I've just been to my local T-Mobile UK shop to have a look at the Ameo before buying it. I was asking about the prices and the assistant (I think he must have been the manager) showed me the printed price list for the various tariffs. The one that stuck out was Flext 35+ (I think - it was £47.50 pm) with the cost of the handset at £119. It was completely at odds with the prices on the other plans - ie the ones costing more per month were much more expensive. The guy said it was probably a typo but he would put it through as that and override it if necessary. It was and it should have been £309. As you can imagine I was well pleased and I bought it on the spot!
I won't say which T-Mobile shop as I don't want to get him into trouble but if you are interested I think it would be worth going down to your local shop and see what they could do...
thats the same deal i got it for online. they obviously made a mistake cos they changed it online two days later!
still, I'm not complaining!
God damn it, I could have saved myself £200!!! Well done for baggin the bargin though!
I got mine from T-mobile online, I paid £240 for the phone but im only paying £37.50 for the FlexT35 + web and walk for the entire life of the contract (min 18 months)
Yeah i got mine cheep too on same deal had to override system when putting it thru and i just kept my moth shut was a bargain now i just want WM6....
spzero said:
Yeah i got mine cheep too on same deal had to override system when putting it thru and i just kept my moth shut was a bargain now i just want WM6....
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I dont understand why you guys think this is such a good deal, even though I paid more for my phone (£240) over the 18 month minimum contract, I am paying less @ 37.50 per month. My deal is still available direct from the T-mobile website !!
SITS said:
I've just been to my local T-Mobile UK shop to have a look at the Ameo before buying it. I was asking about the prices and the assistant (I think he must have been the manager) showed me the printed price list for the various tariffs. The one that stuck out was Flext 35+ (I think - it was £47.50 pm) with the cost of the handset at £119. It was completely at odds with the prices on the other plans - ie the ones costing more per month were much more expensive. The guy said it was probably a typo but he would put it through as that and override it if necessary. It was and it should have been £309. As you can imagine I was well pleased and I bought it on the spot!
I won't say which T-Mobile shop as I don't want to get him into trouble but if you are interested I think it would be worth going down to your local shop and see what they could do...
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I have been into T-mobile today and this is definitly still avalible and is a pricing mistake picking mine up tommorow £119 for the handset flex35 + £7.50 web and walk £42.50 should be £219 or more for the handset
SITS said:
I've just been to my local T-Mobile UK shop to have a look at the Ameo before buying it. I was asking about the prices and the assistant (I think he must have been the manager) showed me the printed price list for the various tariffs. The one that stuck out was Flext 35+ (I think - it was £47.50 pm) with the cost of the handset at £119. It was completely at odds with the prices on the other plans - ie the ones costing more per month were much more expensive. The guy said it was probably a typo but he would put it through as that and override it if necessary. It was and it should have been £309. As you can imagine I was well pleased and I bought it on the spot!
I won't say which T-Mobile shop as I don't want to get him into trouble but if you are interested I think it would be worth going down to your local shop and see what they could do...
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Hi
have a look at this !!!!
T-Mobile Zakelijk 1 Jaar 2 Jaar
Optimaal 2x € 299.00 € 25.00
(www.smartphonestunts.nl)
This is a dutch website (at which I bought my universal)
This is with a so-called business plan, which is 2x dataplan. at 12,50 each per month.
so 12months x12,50 x 2 x 2years + 25 phone = 625,- euro for a brand new Athena
and with a nice spread "payment" plan.
nice huh. ?
greetings,
Wout
ps. who can not afford 25euro per month ?
bond007 said:
I have been into T-mobile today and this is definitly still avalible and is a pricing mistake picking mine up tommorow £119 for the handset flex35 + £7.50 web and walk £42.50 should be £219 or more for the handset
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is it a 12 month or 18 month contract?
wu5262 said:
is it a 12 month or 18 month contract?
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18 but you can reduce the tariff after 6 months
ice_coffee said:
I dont understand why you guys think this is such a good deal, even though I paid more for my phone (£240) over the 18 month minimum contract, I am paying less @ 37.50 per month. My deal is still available direct from the T-mobile website !!
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To be honest there's very little in it. you save £5 a month over 18 months. you save £90 on the contract, i saved £120 on the purchase price. By my crappy maths, that means I still save £30 less over all than you. but then, I didn't have £240 to spend on the phone so I am happy. and I certainly couldn't afford the £700-750 that places are charging for the HTC branded one. So for me, this was a great deal.
I treat contracts like H.P. I cant get credit, but i can get phone contracts, so i simply use them to spread the cost.
plus if I remember right, you dont get HSDPA on web and walk standard. unless you find a gormless t-mobile drone to add it for you without upping you to pro which is what came with this price mistake.
If this thing had a dvd drive and could rip dvd's, my PC would be in the freeads quicker than you could say 'HTC'!
In the end, for me it was a great deal cos otherwise i wouldn't have been able to get the thing. maybe you earn more than I do and have more disposable income and can pay more for the initial payment, and so it doesn't strike you as such an amazing a good deal. But to me and the others who may not have been able to afford one without this screw up on the initial price, its f'ing superb!!
err... i got the 119 price as well but had to pay a higher rate for the web n walk pro so that i could use the phone as a modem. thd said they could tell the difference- was i duped???
i guess they could tell if i was doing voip due to port number and i do get a higher d/l limit
You werent "duped" if they sold the service for the use you stated.
Of course that doesnt mean a lots of people dont use it as a modem anyway without telling T-Mobile, but that is T-Mobile getting 'duped' really.
It sucks that T-Mobile price this way, but considering the data plans from everybody else, count yourself lucky.
I just wish T-Mob had usable signal and working voice. My wife now refuses to phone me on this number because of the 95% failure rate of calls.
Pyrofer said:
You werent "duped" if they sold the service for the use you stated.
Of course that doesnt mean a lots of people dont use it as a modem anyway without telling T-Mobile, but that is T-Mobile getting 'duped' really.
It sucks that T-Mobile price this way, but considering the data plans from everybody else, count yourself lucky.
I just wish T-Mob had usable signal and working voice. My wife now refuses to phone me on this number because of the 95% failure rate of calls.
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are you sure about that? I recently change from Vodafone to T-mobile, and two thing i am sure is T-mobile phone signal is much better then Vodafone (at least in London), and their internet works really well, you will never want to use Athena with Vodafone.....!
Vodafone must REALLY suck then, because I normally get 1 or maybe 2 bars signal on UMTS, with frequent dropping to GPRS when out and about. (Central London).
When i visit family outside of London I am forced onto GPRS only and sometimes lose signal completely.
The quality of the internet isnt really an issue, it works. Its quite good for what you pay, but the voice service on T-Mobile is terrible.
I had people complaining my phone was never on, when it always is. So I did an experiment, I had my phone on, with full signal. The person STOOD NEXT TO ME tried to call me on speakerphone, and we both heard a failed call claiming my phone was not available.
Often the call completes, but nobody can hear anything or only one-way voice or it just cuts off for no reason.
Outgoing calls often fail for no reason, just drop after dialing as if there is no network when there is.
I dont consider this to be good by any stretch of imagination, if your telling me Vodafone is worse, we are all in trouble. At least Orange are joinging the "all you can eat" data bandwagon soon! Ill be swapping back to them as soon as my T-Mob contract is nearly up.
Pyrofer said:
Vodafone must REALLY suck then, because I normally get 1 or maybe 2 bars signal on UMTS, with frequent dropping to GPRS when out and about. (Central London).
When i visit family outside of London I am forced onto GPRS only and sometimes lose signal completely.
The quality of the internet isnt really an issue, it works. Its quite good for what you pay, but the voice service on T-Mobile is terrible.
I had people complaining my phone was never on, when it always is. So I did an experiment, I had my phone on, with full signal. The person STOOD NEXT TO ME tried to call me on speakerphone, and we both heard a failed call claiming my phone was not available.
Often the call completes, but nobody can hear anything or only one-way voice or it just cuts off for no reason.
Outgoing calls often fail for no reason, just drop after dialing as if there is no network when there is.
I dont consider this to be good by any stretch of imagination, if your telling me Vodafone is worse, we are all in trouble. At least Orange are joinging the "all you can eat" data bandwagon soon! Ill be swapping back to them as soon as my T-Mob contract is nearly up.
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btw, you haven't activate the always on Internet tweak right? i think your experience is very strange and not normal, i have lots of T-mobile friends, and they don't report such an issue, is it possible by your setting?
And also, i don't use GPRS at all, i force my device to only connect to 3G network, and i still get good signal all the time.
It is a good deal i got the web and walk + tariff so i can use my ameo as a modem at no extra cost with unlimited usage so if i wana do some serious browsing or on line gaming on my laptop whilst on way to work this price plan is great i was with o2 for about 7 years previous i thought they were great and always had a nice new xda device to try after my contract expired but t mobile is so much better i use my athena way more than any other because of the unlimited internet and i also get text reminders to let me know how many inclusive flext minutes/texts i have at least once a week im as happy as pie with my tarrif and price of phone as i managed to sell a crap old Nokia N80 on ebay to cover the cost so i didnt even feel the purchase,,
This just shows how all things are subjective... spzero likes the flext reminder messages, they just really annoy me and are now disabled.
I think O2 were much better than TMob, i would have stayed with them if it wasnt for the flat rate data from web&walk.
I have lots of friends on TMob too and they say its crap for them too. I have tried different phones and same problems so its not settings. There is no setting to make incoming calls fail before they get to my phone! I had a TMob contract many years back and it was total rubbish then. I thought by now it would have been better, but I was wrong.
If I force UMTS only, i would lose all signal often. Maybe it works fine where you live, but for me it doesnt.
They just dont have the coverage. If they did there would be no need for a postcode checker on the site to make sure they cover your area. All other networks just assume everywhere is covered except TMob.
I have TMob only because of Web&Walk. When other networks get better data plans ill move, preferably to O2, but maybe to Orange.
My main hate for TMob is the customer (dis)service. I wont list the whole story here, but lets just say they have treated me like crap on many occations.
Pyrofer said:
... When other networks get better data plans ill move, preferably to O2, but maybe to Orange. ...
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I personally found O2 customer service somewhere beneath awful. Anyway, that aside, as I understand it O2 will be announcing new and more competitive data plans shortly.
I live in London, and have never had a problem with T-mobiles service and coverage.
The customer service is another matter....
At least their latest cockup benefits me instead of them, the £325 I paid upfront via credit card for the Ameo has since been credited to my account, and two months later, after 2 bills, I am still around £260 in credit.
Here's hoping they won't spot their error...
Related
Just found an amazing deal for orange SPV M3100
a FREE SPV M3100 on Dolphin 35 which gives 500 x net mins, 500 texts and unlimited magic number calls (to a nominated orange number)
This offer also includes their free wireless broadband deal (which i had previously been told was only available when buying direct from orange)
They can also transfer your orange PAYG number to Orange contract (again i was previously told this was only available buying direct from orange)
AND 9 months 1/2 price rental - so total cost for 18 months is £472.50 (less than £26pm including phone and broadband)
There are other similar deals available, by far the cheapest i have found and much cheaper than orange direct / online / shop
checkout:
http://www.cheapest4mobiles.co.uk/display.asp?hs=m3100&network=&tariff=&gift=&phone=Orange_M3100
also some amazing deals on the Vario II as well - lots of offers if you click on the link, they are actually cheaper than those listed when you select (as theres currently a £5 per month discount as well)
http://www.cheapest4mobiles.co.uk/d...rk=&tariff=&gift=&phone=T-Mobile_MDA_Vario_II
HTC TyTN deals are also there, but tend to be more money (but are available with an O2 connection)
http://www.cheapest4mobiles.co.uk/display.asp?hs=tytn&network=&tariff=&gift=&phone=HTC_TyTN
Someone pmd me to say the deals i had mentioned werent there!
It said on the site that over the weekend not all the deals were listed due to some technical issue with power failures and BT !!!
The issue has now been resolved and all deals are listed once more.
sounds like a good deal!
one word of warning though - i bought my orange m3100 from a different company on the internet - www.directmobilephones.com - because of the good deals etc, and whilst i had no problems recieving the phone, and they had good customer service during the buying process (replying to emails promptly etc.) i found out after a couple of weeks that they hadn't given orange the details for my number port or direct debit even though i had filled out these details on their online form!
so it's worth checking with orange when you register your phone that they have all the details if you don't buy direct...
hopefully this company is a bit better than the one i dealt with!
They look like good deals, but i thought the unlimited broadband was only available on panther 75 and even then you are limited to off peak unlimited broadband? Can you point us in the direction where is says you can get unlimited on dolphin 35? Cheers
i think he's refering to the unlimited home broadband rather than the unlimited mobile broadband.
Doesn't seem like any of the shops listed have either the Orange or the T-Mobile branded handset in stock
Doesn't seem like any of the shops listed have either the Orange or the T-Mobile branded handset in stock
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???
listed as 'in stock' on their website...
http://www.directmobilephones.com/spv_m3100_orange.htm
please note: if you do use them, check with orange about your number transfer / direct debit details if you're using those services!
bigshape said:
i think he's refering to the unlimited home broadband rather than the unlimited mobile broadband.
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Ahh, yep, your probably right. Even though them deals are good, i think I'll go with t-mobile online and get the unlimited mobile data. You end up paying more in the long run, but i think it'll be worth it! ;-)
Yes i was referring to unlimited home broadband, sorry for the confusion. Just to mention though that all the standard t-mobile deals are available through:
http://www.cheapest4mobiles.co.uk/d...rk=&tariff=&gift=&phone=T-Mobile_MDA_Vario_II
just click on any of the deals, and it allows you to select any available online T-Mobile tariff option.
As has already been pointed out, T-Mobile are offering a £5 per month line rental discount on some plans plus other incentives as well.
ONLY Buy from T-Mobile Direct, else you will get screwed
I have been looking for two days and called scancom, who told me that T-mobile cut their commisions on phones back 40%, so they can never beat their prices, and they were right, they couldn't. SO IW ouldn't bother, go for the T-mobile sales people and you'll do better
Deals on m3100
I bought my Orange SPV M3100 from OneStopPhoneShop (part of CarPhone Warehouse).
£9.99 for the handset and 12 months on the Canary package at £30 per month. Includes 200 cross-network, anytime minutes and 2 months free subs to Orange World (their 3G service) as well as few other perks (30 mins video calling etc).
Total cost £370 over 12 months - now that's not bad IMO.
Hope this helps.
padlad said:
bigshape said:
i think he's refering to the unlimited home broadband rather than the unlimited mobile broadband.
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Ahh, yep, your probably right. Even though them deals are good, i think I'll go with t-mobile online and get the unlimited mobile data. You end up paying more in the long run, but i think it'll be worth it! ;-)
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This is a very good point. There's no advantage to going with Orange apart from the slightly more attractive veneer on their version of the TyTn.
The online deal quoted earlier?
Well is that 9months half price line rental (in logical human terms)....
Or 9 months' worth of cashback after 6 months if you fill in a form on time...
Or two months half price, another two months full price, then two months full price.....
I don't trust these online companies as far as i can throw them.
Mikeycolllins is right when he says to go through T-mobile, it's just easier to get things sorted that way. And slightly off-topic, but if you ever get to know anyone who works at T-mobile they can only offer you half price line rental if you've gone directly through them, and not a third party.
To get anything like i currently do on Tmob on Orange we're talking 26quid for the dolphin package (as quoted earlier) plus 88 quid for unlimited internet (based on their online data price guide, and limited to 1gb as opposed to Tmob's 2gb). The free broadband will be useless to most people on here who are already contractually obligated to NTL/BT/TALKTALK etc.
Thats an average of 114 quid a month times 18 = 2052 quid.
I know that's taking things to extremes, but it proves a point - the only way you're gonna wind up with a better deal on orange is if you only use wifi. And that would be crap.
So basically i'm stickin with T-Mobile for now methinks.
I think we can all agree on that. For most phone users those Orange deals are very very good. For this specific phone with its data capabilities and the type of users we have in this forum, the T-Mobile deal is just heads over heels better than anything else out there.
I think the comments made are quite right, Orange is definitely the more expensive option (despite the freebies) if you are wanting a high mobile data usage.
I have just heard that Orange are cutting their commissions by £60 on 18 month contracts as from 1st October, so looks like the freebies will start to disappear shortly.
I have noticed that the onestopphoneshop deals have all disappeared within the last hour or so. Their cheapest deal was 12 month on Dolphin 25 at £360 (which is the one bigshape got) but now the same deal is £459 - a £99 increase since 8pm tonight.
The orange deal suits me, as i dont need much mobile data as i have wifi at home and work, and my home broadband is up for renewal anyway, so I have effectively got a FREE M3100 for £26 per month, but saved £17 by switching my broadband deal - so an M3100 for £9 per month including 500 texts and 500 minutes?
sounds unbeatable to me!
just to re-iterate though, :!:
The T-mobile deals on www.cheapest4mobiles.co.uk are actually direct from T-mobile themselves, - It is quite correct that the best discounts at the moment are direct from T-Mobile, thats why they are listed as such on the website.
The website simply runs a search over all available deals from a selection of retailers (one of which being T-mobile) and shows the best deal it can find. It also does Carphonewarehouse, onestopphoneshop, Orange, O2 and many more.
Am I the only person who thinks that rival companies should consider adopting T-mobile's simple 'credit' principle instead of drowning consumers in 'freebies' (20 minutes of video calls for the first 35 days, 'mate rates' half price line rental* free Msn [till october])I think 3 are the worst for this, but all the mainstream companies revel in confusing the less-sharp amongst us with verbiage and tantalising 'extras', seemingly in the hope that we'll forget that their freebie often doesn't last forever.
Of course this tactic has been prevalent in consumer marketing for years - but I believe T-mobile will win through with their straightforward and fair price plans, and their data bundles - as we have ascertained in this forum - are streets ahead of the competition.
3 have just brought out a 3g datacard. I noticed it in Superdrug this afternoon. I spoke to the 'advisor' about it briefly and by the end of the conversation he had told me rather enthusiastically that he was going to take out a t-mobile web n walk datacard plan!
I considered many price plans, and been on many different networks. From my experience I have concluded that the decisive factor in my skyrocketing phone bills was simply apathy. We are all guilty of it, and phone companies rely on it to make the big bucks. How many times have you overshot your minutes allowance, or forgot you only had texts instead of minutes?
The Flext plan is incredibly reassuring in its simplicity, and really does adapt to my changing needs (some months i call a lot, others i text a lot)
Though Orange and O2 may potentially offer more minutes and texts as a whole, this clouds the fact that many consumers NEVER use all of both their minutes AND texts, unless they make a concerted effort to do so.
Adaptability, simplicity and value for money are I believe important to most consumers.
Certainly they are to me.
P.s. What is 'Orange World'? Is that an open 3g browsing experience, or another Vodafone Live! ?
Personally I didn't buy my Vario II so I could check train times and download Novelty ringtones.
*for the first 3 months.
Now, I have a question.
Will any of these places ship to a US address? I ask cause it would almost make sense to get the phone with the cheapest plan and pay the money every month for a year and then cancel. But I am not sure how the european providers are and how long are their contracts. I do have some friends in england I could ship the device if I needed too. but what is everyones thoughts on this?
Not sure about this question as i dont know the vetting procedure, but I would assume you have to go through a UK credit check, part of which would probably be to check you were a UK citizen on the electoral register. I know my cousin had loads of problems because she was in the British Army stationed in Germany. Her parents had emigrated to France and she effectively had no valid UK address except her barracks. Orange were very awkward about this and would not give her a contract phone at all, despite the fact she had been an Orange customer for 3 years already.
All links to the MDA Vario II from your link, to the T-mobile site seem to be broken. In fact there is now no mention of that phone on their website. Anyone any ideas ???
looks like a problem with the T mobile site maybe they are doing some late night maintenance ? try again later methinks!
shadowman said:
Not sure about this question as i dont know the vetting procedure, but I would assume you have to go through a UK credit check, part of which would probably be to check you were a UK citizen on the electoral register. I know my cousin had loads of problems because she was in the British Army stationed in Germany. Her parents had emigrated to France and she effectively had no valid UK address except her barracks. Orange were very awkward about this and would not give her a contract phone at all, despite the fact she had been an Orange customer for 3 years already.
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You usually have to be a UK resident for at least 5 years i think and have lived at the same address for at least 3 years to normally get credit, and even then if you have had no credit, like for example, a credit card, loan, mortgage etc, then you will have no 'credit rating' and will struggle to get any credit at all.
Hey there, I own the Touch HD on Orange, I really was finding the internet service through T-mobile and three great, they have good Fair usage policies.
I was told by the person who sold me my phone that I would be warned or have a flag applied to my account if i were to go over 500MB!
Not the case.. I've been hit with a huge bill, and I've argued with 3 customer representatives and unfortunately have not gotten anywhere. I've read a few people on forums who have not had this problem but have been warned and told the same story!!
I have the 500MB Add-on Internet (told it was a fair usage policy), but it turns out ive used about 700MB and been charged roughly £1.10 per extra MB which is shocking!!!
Any assistance would be much appreciated, Ive cancelled my direct debit in hopes to get this matter resolved, I couldn't believe it!
Thanks.
G.Matharu
Sounds grossly unfair, and you can cite examples of other users receiving different treatment to yourself. Ask them why you are being treated differently to other customers, and if you get nowhere ask to speak with a supervisor in their customer services team. Quite often the "first line" support you get follow a prescribed course of action and cannot operate on too much discretion.
Good luck.
Perhaps other users on Orange (or O2 for that matter, who also have a ridiculously small data cap) can post up their experience of exceeding their data ceiling, and we can keep a dossier of evidence on here? Just a thought.
I recently got my Touch HD and with my renewal i blagged the free unlimited internet (or 500mb as you say)
Before i took out the contract i asked what the fair use was, they said 500mb and she said, and i quote "You will have to be on all day every day to exceed it" so if this happens to me, which i expect it will, i shall be getting a copy of that conversation recording and see what their excuse is
I have exceeded the data limit on my plan with O2 (here in Germany) twice before - and both times they took the amount for the extra data off my bill in good will!
But I didn't exceed my plan as much as you did...
BTW: O2 has by far the best customer service have encountered so far! Atleast here in Germany...
That sounds horrible, I hope you manage to get that sorted out. I have never been with 3 but I know these operators are tricky characters.
I am on O2 £30pm with no data package, the O2 lady said on the phone that if I use my data connection then I will get charged for data upto £1 and that is it (fair usage policy applys) so if i reconnect within those 24hr of a give day then it wont cost me anymore than the £1 already, which if you did this everyday then it would cost about £35~.
This is why she said they recommend the 'unlimited' bolt on for £5.99, which is 500Mb per month but i didn't ask about if I went over that, I would hope the £1's worth of data deal would kick in but I'm betting the money grabbers will not honor that for all thier customers.
i have had this trouble but with pay as you go sim, i found out a few things that was using my credit.
the weather update, go into options and deselect them so that it doesnt download new weather data when not in active sync. just go into active sync n do it that way.
quickgps thingy, disable the updates as before active sync updates this everytime the phone is synched.
wap, when you close the internet, it leaves the connection open , well it does on occasion on mine. just go into the settings / communication in manilla and make sure data connection is off.
hope this helps. but i went through 10.00 within a few days without using the phone well to call anyway so hope this helps with others.
if thers anything i missed post it and a solution
Orange data rates are so uncompetitive it's unbelivable, I was on the phone to CS this evening about an unrelated matter but asked if there were any plans to change this, and the answer was a resounding no
I got my HD in from Orange in March on a 'Panther' plan whch came with the 500Mb package included, but they also said should I go over the limit the MAXIMUM they would charge would be £1.50 a day. While still seriously poor that would result in a charge of £46.50 in a 31 day month assuming that 500Mb+ was used on day one. It might be worth seeing if there is any mileage there, perhaps offer to change plan if they would consider bringing these outrageous charges into line with that plan?
I had a stock unlocked Kaiser and was with o2 on a 3Gb monthly package and was to impatient to wait until I had the money to buy a stock unlocked HD. I was in the Orange Shop with my wife upgrading her phone and I just couldn't stop myself, I asked if they had one in stock and they did. So that was that I had to have one................................. I wish I'd have waited
Anyway, Good Luck.
Thanks so much everyone for your input seriously!!
I'm going to see what I can do, I'l report back here, Unfortunately I really don't think they're going to listen, the last guy I spoke to, told me that I can't keep phoning up to keep speaking to different representatives. The way he said it, was just really rude.
I've been with T-mobile and Three's data tariffs, and they've both been great, Three does fail to connect sometimes, and T-mobile is sometimes slow, but Orange had none of these issues but clearly has a bigger one!
Thanks a lot again. I'll post soon, Bill is due 14th April.
Whilst I love Orange Service (coverage/signal are great for me), Orange Customer Service is absolutely useless to the degree of insanity.
I had difficulties with their Upgrades team not providing me with a good upgrade onto the HTC Touch HD. I ended a rather frustrated and unproductive conversation with "Thank you for your help but I think I am going to look elsewhere as Orange are not offering me a competitive deal". Two minutes later, a call on my mobile from another mobile... it was the customer representative from Orange calling me to complain, say that I was rude and my comment was unjustified.
They offered me a £35pm 18mo contract and Id have to pay £X for the handset whereas I picked up the Touch HD from Phones4U online for £30pm 18mo contract, free handset. Cost me £15 to unlock, £1 for a T-Mobile SIM, £5 to top up and 1 week to transfer my number from Orange to T-Mobile and back to Orange.
It does not surprise me that Orange have been flagged up here and I thank you for your post. Since receiving my Touch HD approximately 3 weeks ago, I have used £1.69 of data outside the Free Evenings/Weekends Orange World usage plan which is tacked onto your contract for free.
It also saddens me that Orange has probably the worst data rates of all of the providers. I would have switched if only I was able to get the HTC Touch HD on another network.
One piece of humour I found when talking to a guy from Phones4U in store is that both O2 and T-Mobile refused to stock the Touch HD because it failed to meet their quality standards, same with previous HTC models. The Phones4U stores refused to stock the Touch HD as the previous HTC's had too many problems. I have to say, I loved my LG Viewty when I got that 18 months ago but the Touch HD blows away anything I have used previous.
gmmatharu12 - I hope your issue is resolved and I will be keeping a close eye on this thread regarding the data situation with Orange. We can only hope they improve their customer service to meet the standard of network service tthey provide.
I had a similar problem with Orange, only I didnt have any data package to exceed. I didn't really even use it to any great ammount, browsing for football scores a few times in the month maybe.
Then I recieve a bill for £130, £70-odd pounds worth of data.
Naturally I queried it and I stopped my direct debit until they could explain it a bit more. At the time I had a SE K850i and I was supposed to have downloaded over 30MB of data in the six times I connected up over the course of the month.
Because they cannot log where you visited or what you downloaded there was no way of proving I had used that ammount (I assure you I couldn't have d/l that much just browsing a few times).
Anyway, the customer services chap explained that ALL Orange tarifs should have a policy where the MAXIMUM data charge one could acrue over the space of 24hrs is £1.47 and my account must have "slipped through the net". So I agreed to pay the maximum daily charge for the 6 occasions I did use the web, and they credited the rest.
Try to see if this is stated anywhere in their T&C's, you definately have a case.
Elcs said:
Orange Customer Service is absolutely useless to the degree of insanity.
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Amen Brother.
Elcs said:
I had difficulties with their Upgrades team not providing me with a good upgrade onto the HTC Touch HD. I ended a rather frustrated and unproductive conversation with "Thank you for your help but I think I am going to look elsewhere as Orange are not offering me a competitive deal".
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Snap. I ended up going to O2 from a mobiles.co.uk deal. I guess Orange actually did me a favour trying to charge me for the phone. I had renewed 12 years in a row and really wasn't getting value compared to new customes or customers on other networks. Them forcing my hand saved me a few bob so for that - I thank them.
Elcs said:
Two minutes later, a call on my mobile from another mobile... it was the customer representative from Orange calling me to complain, say that I was rude and my comment was unjustified.
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Can you believe I could have had exactly the same contract from mobiles.co.uk that Orange were offering me, only with a free phone, and Orange would have had to have paid mobiles.co.uk a commision. And they still wouldn't match it!
3 weeks into my O2 contract - no issues so far.
3 weeks using my Touch HD - Lovin it.
Nasher79 said:
Amen Brother.
Snap. I ended up going to O2 from a mobiles.co.uk deal. I guess Orange actually did me a favour trying to charge me for the phone. I had renewed 12 years in a row and really wasn't getting value compared to new customes or customers on other networks. Them forcing my hand saved me a few bob so for that - I thank them.
Can you believe I could have had exactly the same contract from mobiles.co.uk that Orange were offering me, only with a free phone, and Orange would have had to have paid mobiles.co.uk a commision. And they still wouldn't match it!
3 weeks into my O2 contract - no issues so far.
3 weeks using my Touch HD - Lovin it.
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Click to collapse
Much the same story for me. I've been with Orange for about 14 years and where I cannot complain about the signal/call quality in that time I have noticed a complete disintegration of their customer services.
Same issues where I wanted the HD for free but they said I'd have to pay £179 - even though their own website was offering it for free (all be it on a 24 month contract which i didn't mind signing because like I say the signal/call quality where I am is excellent).
In my experience - Orange have always charged £1 per meg for internet access but one word of warning people - their inclusive 500Mb is only orange world pages - I was told that if you navigate away you will be told that the page is going to be charged for but I don't think that is the case - you seem to be told that "this page is free" and I assume that if you don't see that then you are charged. It's only my opinion, I have yet to confirm this from customer services but can't be bothered spending the 45 minutes you have to wait to actually get to speak to someone
Maybe it is just me but... i've been with orange for about 10 years and i have never had a bad experience with their customer service. Of all the companies i've ever dealt with they have by far and away the best customer service. always been helpful and polite to me.
When the guy on upgrades couldn't offer me a decent deal on the HD he gve me the direct line number for retentions and told me what to say to them to get the best deal and it worked.
Also found there insurance to be excellent, i've rang up at 10pm at night with a dodgy handset and had a shiny new one there at 9am the following morning... can't really get any better than that.
I have an option on my account for the 500mb unlimited bundle but my account also shows up as having the OW capped daily usage so i guess this is what was referrend to earlier about being charged a maximum per day.
Well I've very recently switched to Orange from T-Mobile, I wasn't having great signal coverage with T-Mobile and decided that I could switch to Orange for the HD.
When I brought the phone I queried the Data plans, I had seen a deal on the t'interweb and ws happy to sign up as long as I had similar flexibility with connection as I did with Web'n'Walk.
What I was sold was an 'unlimited' data plan.
2 days later I read online that there's a 500MB limit.
So I ring back and ask about this, as I wasn't told of the limit, I REALLY had to push to get a 'yes' response from them, that there was a 500MB limit.
I got a lot of 'You should be fine, its practically unlimited' and 'No-one really uses the full quota you'll be fine' and after I finally blew at them and basically said 'Look...you twats, yes or no 500MB limit or not?' then finally I got told yes.
So they do not clarify this data plan, over the phone, the description on the internet is not descriptive, you do not get warned about the upcoming 500MB boundary, sounds like an easy cash in for Orange.
Having read this thread, I will re-install my GPRS data counter that I used to have on my Kaiser, sounds like I'll need it.
I bet business users get treated a whole lot different.
i had the same problem with orange in m first month £60 pounds worth of data.
I argued with them and they said there was nothing they could do and billed me for the rest of the contract lenth!! £700 please.
so i Tried A orange pay as yo go sim card and for £10 a month(Dolphin Package) you get 300 hundred messeges and free access to facebook, Bebo and myspace a month but ive never got charged for going on the wap on my phone no matter what i access or i download!! BRILLIANT
And i get to keep this brilliant PHONE
Freypal said:
Maybe it is just me but... i've been with orange for about 10 years and i have never had a bad experience with their customer service. Of all the companies i've ever dealt with they have by far and away the best customer service. always been helpful and polite to me.
When the guy on upgrades couldn't offer me a decent deal on the HD he gve me the direct line number for retentions and told me what to say to them to get the best deal and it worked.
Also found there insurance to be excellent, i've rang up at 10pm at night with a dodgy handset and had a shiny new one there at 9am the following morning... can't really get any better than that.
I have an option on my account for the 500mb unlimited bundle but my account also shows up as having the OW capped daily usage so i guess this is what was referrend to earlier about being charged a maximum per day.
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I would have agreed with you up until recently. When it came to upgrading, they just werent interested in keeping my service, and actually got quite rude about it. Its pot luck whether you get a helpfull person answer your call or one of their not so helpfull staff, which to me seemed the majority towards the end.
Im pleased your content with their service. And im equally pleased I now have nothing to do with them.
Freypal said:
When the guy on upgrades couldn't offer me a decent deal on the HD he gve me the direct line number for retentions and told me what to say to them to get the best deal and it worked.
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I spoke to two people on their online customer services that suggested I would be able to secure the £30pm 24 mo contract for the HD which was an online exclusive.
The upgrades team, on my second attempt I got a helpful young gentleman who advised me that he could not offer that plan and the handset but he passed me through to retentions as he suggested they had access to better deals and as such should hook me up with something suitable.
Retentions were rather rude at which point I said that Orange Customer Services cant tell their "bum from their elbow" and asked for a definitive answer on my situation from a supervisor only to have no success.
I found it relatively easy to get my PAC off them and to transfer my number back in (even if customer services told me to ring 150 from my Orange phone and press option 1 option 1 for Transferring numbers)
Try the (very old) trick of speaking to the Executive Office. I don't know how - there's probably a number knocking around somewhere.
I check my usage online at the Orange site and would suggest others do the same.
For example:
data
250MB Internet Browsing megabytes remaining : 223.4153
Also, when you first get your phone, call them up and check with them what the package offers. Go through it word by word - and record the call (er, do stock ROMs include call recording software?) Failing that make notes of the deal, and the time of the call, so you can refer them back to it in a couple of months time.
TBH I'd do this with any operator, not just Orange.
It's probably not helpful to those of you on Orange contracts, but the O2 equivalent is actually effectively cap-less.
The 200MB only applies to PAYG, and when I phoned up to get the data bolt-on added to my account (contract through Mobiles.co.uk) I asked them about the data limit, their reply was basically along the lines of "there's no limit, as long as you don't take the piss". I use the mobile web on my HD very heavily, RSS feeds, mobile internet, weather updates, email, and I've never had any problems with the data.
I've never gone over my limit, but I was told by Orange customer service that due to the fact it's fair usage policy rather than a straight 500MB limit I'd have to use well over 1GB before they would start to charge me. I feel pretty cheated by them if that isn't the case, I guess I'm just lucky that I'm near Wi-Fi most of the time.
So here's the deal...
I've been with T-Mobile from the beginning - from waaaaay back when they were Mercury 121.
If I was to ring up T-Mobile as a new customer, I can get the phone for free, on the same tariff that I have now.
However, as an existing customer, if I want to upgrade to a HD2 I have to pay £140!
I think I'm gonna give OFCOM a call...
Yeah... I've had this in the past too. When I checked via the web for an upgrade to the Diamond from a Vario II, they quoted about £190. A new customer would have paid about £40. I thought it was a mistake, so went into my local T-nob-ile shop, and the girl said "Nope, can't do it any cheaper than £190". She made several phone calls to people, the manager came down, but nope, no can do. I said "OK, cancel the contract and I'll take out a new one please".... and then she says "But you do realise you will lose your number Sir?" I just replyed with "I'll group text all my contacts my new number. And I can remember an 11 digit number thank you."
It is a shambles of a system - I'll go in with a print out from Mobiles Direct too this time.
And I will kick arse....
Could you not just order a new phone as a new customer, whilst letting you existing contract continue, then get a PAC code from you old contract and move it to your new one? Yu would only have a few days of overlap...?
dugald5 said:
Could you not just order a new phone as a new customer, whilst letting you existing contract continue, then get a PAC code from you old contract and move it to your new one? Yu would only have a few days of overlap...?
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Most of the networks will tell you that you can't go from contract to contract on the same network and keep the number. This is an absolute lie, and you could go down a lengthy legal process to prove it, but it's not worth it over a phone number.
The best way to do it is to get a PAYG SIM, transfer your existing number to that, and then get a new contract (as a new customer) and transfer the number from the PAYG SIM to the new contract.
It's a pain in the arse. It's yet ANOTHER way that the telecomms companies try to rape you into submission.
Rant over. That advice still stands though
I'm with T-mobile using Solo (£20pcm) and thought I could just cancel and get a HD.
I got my PAC as I wanted to keep my number and then I got a call and was told however that I would need to upgrade or give them the 30days notice and then come in as a new customer.
they then offered me a deal rather than waiting the 30 days cancelling and coming back.
I could Upgrade effective immediately with the phone for free on a deal 18 month contract with the normal rates as per site. (now paying £40pcm flext = £225pcm spend limit and free internet)
so its true you can get upgrade phone for free. even if you were paying as little as £20pcm
Well I've just checked online for my upgrade as I am now in my final month, and it dosen't give me the option to upgrade to the HD2 - the Compact 5 (Touch Diamond 2) is as far as I can go - and that's if I pay £214.26!!!
Time to ring and cancel I think.
Tw*ts.
As a T-mobile (UK) customer my self with HD2 on that contract what you have to do is tell them what they already know they have to match the contracts for new and exsisting users this is how i got mine when they were not even out on t-mob. This works and they know it just want to try get the £140 out of you if they can hope this helps
The HD2 has just shown up in my online upgrade.... it's mine for £340!!!!
LOL! LOL! PMSL!! Christ, I'd hate to work for Tmobile right now, 'cos someone is gonna get a bashing!
Sorry to dig this thread back up, but after ringing them and asking for my PAC (code), and saying £340 was just plain silly, thye did offer me the phone on the Combi20 with internet (total £25) for £130. I said I can go to mobilephonesdirect and have the phone on this contract for £93. I was put on hold for 5 minutes and they said they could do it for £100. So I accepted. Should be here before 1pm tomorrow.
Only downside is it's likely to be looked to a T-Mobile ROM - unless you're lucky to get an unbranded one...
EddyOS said:
Only downside is it's likely to be looked to a T-Mobile ROM - unless you're lucky to get an unbranded one...
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It'll be flashed by the end of the day!
Towserspvm2000 said:
It'll be flashed by the end of the day!
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You're likely to loose your warranty then. I just moved from 3 to Virgin after they gave me some crap upgrade deals. You can port your number no problem and its unlocked and unbranded so i'm quite happy. Plus Virgin uses t-mob's network so you'd get the same coverage.
lepszy said:
You're likely to loose your warranty then. I just moved from 3 to Virgin after they gave me some crap upgrade deals. You can port your number no problem and its unlocked and unbranded so i'm quite happy. Plus Virgin uses t-mob's network so you'd get the same coverage.
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I checked Virgin's deal on the HD2 a few days back, pretty good, seems like the best out of all networks actually (?)
Is the high speed (HSDPA) network shared too?
sh500 said:
I checked Virgin's deal on the HD2 a few days back, pretty good, seems like the best out of all networks actually (?)
Is the high speed (HSDPA) network shared too?
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yes, it is
iv never payed for a mobile phone and i never will. vodafone have tried it on a few times but after asking for my pac code they always gave in. iv now moved onto o2 as voda dont do 3g in my area (and their customer services is pathetic) and got my hd2 online for £30 a month, £7.50 internet bolt on and the handset for free.mind you, its a 2 year contract but i can live with that. it would break my heart to pay for a mobile.........
T-Mobile wouldn't move till I asked for my PAC
I got the HD2 for free with 600mins, unlimited net, lots of texts, for
£35 on 18 months on T-Mobile
I've had it for a month.
Plenty of different roms tried, etc.
ACE
madcapmagician said:
So here's the deal...
I've been with T-Mobile from the beginning - from waaaaay back when they were Mercury 121.
If I was to ring up T-Mobile as a new customer, I can get the phone for free, on the same tariff that I have now.
However, as an existing customer, if I want to upgrade to a HD2 I have to pay £140!
I think I'm gonna give OFCOM a call...
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FYI, my contract had a month left to run so I phoned them and told them I was going to cancel my contract, after a bit of bartering I got the HTC HD2 for £8 a month with unlimited text. It arrived the next day and I swopped the sim with my unlimited web sim. must have been my lucky day.
lepszy said:
yes, it is
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sh500 said:
I checked Virgin's deal on the HD2 a few days back, pretty good, seems like the best out of all networks actually (?)
Is the high speed (HSDPA) network shared too?
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I've tested this and I think Virgin only get limited bandwidth from T-mobile. Side-by-side tests using a HD2 with a Virgin sim, and a HD2 with a T-mobile sim showed Virgin to have less than a quarter of the download speed of T-mobile. Having said that, for every-day browsing from the mobile, the speed on Virgin is fine. But if you fancy high speed downloads, or streaming high quality video, than I don't think Virgin will perform as well as T-mobile per se or O2.
I was paying £40 pcm with three and expected a mammoth upgrade deal and got not even as much as a pound off the current advertised deals they have. One or two deals they offered were actually more. Anger isn't even the word... I wanted to kill someone! They had the cheek to tell me that with the new deal I would be making a huge saving on my old plan and that was the saving.
Aleemz said:
I've tested this and I think Virgin only get limited bandwidth from T-mobile. Side-by-side tests using a HD2 with a Virgin sim, and a HD2 with a T-mobile sim showed Virgin to have less than a quarter of the download speed of T-mobile. Having said that, for every-day browsing from the mobile, the speed on Virgin is fine. But if you fancy high speed downloads, or streaming high quality video, than I don't think Virgin will perform as well as T-mobile per se or O2.
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Could be but like you said, doesnt really matter for every-day browsing
I appreciate that quite a few of you have now got one but some of us are still struggling to get our paws on one Personally I want one through o2 but cant seem to get to the front of the queue for placing an order! I could jump ship but would like to stick with them so the burning question is how did you guys do it? Did those of you on o2 get it through a 3rd party eg: paid towards it with someone like carphone warehouse or bmobiles or did you wander into a store who happened to have one fall through their letterbox as you stepped in? When you've had to put up with o2 telling you contradicting "pork pies" about how they haven't shipped any and dont do it yet it makes you start to wonder
terrytpot said:
I appreciate that quite a few of you have now got one but some of us are still struggling to get our paws on one Personally I want one through o2 but cant seem to get to the front of the queue for placing an order! I could jump ship but would like to stick with them so the burning question is how did you guys do it? Did those of you on o2 get it through a 3rd party eg: paid towards it with someone like carphone warehouse or bmobiles or did you wander into a store who happened to have one fall through their letterbox as you stepped in? When you've had to put up with o2 telling you contradicting "pork pies" about how they haven't shipped any and dont do it yet it makes you start to wonder
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Personally, I bought mine outright from Expansys.com, SIM free. I've got a monthly contract with O2 where I get enough minutes and texts with a web bolt-on for less than £20 a month. It suits me, but then I had £500 to spare (ish )
I always like the idea of going SIM free, in case something comes out that I really want but can't afford it. I'll just get an 18 or 24 month contract in that situtation, and probably try and get something like a PS3 with it, so I can sell my current phone and the console, so I'll end up with a new phone and a wad of cash. That should help make me feel better about signing up to a contract
Since I went the SIM free route, I can't really advise on who has them and who doesn't, as far as contracts go.
terrytpot said:
I appreciate that quite a few of you have now got one but some of us are still struggling to get our paws on one Personally I want one through o2 but cant seem to get to the front of the queue for placing an order! I could jump ship but would like to stick with them so the burning question is how did you guys do it? Did those of you on o2 get it through a 3rd party eg: paid towards it with someone like carphone warehouse or bmobiles or did you wander into a store who happened to have one fall through their letterbox as you stepped in? When you've had to put up with o2 telling you contradicting "pork pies" about how they haven't shipped any and dont do it yet it makes you start to wonder
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Bad news on the O2 front, they finally had some in store yesterday so I could go over and find out what they will be costing on contract. To get it for free you have to sign up for a £45/month contract and that only gives you 1200mins and 500texts. You dont even get the internet package that you get with the iphone. Go for a lower tarif package and you are looking at £100 for the phone..
I will be waiting til vodafone get new stock (with an updated rom) on 11th December. Free phone for £35/month and you get 900mins UNLIMITED texts (3000 FUP), UNLIMITED landline calls (3000mins FUP), UNLIMITED internet (500MB FUP). Plus the vodafone HD's seem to be unlocked and unbranded so in my opinion thats a winning deal and well worth the wait
Each to their own mskip..you do know that the deal you're looking at gets you an extra 300mins if you do it online? all of course assuming that you can live with them making you wait for an indefinate period of time to despatch it
terrytpot said:
Each to their own mskip..you do know that the deal you're looking at gets you an extra 300mins if you do it online? all of course assuming that you can live with them making you wait for an indefinate period of time to despatch it
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Yeah actually the 300 extra minutes is available online or over the phone. Over the phone the order gets processed right away for next day delivery so I think im gona be doing it that way lol. Waited long enough for it I figure my patience will stretch to a few more days
Could have got it from a vodafone store 2 weeks ago but they dont offer the internet package and I guess im a tight git I want the most value for my money haha.
we're singing from the same book there buddy..I'm hoping to get one on something like the palms tarif and preferably as a business customer..unltd 02 calls,10 unltd land lines and ultd www would do me nicely at £35 ish a mnth even over 24mths as you can upgrade at the 12mth point and get whtaevers hot then
You guys are making me jealous :\
Back here in Portugal you pay 15 euros for a 100min plan plus 15€/month for a 500MB data plan...
Just try some different vodafone stores, I went to 20 different and one could tell me 2 weeks ago that they would get one that afternoon so I directly reserved it. If you can't find any on stock the next shipment will come in on 17th of december (north ireland).
Its free with a 35 pounds bussines plan it includes 1000 minutes, Unlimited texts, Unlimited Landlines, Unlimited Internet and Vodafone Passport.
Good luck!
mskip said:
To get it for free you have to sign up for a £45/month contract and that only gives you 1200mins and 500texts. You dont even get the internet package that you get with the iphone. Go for a lower tarif package and you are looking at £100 for the phone..
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Not strictly true. I performed my upgrade two weeks ago yesterday when O2 first got them in stock. I did what I always do when going for an upgrade, threaten to leave. I was told a £35, 18 month tariff would mean the phone would cost £98. I asked to be put through to retentions where I asked for my PAC code. When they asked why I explained I wasn't happy with the fact O2 wanted to charge me £100 for a phone I can get from Vodafone for nothing (not strictly true but he didn't appear to realise that). After a few more persuasive arguments and another threat to leave, he said he 'managed' to get the phone down to £1.72 for me on an 18 month, £35 tariff with 600 minutes, 1000 texts and unlimited data (or 750mb to be precise).
However, I have heard they have cottoned onto people doing this and are now refusing point blank to offer the phone for less than £98. It's got to be worth a shot though.
mskip said:
You dont even get the internet package that you get with the iphone.
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You sure about that? I got unlimited data the same as the iPhone on a £35 a month tariff. Oh, and be careful with Vodafone's fair usage data policy, you get charged as soon as you go over 500mb, even in the first month. O2's is much better, you have to go over 750mb on a regular basis before they threaten to charge you.
EDIT: just checked and you're wrong there mate - you get a free bolton that you select yourself on all tariffs including and above the 600 minute £35 a month one. One of the selectable boltons is for unlimited web/data. Check the link out.
http://shop.o2.co.uk/tariffs/18_months
Pagnell said:
he 'managed' to get the phone down to £1.72 for me on an 18 month, £35 tariff with 600 minutes, 1000 texts and unlimited data (or 750mb to be precise).
now refusing point blank to offer the phone for less than £98. It's got to be worth a shot though.
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which as a "retention deal for a valued customer" is still pretty poor when for only £5 more at vodafone you'll get 1200minutes,ultd texts,ultd data (fup 500mb?) AND ultd landlines over 18mths,oh and that's with the phone for free...what would an extra £5 at o2 get you?not that much I'll guarantee..it seems o2 think they have their customers over a barrel at the moment due to this phones popularity which will no doubt see them losing quite a few punters in the short term! Why they didn't just put it on the same tariff as the Palm Pre is beyond me and is the deal I would/intend to snap up as soon as I can.
terrytpot said:
which as a "retention deal for a valued customer" is still pretty poor when for only £5 more at vodafone you'll get 1200minutes,ultd texts,ultd data (fup 500mb?) AND ultd landlines over 18mths,oh and that's with the phone for free...what would an extra £5 at o2 get you?not that much I'll guarantee..it seems o2 think they have their customers over a barrel at the moment due to this phones popularity which will no doubt see them losing quite a few punters in the short term! Why they didn't just put it on the same tariff as the Palm Pre is beyond me and is the deal I would/intend to snap up as soon as I can.
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Yes, but I'd rather pay a little bit extra to avoid Vodafone as I think they're an awful network.
As for the deal you mention, as I never go over my 600 minutes anyway, the extras you speak of mean little to me even if they do only cost £5 more. 1000 texts is effectively unlimited to the vast majority of people and O2's unlimited web deal is better for reasons I pointed out above and that is something I use a lot.
No, I'll stick to O2 thanks and I suggest you do the same.
Pagnell said:
Not strictly true. I performed my upgrade two weeks ago yesterday when O2 first got them in stock. I did what I always do when going for an upgrade, threaten to leave. I was told a £35, 18 month tariff would mean the phone would cost £98. I asked to be put through to retentions where I asked for my PAC code. When they asked why I explained I wasn't happy with the fact O2 wanted to charge me £100 for a phone I can get from Vodafone for nothing (not strictly true but he didn't appear to realise that). After a few more persuasive arguments and another threat to leave, he said he 'managed' to get the phone down to £1.72 for me on an 18 month, £35 tariff with 600 minutes, 1000 texts and unlimited data (or 750mb to be precise).
However, I have heard they have cottoned onto people doing this and are now refusing point blank to offer the phone for less than £98. It's got to be worth a shot though.
You sure about that? I got unlimited data the same as the iPhone on a £35 a month tariff. Oh, and be careful with Vodafone's fair usage data policy, you get charged as soon as you go over 500mb, even in the first month. O2's is much better, you have to go over 750mb on a regular basis before they threaten to charge you.
EDIT: just checked and you're wrong there mate - you get a free bolton that you select yourself on all tariffs including and above the 600 minute £35 a month one. One of the selectable boltons is for unlimited web/data. Check the link out.
http://shop.o2.co.uk/tariffs/18_months
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Its alot easier to get a better deal if you are already with your provider and go for an upgrade. At the moment im with orange and they have absolutely nothing worth getting right now (except the iphone 3gs lol) which means I have to goto a new network
I think everyone you talk to will give you different information. For example in the O2 shop I was told the data bolt on was upto 500MB but in the terms and conditions on the website it says unlimited. In the vodafone store and on the phone I have been told that if you go over your 500MB FUP then you will be contacted and that you will definitely not be charged extra for going over the limit. I know that with the O2 bolt on you arent allowed to used your phone as a modem or for video/audio streaming unless you pay extra which is why they have taken youtube off their roms and is pretty stupid really.
You are right that you can get a free bolt on with O2 but with only 500 texts available instore (I think its doubled to 1000 online) its still not enough for me in business use and I would need that bolt on to upgrade to unlimited texts. That of course means I need to pay extra for the data bolt on
Also with vodafone giving unlimited landline calls it means I can do most of my business calls for free and leave my included minutes for family and friends
I know everyone has their prefered network but for everything they are including and the much cheaper tarif I think my only option is vodafone I just hope the stock comes in on the 11th after putting it back 2 times . When I rang htc yesterday they said the delay was because they are putting extra software on for vodafone so im assuming thats the 360 software.
I fully intend to its just a matter of getting the right deal (although I could say any deal at the moment with o2!) I've never tried voda myself but as I get through over 2000mins/mth on o2 (ultd o2's and got all my buddies using them too)straying isn't a very attractive option to me and as for texts,dont use them at all (think my avg over the last mth was 2!)
spastik said:
You guys are making me jealous :\
Back here in Portugal you pay 15 euros for a 100min plan plus 15€/month for a 500MB data plan...
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Consider yourself lucky..
Here in Belgium, you have to pay 20€ for a 85 minute plan (no free sms) + 20€/Month for 200Mb data (or 25€ for 500Mb)
If you want unlimited voice, unlimited sms, but no data, it'll cost you 89€
Also note that you have to buy the phone full price (paid 570€ for the HD2), there are no offers combining a phone and a plan.
I don't think there are many countries where the phone and internet plans (don't get me started on those ) are that expensive
terrytpot said:
I fully intend to its just a matter of getting the right deal (although I could say any deal at the moment with o2!) I've never tried voda myself but as I get through over 2000mins/mth on o2 (ultd o2's and got all my buddies using them too)straying isn't a very attractive option to me and as for texts,dont use them at all (think my avg over the last mth was 2!)
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Click to collapse
2 texts a month you CRAZYYY person haha I think my average with sending out quotes and texting clients and friends is about 2500 a month
Mithrandir007 said:
Consider yourself lucky..
Here in Belgium, you have to pay 20€ for a 85 minute plan (no free sms) + 20€/Month for 200Mb data (or 25€ for 500Mb)
If you want unlimited voice, unlimited sms, but no data, it'll cost you 89€
Also note that you have to buy the phone full price (paid 570€ for the HD2), there are no offers combining a phone and a plan.
I don't think there are many countries where the phone and internet plans (don't get me started on those ) are that expensive
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OMGG thats madd I dont think I would have a mobile phone if I had to fork out that every month ontop of paying full whack for it as well
You should move to the uk lol
mskip said:
Its alot easier to get a better deal if you are already with your provider and go for an upgrade. At the moment im with orange and they have absolutely nothing worth getting right now (except the iphone 3gs lol) which means I have to goto a new network
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Click to collapse
Indeed. I don't think the HD2 is available to new customers on O2 yet, it certainly isn't listed as being available on their website. Which is ridiculous considering I have had it for over two weeks.
mskip said:
I think everyone you talk to will give you different information. For example in the O2 shop I was told the data bolt on was upto 500MB but in the terms and conditions on the website it says unlimited. In the vodafone store and on the phone I have been told that if you go over your 500MB FUP then you will be contacted and that you will definitely not be charged extra for going over the limit. I know that with the O2 bolt on you arent allowed to used your phone as a modem or for video/audio streaming unless you pay extra which is why they have taken youtube off their roms and is pretty stupid really.
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Click to collapse
My O2 branded HD2 has/had Youtube on it, although they had removed the Wi-Fi router. However, I have just used a goldcard to upgrade my firmware to 1.48 which has effectively turned it into a sim-free model and put the wi-fi router option back. As for O2 not allowing tethering, I do it anyway the same way I used to on my iPhone. Providing you don't take the p**s and download 1gb+ a month they have no way of determining the difference between you browsing on the phone and browsing on your laptop through it.
Pagnell said:
My O2 branded HD2 has/had Youtube on it, although they had removed the Wi-Fi router. However, I have just used a goldcard to upgrade my firmware to 1.48 which has effectively turned it into a sim-free model and put the wi-fi router option back. As for O2 not allowing tethering, I do it anyway the same way I used to on my iPhone. Providing you don't take the p**s and download 1gb+ a month they have no way of determining the difference between you browsing on the phone and browsing on your laptop through it.
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Click to collapse
I'm glad you mentioned that actually..my first "chats" with o2 to get this on a business account led me to inquire about the cost of 3gb data allowance..I was quite prepared to stump up £15/mth so I could ditch the dongle from 3 that I use only to be told that 3gb of data would cost me £405/mth,yes,thats right £405.00 a month! so what if all the sharers on the account get to share it,its still £405 and there's only me on the contract! and to cap it all the woman in question wanted me to pay towards the phone as well!!!
Got a few days ago a update from a friend that works at a vodafone store, just after I got mine they were all called from the vodafone warehouse to HTC because they wanted to fix first some (in my eyes minor) bugs like the pink camera problem...
just like we were told o2 did then...
Just in case you hadn't noticed (well I hadn't anyway!) the HD2 is now available on Virgin Mobile in the UK
http://bit.ly/6tBFFr
The deals seem to blow some of the established ones away
Hardly blown away, to get the free phone you need to sign up for a 2 year tariff and the £35, 18 month tariff isn't much better than what I got from O2. Except I got the phone for less than £2 and they want £20.
Still, some good deals on there, especially if they have good stock levels.
Fair comment. I haven't seen that deal on O2.
It's just that I was about to commit to either a £35 18 month contract or £45 12 month (handsets £free - £90). So £25/m (+£80) seems ok.
But as you say, let's see what the stock levels are like.
this IS the best priced company out there, i ordered mine last night.
18 months, virgin £25, 500 mins, unlimited text and internet to 1gb fair usage, phone cost £80 + £5 postage. with this i got 2 months free so £50 because i am a virgin media customer.
you can get £30 cashback through quidco.com or another cashback site.
even the customer service at tmobile couldn't believe it (when i was getting my PAC) and had to go online to check lol.
25*18 = 450 - 50 = 400 + 85 = 485 for 18 months.
that about the same cost if you took this on vodafone through a third party company (dial-a-phone) but here you can port your number (which i think is an important thing).
iandooley said:
Just in case you hadn't noticed (well I hadn't anyway!) the HD2 is now available on Virgin Mobile in the UK
http://bit.ly/6tBFFr
The deals seem to blow some of the established ones away
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Click to collapse
Thanks for posting this. It is a good deal.
Sunil_237 said:
this IS the best priced company out there, i ordered mine last night.
18 months, virgin £25, 500 mins, unlimited text and internet to 1gb fair usage, phone cost £80 + £5 postage. with this i got 2 months free so £50 because i am a virgin media customer.
you can get £30 cashback through quidco.com or another cashback site.
even the customer service at tmobile couldn't believe it (when i was getting my PAC) and had to go online to check lol.
25*18 = 450 - 50 = 400 + 85 = 485 for 18 months.
that about the same cost if you took this on vodafone through a third party company (dial-a-phone) but here you can port your number (which i think is an important thing).
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Click to collapse
You are right. It's the best deal I've seen so far and I haven't seen anything close from anyone else with those minutes and Internet included. Add the 2 months free and cashback and it's an outstanding deal.
Do you have your phone yet? If so can you use Skype on it to chat and talk?
Any issues with it?
Also, did it come with the case and an SD card?
Thanks.
FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCCCKKKKKKKKKKKKK!!!!
my virgin contract was up this month aswel!
I paid 100ish on a 34/month 12 month contract more than a month ago, including internet. This is way more expensive.
Pagnell said:
Hardly blown away, to get the free phone you need to sign up for a 2 year tariff and the £35, 18 month tariff isn't much better than what I got from O2. Except I got the phone for less than £2 and they want £20.
Still, some good deals on there, especially if they have good stock levels.
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Click to collapse
Hardly a reason to say the Virgin offer isn't a good deal - show me where O2 advertise a HD2 for £2 on a £20 per month contract? I'm going to say that you can't because it was a retention offer which they probably only offered you because you spent £30+ the previous 18 months with O2.
To concentrate on getting a 'free' phone also shows your naivety in thinking - no handset is offered for free as they are all subsidised according to how much you are paying over the term of the contract (it's funny how the handset becomes 'free' when the monthly price is £35+ over 18+ months isn't it?).
The Virgin mobile tarrifs are extremely good value in comparison to everyone else especially when you compare the overall costs. Now if someone can find out if they are sim unlocked directly from Virgin this will become a stonking deal.
kai_ said:
Now if someone can find out if they are sim unlocked directly from Virgin this will become a stonking deal.
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I'll let you know later. Mine's due to be delivered today
arfster said:
I paid 100ish on a 34/month 12 month contract more than a month ago, including internet. This is way more expensive.
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Click to collapse
I don't think it's way more expensive. In fact I think that it will still be cheaper on Virgin.
How many minutes and texts does your deal come with and what network is it on? Is the Internet "unlimited" on that network and could you please let us know how much you actually paid for the phone? £98, £120, £101?
Thanks.
My deal with T-Mobile was
16GB SD -
£25.00 cashback
Free phone
900 Mins / Unlimited txts and internet
18th Month contract.
£35.00 per month
I moved from 3 to T-Mob to get this phone..
arfster said:
I paid 100ish on a 34/month 12 month contract more than a month ago, including internet. This is way more expensive.
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Click to collapse
Virgin Mobile Tariff (best value/cheapest that I can see):
500 minutes, unlimited texts and unlimited internet:
18 months x £25 + £79.99 for handset = £529.99 total cost.
Your tariff:
12 months x £34 + £100-'ish' for handset = £508'ish'
No idea how much 'ish' is and also no idea how many minutes or texts you are getting either for your £508'ish'. Neither can it be said that £22 for 6 extra months usage is 'way more expensive'.
When I was looking for my HD2 I think at the time MobilePhonesDirect were offering the best value for me, can't remember the exact pricing and tariff but overall cost was something in the region of £520 but with only 300 minutes and 200 texts, unlimited data on T-Mobile. That was over a 12 month term I think and also required £102 up front for the handset.
Now considering that the cheapest you're going to get a HD2 outright for is about £450 from Carphonewarehouse (reported by someone, but no idea if it's sim free or not) you can't say that the value of calls/texts/data isn't worth £80? After all, even if you buy the handset outright you've still got to pay for a phone plan of some kind.
kai_ said:
Hardly a reason to say the Virgin offer isn't a good deal - show me where O2 advertise a HD2 for £2 on a £20 per month contract?
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Click to collapse
And show me where I said it wasn't a good deal. Take your time.
kai_ said:
To concentrate on getting a 'free' phone also shows your naivety in thinking - no handset is offered for free as they are all subsidised according to how much you are paying over the term of the contract (it's funny how the handset becomes 'free' when the monthly price is £35+ over 18+ months isn't it?).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're talking to someone who worked for O2 IT for four years, I'm well aware how this works thanks and that phones are subsidised. And I'd wouldn't say I 'concentrated' on anything, merely talked about something that was relevant.
Still, feel free to continue being patronizing, I'm sure you feel a whole lot better for it.
but ....
in case anybody is interested ...
the phone has no sim lock
no branding on it at all
the serial number works on the htc website
all good for me
kevb said:
in case anybody is interested ...
the phone has no sim lock
no branding on it at all
the serial number works on the htc website
all good for me
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, now I'm very interested.
If possible could you let me know what your fastest download rate is when you have good coverage. Also if possible could you test out Skype (if you use it).
Thanks again.
DuoM said:
Thanks, now I'm very interested.
If possible could you let me know what your fastest download rate is when you have good coverage. Also if possible could you test out Skype (if you use it).
Thanks again.
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Click to collapse
I don't use skype, never felt the urge, i never max my tariff out as is
don't have any any other apps loaded on it yet except for resco explorer and sbp backup.
this is only my 2nd day with it, ordered it online from virgin at about 2:30pm and it was delivered next day by DHL
it was my intention to run the phone "as is" for a while to make sure there are no problems, which means i will not be installing any other software just yet.
if i download any large files files i will try and time it manually if thats any good to you?
any other info you need feel free to ask.
apart from getting used to a (very)sensitive screen compared to my last resistive screen i am still feeling the love for it
kevb said:
I don't use skype, never felt the urge, i never max my tariff out as is
don't have any any other apps loaded on it yet except for resco explorer and sbp backup.
this is only my 2nd day with it, ordered it online from virgin at about 2:30pm and it was delivered next day by DHL
it was my intention to run the phone "as is" for a while to make sure there are no problems, which means i will not be installing any other software just yet.
if i download any large files files i will try and time it manually if thats any good to you?
any other info you need feel free to ask.
apart from getting used to a (very)sensitive screen compared to my last resistive screen i am still feeling the love for it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, you could try and time it manually or you can use the website: http://www.dslreports.com/mspeed
which should allow you to test the download speed.
The only thing is that I'm not to sure about how accurate it is and their servers seem to be in the USA so that's probably not too good.
I was going to ask about the keyboard but it sounds like it's super sensitive, like others I've tried on the HD2. Can you type on it?
Oh, perhaps you could tell me which ROM version you have and if it came with an SD card and a case (not that I normally use one)?
Thanks.
EDIT: Oh, just saw the ROM in your sig. Did it come with that one?
I was really tempted but then realised you cannot downgrade tariffs at anytime. I personally think going via mobilephonesdirect with topchashback and vf maybe the better option.
Scott
kevb said:
in case anybody is interested ...
the phone has no sim lock
no branding on it at all
the serial number works on the htc website
all good for me
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Perfect!
My T-Mob contract is up in a week, and Virgin was by far the best deal I could find.
Virgin £25pm 18mths + £79.99phone = £529.99
The closest I can get is:
TMob £22.50pm 18ths + £169.99 = £574.99
Virgin give more 300 more minutes and unlimited texts (versus 200), both having unlimited web. I can't find a better deal really. I would perfer O2, but I can't get anywhere near Virgin for mins/txts and phone price. Closest is £20pm + £7.50Web 18mths + £250 phone, making it £745 in total! And you only get 75 minutes!
I was worried about being locked into operator provided updates only (my Diamond was bought from Expansys, so fully unlocked), but this is great news! Thanks!
Quick question: Do I need my PAC code when I order, or can I do it after ordering? I was able to do so when I moved to T-Mob...
I was close to considering...
Tried to coerce O2 into getting near to the Virgin offer but the best they could offer was £35/month 18 month contract, 600 mins, 1000 texts, unlimited wi-fi (after I forced the issue) and unlimited internet with £90 for the phone.
Total cost £720 over the life and although Virgin is £190 cheaper I have broadband with O2 so leaving them would increase my monthly payment by £5 and therefore £90 over the life so Virgin only worked out £100 cheaper for me (though I could've got £30 from Quidco).
£100 is a lot of money but I have no experience of Virgin whereas O2 have always been good to me (and normally very generous with my renewals) and I know I get good reception wherever I need it.
Ordered it around 18.45 and supposedly should receive tomorrow according to the email and text they sent me - weather permitting - though I was told Friday by the guy on the phone.