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Cellular Phone Forum / Country Specific / UK Group / February 20083 As a Network Provider
Last time I was seriously looking at changing providers(a few years ago) Most of the advice seemed to be to avoid 3 like the plague. It seems that now, 3 are a decent provider with some good cheap tariffs. What are peoples opinions of '3' these days? I'm especially interested in anyone that actually use them, though general feedback would also be interesting. The phone I have at the moment is a SE 610i, so not 3G, is that a show-stopper as far as using 3, or do they offer good support for GSM phones?  SignatureRegards, Chris. (Remove Elvis's shoes to email me) No problem for me - over the past 3 years I've been on Orange and Virgin, but moved to 3 in October. They have Indian call centres, but the quality of the service has been brilliant - and I honestly have no complaints. I have a Nokia E61 and have push email and their unlimited internet package, and have had a few fairly technical and tricky questions - they dealt with them without fuss and got to the root of the (self inflicted) problems quickly. My wife has since moved her contract to them, and that has been equally seamless and trouble free (plus a bonus of £30 each as I recommended her). Our experiences have been brilliant, but I guess you'll find people who have had problems. 100% recommendation from me, and better than my experiences with either Virgin or Orange Neil > Last time I was seriously looking at changing providers(a few years ago) > Most of the advice seemed to be to avoid 3 like the plague. [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > Chris. > (Remove Elvis's shoes to email me) > Last time I was seriously looking at changing providers(a few years ago) > Most of the advice seemed to be to avoid 3 like the plague. > It seems that now, 3 are a decent provider with some good cheap tariffs. > What are peoples opinions of '3' these days? I'm especially interested in > anyone that actually use them, though general feedback would also be > interesting. I wasn't around a few years ago, but I use 3 now and it seems okay. Their coverage seems to be good where they say it is good and their prices for just about everything are quite competitive. If you have a problem 3's customer service is way more annoying to call than T-Mobile's was, but I haven't had many problems. It may be that you get what you pay for, but 3's prices are nice enough that I've been willing to deal with any imperfections. I didn't originally trust them enough to take a contract, but I'm considering that now. > The phone I have at the moment is a SE 610i, so not 3G, is that a > show-stopper as far as using 3, or do they offer good support for GSM > phones? You need a 3G phone, 3's own coverage is all 3G. They roam on Orange GSM where they have coverage gaps, but I don't think they'd be happy if you didn't use their native coverage where it is available. Dennis Ferguson >> have at the moment is a SE 610i, so not 3G, is that a >> show-stopper as far as using 3, or do they offer good support for GSM [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > Dennis Ferguson > Their gaps used to be filled by O2 You can't choose to hop between - the software will always hop back to '3' where there is cover and the hopping drops calls Their 3G coverage is better than any other network. > Their gaps used to be filled by O2 > You can't choose to hop between - the software will always hop back to > '3' where there is cover and the hopping drops calls > Their 3G coverage is better than any other network. Actually, you can choose not to use 3. Just go to "Select network manually" and choose the "3" /without/ the "home" icon beside it. Bingo, you are now on Orange. Not that I can see why you'd do it, since that will only give you 2G, and if 3's own network is available it's 3G. Ian >> Their gaps used to be filled by O2 >> You can't choose to hop between - the software will always hop back to [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > since that will only give you 2G, and if 3's own network is available > it's 3G. I have just finished with a 3 contract and will agree their service and coverage has greatly improved in the last few years. However, I've changed to the Virgin £10 300/300 tariff which suits me very well. I had a Sony Ericcson K610i from 3 for which I obtained the unlock code from 3 and started using it for Virgin. At first all seemed well but I had some problem with the Virgin (T Mobile) 3G signal and so was advised by the helpdesk to force the phone to receive only a GSM signal. My problem is how do I do this. I've used the manual network selection but all I get is a list of services. I thought there ought to be a 3G/GSM selection as well, but I can't find it. Am I missing the obvious? As this was a customized 3 phone, has that option been removed? Any advice appreciated. Regards John R > I thought there ought to be a 3G/GSM > selection as well, but I can't find it. Am I missing the obvious? As > this was a customized 3 phone, has that option been removed? That's entirely possible; as mentioned elsewhere in this thread, 3 users using 2G cost 3 money, because 3 don't own 2G infrastructure and have to buy it in. > Any advice appreciated. Look for a manual for your handset [or someone with a non-3 one]. If it mentions an option for manually selecting 3G or 2G, then get your handset debranded and the option should appear. Signature<http://ale.cx/> (AIM:troffasky) (UnSoEsNpEaTm@ale.cx) 15:41:02 up 18:43, 2 users, load average: 0.16, 0.10, 0.02 Convergence, n: The act of using separate DSL circuits for voice and data > >> [quoted text clipped - 29 lines] > > John Have you set your phone up for Virgin services? For instance, can you receive a picture message? If not then use this link to have the phone updated by text from virgin: http://tinyurl.com/34gk6a* * > >> Their gaps used to be filled by O2 [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > Ian > I couldn't get that to work. It just hopped back to 3 every time I moved into a different mast zone. > Last time I was seriously looking at changing providers(a few years ago) > Most of the advice seemed to be to avoid 3 like the plague. > It seems that now, 3 are a decent provider with some good cheap tariffs. > What are peoples opinions of '3' these days? I'm especially interested in > anyone that actually use them, though general feedback would also be > interesting. I've used them for about 3 years now. Coverage has improved by leaps and bounds - I have no coverage issues now. The whole family have now transferred over. The £15 mix and match tariff has 300 x-net minutes or texts plus 300 '3' minutes - so we all have loads of minutes. They also have vouchers which give £30 to both parties if recommended - the whole office is converting one by one. The Indian call centre is pretty useless. They are fine for standard issues, but any real problem and you can forget it. > The phone I have at the moment is a SE 610i, so not 3G, is that a > show-stopper as far as using 3, or do they offer good support for GSM > phones? Yes and no, in that order. If they spot you using a non-3 phone then you get disconnected - they can't afford you making all the calls through 2G (coverage provided by O2 or Orange on contract). regards, Ian > Last time I was seriously looking at changing providers(a few years ago) > Most of the advice seemed to be to avoid 3 like the plague. [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > show-stopper as far as using 3, or do they offer good support for GSM > phones? The Mix and Match tariff isn't very good value for money imho - a combination of texts and cross network/landline minutes to use as you like where 1 minute = 1 text. This is a bit crap because the value of 1 sms shouldn't equate to 1 cross network minute. If you use lots of texts you would be better using a cheaper text tariff (in which case your choice of contract subsidised phone is limited). 3 has some good phone deals though - including the black N95. Their data plan - unlimited (fair use) GPRS for £5 is very good. The call centre for customer service can be a very frustrating experience and probably a good reason to avoid them if you think you may need sensible customer support. Gareth. <snip> > The Mix and Match tariff isn't very good value for money imho - a > combination of texts and cross network/landline minutes to use as you like [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > contract subsidised phone is limited). > Gareth. 3s Stretch tariffs replaces the old 500mins for £25 add on, which didn't include any mins.or 300 3 to 3 mins. Stretch 18 for £18 now gives you 500 mins or text, a reduction of £7 and incs 300 3 to 3 mins. The highest stretch 21 tariff £21 gives you 700mins or text which is still £4 less than the old one Steve Terry > <snip> >> The Mix and Match tariff isn't very good value for money imho - a [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > The highest stretch 21 tariff £21 gives you 700mins or text which is still > £4 less than the old one Oh right - and you can select "stretch" on contract? No. The Mix and Match tariff is far from innovative - it includes an "allowance" for over priced sms in comparison to the cost of cross network voice calls in a generic bundle. It's like mixing crab apples and pomegranates. Are you going to sing the praises of 3 from now on in response to any critical post about them in this group? 3 is just a bloody telephone company and one which currently has things a bit screwy in terms of its contract tariff offering. It's customer service and technical support is generally considered to be crap (even when compared to the likes of Virgin). Gareth. > "Steve Terry" <gFOUR...@tesco.net> wrote in message > The Mix and Match tariff is far from innovative - it includes an "allowance" > for over priced sms in comparison to the cost of cross network voice calls > in a generic bundle. It's like mixing crab apples and pomegranates. So what? If you don;t like it, go elewhere. > Are you going to sing the praises of 3 from now on in response to any > critical post about them in this group? 3 is just a bloody telephone company... Precisely > It's customer service and technical support is generally > considered to be crap (even when compared to the likes of Virgin). "Generally considered" is Wikipedia-speak for "the author thinks that". Can you back your claim up with evidence or figures? Ian > Gareth. >> "Steve Terry" <gFOUR...@tesco.net> wrote in message > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > So what? If you don;t like it, go elewhere. It was advice to the OP who was posting here for, hmm, advice. >> Are you going to sing the praises of 3 from now on in response to any >> critical post about them in this group? 3 is just a bloody telephone [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > "Generally considered" is Wikipedia-speak for "the author thinks > that". Can you back your claim up with evidence or figures? Figures? Don't be a twat - I have better things to do with my time and money than to expend resources on industrial espionage. The experience of people who have posted here for the past 3 years or so is a more accessible resource and should give the op a hint that all is not well and that there is a trade off for apparently cheap call costs. Just out of curiosity - how the f.ck do you think I would get hold of "figures"? > The experience of people who have posted here for the past 3 years or so > is a more accessible resource and should give the op a hint that all is > not well and that there is a trade off for apparently cheap call costs. And that was precisely the OP's point: /not/ to hear what it /was/ like 3 years ago, but what it's like /now/. I'm aware, from reading this group, that complaints about 3's service have all but stopped. Dave > "Ian" <ian.gro...@btinternet.com> wrote in message > > "Generally considered" is Wikipedia-speak for "the author thinks > > that". Can you back your claim up with evidence or figures? [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > Just out of curiosity - how the f.ck do you think I would get hold of > "figures"? Beats me. But you made the statement that 3 is "generally considered" poor and it seems reasonable to ask if you can back up that claim. It appears you cannot. Ian >> "Ian" <ian.gro...@btinternet.com> wrote in message > [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > > It appears you cannot. LOL! You say in another post (unless I'm mistaken) that everything to do with their data services (Skype service and so on) has been rubbish. And it really shouldn't under any circumstances take 3 calls to CS to turn off voicemail. This isn't actually a minor issue - if you're roaming abroad and you don't want to pay silly voicemail diversion prices it could be a very major issue. So that's a pretty big example of 3 incompetence isn't it? The poor thing about 3 - other than their Mix and Match tariff which I don't think offers sensible value for money and, from your experience, their rubbish data services - is their customer/technical support. This isn't usually considered to be a controversial point to make. It isn't possible to discuss general points without making generalisations and I think it is a fair generalisation to say that 3 customer service has generally been considered as a joke (not quite in the same league as the parrot sketch in terms of comic intent but not far off in terms of comic effect). You, surely, have to judge a company by their performance over a significant period of time and not their performance on the basis of a couple of months (or even less) of relative negative feedback and impressionistic (at best) positive feedback. 3 probably does offer some of the best handset/price plan deals at present but it's also possible to get good deals - and better customer service - elsewhere. Voda for example has some good voice/text deals available on the new N95. So even from the "evidence" you provide there's a basis for being critical about 3. It's partly a matter of perspective but I, and I think most people, would be very pissed off indeed if I stupidly high roaming charges accrued because some CS bot couldn't turn off voicemail after 2 requests. > It's customer service and technical support is > generally considered to be crap (even when compared to the likes of > Virgin). IME, Virgin seem to have about the best CS of any network. Shame about the services. But I agree with you about 3. >> It's customer service and technical support is generally considered to be >> crap (even when compared to the likes of Virgin). > > IME, Virgin seem to have about the best CS of any network. Shame about the > services. Yes, it is a shame about Virgin's services - they actually offer a fair bit less now (aside from GPRS) than they did when they first began (Mobile Email, Virgin Xtras and a few other things). Gareth. > The call centre for customer service can be a very frustrating experience > and probably a good reason to avoid them if you think you may need sensible > customer support. I had a few initial technical difficulties with my 6120 on 3 (wouldn't roam to Orange) and found their calls centre people to be unfailingly helpful. They even rang me a couple of days after the problem was sorted to check that I was finding everything OK. The only thing which annoyed me was that you can't turn off voicemail from the handset, and it took three calls to support to get it sucessfully deactivated. And that's quite a minor issue. Overall I have been very pleased, and my monthly bill is half what it was from O2. Ian PS that's just voice and texts. Everything to do with data - including Skype - has been rubbish. > Last time I was seriously looking at changing providers(a few years ago) > Most of the advice seemed to be to avoid 3 like the plague. [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > > I was with 3 for 3.5 years. Their coverage improved 10 fold I left them because they used to allow a good rate if you did not upgrade your phone. This year they insisted I upgrade and they refused to allow me to hop tariffs onto the 300 mix n match. They wouldn't upgrade my phone to the w910i on my old £25 tariff. I binned them and got 3x as many any time mins from Orange with additional unlimited free eve/weekend landline calls plus free calls to 2 other nominated orange phones (great for family) and a free w910i - all for the same £25 SO - up to this year I would have said 3 all the way .....but this year, orange trounced them. My wife is with virgin on their special £10 for 300+300 deal for VM customers which I shall probably go to when my orange contract is up. Virgin have exceptional coverage using T-mobile network On 08 Feb 2008, DCA wrote > Virgin have exceptional coverage using T-mobile network They do have a few dead spots, though -- there's a reaaaallllly annoying one on our local railway line: it's about 5-10 minutes out of town, which (sod's law) is precisely when I want to call home to say "I'll be at the station in 5 minutes"..... > On 08 Feb 2008, DCA wrote > [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > say "I'll be at the station in 5 minutes"..... > You may find the text works in this area though as their data services are even stronger? Worth trying D On 16 Feb 2008, DCA wrote >> On 08 Feb 2008, DCA wrote >> [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > services are even stronger? > Worth trying Could be; IIRC, though, texts fail as well -- I think it's a "no signal" zone (rather than a one-bar "low signal" one). As you say, though, it's worth another try. SignatureCheers, Harvey |
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