Cricket Web / Internet Scam..

[mz_miya]

I actually originally posted this message under the "yahoo Messenger" thread...but it seems to fit better here. This is what I was told via 1-800-CRICKET/tech support Representative after explaining not being able to type in popular URL's and getting the infamous "forbidden" error message. She put me on hold, and I guess inquired about it herself. She told me that there IS a way to view the "Forbidden" websites. I was told to deposit funds into my Flex Bucket account and that a fee would be deducted each time I visited one of these "forbidden" sites, ON TOP of already paying the $50 a month FOR UNLIMITED BROWSER ACCESS!!! WTF? Who would actually DO THAT?! And then she told me, as the first guy up there said, that she is surprised the reps didn't warn me about the limitations AND that if I wanted to downgrade my plan, it would cost me an EXTRA $15....WTF!!!
I live in San Diego, CA and have a Kyocera Xcursion with mini blue tooth, blue tooth AC adapter, and Blue tooth car charger....one week old....may be selling VERY SOON if I can come up with the funds to get my Sprint account unlocked....if I'm gonna constantly be arguing with reps about issues with my phone, I may as well be doing it to a reputable company who can actually, eventually solve my problem.

[Healthman345]

I actually originally posted this message under the "yahoo Messenger" thread...but it seems to fit better here. This is what I was told via 1-800-CRICKET/tech support Representative after explaining not being able to type in popular URL's and getting the infamous "forbidden" error message. She put me on hold, and I guess inquired about it herself. She told me that there IS a way to view the "Forbidden" websites. I was told to deposit funds into my Flex Bucket account and that a fee would be deducted each time I visited one of these "forbidden" sites, ON TOP of already paying the $50 a month FOR UNLIMITED BROWSER ACCESS!!! WTF? Who would actually DO THAT?! And then she told me, as the first guy up there said, that she is surprised the reps didn't warn me about the limitations AND that if I wanted to downgrade my plan, it would cost me an EXTRA $15....WTF!!!
I live in San Diego, CA and have a Kyocera Xcursion with mini blue tooth, blue tooth AC adapter, and Blue tooth car charger....one week old....may be selling VERY SOON if I can come up with the funds to get my Sprint account unlocked....if I'm gonna constantly be arguing with reps about issues with my phone, I may as well be doing it to a reputable company who can actually, eventually solve my problem.

The web is unlimited--but you are going thru Crickets' portal, which is limited. You can go to any site with a Google work around. All the info is on howard forums; go search for it. I surf anywhere I want on the web at no additional charge.

[heyitsgonzo]

I use the link posted by HOTROD http://www.cricketphonetalk.com/foru...read.php?t=106 Put that in your bookmarks, and that can pretty much let you go to any site.

[berry_lthird]

I have two points to make.

First: I am not a Cricket loyalist by any means. Their phone plans simply work to fit my lifestyle. I use my Cricket phone in place of a home phone. It's about convenience.

The fact that they offer "unlimited" internet access--meaning you are not charged by airtime or data rate--is actually pretty incredible, even if it does mean having to use their "closed" internet portal.

With that said, a simple workaround is to use Google as a proxy. You can even log-in to MySpace, MSN, Yahoo, AIM, etc. by doing so.

So big deal. You get what you pay for. Come on. $5 a month for unlimited internet access even without the workaround is a bargain. Sheesh!

My second point is that mobile internet in and of itself is highly dubious at best. Cell phone screens are not the best viewing surface for a web page. Even with EVDO your speeds aren't going to rival that of land-based broadband. And I haven't seen anyone who was able to watch full streaming video at FULL FRAME RATE in REAL TIME like they show in the commercials. So in that regard, ALL the major phone companies are lying. Not just Cricket.

To add, it is possible with the right handset to use it as a modem. You can even use the Google trick to surf anywhere you want on the host machine. Trust me--I've tried it and it works.

I say take it for what it is. If you want fast mobile internet you are better off using a device that features wifi anyway.

And before long one of these smart people will find out how to set-up their own proxy server and bypass the Cricket portal altogether. Meanwhile, there is the possibility that Cricket will open their portal once they launch EVDO.

Is Cricket perfect? Hell no. But for what it is, and depending on your needs, it can be one hell of a bargain.

So chillax, people, and use the Google workaround to go wherever you want to!

[spartanwarrior]

Sure I'll get flak for this but I wanted to point out to many that are probably looking at Cricket for their service, to be warned that their web browsing IS VERY LIMITED.

DO NOT expect to be able to browse websites that you need to get to for work of pleasure that you would normally be able to from a home computer or 'real' wireless provider.

After long search, speaking to multiple clueless cricket reps, I finally found a great person who helped me out and shot it to me straight. Basically he reaffirmed what I had thought. YOU CAN NOT visit any website that is not within the Cricket Approved portal. Basically, it is just a lame excuse for a lack of ability on their part. I can get to several website I'm sure cricket has NEVER heard of, however when I try to get to sites that have any login for work or personal stuff, I get a:
ERROR: 403 FORBIDDEN.
Rendering their service useless to me

I was really hoping to get cricket and ditch my verizon but alas I can not.

Yes you can log into mail from yahoo, google etc - but what about all the other sites you may need to visit?

Their phones are not ready for the bigtime yet.

I asked several reps why this was, even called in and I was put into tech support that created a ticket for me that lasted several days until I returned my phone and cancelled my plan. Finally I spoke to a supervisor that could not understand why the phone agents did not tell me that the web browsing is limited. He said they do this purposely because the other wireless providers are pressuring them and paying them off to keep this limited. Big business...gotta love it.

dude, i flashed a moto q to cricket, and put internet on it. i get EVERYTHING that i get at home. so................thats a bunch of crap. or someones not doing something right with their phone!

[KRZR_k1mm]

At the time of the original posting of this thread, Cricket was limiting access from its portal. Since then, they have opened it up to allow more if not all websites.

[Fused0ne]

Anyone gotten twitter to work? I got the Samsung Messager and cant get it to work with the portal or anything.

[complearning123]

I have finally succeeded in connecting to the internet using my phone as a modem. If anyone would like assistance with this, I would be more than happy to lend a hand. For free, of course. I know what folks go through sometimes trying to get some help around here. That said, I would like to thank the members who have been good enough to give me some direction and also thank the upper echalon folks who have not been willing to assist me. All of you are my teachers. Some good, some bad, and I thank you all.

"Knowledge shared is not necessarily power lost." "We can truly only keep what we have by giving it away."

stephen aka complearning123

my email: complearning123@gmail.com or complearning123@yahoo.com

[complearning123]

They do not simply slow you down. They virtually paralyze you. And this concept of "rolling throttling" is unfair and and a poor business practice. To punish a subscriber beyond thirty days and the beginning of a new billing cycle is in no way defensible and, in my opinion, should be illegal. It is not "fair" in any sense of the word. Fair usage, my foot.

Stephen aka complearning123