Related
Ok, I know this isnt really the place for this post - but my motives will become clear. My faithful Vario II is now reaching the end of its useful life (the battery dies without warning and lasts about 4 hours max at the moment). Its served me well these past 18 months.
I need a phone with Qwerty and WM, plus 3G is useful so the obvious choice is the Kaiser/TyTN II/Vario III/Stella. With that in mind I've been looking at rejoining o2 now they have released unlimited data (again! - I've still got my o2 genie sim card with unlimited WAP somewhere). T-mobiles service can be shocking at best, especially when in London when you'd expect full signal, sometimes it can take 2-3 minutes to make one call. So I put it to the floor - these are the current state of the offers I've recieved - and you'll see its a tough choice.
o2 (Business)
34.68 + VAT (41ish pounds) / Month
700 minutes, 450 texts
200Mb data (business contracts are like that)
Free o2 to o2 calls
Free voicemail
Free land line calls for 3 months - then to 10 changable landline numbers for the rest
free international call option thing (80% off all international calls)
free bluetooth headset
Free 3 months line rental
Phone - £76
However - 24 month contract - upgrade available after 12 months
T-mobile (this is where it gets interesting - after explaining the o2 deal)
£35 / month (inc VAT)
Flex 35 + Web and Walk (2Gb data) (equates to a combination of 900 minutes / 1800 texts, not both)
Free weekend calls
Free voicemail
(heres the interesting part) - Free USB Modem with data (laptop dongle).
18 month contract.
Free Phone.
What do you think? its a tough decision - even if I go for the stella on o2's consumer tarrifs id have to pay a whopping £90 for the phone. - and that usb modem could be useful...
If you push O2 hard you can get the phone for free. I did on the same business tariff, but it was an upgrade as opposed to a new contract. Tell them the phone is free with t-mobile & Orange (http://www.fones4free.com/FrontOffice/YourDealPage.aspx?ModelName=TyTN 2&DealReference=WGEX21).
Then at the last minute say you won't sign for 24 months & see if they reduce it to 12. They did for me.
As someone who is tied into a T-Mobile deal at the moment, it's a no-brainer. Coverage is everything - the best deal in the world is no comfort without a signal! Vodafone or O2 for me when I leave this contract.
chuk
crazy horse uk said:
As someone who is tied into a T-Mobile deal at the moment, it's a no-brainer. Coverage is everything - the best deal in the world is no comfort without a signal! Vodafone or O2 for me when I leave this contract.
chuk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can't argue there - without coverage, what matter the contract deal. Personally I have great T-Mobile coverage, which is why I swapped from O2. If your coverage from T-Mobile is OK, then the deal looks great
I'm on O2, and I live and work in areas with poor coverage but I always have 2 bars of 2G when inside. My GF and some work mates have orange and get no coverage at all.
This is todo with the 900mhz frequency that o2 and vodaphone uses (See here).
Depends on what you need.
I'd go for the T-Mobile deal. I'm on an 18 month contract, having left 3. Before I was with 3, I was with 02. I also had a Vodaphone contract running whilst with 3, but have recently dumped that. S, you could say I've tried everyone. T-Mobile coverage is great in my neck of the woods - and I'm out in the sticks...I even get HSDPA where I am, and I'm rural. Money-wise and deal-wise, T-Mobile is your best bet.
Bothsound ok, but as Crazy Horse said, make sure your coverage is going to be good. Tip - Google for "free O2 SIM" (here's a link). It's free (as in literally - you don't have to do an initial topup) and it will let you know whether it is going to work for you.
If you are already on T-Mobile then you should know whether that will work for you.
Thanks guys. T-mobile signal can be annoying - but as I'm in london most of time signal is OK.. The frustrating thing is the lack of t-mob signal downstairs in my house - whilst o2 is kinda border line!
Does o2 has HSPA yet?
your either a very VERY good customer with t-mobile or they have lied to you. if the offer was true it will not be available for very long, i work on the loyalty team in t-mobile and that offer has broken several different policys. so i would confirm that offer from them if i was you
Buzbe said:
Thanks guys. T-mobile signal can be annoying - but as I'm in london most of time signal is OK.. The frustrating thing is the lack of t-mob signal downstairs in my house - whilst o2 is kinda border line!
Does o2 has HSPA yet?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes o2 has HSDPA, but it's not up to full speed yet. I believe it is currently running at 1.8mbps. I am getting full signal HSDPA in south london.
Also, are you aware that o2 re-launched their tarrifs on Friday?? The data bolt-ons are now "truly unlimited" (with a few limitations Ha Ha Ha, FUP applies etc.).
Unlimited data can be added for FREE to any 18month consumer tarrif that is £35pm+.
yep - but I prefer to bill through the business - thus i go for a business tariff, sure its 24 months, but I get the added bonus of 3 months free (paying for the phone) and an upgrade after 3 months..
I still cant decide. Right now I have GPRS and one bar on t-mobile in my home office - not great..
yakleback55 said:
your either a very VERY good customer with t-mobile or they have lied to you. if the offer was true it will not be available for very long, i work on the loyalty team in t-mobile and that offer has broken several different policys. so i would confirm that offer from them if i was you
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What part breaks the policies.... from what I've been told its £20 off a deal they were offering for £50, which is Flex 35 + Usb modem with unlimited date.... thus working out £30 pm, (then plus the 7.50 I would need for WnW on the mobile).
they cant send a phone and a usb modem out from the same account the modem is classed as a phone. it can be done but it shoul not be done
also web & walk is web & walk once its on your line u can use the same sim in a modem or a handset you dont need 2 different options. None of it sound right thats all i would just advise you double check it with them
nah it would be two separate accounts - "a new deal" which normally would be £50 pm but they were offering it at £30 to me.
However I just asked for the £20 discount - now i have flext 35 + wnw and a free phone for 22.50pm.
I am about to transfer from O2 to (probably) t-mobile as I can no longer get my Kaiser to work where I live (and work).
I have made several calls to O2, in which they have admitted to "upgrading" my local transmitter a week last Friday. Since then, my Kaiser cannot make or receive calls (or use GPRS/3G etc) within about a couple of mile radius of my house. The display shows a very strong signal and (usually) the "H" or "3G" symbols.
O2 continue to say things like "your (Kaiser) phone is not compatible with the O2 network" and "you definitely have a defective phone". This is despite me pointing out that I have used the phone on their network since November and I can still use it everywhere else in this country.
As I work at home (for myself), my mobile phone is very important to me and I now have to remember to swap my SIM card into my old Nokia 6310i when I get back home.
So, I have no real alternative to switching away from O2 as they have refused to investigate the issue.
Does anyone have any bad news to tell me about reception in the Midlands on t-mobile (or any other network) before I take the plunge? Alternatively, is it really my fault that I am unable to use my Kaiser phone when I am at home?
You've got me worried now - I'm just about to jump from T-Mobile to O2 because of coverage problems! I didn't have any problems with O2 before, but then I never had a 3G phone before. I notice the free O2 sim deal has dried up - perhaps I should try a month's O2 sim-only deal to check coverage.
chuk
hi, that is the question.
Would you buy the DIAMOND again if you know you can't use the data transfer under the 3G technology??? is it worth the us$500 or eur450????
I dont really care about 3g when wifi is so readily available.
3g doesn't add any functionality to anything. its really nothing! ok, i waited 10 more seconds for some web page to load, but who cares! wifi is all over the place anyway. its way cooler stealing wifi then giving cell companys business! at the same time ill never buy a phone thats not 3g lol
for me 3G is essential as I use my Diamond extensively on Telstra's 850Mhz 3G network, and I can get far better coverage in regional parts of Australia. 3G is also essential for me as I use my Diamond as an external modem connected to my laptop. I could not imagine trying to use the internet at dialup speeds!! (or not at all due to lack of coverage)
Blazeitup123 said:
3g doesn't add any functionality to anything. its really nothing! ok, i waited 10 more seconds for some web page to load, but who cares! wifi is all over the place anyway. its way cooler stealing wifi then giving cell companys business! at the same time ill never buy a phone thats not 3g lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
3G is a masssive bonus, especially when dealing with moving large files or for video calls. web pages are not so important.
As for stealing WIFI i think there is a strong moral question about doing that, especially as there are still people who are charge by the amount of data they use. Would you pick their pockets?
Thankfully most of the wifi spots i see people are wise enough to use WPA encryption. But still some people are relying on nothing or just WEP
in france we are massively under H (or a 3.5g or 3g+) so we don't care about 3g it's only when we goes to foreign country... but funny things there is a lack of wifi spot here
I'd buy it (again - my Touch Pro that is) in a second.
We do have quite spread UMTS and not bad HSPA and even some hot spots, but all these are just things "outside" the device; and the device rulez.
3g great...but
must turn off where overseas
don't want a big bill waiting for when i get home
I don't much care for the 3G, it's a nice bonus but it's not the reason I bought the Diamond.
The Diamond is the perfect phone for me (especially after I found this place and was able to upgrade the software tremendously) and I would certainly buy it again.
My biggest complaint in that the screen is so easily scratched. I hate using screen protectors and never really had a problem with scratches on my previous touch screen (Treo 700wx) like I do now. But minor issues as far as I'm concerned. I definitley don't have a problem with the battery as many others do, as I've become quite accustomed to carrying spare batteries since I use my devices quite a bit.
Good phone, even better tech support (here). How can you go wrong?
3G is a must!!! Still waiting over here in the U.S.
hi
3g isn't a a must, if you want to brows the internet get a computer, but for some people who work out in the field and needs Internet service then sure 3G is fun, but other wise than browsing the Internet you don't really need it, but for someone who is one of those emo Internet people myspace youtube what not, that its for u.
The answer depends on where you live as well as what you use your phone for.
In UK (and most of Western Europe) we have very good 3G and even 3.5G networks that can give us mobile broadband at very good speeds - not up to best wired speeds but getting close. You can really notice the difference between that and slow old GPRS when downloading emails or surfing the real web (rather than just WAP).
On the other hand in the UK free wifi spots are few and far between - most require some sort of payment or subscription - Holiday Inn hotels for example want £15 per day, and Hilton are £10! And most private companies (and households like mine) that use wifi lock their access so you can't park outside and piggy back.
Because there has been so much investment in these new technologies they are being pushed hard by the phone companies and many contracts for phones now come with "free" bundled data access. My HTC comes with "unlimited" downloads (sunbject as always to a fair use policy that I have never got near).
I understand that in other parts of the world including the US the roll out of this sort of technology is less advanced, and so the arguments for having 3G are less convincing at the moment.
I would not have bought the Diamond without 3G. 3G(Hdspa) is an absolutley must!
/How do I change my country settings? I've changed it...
3g is the s**t lol
i gotta say once you use 3G (HSDPA) you will never go back, most if the time i don't even bother connecting to WIFI coz there is honestly hardly any speed difference if you have good reception (and i have unlimited data plan).
Luckily i live the the UK and with orange we have decent coverage and the speed is increasing over the next year of so
COLOMBIA
HI, i live in BOGOTA/COLOMBIA/SOUTH AMERICA
and here the mobile carrier use 850 band (3g) so that is why i am wondering if the diamond's worth the money if I can't use all the stuff on it, like the 3G speed...
Well I bought my Diamond (european version) not knowing that 3G wouldn't work in the US. Despite that, It was going in for some repairs at HTC America with Canada post and somehow, the phone got "lost" (yeah right).
So now, I'm getting back my insurance money and I will most probably buy another Diamond not taking into consideration weather 3G works or not.
Mrok said:
HI, i live in BOGOTA/COLOMBIA/SOUTH AMERICA
and here the mobile carrier use 850 band (3g) so that is why i am wondering if the diamond's worth the money if I can't use all the stuff on it, like the 3G speed...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
purchase a Telstra DIAM130 one from Australia and it will have 850Mhz 3G
3g or 2g
I'm in the camp of MUST have 3g, in AU with telstra and all prior htc phones have had 3g BUT I went and grabbed a Diamond 100 a while back BEFORE we all really knew about the different models being hardware (bands) different so long story short I've got 2g only and it sucks big time.
Reception outside of metro very average, data s l o w ..no video callls and
I live in the country area, even chucked my sim card into my wifes old motorola v3xx., Yea pink as well........
I am using the Diamond as I like the phone/features
I'm looking to buy a 3g Diamond or renew/upgrade my plan due next month.
Then the hardly used Diamond100 will hit ebay and thats it.
(Unless someone in AU is looking to swap as Diam100 works on Optus/Voda etc, but not telstra)
So if your provider is going to get compatible phones then wait, otherwise like driving a v8 in first gear.
Hi,
This weekend hopefully I will be flying to Japan for a month but I was wondering if my phone will work over there. I checked with Vodafone and they say it wont as the TD is a tri band phone. But ive been reading around the internet for a bit and it seems that these days Japan also uses the 3G UMTS system like it is in use in Europe so that would mean the TD should work? I keep reading 2 different things. Either it wont work unless you have a quad band phone or yes it will work as long as you have a UMTS phone.
Anybody here happen to have experiance with calling with a TD in Japan?
Hi!
I recently (this year's easter vacation) spent to weeks in Japan and had no problems whatsoever with my Diamond
greets, Sty
Should be useable in major cities. Maybe not out in the countryside. You may want to rent or buy a local phone (you can rent them right at the airport in Tokyo, just a couple dollars a day and cheap in-country calls) since their system that is in use everywhere in the country is not GSM or CDMA, but some totally unique Japan only system (forget the name).
Alan
Yes they used to have that but I read that they changed that to the european UMTS system for the most part. I know you can rent a phone but that will cost me over 100 euro's for a month excluding calls and I think that is a bit too much considering I dont really plan on calling other than when I have a emergancy (like where the **** am I? I'm really bad at following directions). But styraker didnt have any problems so I'll first try that. Calling wont be that expensive anyway. I got vodafone passport so ill be paying local fares + 79 cents for every call I make. Since I dont plan on calling much that would be cheap.
Well, i'm with T-Mobile and i've finally finished my contract. I've hated t-mobile ever since i started it. Terrible signal, terrible internet speeds, terrible customer service and terrible prices for upgrades. To upgrade to a Xperia X10 from my G1 (not upgrading though, as i have a Nexus) it would extend my contract, cost me an extra £10 a month (so up to £30!) AND the phone would cost me £290! I mean, i can get hold of the phone on its own for £230!
Basically, i cannot stand t-mobile any longer and i was wondering what operators you are all with and how happy you are with them.
My girlfriend's on Orange so i'm leaning towards them at the moment.
Cheers guys
I am also in the same boat but I think I have to choose Vodafone or 02, I believe they have the best mobile internet in the UK, been happy with t-mobile most the time but signal is non existent in my work place, think it's because they have the **** spectrum. So I can't see any improvement until the gov auctions off the better part but that won't be till 2011.
I left T-Mobile for O2 a few years ago and have not looked back. Orange are also good though - if I ever ran into an issue that prompted me to leave O2, I'd go to Orange.
O2 PAYG,quite good
get lots of free texts and minutes,plus 3g allowance for a month worth 7 quid
Just rang up and cancelled, meaning to do this for a while August last bill, might order a few free sims to test how the networks are.
I've been with T-Mobile for 15 years (since they were Mercury One2One). I haven't had too many problems, although I'm probably only still with them because I was getting a loyalty bonus.
One thing to bear in mind is that they are merging with Orange so we will be able to use their network, so it might be worth seeing what they will offer you in the way of reducing your bill if you stay with them, especially as you don't need a new handset.
I think also the data allowance is better on T-Mobile as well (I get 3GB), I think you generally get less with the other UK networks. Also roaming data is quite good (£10 for 50MB in EU).
Good point. I might ring up and threaten to cancel to see if i can get a good deal out of them
Thanks for your help everyone!
You'll find lots of people saying every network has the worst coverage and the worst customer server and the worst deals. The truth is...
Network Coverage:
All networks have pretty good coverage, except Three. They will roam you onto Orange as their 2g backup, and if you use 2g alot they will hassle you and posibly cut you off.
In my experience Orange have the worst overall coverage out of the 4 other networks.
Three and T-Mobile have a RAN sharing agreement which means they share 3g radio towers, so they curently have very good 3g coverage. Three are on a push to upgrade their 3g network so this can only help.
You're best bet is to find a friend with the network you're thinking of going to and check reception in the main places you will use it. Probably home and work. If you can't find a friend then go pick up a pay as you go sim for 1 pound and use that to check. You can actually get free sims from every network from their website too.
Every network has blackspots - some really bad, and this usually leads to some forum rant about how that particular network is total ****e, with another one 3 posts down about how that network's reception is amazing! It ultimatly depends where you live.
Worst customer service
Although some networks have been known to have totally terible customer services in the past (three), most have shaped up and are reasonably good. Like everything the experience goes up and down over the months, and todays amazing network is tommorows dog. If you had a reall bad experience with t-mobile then move (see next section), if only for your own sanity! Otherwise you'll probably have a short fuse every time you call them from now on.
Again ask friends etc about how they're finding customer service. Usually one or tworeally bad experience end up in rants on forums, and the worst stories always stick in the mind.
worst deals
Staying with the same network will never get you a great deal. Most networks have a ratio that the retentions team look at. It shows how much you use your phone and how much it has actually cost them. For example if you have 900 mins and make mostly t-mobile only calls you'll have a better ratio than others. They also look at how long you've been with them, how many months out of contract (before u took a new phone etc).
All these things means that _sometimes_ people get amazing deals, because the specific person you speak to decides you ar worth keeping no matter what. Typically tho you will end up calling customer services yourself and talk to a minion who spouts the standard deals and has only a marginal discount to offer.
Remember if you move network you will ALWAYS get a better deal. Look at all the new contract deals out there, even at places like phones4u. Dont every expect your network to match those, they wont. There may be the odd story about someone getting some amazing deal, but its rare.
Just get you PAC code and use it with a third party seller to get the best deal you can. And dont look back.
Interesting comments.
I've been with T-Mobile ever since I moved to the UK two years ago. My contract ran out a month or so ago and I was looking around if there are better operators. Everyone had something bad to say about all of them: O2, Vodafone, Orange, 3 - but no one said anything bad about T-Mobile. My experience was also quite good with them, so I stayed
I guess I should try other carriers just to see what kind of coverage and speeds they provide, but T-Mobile meets my needs fully, so I don't see any point to leave.
Hi I need advice from you learned people.
I am getting good reports about Three UK.
The problem I have is that because I am in the upgrade period of my contract with Vodafone they are offering me a good deal to stay (4Gig data / unlimited mins & texts for £27pm + £80 up front). I can also easily get by with less then this so I will probably haggle further.
Three obviously have better deals however Vodafone have a very robust phone signal which is why am unsure about moving elsewhere. The phone signal is most important to me & I know that T-mobile is less than perfect using the 1800 frequency, which is the same as Three.
I think Vodafone use this to charge more (as do O2), but I have not had a dropped call or other major problem in 10 years.
I am just trying to weigh up if the money I save on Three will be at the expense of quality of service, in particular the phone signal. I suppose the real question is "do we think that Three have a decent enough phone signal to warrant moving from a really good upgrade offer on Vodafone?"
I do realise I am probably over thinking this but I don't won't to regret a 2 year contract!
Thanks for any advice on this.
ianovic said:
Hi I need advice from you learned people.
I am getting good reports about Three UK.
The problem I have is that because I am in the upgrade period of my contract with Vodafone they are offering me a good deal to stay (4Gig data / unlimited mins & texts for £27pm + £80 up front). I can also easily get by with less then this so I will probably haggle further.
Three obviously have better deals however Vodafone have a very robust phone signal which is why am unsure about moving elsewhere. The phone signal is most important to me & I know that T-mobile is less than perfect using the 1800 frequency, which is the same as Three.
I think Vodafone use this to charge more (as do O2), but I have not had a dropped call or other major problem in 10 years.
I am just trying to weigh up if the money I save on Three will be at the expense of quality of service, in particular the phone signal. I suppose the real question is "do we think that Three have a decent enough phone signal to warrant moving from a really good upgrade offer on Vodafone?"
I do realise I am probably over thinking this but I don't won't to regret a 2 year contract!
Thanks for any advice on this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It depends on your location. I remember that when I was with three, I had almost no signal in my house, IN THE CENTRE OF GLASGOW, where signal should be excellent. But some people says that three has the best signal. I moved myself to t-mobile (now EE) and I never had any problems with signal since then. Maybe buy a pay as you go SIM card on three, and check how it will work?
Sent from my HTC One X.
POLSKAAAAAA BIAAAALOOOO CZEEEERWONIIIII!!!!!!!!!
"Android's source is better than most liquor stores, it's opened 24/7" gallardo5 aka Daniel
Do not go to 3 network. The connection is good and prices are a steal but the customer service will make you commit suicide. I was on three network two years and only once have they tried to help with my network problems. I moved to T-Mobile/EE this year.
T-Mobile/EE have improved their signal ten fold. I have noticed a difference. I barely lose signal and the contracts are pretty good. The customer service is really good. All my problems have been solved.
gallardo5 said:
It depends on your location. I remember that when I was with three, I had almost no signal in my house, IN THE CENTRE OF GLASGOW, where signal should be excellent. But some people says that three has the best signal. I moved myself to t-mobile (now EE) and I never had any problems with signal since then. Maybe buy a pay as you go SIM card on three, and check how it will work?
Sent from my HTC One X.
POLSKAAAAAA BIAAAALOOOO CZEEEERWONIIIII!!!!!!!!!
"Android's source is better than most liquor stores, it's opened 24/7" gallardo5 aka Daniel
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. I am still not sure. Three have a much better coverage now. Also CS is not really an issue for me. I don't want to use T-Mobile atm.
From somebody who works for an I dependant UK third party retailer. I wouldn't advise going to three. Upgrade with coda or switch to orange, t-mob or we. Truuuuuust me
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda app-developers app
wiggey1337 said:
From somebody who works for an I dependant UK third party retailer. I wouldn't advise going to three. Upgrade with coda or switch to orange, t-mob or we. Truuuuuust me
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What do you base this on?
I am finding T-Mob/Orange coverage very patchy compared to Three.
Well, I stayed with Vodafone & haggled an upgrade on a two year contract.
I got a Note 2 GT-N7105 with a £30 cost for the phone which they have forgotten to charge me for. I have unlimited minutes, unlimited texts & 4Gig of data per month all for the cost of £26 per month!!!
As far as I am concerned that is deal of the century so I am very happy.
Thanks for all the help.