Boost Mobile’s popularity is a double-edged sword

Boost Mobile’s recently launched $50 unlimited calling plan was a significant reason that Sprint’s Q1 2009 financial results weren’t any worse than a $594 million could possibly be. While parent Sprint saw 1.25 million post-paid subscribers walk out the door, Boost saw 764,000 pre-paid subscribers coming hither. Unfortunately, Boost’s recent success with their flat-rate calling plan is something of a double-edged sword. Boost has recently been plagued with lengthy text-message delays due to the influx of new customers wanting to take advantage of the carrier’s no-limit calling and text message allowances.

The delays in text message transmissions are reportedly sometimes hours long, in one case, taking 9 hours to reach the recipient. Customers are apparently rushing Boost Mobile dealers for new $50 unlimited plans, but tend to go back to the dealer with complaints about Boost’s text message service.

While some believe that Boost’s text message snafus are worth the cut-rate pricing and call quality that Boost Mobile offers, others believe that Boost will soon see the influx of customers start to wane if they can’t resolve the text messaging issues. To its credit, the Boost Mobile network, based on Sprint’s iDEN network technology, is tops for push-to-talk feature which is reportedly performing just fine.

Any Boost Mobile customers feeling burned by slow-to-send text messages? Is Boost Mobile worth the inconvenience of unreliable text messages? Sound off in the comments below!

[AP via: MobileBurn]