I write a lot of articles about mobile phones and smartphones, but by doing this kind of work, my relatives and acquaintances will be recognized as “people who are familiar with smartphones”, and I will receive consultations about mobile phones and smartphones. are not few.
The other day, I received a consultation from a relative who uses the Softbank line. I heard that the 3G service is less than a year away, so I received a direct mail urging me to change the model. SoftBank plans to end its 3G service on January 31, 2024, so if you are a reader of this magazine, you are currently focusing on migrating users of 3G compatible terminals to 4G/5G terminals. Many of you may be familiar with it.
I borrowed a direct mail that arrived in my family and took a picture. Since it is less than a year until 3G stops, it seems that these direct mails have reached SoftBank 3G terminal users.
The family member is using a 3G compatible feature phone, and the contract was the old “White Plan”, so it seems that the direct mail arrived. It seems that my relatives are aware that it is necessary to change models due to the end of 3G, and I would like to consult with the author about which model and price plan should be selected if moving to 4G.
Then, when I actually visited the family’s house and checked the direct mail, it said that when switching from 3G, you could change the model to a specified model free of charge, and the administrative fee when changing the model would be free. My relatives wanted to continue using feature phones instead of smartphones, so I decided to choose “Simple Mobile 11” from among the free model change models that were written in the direct mail.
My relative wants to continue using a feature phone, so I decided to choose “Simple Mobile 11” among the two models for free model change.But there was a big pitfall
Also, since he doesn’t send e-mails and almost never calls anyone other than his family, he decided to choose the “mobile call plan”, which costs 1078 yen per month, which is cheaper. I told him that if I went to a SoftBank shop and completed the necessary procedures, I could continue to use the service even after the end of 3G without any problems.
When I asked about it, when I went to a nearby Softbank shop and tried to change the model for free, I was told that I could not do it at home. The price listed in the direct mail is only the price of SoftBank’s directly managed store, online shop, and “SoftBank telephone store” that can be purchased by phone, and it may not be free at the SoftBank shop operated by the agency. bottom.
When I looked at the direct mail later, it was written in small letters.
However, before visiting the SoftBank shop, my relatives called to make a reservation for the store and told the shop staff that they had received a direct mail. Of the color variations, it was confirmed that the store had only one color.
Enlarged bottom right corner of the first photo.You can see that the specified model is free only at directly managed stores, and it is written in small letters that it may not be free at other SoftBank shops.
Nevertheless, when he visited the store, a different staff member appeared than the one who answered the phone and refused to change the model, so he was angry at the response. After that, my relatives went to another SoftBank shop, and they were able to change the model for free, so it seems that they were able to change the model without any problems, but I confirmed by phone in advance. Nevertheless, it is natural for the user to be dissatisfied if the staff responded in a completely different way.
Originally, it would be nice if all shops were able to change models free of charge when migrating (shifting to a new environment), but this is considered a price control for sales agents. Or maybe it’s difficult. However, if the 3G migration does not progress due to such troubles, it will be a disadvantage for the mobile phone companies, so we will clearly show in direct mail that “some stores do not allow you to change models for free.” It may be necessary to support more free model changes.