Motorola Droid smartphone $20 FS from mobility.dell.com (2 year Verizon contract)

You've seen the commercials on TV so you don't need me to tell you what the Motorola Droid is.
There are have been some other Droid offers posted to FW. I think this is the lowest current price.

http://mobility.dell.com/template/simpleautocontent.aspx?pageid=...

Phone costs $119.99 ($80 cheaper than verizonwireless.com)
no tax (for me at least)
free FedEx shipping
$35 activation fee (same as verizonwireless.com)
2 year Verizon contract required (starts at $49.99/month)

UPDATE:
SPECIAL OFFER from Verizon Wireless!
Order and activate up to five lines on Verizon Wireless on or before December 1, 2009, and Verizon Wireless will credit the activation fee(s).

UPDATE: price is now $20 with a 2 year contract

req a data plan...
I'd jump on this but can't reason to pay $130 for two phones (700 min @ $70) with two data plans (@$30 each) every month...
I've actually never gotten a cell yet, was interested in getting the droid but it sounds like a lot of money every month...my math is correct right? I"m a bit of a cell phone noob.

I finally upgrade from my Palm Treo 750 on AT&T after holding out as long as I could for a Pre to show up on my carrier to the iPhone. Once I got the iPhone, I was a little disappointed and then heard that the Droid was really slick and very techie (like me =:-'> So I decided last week to ditch AT&T after 14 years (I had the first Ericsson on Pac Bell) and go try Verizon and the Droid. Saturday was going to be the day, but something came up. So Sunday morning I pop open the laptop and browse to my morning sites, FW, LifeHacker, then Engadget. First post on the gadget: Don't shop drunk: Verizon's $350 ETF is now liveFunny thing was, I was still a little drunk from the party the night before... I guess the iPhone & AT&T are gonna be hanging around for a while=:-'>

No option for any less than $89.99 (plus data x2) for 2 lines? I don't need 1400 mins. The wife and I barely use 700 between us. Nice deal, but can't bite unless I'm missing other cheaper options with less minutes.

Is there any way to get around the $35 activation fee? I think my parents are a "long time customer" so I don't know if we have to pay activation.

Activation is only for new lines. If you renew an account, there shouldn't be an activation fee. If the minutes is too much for you, once you have everything working, you can always drop down to a lower minute plan without penalty.

MGoBlue94 said: Purchased ... awesome deal thanks OP!

Was already VZ customer with an upgrade option open on one line. Went to VZ today and they wanted $199. Picked up this deal with case & charger for $144! Yes, the ETF went up to $350 ... but have been with VZ for 15 years, don't expect to stop now.
I'm in the same position. I have a $50 upgrade bonus. How did you get Dell to see you as an upgrade and not a new line? All I want is the phone and not a change in my voice plan. I know I will need to add a data plan.

arribasn said: $80 off MSRP may sound nice, but when you are paying at least $1200+tax/fees over the life of the contract with NO VOICE, or $1680 with 450 minutes then its almost a negligable savings but something is better than nothing

Point made, but it's not $80 off MSRP. MSRP is $500+. So technically it's almost $400 off MSRP in return for a 2 year contract in which they recoup the cost of the subsidy. Shame they don't offer cheaper plans for those who buy full MSRP and go month-to-month.

Of course, your point is still valid for the total cost of ownership.

Why are people eager to get BestBuy to match the price when BestBuy charges tax and has restocking fees, while Dell has neither on cell phones?

Just for poops and giggles I called Dell to find out about my New Every 2 $50 discount. I asked the CSR if they would be able to apply that to the price of the Droid. She informed me that that the discount was already applied to the price of the phone, so I could get the phone for $119.99..... I told her that the price was already $119.99 on the website. The story then changed that I couldn't apply my NE2 discount to this. (Worth a shot). I told her thanks, and that I wanted to check out the website for the other phone deals, and would call back later. She told me she would stay on the line while I checked out the website. She told me she would have to stay on the line since the discount was only good during the phone call. I laughed and told her I had to leave for work.

Any clue what happens to the NE2 discount from Verizon if I go ahead and purchase the phone from Dell?

I tried to buy a Droid from Dell on my second line (1st is under contract until 2010) but they wouldn't do it without having VZN move line two to the Primary which would reset the NE2 on that phone; they wouldn't budge on putting the Droid on line 2 even after talking to a Supv. What a pain although since it's only another $40 to upgrade both lines to Droids I may do that... Did they charge activation fees on the Droids for those who bought through Dell???

Thanks everyone for their input!
Egg

I just checked my VZN bill and I am paying $80 a month for 1400 shared minutes; Dell shows $89.99. Looks like it is a higher price from Dell. Good catch!! I was thinking I'd upgrade both my primary and secondary phones at $119 each but that sure makes it less attractive!! Can anyone confirm that existing customers have to accept a new plan as well? BTW, I may have to try the PM at BestBuy if that might work without changing my plan. Any chance someone who successfully matched at BB posting a receipt copy?
Thanks everyone!
Egg

johnny98 said: BoboTheBear said: Is it just me, or are Dell's plans $10/mo (renewing, not new account) than the same plan from Verizon? Minimum 450 minutes + data should be 39.99 + 29.99 = $69.98 but Dell's version is $79.99. That's an extra $240 over 2 years as opposed to buying it from Verizon for $80 extra.

On the Dell web site, I see the Nationwide Basic 450 plan for $39.99/month + $29.99/month for data = $69.98. Did you add in a $10 text message plan or something?

and dont forget the 10-11 bucks in TAX and those fees each month..

i just started shopping for a droid today and was looking at both the Dell and wirefly sites and it says i get free activation on both. I'm not seeing having to pay $35 for activation on Dell as the OP says. Maybe that is new?

heyeaglefn said: Wait for the HTC Passion.

But I want a keyboard.

highlifelight said: heyeaglefn said: Wait for the HTC Passion.

But I want a keyboard.

A big advantage of Android vs. certain other smartphone operating systems is that you have a choice of hardware styles. And you have a choice of carriers. Maybe too much choice for some people.

johnny98 said: On the Dell web site, I see the Nationwide Basic 450 plan for $39.99/month + $29.99/month for data = $69.98. Did you add in a $10 text message plan or something?

You have to sign up for one of the designated data plans, don't you? Basic is not "compatible" with Droid. (As a business, not technical, matter).

Best price I see for solo plan is $79.99 for PDA (unlimited data) + 450 minutes. 200 texts are another $5. So for what I would consider a "basic" plan for this phone is $85/month. All of the cheaper plans charge $1.99/MB for "Mobile Web" (have no idea if this covers email, etc.). Can anyone put together a better plan than this that's actually compatible with the Droid?

johnny98 said: The web site does not force me to buy "$1.99/MB Mobile Web" when I choose the basic 450 minute plan for $39.99/month.

Read the fine print on what the $39.99 plan includes - $1.99/MB Mobile Web is one of the terms. Now, I don't really know what "Mobile Web" means but I assume that all data of any kind, including email, counts as "Mobile Web"... but I don't know.

.

So, the only difference between "PDA 450 plan" and "Basic 450 + data" is $10/month more for the first, isn't it?Yes. Verizon Wireless doesn't make it easy to find the lowest-price configuration, do they? Bundle together and pay more! I wonder how many people are paying $120/year too much because of this little bit of nonsense by Verizon.

I was under the impression that Verizon now required all smartphones to sign up for a $30 a month data plan.