By Forget pre-ordering at BestBuy. Don’t even wait in line at the Verizon retail store. Instead, stay glued to your computer the early hours of November 6th and buy the Droid from VerizonWireless.com around 12:30AM! According to the Official DroidDoes Tweet, that is exactly when you’ll be able to purchase it online:
You’re paying at least $199, why not get treated like royalty? Get it reserved and have them ship it directly to your doorstep. That’s what I call service! In all honesty though, I know a lot of you out there probably have to work on Friday and don’t want to take a day off to get your Droid – afterall, that job pays the bills! Now you’ve got a pretty confident option to ensure you’ll get your Motorola Droid.
November 6th. 12:30AM. I’ll meet you there.
If I’m a new Verizon customer and buying the Droid on-line, do I just select the service plan on-line as well … Since I get easily confused by all the service options, I think that’s the area where talking to a live sales rep (either via Verizon toll-free # or at Verizon store might help. Also I’m assuming they’d explain process by which my mobile # gets activated, and that sort of thing. But can all that be done on-line without assistance?
But will you still have to pay 299 and wait for the 100 dollar rebate to come 2 months later?
i dont really care about getting the phone a full 12 hours earlier.. paying 100 less for the phone sounds much better to me, which is why i’ll be going to best buy. and mail in rebates.. do those ever come back anyway? i think it would be key if the multimedia and GPS docks are ready to be sold at Verizon & Best Buy on november 6th. i know i’ll be getting the multimedia dock, it’s pretty much a must have.
12:30am in which time zone? I assume eastern…
oh, and re 2 and 3: the rebates are always instant online from what I’ve seen
How much will full retail be? I will be able to order a Droid at full retail correct?
I pre-ordered mine today at bestbuy, was 2nd one to pre-order. Taking the day off so I can pick it up. Can’t wait!! :)
Wait…why would I want to order the phone on the 6th and have it shipped to me when I can preorder it and pick it up from BestBuy that day. If I misunderstood the article someone please correct me. :)
is it just me or is no one as exited as me? who the hell wants to:
a) wait all weekend til monday to get it
b) pay 20-30 bucks to get it overnighted (if thats even available)
i called a local verizon store in OC where i live and they are opening at 7am specifically for this release, so have fun staring at your computer screen until the mail man gets there, in the mean time ill be chillen at work at 7:30 laughing at all of you from the phone. :)
@blake
i’ve never heard of 12 hr shipping. this suggestion will get it to you about 36 hours later than folks who show up at the verizon store or best buy when they open… i’m not anticipating a massive rush on these. the android cat jumped out of the bag with the g1. shouldn’t be too big of an ordeal to snag one on the 6th just showing up…and worth the risk of losing a day for an online order as a backup plan.
sorry, forgot to mention for those of you who live in or near OC, its the Verizon store on Katella and Knott Ave listed as Cypress although i work around the corner and its considered Garden Grove..
If you call, they will put you on a list to reserve a phone. Who doesnt want a rebate debit card 3 weeks later you can use to buy the accessories? :D
@David
The full retail price of the droid will be $560 with no contract.
Can i pay full retail on this phone then use it on sprint? since they both use cdma..
The 2 questions I have are:
1) When a new version of the Android OS comes out, will the Motorola Droid Phone be upgradeable to that version of the OS?
2) I saw multi-touch is supported in Android 2.0 and it looked like the GSM version of the Droid supported the “pinch zoom”. Is the lack of support of that on the CDMA just a temporary hurdle and will be rectified in a patch release?
@image:
I’m assuming it’s a trigger based on your timezone (for the record, I live in Eastern). Since I’m up at 1230am usually anyway, this will just make things all the easier. ^_^
DROOOOIDDD!
I believe VZW uses FedEx. In my area FedEx delivers to residential customers Tuesday through Saturday. Any time I have ordered a phone from VZW I have had it delivered within 24 hours. That tells me that there’s a good chance that if I order at 12:30 on Nov 6 I will have it no later then Saturday afternoon. I’m still not sure if that’s the route I’ll be going but I though I would throw that out there to those that don’t have a VZW store near them or can’t make it to a store on Friday morning.
It’s $299 from Verizon. Then you have to submit the mail-in rebate. I’d vouch for the Best Buy deal, personally. Who knows how long it would take to receive a mail-in rebate.
verizon automatically applies the MIR on their online purchases. everyone needs to get off of the $299 from Verizon trip as it pertains to this specific post. It’s not relevant
@Rob @image
It will be 12:30 EST according to the DroidDoes Twitter. BTW they have stated that is the Official source of Android release information. I would recommend reading it. You don’t need a twitter.
http://twitter.com/DroidDoes
Does everyone buy it without even touching it? I want to get my hands on a (working model) Droid. I would like to see it, side by side with iPhone, Pre, Eris, etc. Yes, I am very excited about this launch, but I only get to do this once every 2 years (contract).
Anyone know if a Verizon store will have working models of Droid? BestBuy?
I guess this is a good option for people who don’t like to leave their homes. For the rest of us, it would seem that a pre-purchase through BB is the best answer – you get the phone right away, and you don’t have to loan Verizon $100 for a month or two. That’s my plan, anyway.
@ANY NEW CUSTOMER WHO ISNT SURE ABOUT ORDERING OFF OF THE WEBSITE
if you need 1500 or less texts you need the standard rate plan (Nationwide Basic)that just includes min in the plan + a 1500 or less text package + Email and Web for Smartphone $29.99.
If you need more than 1500 texts then you need the Nationwide Select plan (includes unlimited text) + Email and Web for Smartphone.
The reason is because the select plan is $20 over the standard plan cost and it gives you unlimited text. the largest text package Verizon offers is 5000 for $20. see what im getting at?
Its fairly straight forward to buy a phone off of the website. you have to either add a text package or select that you want to do pay as you go texts. the same with insurance, you either have to add insurance or decline it.
the email and web for smartphone is their standard data package for smartphones and is required on all smartphones. if for some reason they changed this for the droid, you will be able to select pay as you go data on the features page. if that option isnt there you will have to pick a data package, the more expensive one includes exchange support. if you dont want a data package and just want to use wifi but they dont offer pay as you go data then you dont need to buy the droid. if they dont have pay as you go data and activate your phone it will automatically add a data package.
My bet is that it can’t trigger on anything in our computer, because we would just change our time zone/time and order now :) So, I’d bet it will be available at 9:30pm pacific.
The problem with the best buy deal, for those that are asking, is that they don’t honor the new every two discount. So, I’d be throwing $50 down the drain… not fun.
One thing to keep in mind is if you order online from verizon, you typically have the option to charge the phone directly to your bill…which is great for those that need another payday before they can actually afford the phone.
@Image
Thats the reason I’m going to be up bright and early at Verizon… With an unhealthy amount of coffee in me. I may not even go to sleep on thursday night.
I have a friend who works for AT&T and trains BB employees to sell their products. If you heard some of the stories he tells about BB employees you would not be going to BB to buy this phone. That and the fact that I would be giving up my “new every two” discount is enough for me to stay away from BB.
With the New Every Two deal on our family plan’s main line, will I be able to get the Droid for either $99 or 149$? Or is the Droid exempt from that?
@Chris- I spoke with a VW rep and they said they will calculate the $50 NE2 + any discounts you’re entitled to versus the $100 “rebate” and you will get the better of the 2 offers.
@Chris ya same thing Masque said, but if you have a 100 NE2 like me then that will still apply. VZN rep already verified i can get this phone for $99 :D
@Donovan
That is fantastic news. There were a few things with this phone that I was unsure of, with the no multitouch, the camera being lackluster even if it is 5.0, and the media (music) service being crap, that made me kind of hesitant. But for 99 dollars, how can I not?
@mkibrick
Thanks for the info. I’m at work atm, so I can’t see the whole thing (Twitter is blocked).
@Chris
dont be discouraged by the review over at engadget.. yes there are some minor flaws but one of the best parts about android is the OTA (Over The Air) updates, most of these issues will be fixed.
Either way the good out ways the bad heavily, thats the bad thing about reviews is there is always something thats negative, but there has to be.
Android 2.0 supports multitouch, but does the Motorola Droid use it at all?? I haven’t seen any videos where it’s being used.
so what’s the final answer? I went into a BB and the mobile rep there didn’t know anything about NE2, but said their price is usually lower than the price with all the Verizon specific rebates.
Also, I don’t think going to a Verizon store is an option for me… at least it wasn’t in December of 2006 … because I’m a New England Verizon customer and now live in the Chicago area. I had no interest, then or now, in changing my number or “resetting” my plan. Maybe things have changed since then, but they told me then that I could order the phone online, but the only thing local Verizon stores could do for me was sell me accessories. I wasn’t “in their system” because I was out-of-area.
Ordering the phone online was fine last time, and I’m fine with doing it this time, too, unless I can get the same deal from Best Buy and have the phone sooner.
@Donovan
This is my limited tech knowledge speaking, but there a couple things I wonder about OTA updates being able to fix.
Camera – Is the quality of the phone able to be improved by OTA updates?
Media Player – Im sure this can be fixed but I wonder by how much. I do not have an IPOD so it would be nice to have a phone with good media capabilities.
One thing I didn’t mentioned was the 256 MB storage for apps. I know apps are only 1 mb on average, but in the engadget review somebody mentioned a link that was talking about the 256 MB and how some games like Myst are 700+ MB in themselves. That is pretty shitty if you ask me. If the other stuff can get fixed I can live with not having the graphically intense games on my phone but i guess I need to investigate further about this before I purchase. I am wondering if there is something I am missing, and if down the line will this 256 MB be a problem.
The fact that the phone kind of lagged without having much software on it at all didn’t really discourage, because this is something I am sure will be fixed with OTA updates.
I preordered mine from Best Buy today. I’m sorry, but I’m getting off this sinking ship which is Palm / Sprint. Sprint proves that they can’t put out high end devices that can compete is this industry. Sprint recently had a few nice phones come out, but they there not high end..Sprint / Palm needed to bring more to the table from the get go. The quality and features of the Droid shows that Verizon / Motorola knows how to compete just like AT&T / APPLE. Sprint: A plastic Palm Pre, 8gb, No APP Support = NO COMPETITION / BANKRUPTCY
I’ll be at the store before 6am on the 6th. I don’t mind standing in line to have the phone in my hand THAT DAY. Anyone else live in/near the Hamilton, NJ store who wants to stand in line with me? LOL
@chris
Camera quality can be helped by an update. i had a storm and initially the camera took forever to take a picture and was only good 1/4 of the time. after a few OS upgrades it took better pictures faster. now i know bb os isnt android but i dont see why this wouldnt work with an android upgrade.
media player can be replaced by another media player app.
as for ordering on verizon.com: u can enter a promo code they advertise on the website for free overnight shipping. im eligible for an upgrade, and i dont want the runaround from bestbuy about if they’ll honor the reduced price. at the same time, going to the verizon store i’ll have to pay 299 and deal with a mail in rebate. I’ll just cross my fingers that i can pay 199 online and have the phone overnighted for free. I can deal with having the phone a day after everyone else and keeping the extra 100 in my pocket.
the code is freeovernt
I’m hitting my VZW store at 11pm when they go on sale on Thursday evening…midnight EST so that is good enough for them…rumors are that another device is to go on sale the same time…
Some if the verizon stores have them already. I handled one yesterday. Wasn’t activated, but u can get a feel for the keypad and such …it had better tactile feedback than I anticipated. They won’t sell it to you unil next friday…but they may have them in the back room…no harm in asking
@jim
I believe the phone you recently handled was a dummy phone. I also went into a Verizon store and a sale associate brought it out, but you can’t turn it on.
We’ll have to wait and see.
I have one being held for me, and I didn’t have to pay 50 bucks to prove that I really wanted it.
The $50 is a deposit that goes towards the phone.
@Attackcenter
I understand that. I didn’t have to do that but I didn’t go to Best Buy either. (I had a very bad experience with them and haven’t done any business since.)
@Barbara
I had canceled service with them in the past only to go back to them because they offered the most competitive plan price. The way that I canceled in the past, was in instead of making one big lump sum payment of $200. I made payments at the same time I would make my regular payments. So every month I would make a $100 dollar payment. Then, if I felt there was a problem, I would call in and ask the CS for more time to pay it off and he gave it to me. It’s not so painful. With a little budgeting, I’m willing to pay a little more for a High End Quality product which is the Droid, better service, better coverage, and to not be on the end of the Titanic sinking to the bottom of the ocean.
@Barbara
I was describing Sprint and Verizon. This my first time dealing with Best Buy Mobile. I wondering, if you had a problem with a local Best Buy couldn’t you go to the one in the next city and see how you fare there?
@Attackcenter
I figured you were talking about service providers. (Ironically I am switching from Sprint to Verizon.) My problem was with the Best Buy corporation in general. I went all the way to the top to get my problem resolved and it didn’t help. They have a great store until you need to return something and then it’s a nightmare. In my experience.
@Barbara
Interesting. I heard that best buy has a replacement warranty on phones for $9.99, where they will give you a brand new phone. I wonder if you can get both the regular full insurance and the Best Buy Insurance. Although, of course you are paying enough as it is.
How about Amazon? Until receiving word of the droid, I was pricing a Blackberry and found that the lowest price was through Amazon. Apparently Amazon is affiliated with VZW and you can get the phones for a lower price even without the NE2 &/or the 100 instant rebate. Don’t know how, but the price was lower. Plus they renew your contract right there when you buy. Haven’t actually bought thru them but it all looked legit.
Question for all of you kind folks out there…
I was looking at the Droid Eris (HTC Hero), and it appears to be $199 and then have a $99 rebate.
I was talking to a friend at work, and she mentioned that she is offered a $99 rebate for renewing her contract for two more years in addition to any other promotions. We went online to her account, and sure enough, with other phone listings it said ‘promotional discount’ and then underneath, it had a $99 renewal discount.
SO, since I am renewing my contract, will this mean $199 minus $99 Mail-in rebate, minus $99 renewal promotion = free?? Seems too good to be true… but maybe?
And the whole $100 instant rebate OR NE2 discount isn’t exactly accurate. You get both discounts, at least I have in the past and I just double checked because I am just eligible this past week for NE2 which is only $50 for my plan. I priced a phone on the site and it gives me both the $100 instant and the $50 NE2. The only drawback is that you have to wait a day or two for shipping, but I also see some free overnight shipping being advertised on VZW site. $200 at BB vs. $150 from VZW for the 50 bucks I can wait a day or even 3. 50 bucks is 50 bucks.
I just pre-ordered my droid at best buy and will pick it up first thing friday morning. btw best buy only has 15 pro-orders per store.
I’ve been training Verizon employees on the Android OS for the past week. They are really excited for our customers. These devices are jaw-dropping compared to other device we’ve recently sold. I am looking forward to opening the doors early. As far as the rebates go, Verizon honors the rebate if there was a mistake in the processing. You just have to let us know. We have a way of tracking them. NE2 and rebate are 100% offered all the time. I am looking into the option of preselling them from the VZW store. :)
Will This Work?
Best Buy (Before Nov 6th)
– Pre order Droid w/ $50 Gift Card
Best Buy (Nov 6th, 6AM)
– Use upgrade on line XXXXXXXXXXXX to get Droid.
– Pay $199 (- $50 pre-order card) (Instant rebate @ Best Buy)
– Leave, Number (XXXXXXXXXXXX) will be active on Droid
Home (Nov 6th, 7AM)
– Call Verizon and have ESN of (XXXXXXXXXXXX) last/current phone applied back to line; leaving the Droid’s ESN free and Clear for activation on another plan.
– Call again starting up a “Messaging Only, UNL Web” month-to-month plan (@ 54.99/month) and use Droids ESN
Ok, I still have a year to go before my NE2 eligibility kicks in. So, if I go into Verizon and buy the phone, what happens? Can I get any discount or do I have to pay full retail? I’ve got a BB Strom that I desperately want to get rid of!
Things I would like to see on Android 2.1
#1- Music player looks lame (out of date). Get the design team together and make it look more stylish. Be ahead of the competition not fall short of the finish line.
#2- Multi-touch. I don’t think its a big deal but having it is half the battle.
#3- Adobe flash 10. Get on there nuts and call them everyday until they at least give us a beta version to use. Be a annoying phone collector. And have them answer your consumer needs (clientel).
#4- When connected to computer I would like to just drag and drop movies and the phone automatically convert them for me. (SIMPLIFY) one reason the IPHONE is such a success is because of its easy functionality. Lets surpass that.
#5- Up the amount of HOME SCREENS lets say 7 sounds like a good number. or put in the settings where the user can pick there amount 1,2,3,4,5,6,7. I would like to have my work page, my home page, weekend page, games page, apps page, school page, and so on………….
Thanks for listening to my thoughts. Sincerely, future droid owner and first android phone.
Can you get an employer discount if you order online though?
I get an 18% discount for where I work for example. I don’t know how to apply that discount if I order online
Do any of you really do any research? because it doesn’t sound like it. You all sound like all these blogger online who doesn’t do their research, Like come on now, seriously most of the blogger online complaining about the camera are fairly i**dots because they never checked the camera settings. For some reason the default is on MICRO which means VERY CLOSE UP SHOTS, tho I still find these bloggers, top blogger engadget, gizmodo,etc., didn’t do their research… They complained about the camera and while showing their video it was obviously clear their setting was set to micro. C’mon now…
Another thing
Those who are going to the Verizon store will be paying an extra $100 with the mail in rebate you’ll get back in SIX-EIGHT weeks. Yes a Representative have told me this so it is confirmed.
Secondly FREE SHIPPING, BUY FRIDAY you get it early MONDAY. SO what I’ll wait till Monday to save $100 dollars than waiting 6-8 weeks for my mail in rebate to get back. Although all of you can go to the store, so the web won’t be slowed down. :)
@Dave
I have heard some people say Verizon uses Fed Ex home delivery which is separate from commercial. I was told this department delivers on Saturday (not sure if I believe it) Also I was told if you can’t wait until Monday for $20 you can have Saturday delivery. Both of these options sound better than waiting in line or waiting for a rebate .
Motorola Droid Vs. iPhone 3GS Here
I ditched my Iphone and getting my Droid today :)
I tried to add the Droid to my girlfriends plan at 12:30 this morning (she gets nice monthly discounts from work). The sight was so messed up we had to open a brand new separate account which did not offer her monthly discounts, they would have to be set up upon delivery, free over night shipping or free activation. Then it messed up my porting info. it took me 1 hour to order because the Motorola site it took you to was so buggy. The order is still showing as not completed and I spent all day on the phone trying to make them understand what happened. If it does not show progress tomorrow morning I am just going to do it again through her account because as of 9 am today it was working right and going through the Verizon site. As of 10:22 tonight and talking to 5 different reps. no progress. I am not dumb about how to do this I used to work in the cell phone industry. I really wanted my Droid Saturday! Heres to useless hopeful thinking. All I can say is that site was so bogged down with flash animation everything was horrible! Anyone else experience any trouble?
I had been looking quite some time now for a phone to replace my 2004 Samsung flip. Almost went with the LG Touch…but didn’t. Almost decided on the Samsung Rogue…but didn’t. Even almost converted to AT&T for the iphone…but didn’t (due to all the horror-story network reports). Then came the Droid. Checked it out online as best I could and bought it this morning after getting off work!!
Yes, the website was A MESS for sure! I hopped online around 3:30a, further investigated the Droid for about an hour (as there were now official specs from VZW), then began my purchase…which lasted a nightmare-ish 4.5 HOURS!! There were ridiculous waits between steps in the purchase process, and then, just when I would finish a step, the site would puke out on me and I’d have to start all over (this starting over business happened to me about five times)!!
HOWEVER!! To me, online was still the way to go versus the alternatives (VZW retail, BB). Here’s why…(my ‘Top 10 List’)…
1. I didn’t have to STAND in any lines (I sat comfortably in bed with my laptop…and played on Facebook, etc. during waiting periods).
2. I got the $100 rebate INSTANTLY (none of this mail-in junk).
3. My $100 ‘New Every Two’ credit was applied.
4. My 22% employer discount was applied to the voice plan ($39.99->$31.19) and 20% to the data package ($29.99->23.99)…also 25% on accessories (got display protectors).
5. I received FREE SATURDAY shipping via UPS (I love UPS!)…and the tracking currently shows it to be on-time (should have phone by noon today).
6. I received FREE activation through 11:59p Monday.
7. There were no ‘one-time’ charges.
8. When all was said and done, I rolled over, curled up, and went to sleep (no having to DRIVE home)!
9. I saved $ on gasoline to and from a brick-and-mortar!
10. (LOL!) By having to wait a day for my $99 Droid, I am exercising PATIENCE (hard to come by these days) and therefore, BUILDING GOOD CHARACTER ;)
And that is my Droid experience thus far…now roll out the barrel of fun!! :)
WOW! That ended up being REALLY LONG…sorry!!
@Amanda,
Lucky you. After calling all day yesterday and this morning they finally assure me everything is worked out and I will have my Droid TUESDAY!!!!!!! That is some overnight shipping lol. The accessories I ordered yesterday at 3pm after the sight was fixed are scheduled to be here today. I knew i should have trusted my instincts and just reordered yesterday at noon. :(
Don’t feel bad, Keith…I discovered last night that I WON’T be receiving my Droid today as expected. The timing must have been such that by the time my order was finalized, it was too late for Saturday shipping (even though my order confirmation specified ‘Saturday by noon’) :( Expected delivery is now Monday…which is still fine by me. I’m not gonna die not having my new phone TODAY…lol…the old phone still does what it’s supposed to! That said, I still feel online was the way to go…convenient and all-encompassing. Glad you got things squared away on your end! Did you buy a case for yours? If so, what kind? I almost bought one of the hard snap-on cases but passed because I didn’t know if they allowed or prevented access to the slide-out querty. Do you know??
@Amanda
I actually bought the Body Glove snap on case. The cases that come in 2 pieces like the one I ordered will allow access to your keyboard, Nice thing is if you don’t want it on one day or whatever you can just pop it off. I have found that a lot of times with a sliding mechanism the case makes it feel sturdier (less play when closed) I also wouldn’t expect it Monday. The lady I spoke to at the warehouse said it would be Tuesday, she said nobody works in the Warehouse in the “picking dept.” on the weekends. I hope she is like 99% of the people who work for cellular companies and doesn’t know what she is talking about. ;)
It’s here!!!! Arrived about twenty minutes ago (9:00a CST). As of 4:30p yesterday, it was just leaving Kentucky…now it’s at my door…amazing! Love UPS!! Keith, thanks for the info. on cases…didn’t know how the snap-on ones worked. It *looked* liked the slide-out querty was accessible, but I didn’t dare chance it…plus, they were out of stock on the case I was looking to get :) So did you receive your Body Glove case?? It’s supposed to be rubberized, right? How do you think I’d like it if I like to slip my phone in and out of my jeans’ pocket? (Keep in mind women’s jeans are usually somewhat tighter to the skin…mine aren’t horribly tight, but they are tighter than men’s.) Do you think the rubberized surface would annoy me and cause the phone to be tough to get in and out (versus a smooth-surfaced plastic case)?
P.S. to Keith…I would think with the launch of such a *ridiculous* phone, they would have people working overtime at the warehouse…hopefully that was the case and you’ll get your Droid today, too!! Yah, I agree, seems like the cellular people often times don’t know what’s going on (at least the ones at the retail stores). I was in to a VZW one about a month or so ago, and the guy I got stuck with assisting me was kinda a boob! The way he would answer my questions left such ambiguity in my mind, it was silly! I left the store thinking, “I’ll get further–and get more clarity–by CALLING Verizon or doing the online chat thing with one of the reps.” …And I did ;) Plus, the whole mail-in rebate thing deterred me from buying at a retail establishment.
@Amanda
I am glad you got your Droid on Monday! I just got mine today they royally messed up the order and I had to do it again Monday. They never alerted me to it I had to find out on my own. I got the Body glove case. My recommendation is don’t get it. It was to tight and actually separated part of my phone on the bottom half of the keyboard. Thank God I fixed it and then it was almost impossible to get off, not to mention it made opening the keyboard almost impossible due to the tightness. Also do not get Verizon’s screen protectors….JUNK. Which was surprising because they are usually good. To make a long story shorter ;) i think I will go with a full body protective screen, like ghost armor or body guardz. Good luck with your Droid, it was really nice talking with you!!! :)