Haha...more bickering and polarity over at the RW forums

[bizeemere]

It's funny to watch those forums, purely from an entertainment perspective. There clearly are two groups posting over there - 1) the consumerish-type that wants a phone that works with basic features because they've paid for it/are paying for it (and I believe they have a right to ask for something that works) AND 2) the fanboy type that will defend RW to the hilt, regardless of how bad they screw this up, and will gladly bend over and take it without asking any questions. For me there is a BIG difference between being suportive and blindly believing in what a company is telling you because you are that desperate to have some new technology - which, incidentally, has been around for a while. There is one poster over there that must be a shill for RW as he writes these dissertation-length posts that just reek of an investor. He/she tries to calm the masses and quell the complaints. I mean, he is either unemployed and hoping that RW will offer him a job as some PR person or he is practicing for when he actually writes a PhD dissertation some day. Anyway, he likes writing very winded and verbose posts that drone on about 'being patient' with RW - which people have been hearing for 7 months now. He likes to brag that he has been in the telco/cellco industry for years and "knows" what he is talking about. Whatever...

Personally, with the number of blog posts and reviews I keep seeing popping up on the net (most of which are not positive), RW has pretty much relegated themselves to not turning into a major player in the cell phone market. At best, they will be one of these small, regional, niche-like companies (like Cricket, Page Plus, Ting, Voyager, etc). I don't see them amounting to anything monumental as they have missed their window of opportunity to correct things and move forward in a clear and open process by keeping their customers informed. For those that don't know. RW opened in Nov. 2011 and from day one have been bogged down in mistake after mistake, from not being able to process a simple e-commerce order to now abandoning the phone they have strapped early adopters with (and they are now telling those people that they will have to buy another new phone as they don't plan to offer a buy-back program or upgrade program at a steeply discounted price). Many are posting that there are some new phones coming out that have the VOIP software/ROM chip already in them and all customers have to do is download and install Google Voice or other apps to offload their call volume to Wifi and avoid using their voice minutes. I'm still reading up on this so don't quote me on how this works or what it is all about. My point being, RW may have missed the boat as that was the crux of their business plan/model - to keep costs low by offloading to Wifi; but they can't seem to get it right and now tech-savvy posters are telling people how to go with other MVNO's and how you can do the same thing that RW is proposing but with a working phone (many are complaining that RW's phone lacks even basic features like MMS/SMS and the call quality is hit or miss with many).

Luckily for me, I'm in a wave that probably won't be asked to join until 2013, at the rate they are going with always pushing back their own release dates (that seems to be another big PR problem with RW - they set these lofty goals and when they can't deliver, they simply post a long, overdue message on their forums that they have to delay and push back their dates to later)

For me, I'm not a hater nor a supporter. I'm simply on the sidelines right now taking it all in and forming my opinions from what I am reading online. And so far, from my perspective, it doesn't seem good for RW. People are already bailing by going with other companies that offer customer service and who have working phones NOW; and they are doing the Wifi offloading thing by installing Google Voice and other apps.

To date, I still remain unimpressed with RW. And I feel bad for those that are not getting the customer service and help they are paying for every month from RW.

[tmobiley]

It looks like you wrote half a dissertation.

Seriously though, I used to be with RW. I cancelled a few weeks ago. I was on it to get a cheap Android phone, and some good service. Unfortunately, the device truly was cheap (adj (def. 4): of little account; of small value; mean; shoddy - dictionary.com).

$19/month for unlimited talk/text/data on Android was nice while it lasted. Once I turned off my service the device become a brick! I now am unable to resell it or give it away (per what the RW support staff told me via e-mail), and the device won't even connect to WiFi since it's not "authorized". That's $100.00 down the drain. I am thinking of maybe flashing it back to Sprint, or maybe another MVNO - so long as the IMEI can be activated on Sprint or another MVNO...

My ultimate comparison fell between RW and T-Mobile. Both provided me unlimited talk/text/data in some form or another. RW only allowed it on WiFi - and only within the US for that matter. Whereas, T-Mobile gave me unlimited talk/text/data on cellular and wifi - with international wifi support. With T-Mobile I end up paying about $5.00 more than I did with RW, but I get live customer support, I much more rigorous OLAM, good selection of phones, and an overall better experience (full features, truly unlimited).

Keep in mind I've been with T-Mobile since 2001, so I have a very old plan which they do not offer any longer; but it was nice to be able to drop RW (as I was simply BETA testing) and use my T-Mobile line full-time again.

[bizeemere]

Yep, you got me, tmobiley. I tried not to make it so long, but.....

[BruceRohrer]

[QUOTE

My ultimate comparison fell between RW and T-Mobile. Both provided me unlimited talk/text/data in some form or another. RW only allowed it on WiFi - and only within the US for that matter. Whereas, T-Mobile gave me unlimited talk/text/data on cellular and wifi - with international wifi support. [/QUOTE]

I had no trouble at all using RW to call home (Illinois) from Vietnam the three weeks I spent there in April. I was able to make voice calls, send and receive texts, and send picture mail (using Pinger/TextFree app) from my hotel Wi-Fi connection. Didn't think to try receiving calls, though.

[tmobiley]

[QUOTE

My ultimate comparison fell between RW and T-Mobile. Both provided me unlimited talk/text/data in some form or another. RW only allowed it on WiFi - and only within the US for that matter. Whereas, T-Mobile gave me unlimited talk/text/data on cellular and wifi - with international wifi support.

I had no trouble at all using RW to call home (Illinois) from Vietnam the three weeks I spent there in April. I was able to make voice calls, send and receive texts, and send picture mail (using Pinger/TextFree app) from my hotel Wi-Fi connection. Didn't think to try receiving calls, though.[/QUOTE]

Last I checked using your RW phone internationally on WiFi was against the ToS and could result in a $500.00 misuse fee, I hope they don't hit you with those charges!

I know though that T-Mobile openly support the international use of their WiFi services!

[hchen42]

Last I checked using your RW phone internationally on WiFi was against the ToS and could result in a $500.00 misuse fee, I hope they don't hit you with those charges!

I know though that T-Mobile openly support the international use of their WiFi services!

This is indeed lame on RW's part. I thought if RW ever get this to work, I'd switch. I travel abroad quite often (at least 3 times a year), and if I can access US phone even just on wifi, it would be fantastic.

Guess I'll stick with Virgin Mobile. I'll just rely on my sipdroid/obi combination for wifi calls from abroad.

[dstwins]

Actually that is SOOOO not true.. I called their customer service on that as well as their own statements online (go the forums and search for international) and in both cases, international calling (over Wifi) is perfectly allowed and valid... Its the Cellular part that is restricted. Remember as a MVO, these guys need to watch their use carefully with sprint, otherwise they could get shutdown.

This is indeed lame on RW's part. I thought if RW ever get this to work, I'd switch. I travel abroad quite often (at least 3 times a year), and if I can access US phone even just on wifi, it would be fantastic.

Guess I'll stick with Virgin Mobile. I'll just rely on my sipdroid/obi combination for wifi calls from abroad.