sony Ericsson whereby interested customers could opt for the T616 instead. I am certainly glad that I took the time to call for clarification. Neither the brochure nor the web site makes any acknowledgement regarding the discrepancy in features between these two devices. Nor is there any mention of the fact that this is a voluntary exchange program. Needless to say, neither Elizabeth nor I will be participating in this exchange program. I for the obvious reasons, while Elizabeth simply because she felt slighted by the concept once I explained the true nature of the "upgrade" We will wait for the T616 option!
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originally published: 02 March 2004
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