I couldn’t believe this when I read it, but Jonathan Hudson says that AT&T Wireless has asked customers with T68i mobile phones to “upgrade” to the Sony Ericsson T226. This report is backed up by a website called sonyericssont226upgrade.com.
But is the upgrade from the T68i to the T226 really an upgrade? Not according to Hudson:
… the T226 doesn’t have Bluetooth, IR, a built-in modem or voice activated dialing…why would I want to do this? What’s the catch? Why is AT&T Trying to get T68s off their network?
In an update to his article, he answers his own question:
AT&T is changing their network to 850 band and my T68i isn’t going to work anymore. Any Sony Ericsson 900/1800/1900MHz phone (P800, P900, T68i, etc), is going to be affected by the network change.
I have a suggestion for AT&T Wireless customers who have gotten solicitations like this one: try T-Mobile now. Unlock your phone, if you want to keep it. If you, like Jonathan, have a T68i, try a real upgrade to the
Sony Ericsson T610. It has all of the features Jonathan says that the T226 lacks, and it also includes a camera. You can buy it from Amazon.com and get money back after mail-in rebates. You’ll probably find the billing plans available from T-Mobile will save you money as well.
This downgrade-masquerading-as-an-upgrade is a sad commentary on AT&T Wireless’ recent marketing and customer service. If we are going to have carrier consolidation in this country, we need more marketing intelligence, customer-friendly policies, and reasonable pricing, not less.
I hope that things improve in those areas as AT&T Wireless merges with Cingular.