U.S. Cellular will give you up to $300 for your cracked smartphone

[Wireless News]

http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/ABbbZ4e6pTqkJVJnkwlCFw--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3NfbGVnbztmaT1maWxsO2g9ODY7cT03NTt3PT EzMA--/http://media.zenfs.com/en-US/homerun/digital_trends_973/13d6ffb7161e7ee4518a6c19378f559d (http://news.yahoo.com/u-cellular-300-cracked-smartphone-192051410.html)There’s no shortage of carriers who’ll gladly recycle your old smartphone in exchange for bill credit. Case in point: November saw T-Mobile offer $200 to Sprint customers who signed up for the Un-carrier’s Simple Choice plan, and-AT&T last month began offering up to $650 for customers who switch from their current carrier. But in the category of providers-willing to bend over backwards to attract your business (or at the very least your attention), U.S. Cellular may have taken the crown. Starting today, it’s offering up to $300 credit for devices even if they’ve got a cracked or scratched screen. The new promotion, much like T-Mobile’s and AT&T’s offering, requires that you port-your number and cancel service with your current carrier. So long as you’ve completed those two prerequisites, though, you can fork over your banged-up phone for a maximum of $300 (providing it’s functional, of course), and U.S. Cellular will pay any early termination fees incurred. As with many trade-in programs, you don’t quite get credit on the spot.-Trade in the phone at one of U.S. Cellular’s brick-and-mortar locations and you’ll get a $100 promo card day and date, and a $200 promo card via the mail within 6 — 8 weeks. And in order to qualify for ETF credit, you’ll have to enroll in U.S. Cellular’s Device Protection+ program, pricing for which starts at $8.99 a month. Related: Get up to $650 in credit from AT&T for switching to its side of the fence “We know that there are people who are looking to change wireless carriers, but they have broken screens that have no trade-in value, and therefore can’t afford to make the switch, said Vice President of Marketing for U.S. Cellular Joe Settimi in a related statement. “We wanted to remove that barrier for people and give them an easy way to upgrade to the high-quality U.S. Cellular network and get a better wireless value than Verizon and AT&T.” Whether the deal’s a good one depends on your perspective. It’s true that a cracked smartphone commands significantly less market value than a nick-free handset, but replacing a damaged display isn’t always-an expensive enterprise. HTC offers a free one-time screen replacement if you damage your phone within the first six months of ownership, and a myriad of third-party outfits will happily perform a repair for $100-$150.-But problems can arise-with third-party repairs, and-selling the device yourself is undoubtedly more time-consuming than handing it to one of the the friendly clerks at U.S. Cellular. It’s ultimately-a matter of convenience. Separately, U.S. Cellular’s discounting its home Internet service for a limited time. The firm is offering its home phone handset, wireless router, hot spot, and modem devices for a penny per month (normally $20 to $30 per month) for a specified period, and also-tossing in two months of free service. It’s also launching a referral plan for existing customers: if you refer a friend to U.S. Cellular and that friend later decides to activate a smartphone on the carrier’s Shared Connect plan, you and your friend-get $50. Also watch: A Kindle for the blind? U.S. engineers working on a Braille tablet Please enable Javascript to watch this video



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