[EVO 4G General] LordLugard:
Hmmm, maybe i'm special or something, but i have a personal anecdote to add to this.

I bought a brand new Treo Pro off craigslist (for dang cheap, $180) in Aug '09. In Dec '09 the cellular radio just crapped out, always searching for signal, so i called Vision tech support and after some time with the Level 2 tech punching in codes and trying several things, he decided that the modem was dead and in the same sentence said "we're going to have to send you a replacement phone". Ofcourse he checked if i had another phone to use temporarily while a refurb was sent out, which i did, and that was it. Few days later, Fed Ex delivers a box with a refurb Treo Pro, i put n the dead one and off it goes to Sprint. Safe to say i gave a glowing survey. :)

Now he never asked where i bought it from or when, (but i assumed that from the ESN they can tell when first activated and so forth), and besides it was brand-new-in-box when i bought it. Needless to say i was stunned, as i was expecting to have to schlep to a Sprint store, stand in line for ages and then speak to tired and sourly techs who've had to deal with lord-knows-who and are not in the best of moods and fight with them.

Having prefaced with all that

...

I can understand the O.P's dilemma from many vantage points. One shouldn't have to buy insurance to be guaranteed repair service although it's convenient to do so. I've been with Sprint 11 yrs and owned a myriad of phones in all that time and never gotten the insurance, but hey, i'm careful like that.

BUT....

O.P should also understand that Radioshack cannot just replace the phone pronto if they are out of stock. Yes it stinks, but that is the reality.

Are they going to get replenishments before the 30 day trial period is up, maybe/maybe not. Does that suck, yes it does.

What alternatives are there? If 30 days is getting close enough and no replacement on the horizon, then return phone to Radioshack, call Sprint to cancel service. On the plus side, Sprint's new 30 day guarantee will see to it that O.P does not pay a dime during his 30 day trial... When stock levels increase, then buy again and start over as new customer.

Also, the title is misleading, as Sprint is definitely not "stiffing pre-order customers". Let's be reasonable here. Thx.

Sprint Free Guarantee

For new customers and customers adding new lines of service

We love and believe in our products and services. We’re confident you will too. That’s why, as a new customer or an existing customer adding a new line of service we’ll give you 30 days to try us for free.

If for any reason you’re not happy and want to cancel service, just call us to deactivate and return to the original place of purchase to return your undamaged phone or mobile broadband card and we’ll:

Refund monthly charges incurred as part of your service plan*

Refund the activation fee

Refund the purchase price of your device

Waive the Early Termination Fee

Waive the restocking fee

Refund taxes and Sprint surcharges associated with the above charges

*You'll be responsible for extras like usage not included in your plan (i.e. charges for exceeding your Anytime Minute or Data allowance on your voice or data plan; voice, text or data usage not included in your plan or add-on; pay-as-you go charges, etc.), premium content (i.e. digital downloads, songs, games, applications, etc.), 3rd-party billing, international charges and any taxes and Sprint surcharges associated with such extras.