Cell phones that won't let you delete pre-installed contacts

[MaggieTheCat]

I got a brand new shiny cell phone today, a Pantech Reveal. It seems pretty cool (first phone I've had with a fullsize keyeboard) except...it came pre-loaded with nine, count 'em, nine contacts from AT&T. AT&T Now, AT&T Customer Care, AT&T Check My Bill, AT&T Pay My Bill, AT&T Music ID (seriously wtf), and on and on and on. There is no way to delete these...I even looked online on various forums and this seems to be a fairly common complaint about the Pantech phones. You can't even edit them to change the names to something obscure so they don't clutter up your contacts list, and since they all start with AT&T, they're all at the top of my list. Apparently some of the older models of Pantech phones only had the AT&T contacts saved on the phone itself, so you if you disabled contacts on the phone (and only enabled contacts on the SIM) you could effectively hide the AT&T contacts...but AT&T must've "fixed" that "problem" on the Reveal, since I tried it and still had the AT&T contacts at the top of my list.

This is absolutely INFURIATING. I view my bill, usage, etc all online, so I don't need any of that crap on my phone. I don't even know what Music ID is and I'm not interested in it, I have an iPod all loaded with my playlists already. If they want to have a customer service number on all their phones, fine, but to have NINE FREAKING CONTACTS that cannot be deleted!? Absurd. I'm seriously considering taking this thing back and looking for something else.

[HYHYBT]

I hate that sort of thing! I know *729 to check the bill or pay it, and the number to call if I lose the phone would be useless to store in it. What more would you need, and why would they *want* you calling *them*?

A full-size keyboard on a cell phone?

[Cat]

I hate that, I have a Pantech as well.

I just added a spaced to my REAL contact's names...then AT&T's crap in on the bottom...annoying, I know. Silly Pantech

[MaggieTheCat]

It's not a fullsize keyboard as in, an actual computer keyboard, but it's bigger than just a 10-key pad, which is what I've always had before. It's got keys for all the letters.

I'm gonna have my husband take a look at it tonight, but assuming he can't figure anything out, I'll just put a space or something in front of all my real contacts...since I like the phone and don't really want to mess around with getting another new one...

[Fryk]

Know how you beat that, Maggie? Put a "1" in front of everyone's name as you enter them.

[HYHYBT]

It's not a fullsize keyboard as in, an actual computer keyboard, but it's bigger than just a 10-key pad, which is what I've always had before. It's got keys for all the letters.

Good, that will fit better into your pocket or purse

[Dreamstalker]

My phone (Samsung Propel) just has "Check My Bill", "Music ID" (no AT&T in front) so they're cluttered among the rest of my contacts. Annoying as hell.

I've never used the default wallpapers or ringtones on my phone, yet they're locked into the firmware so there's no way to get rid of them...same with the "Media Mall" menu option. Never used that, never will. I make my own ringtones, and as far as music goes that's what my standalone MP3 player is for.

What I really hate is the AT&T splash screen that comes up when I turn my phone on (and adds an additional 5-6 seconds to "boot time"); I think I know what provider I use kthx.

[MaggieTheCat]

My husband messed with the phone for a while with no luck. Other things that we discovered that I don't like about the phone: It has 80MB of disk space, but any custom ring tone you load onto it can only be a maximum of 400KB. And it doesn't let you set custom tones for texts or anything besides a phone call. I really think I'm going to take it back now. We're going to look at some of the other phones AT&T offers...we got this one for free with a 2 year contract renewal, but I'd be willing to pay $50 or $100 for a better, more customizable phone, seeing as I'm going to be using it for 2+ years.

[blas87]

Be very careful with the easy way to pay with that phone.....my mom has a feature like that on her phone, and AT&T has still "lost" payments and we have been shut off for it before.

[Jack T. Chance]

My husband messed with the phone for a while with no luck. Other things that we discovered that I don't like about the phone: It has 80MB of disk space, but any custom ring tone you load onto it can only be a maximum of 400KB. And it doesn't let you set custom tones for texts or anything besides a phone call. I really think I'm going to take it back now. We're going to look at some of the other phones AT&T offers...we got this one for free with a 2 year contract renewal, but I'd be willing to pay $50 or $100 for a better, more customizable phone, seeing as I'm going to be using it for 2+ years.

*cough cough!* BlackBerry *cough cough!*

[Rapscallion]

Know how you beat that, Maggie? Put a "1" in front of everyone's name as you enter them.

A space is usually better looking if the software supports it.

Rapscallion

[telecom_goddess]

*cough cough!* BlackBerry *cough cough!*

LOL!

I have a htc eris ...one of the android phones....love it! Although it did wig out on me the other night and I had to do a master reset. But the android platform is awesome....tons and tons of free apps that do just about everything.

[powerboy]

My GF wants to add me onto her cell plan. I am thinking about it. Plus, I would get a cool phone. I have been with AT&T for about 8 years now. She has Sprint.

[Bloodsoul]

I picked up a Razr from US Cellular almost three years ago.

Looks beat all to hell but still works well with no silly gimics I don't need (granted, had to install some drivers on my comp to upload, but meh).

[AdminAssistant]

I just replaced my clunker with a nice, sleek Nokia 6350. It's red! lol I would prefer something with a QWERTY keypad, but oh well. The only major annoyance is that there isn't a simple way to put the phone on silence, so I just turn it off. I believe it also has the un-delete-able AT&T contacts, but it just doesn't bother me. I never scroll through my contacts, so....yeah.