Shopping Local: U.S. Cellular

Well, I’ve been kicking around getting a new phone for a while.  As a confirmed Blackberry user, I’ve been intrigued by the Android phones, but not quite ready take the leap and change to a new platform.  However after receiving numerous PDF’s and trying without success to read it on my teeny-tiny Blackberry screen, basic necessity and common sense finally won out over my fear of change. 

The store is located at 312 E. Veterans Parkway in Yorkville.  I went in with my two daughters  Saturday morning, and brought along my tech-savvy friend as moral support.  The phones are displayed along the wall so you can actually pick them up and try them out.  I had narrowed down my options online to which phones had a keypad, and I was able to find the one I was interested in right away. 

I was approached by a friendly salesperson right away.  He asked if I knew what I was looking for, and confirmed that I was looking at the phone I wanted to see.  We talked a bit about my fear of a touch screen (even my 8 year old’s fingers look too big to actually make that work, I figure I don’t have a chance) but he assured me that I would figure it out quickly.  Having been officially declared “technology–impaired” by several friends I appreciated the support, but kind of figured he did not truly understand just how bad I really am.

My tech-savvy friend asked several questions while my daughters fell in love with several phones that they don’t have a prayer of getting anytime soon.  My friend declared the HTC Merge was just what I needed to read documents and run my business even when outside of the office.  So I decided to take the plunge and change over.

I was pleasantly surprised by how quickly everything was transferred over to the new phone.  I had figured on a long ordeal, and with two little girls who were getting bored, I was worried I would be there for a while.  But I simply took the password off my Blackberry, and within minutes, I had all of my information, including not only contacts but also old emails and texts, on my new phone.  I use the phone for both personal life and my business, and was worried about how long I was going to be without a phone waiting for it to charge.  The salesperson assured me that all new US Cellular phones come with a fully charged battery since they charge all batteries in the store for 24 hours before selling the phone.  Woo hoo!

As I was waiting for my phone information to be transferred, a mother and daughter came into the store.  The mother explained that the daughter had very low vision and needed a phone with large enough font for her to be able to read texts.  The salesperson immediately suggested a particular phone, and mom said she had done her research online and agreed that was going to be the best model for her daughter’s needs.  I was surprised he knew the products well enough to be able to instantly be able to assist her find the right phone.

Overall it was a really great experience, and that is not how I would describe getting a phone in the past.  Previously I’ve walked out of phone stores because of the condescending attitude of the sales people, but that is not at all what I received at US Cellular.  Knowledgable, competent, and helpful, I was very happy with my decision and the phone.  And as I was leaving, the salesperson told me that if I did not like the phone for any reason, I could bring it back within 30 days.  I’m happy with my new phone, especially when I found out letting my girls play “Angry Birds” let me enjoy my son’s band concert without hearing “mom….mom….mom” every 30 seconds.  And that touch screen?  Yeah, well, the salesperson was right.  Turns out even I can get used to typing on a touch screen!