The pre-order process for the Samsung Galaxy Note7

[Fellwalker]

16 August 2016.  The BIG day.

Woke at 6am to order from Samsung. By 6:10 was ready to hit someone.  Realised that it was me needed hitting  - I had HTTPS everywhere switched on, and that prevented the Samsung web site from correctly adding the phone to my basket.  Moved to a different browser, got it ordered. Card purchase referred by bank.  Message on screen from the security check - If we've not called you after 5 minutes, please ring us. Within 4 minutes, the message dropped off and threw me back to the shopping basket, where the phone number I had to ring had disappeared.  Had to try ordering again, knowing it would fail, to get the phone number back on screen so I could ring.   Rang my card company.  Ansaphone message "You have dialled an 0845 number, which has been changed.  Please redial using 0345".  How stupid is it that they cannot change the number on their security message? 

Rang again, got a person.  Apparently, Phone purchases are a high risk so it was just an ID check.  I passed - I am me after all - and the purchase was confirmed so there would be no trouble when I retried. Now 6:20.

No trouble.  Great, back to Samsung.  Ha ha.  By now the blue had sold out. Not a worry to me as I wanted black anyway.  But when I put in my card details and pressed PURCHASE,  it gave me a message that "There was an error processing your credit card. Please check your details and try again".  So I did - everything correct.  But the same message.  After the third attempt, I rang the card issuer to see if they were still blocking it.  Nope, they were not even being asked for the money.

I tried another credit card, then my debit card, still that same message.  Someone had it in for me.  Eventually I cancelled the purchase altogether, and started from scratch.  There was an option to use Paypal, so I tried that.  It worked.  My new Phone was ordered.  It was now 6:40, so it had been a long early morning so far.

But I was not happy that the price of £739 seemed higher than I had expected.  I looked around.  £777 from O2, so I had a better deal than that.  Off I went to golf, followed by a meeting, planning to look again in the evening.

There are other options

£675 from Clove - from whom I bought my first Psion 3 many years ago.  That was a lot cheaper, but no Gear VR included (the old Gear VR is £80 alone), so if the Gear VR (2016) isn't worth £59 to me, perhaps I need to order from Clove instead.  Apart from the initial "how does it work", I cannot imagine me using it beyond the first week or two, so the included deal is not worth it.

Then I had a brainwave, and looked on Quidco again (there had been nothing earlier).  £80 off if you buy through their link from Carphone Warehouse.

Pre-order the new Samsung Galaxy Note 7 and get a free virtual reality headset worth £79.99

And the CW price was £699, so that makes a net £615.  Bought it.  I can pick it up from my local store, so I don't have to worry about being in to receive it.

Samsung order now cancelled.

Countdown to 31 August 2016.  A day later than the Samsung one was likely to be, but still soon to be mine.  Fingers crossed that there are not more pitfalls along the way.

But hang on just a little moment.  My email from Carphone Warehouse does not mention the Gear VR.  Next day, my Quidco advice says £5, not £80.

Back to the websites. 

• Quidco absolutely does not mention anything about any situation where you might not get the £80 or Gear VR.
• Carphone Warehouse is there but well hidden.  I now see a tiny little (1) on the main page where it shouts about the offer.  Just after the word HEADSET.
  
  That says the Gear VR is only available sometimes
  And when you go to the Note7 page itself:-
  

  Get the new Gear VR headset (2016) when you pre-order the Note7 on pay monthly or upgrades

• Now I understand the con.  Quidco have this great £80 off, but you only get it if you order the Note7 WITH FREE GEAR VR.  And you can only get the "Free" Gear VR if you order on Pay Monthly.  But it is then far from free, as if I get the same allowances as I currently have, the phone would cost well over £800 over 2 years of a contract.  I am now getting even more frustrated.

I have winged an email off to Quidco to complain about their dreadful offer that does not offer what it appears to do.

Meanwhile I have ordered a Spigen Rugged Armor (sic) Case for the Note7.  

I've downloaded the manual from the Samsung website (and wasn't that a palaver finding it) to give me something to do while waiting.

As things stand, I am considering whether to cancel the Carphone Warehouse order and reorder from Clove to save £20, or wait for Quidco to see what they say.  I may end up with a case and a manual, and no phone.  Ah well, the Nexus 5 has stood me in good stead so far.

Did you know that it isn't a Note 7?  It is a Note7.  There is no space in the name on Samsung official documents, or indeed on the phone.

[jonsie]

Maybe CPW know more than O2...

[MI5]

It's a more realistic date than that offered by o2, for sure!