Visual Voicemail Works On Sprint: Callwave

"PLEASE CLICK HERE "MORNINPAPER.COM" FOR VISUAL VOICEMAIL POST. THIS POST HAS BEEN MOVED TO OUR NEW SITE: SEE YOU THERE, THANK YOU"

Comments

[Phil @ CallWave]

I'm a product manager at CallWave. We're glad that you enjoy our visual voicemail service and went through the trouble of setting it up with your new carrier. Sprint is one of the few carriers that charges for call forwarding, except as describe above. Thanks for providing this clarification to your readers.

[Youmail Rob]

We've been having similar issues with Sprint users here at Youmail. It's great to know that people are understanding the situation rather than chalking it up to "it doesn't work".

[Shani]

Excellent post. I am looking to forward all of my messages to GrandCentral.com. I have already called Sprint once. It was obvious that the first representative I spoke with was not going to be able to help me. I will try again tonight!

[Jim Johnston]

I just called sprint to setup and it is working. One thing and I am guessing it is all dependent on the knowledge of the CSR. When asked if there is a charge, I was told there is a .20 forwarding charge. Have you seen a .20 charge on your account when using? What is the secret in getting this setup without the charge?

[Mpaper]

JIm, call them back and tell them you want "No Answer Call Forwarding (No Reply Forwarding)". Make sure the person you are talking to knows that there is no charge for "No Answer Call Forwarding (No Reply Forwarding)". The 20 cent charge applies to "Call Forwarding". If you put "No Answer Call Forwarding (No Reply Forwarding)" in and search it on the Sprint site, you will see that this is a free service. If your rep is confused, point them to their website.

[Ram]

Hi, I am desparately trying to set up callwave through sprint. The problem is that when I research their site...it says that all all forwarding is .20 cents. I am trying to find the url where it gives the actual breakdown of costs
I would really appreciate the help

[Mpaper]

hey Ram, I don't remember the URL on the Sprint site, but call Sprint and tell them you want (No Answer Call Forwarding (No Reply Forwarding). This service is free, and make sure the person you speak to knows this.

[Ram]

Interesting! Thanks...you are right....it is free and sprint had no problems setting it up. However noone is able to leave a message ...they get a person is not available...message 390...I wonder if I am doing something wrong...any suggestions?

[Mpaper]

You may have done this already Ram, but check your Callwave settings. Make sure you have it set so that your calls are being re-directed there. If all of that is fine, call your number, follow the prompt and setup your voicemail the way you want, ie, your own message for folks to hear.

I have not had any problems, but as a test, I created a bogus one to see how good there customer service is. They're pretty quick, so if you're still having a problem, open a ticket, you should get a response within the hour.

I'm sure it's one very simple thing that got overlooked, because it's fairly straight forward. Good Luck!

[Ram]

yikes, thanks for your help, but after many more calls with sprint turns out that all call forwarding is 20 cents without exception and the only way forward is to do that....so I am not sure if you had a very charmed phone call with the Fort Worth guy but hope it keeps working for you

[Mpaper]

Ram, it's not by luck that I got it to work. It's by luck of the draw that you got someone that does not know what they're talking about. Don't woory, you're not alone, the majority of those folks are not trained very well. The reason why Sprint does not and cannot charge for "No Answer Call Forwarding (No Reply Forwarding)" is because with that option you are taking them out of the loop. You will no longer have a Sprint voicemail box.

They charge $0.20 for "Call Forwarding" because they are in charge of making sure you call gets where you re-route it, but you still have a voicemailbox, and Sprint will record the message.

There are two services, and like I wrote in the post, it tokk 3 attempts before I finally fond a person to take the time to look it up. Sometimes you get lucky and get the right person right away, most times not. But all that have followed the advice have done it. I know it's a pain in the butt, but it's much nicer than calling in and prompting through messages. Plus, Callwave doesn't charge. Below are links to the two pages on Sprint. Note the last line.

This is from the Sprint site:
For information on call forwarding, refer to the following:

* Call forwarding charges apply when forwarding calls to other cellular or landline numbers
* Call forwarding is charged on a flat, per-minute rate of $0.20
o Regardless of service plan, calls forwarded to long distance numbers are billed $0.20 per minute, plus applicable long distance charges
o Calls forwarded to voicemail or mobile messaging are not charged the standard $0.20 per minute rate

Here is the link to that page: Tell the service person to go there.
Call fowarding: http://search.sprint.com/inquiraapp/ui.jsp?ui_mode=answer&prior_transaction_id=560001&iq_action=5&answer_id=16777217&highlight_info=6292530,7,11&turl=http%3A%2F%2Fsupport%2Esprint%2Ecom%2Fdoc%2Fsp4112%2Exml%3Fid16%3DCall_Forwarding#__highlight

Do yourself a favor and try again. Let me know how it turns out, but don't let them tell you it can't be done, they're being lazy and don't want to do the work.

[Ram]

Thanks, I will...

when they set it up my voicemail went on busy and all callers got a "caller isn't available message.."

R

[Mod]

I think I might be confused about these options:

No Answer Call Forwarding (No Reply Forwarding)
Busy Call Forwarding (Busy Call Transfer)
Unreachable Call Forwarding (Phone Off Forwarding)

What prevents me from using this to forward all calls to my house, or some other number, when I miss the call on my cell?

Can I use a number in a different area code for free?

If I were setting up callwave, which I haven't done before, would it be forwarding calls to a different phone number? Or are the calls routed differently?

[Ram]

Ha! It works...heres what callwave got me to do. Call the Sprint support and get them to connnect you to the Blackberry support team. The blackberry support team can get you set up on it and they did....also the customer service person did not know what the costs were but they made a notation that I should get that credited if I was charged....I love callwave...Thanks for all your help!

[Mpaper]

That's great news Ram! Glad you stuck with it and you're welcome!

Mod, Callwave gives you a number that you have to give to Sprint or program your phone with, so no, you can't take liberty with those options. All calls are routed to your new callwave box when missed. If you want those features that you asked about, just ask for "call forwarding". But it will be $0.20 per call. Hope that answers your questions.

[Anon is good for you]

Just called sprint. First level CSR had no clue what I was talking about and was smart enough to forward me onto their "technical" folks. The woman I spoke with was unfamiliar with the service, even for business customers, but took a minute to speak with someone else and was able to help me immediately.

This post is the best for all Sprint customers going over to GrandCentral or CallWave, by far.

Really simple strategies for Sprint customers:
1) Call *2 or 1800-SPRINT1
2) You'll hit a L1 CSR, tell them you have a technical matter and need to speak with someone in that department. (Maybe there is a separate number here?)
3) Inform the technical CSR you speak with that you want a service called "Enhanced Call Forwarding" and NOT traditional *72 call forwarding. While they might need a minute to check their computer, documentation or a supervisor, it will come up.
4) Give them the number. I called at 9PM EST and this took ten minutes, 7 of which were on hold.

One thing, as I am sure anyone reading this type of information would already know, call prepared and informed; you make their life and yours much easier and can usually get what you need pretty quickly. Unfortunately, this was never the case with Whorizon with the seven years I was with them before Sprint; I find the same with Comcast.

GrandCentral is _amazing_.

Thanks!

[Dave]

Oh, I love you guys. I spent less than 10 mins with the blackberry guys, they did it without question.

I'm back on Callwave, hello visual voice mail!

[Jody]

Just got off the phone with a sprint blackberry support guy. I Tell him exactly what I want and that, as far as I understand, no answer, no reach and busy forwarding are free services. He sort of sounds like he doesn't know what he's talking about and does several searches on his servers and online, one of which takes him to this very page.

Ultimately he claims that, as far as he can tell from what he has found. Call forwarding (even for busy, no answer, no reach) is always $.20 per min. But that, if I was on a business plan, he could set up the busy call forwarding for free but not if I'm on a personal plan.

I refer him to the site linked above but he says that the section which states: "Calls forwarded to voicemail or mobile messaging are not charged the standard $0.20 per minute rate" refers to Sprint voicemail and not the voicemail of another service. He also claims to not find anything on "Enhanced call forwarding."

The strangest point in the conversation is when he points me to Simulsays (an equivalent service to callwave, which charges per call) and says 'well it says theyve found a way to activate through a back door in the sprint system' (which is verbatim from the simulsays website). I asked him if that "back door' wasn't refering to free no answer, no reach and busy call forwarding and he said he didnt think so.

What's the deal here? Is my mistake just not asking for his supervisor? He claimed to be very certain that busy, no answer, no reach all fall under the umbrella of Call forwarding and charge $.20 per minute. Any thoughts?

[Key]

I think unfortunately for us sprint people the devil is in the details (or the last line in this case)
(text from link above)

What is call forwarding?

What is call forwarding?
NOTE:
Call forwarding allows you to forward your calls to a different phone number.
For information on call forwarding, refer to the following:
Call forwarding charges apply when forwarding calls to other cellular or landline numbers
Call forwarding is charged on a flat, per-minute rate of $0.20
Regardless of service plan, calls forwarded to long distance numbers are billed $0.20 per minute, plus applicable long distance charges
Calls forwarded to voicemail or mobile messaging are not charged the standard $0.20 per minute rate
Call forwarding does not deplete cellular minutes included in plan
Forwarding features are offered on both the first and second lines
Types of call forwarding:
Unconditional: Calls are immediately forwarded without the phone ringing
Busy: Calls will forward if phone is ringing busy
No Answer: Calls will forward if phone not answered, or if the End key is pressed
No Reach: Calls forward if phone is off or out of coverage area
You can request that unconditional forwarding be set for the following reasons:
Phone is physically damaged
Phone will not turn on or the battery is not charged
You are in a bad coverage area or are experiencing network-related issues
You will be away from the phone for extended time period
Unconditional forwarding cannot be set if the following applies:
Any call restrictions are added, excluding Caller ID
Phone is no longer active
Call forwarding charges apply, except in the case of Sprint Nextel voicemail or SMS numbers

[Mpaper]

Thanks for jumping in there Key. Jodi, as you may be able to see from other commentors, you have to get to the right person. This is the reason why Sprint scores last each and everytime, their CS department is abysmal, but that starts at the top. They are not instructed properly and they don't take the time to learn all of the rules. This service has nothing to do with "Business plan". Simulcast charges because they decided to charge, one day Callwave will charge as well. Just keep calling until you get the CSR that knows what they're talking about or is willing to listen and put the work in.

[Treotraitor]

The "crackberry" support people were able to set it up for me. After the first call, Brett set it up almost right...all calls were forward without my phone ringing :( Then Kathy was able to make it work. Callwave baby!

[Alex]

I called sprint and talked to a tech support rep and they knew about no answer call forwarding but he said this servise has a .20 cent per minute charge, I would like to ask did you recieve your sprint bill yet? can you confirm that this service is actually free.

[Spoke too soon]

Dipshit, Sprint PCS.
E-Care
Sprint
"Where our customers come last!"
=============================================================
Original Message Follows:
------------------------

[Spoke too soon]

Thank you for contacting Sprint.

I am sorry if there was some confusion regarding the call forwarding feature and the charges that are associated with forwarding calls to numbers other than your PCS voicemail box.

Unfortunately, Sprint does not offer a discount for the use of call forwarding to numbers other than the voicemail box. Any calls forwarded to any other number are charged .20 per minute.

I have reviewed the account and can find no indication that it was presented to you that this would be a free service. However, I have credited the 12.00 that was charged for the service as a one time courtesy. Going forward though any calls forwarded to numbers beside the voicemail number will be charged the .20 per minute fee, and those charges considered as valid.

If you would like me to deactivate this feature for you and reset it to be forwarding to your voicemail box, please reply back to this message and we will get it done for you asap.

Thank you again for contacting Sprint. We appreciate your business.

[Michael]

I just got off the phone with Sprint. 4 Reps later and 2 hours of holding, and explaining. They insist there is a .20 charge, no matter where I conditionally foward the call to. Is that last line in their Call-fowarding statement, something they added recently?? It appears there is no way around this. I HATE SPRINT.... two weeks with these guys, and I am so sorry I left Verizon.