If you exaggerate, equivocate and deceive long enough, do you start to believe the lie yourself? That is the question.
Clearwire salespeople definitely buy into the marketing mania, spinning off the benefits with wild abandon.
Yes, there are only 3 simple items in the Starter Kit: the modem, the plug, the ethernet cable. Yes, you can walk right into the mall and take it home today!
Yes, you can set it all up yourself, connecting these 3 simple items together, then connecting the modem to your own router, which you must purchase separately.
And, YES, Clearwire is the only internet service that is PORTABLE! Take it with you when you travel!
Ironically, though Clearwire has hijacked the simplicity message, the Starter Kit for Qwest was virtually identical. Modem, phone cord, ethernet cable, plug. I set it up myself, and didn't need to block out a 12-hour window waiting for a technician.
Both don't work as well as promised. Both require several calls to technical service to get a decent internet speed, and both leave me slightly disappointed within the first week, resigned to the fact that it's easier to lower my expectations than switch AGAIN.
The most annoying thing about Clearwire is the absolute limitation on where the modem can be placed within my house. Because it's relying on a cell signal, the ONLY place (and I know this for a FACT after trying every single goddamned window in my house) I can position the modem is in the east-facing window of the master bedroom, in an exact 15 degree angle to the window pane. If you move it even 10 degrees in either direction or move it to the next window, the signal literally disappears. LAME!
And portability?? The most compelling reason to buy Clearwire, and I realized on my first roadtrip that it was annoying to carry all 3 simple items with me, AND that they had neglected to mention that Clearwire only works in a handful of major cities in the Western US. NOT a benefit by any stretch of the imagination.
I FINALLY changed from Clearwire after two years, and got online to cancel. Of course, this is one area that will NOT BE SIMPLE. They fight tooth and nail to prevent cancelations. They say they have customer service 24/7, but that doesn't include canceling, because they pull out the big guns for that. No, you need to CALL them M-F, during business hours, so they can put a REAL HUMAN on the line to beg you to stay, offering all the deals and benefits they should have given you in the first place.
I had already hooked up my new internet service with Qwest, so I politely declined and was told that I would receive an email with a UPS shipping label sometime within 48 hours and that I had to pack up the 3 simple items in my own box and hoof it down to the UPS store to mail it back. Hopefully, for my sake, the package would arrive back at their warehouse before my next billing cycle to avoid another month of service charge.
No, they don't provide a box for the return.
No, you can't just take it to the storefront at the mall where you purchased the damned thing, because they "aren't equipped for that."
No, UPS can't pick up the return from your home; you have to drive it to them. (Ever heard of Zappos, people??? Talk about a lesson in GOOD customer service)
Back to the photo above. Since they didn't provide a box for the return, I thought it apropos to send the 3 simple items back to Clearwire in the Qwest box. A little farewell from RVmamma.
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