Cell Phone Package Fees...The Un-Avoidable "Data Fee"

Recently I have been shopping for a new cell phone, Verizon Wireless being my provider I have found the process of obtaining a “decent” phone rather impossible. Every phone I have had through Verizon has broken under the two year contract. No matter if I paid $50 or $200 the phones have either stopped charging or simply fallen to pieces after a fall as little as a foot. I find that most of my friends and family have had the same instances with not only Verizon phones but cell phones in general.

Once my cell phone had simply stopped charging I brought it into the Verizon store. I realized that the phone was no longer under warranty but I seemed to think that the sales associates could finagle something for me to leave the store with a working phone. I was not looking for a free phone simply one that just worked. I told the sales associate that over the past few weeks I realized that the battery had been dieing very fast and the phone had become non functional. After handing my cell phone over, the associated examined it and told me that the battery was dead. I had two options from this discovery. I could buy a new battery or buy a new phone. Of course the sales associate recommended I buy a new phone and told me I was eligible for an upgrade. Since, I am far away from home I realized that buying a battery in the store would be expensive and I did not have the time to wait to order one off Amazon or Ebay so I opted to buy a new phone.

Once I had agreed to buy a new phone I looked at all the options and realized that the simplistic phones were much like ones I had before that continued to break. I decided to look a step up into Blackberries. After much internal deliberation I opted to get the Blackberry curve. The sales associate was very happy with my decision as was I. Little did I know the disclaimer that I was about to receive upon the purchase of my new phone. There was an added “data package” which was mandatory to have on the Blackberry in order for it to be functional. This means I was adding an extra $29.99 per month to the family plan my parents pay to have. I had heard so many good things about the durability of a Blackberry that I found it would be a good buy, however, once I realized what I would be adding to my monthly bill I began to second guess my choice.

The other phones all appeared to be nothing short of functional and the better choices such as a Droid or Blackberry all required the extra $29.99 fee per month. I decided to talk to the sales associate to see if I could not add the data package to my plan. He told me it was essential in order for the phone to work correctly that I needed to pay the extra fee. Since I could not walk out of the store with out a phone and I would be breaking my contract if I cancelled (which also inflicts a large fee) I was forced to say okay to the Blackberry. Yes I could have gotten one of the cheaper phones; I knew I would be back shortly to replace it.

I know many cell phone companies are inflicting fees much like Verizon’s $29.99 data package fee. I feel that it is such a high price for one to pay to obtain a decent phone and for someone who may not want the extra features, much like me to be forced into paying the extra fee.