3 is the cheapest, but is it best

markdavey

phil8715 wrote: »

The problem with Three is when it comes to upgrade time the deals are rubbish, you might as well cancel the contract you were on and take out a fresh one.

I'm afraid that is the same with all the networks now unless you are a big spender...

Makeandsave

OMG, Three can not better any offers on sim only plans, I have been with them 7 years and 5 months. Was on phone to try and get a better deal on sim only as seen ones 4.50 a month cheaper then what i am paying now. I had to request pac code 6 times lol.

cinereus

cinereus wrote: »

I have spoken to second line tech three times over the last week and two supervisors have called me back. Despite trying multiple SIMs on multiple handsets, I still am getting pings in excess of 16000ms and averages over 3000ms. I also get between 10%-60% packet loss.

They claim that it "can't be a problem with the network as nobody else has complained". I find that very hard to believe. Both in the South East and in London I get the same issue using different cell towers.

At the moment they are refusing to believe my issue is real and, in the meantime, I'm wasting £25/month and having to spend tons at the internet cafe.

What can I do?!?!?

If anything it's getting worse. Now seeing pings over 22,000ms. 3 still denying it's their fault. Claiming it might be the handset as it's not bought from a 3 store (even though it's still a Huawei running Android 2.2).

At the moment they are going to send a new SIM (not going to make a difference as I've tried other 3 SIMs). Otherwise I'm tempted to buy a cheap Android PAYG phone from 3 store (any suggestions) to give them the IMEI and prove the issue still persists.

Meanwhile I'm still down £25/month every month.

Rachel2407

I've had a terrible time with Three, so much so that I've now given up on them and moved to GiffGaff. They seem to have really gone downhill since I joined them four years ago.

losbor99

I'm glad I found this post, I've got so much to say about 3... Been with them for 3 and a bit years. Reception was fine in my old flat but moved 6 months ago (10 minute walk away) and reception is dire.

I can only get reception when the phone is on the chair by the living room window, and even then it sometimes fails to send/receive texts. Phone calls? Don't even bother! I'm planning to cancel as soon as I can and move to another network (in a separate but equally annoying scenario I can't get credit, and therefore a new phone at the moment, because Equifax still haven't updated their records with my new address but I won't bore you with that story here...).

Anyway, I also had a dongle with them which was always patchy and temperamental and often cut out or wouldn't work at all. It eventually stopped working altogether so I called to cancel, I spoke to several different people who all gave me a different story before "upgrading" me to a pricier contract (they tempted me with an iPad). I changed my mind straight away, sent it back unopened.

I was then told that I had to give 30 days notice to cancel even though I was already outside my contract, and the damn dongle was broken "Miss Osborn, you have had that dongle for more than 3 years, it isn't surprising it has stopped working". Fair enough, they don't last forever but I certainly don't expect to pay for a service I can't use. And to add insult to injury my final broadband bill was for the higher iPad subscription even though I never used it. That was about 8 weeks ago and to be honest, their service is so abismal I don't have the heart to speak to them again. I've already spoken to them about half a dozen times with each call lasting between 20 and 75 minutes.

If you can get decent reception in your area, I'm sure 3 is a fine option, however beware that as soon as something goes wrong and you have to speak to them you may as well be speaking ancient Aramaic. Underwater. Through a gas mask. They will not understand a word you say and will stick verbatim to their scripts regardless, even if they don't have a script to match what you're asking about. They won't understand what you're on about. And the manager call back you asked for probably won't happen either. I'm still waiting for mine.

I live in Brighton, by the way.

MikeCSheff

I've always had great service from 3 - I get over 10meg download speed on my Galaxy Note.

However, I'm due to upgrade this week - will be interesting to see what deals they have for me otherwise I'm off to GiffGaff

pkc_2

Been with 3 for many years (about 6 or so), but moving both contracts away to anywhere...

Random charges on data, ie 8.60 for 5mb, even though we was in side our data allowance, and didn't roam.. No explaination and took me weeks to get refund due to not speaking Queens English LOL.

We have now been charged for SMS messages that were over 3+ messages, never had this on any handset before.. Using Galaxy s2

Handset: Nokia Lumia 800 (signal 0-1 Brighton cells racecourse) - Contract
Handset: Galaxy S2 (signal 1-2 Brighton Cells Racecourse) - Contract
Handset: Nokia E63 (Full signal all over Brighton) - PAYG

MikeCSheff

Ha - so I'm now eligible for upgrade.... but its won't let me choose a Sim Only Deal online

Also, the prices for phone deals are the same as a new customer would get.

I'll try on the phone later to see if they can do what I want.

MikeCSheff

MikeCSheff wrote: »

Ha - so I'm now eligible for upgrade.... but its won't let me choose a Sim Only Deal online

Also, the prices for phone deals are the same as a new customer would get.

I'll try on the phone later to see if they can do what I want.

Update - they let me change to the Sim Only Plan over the phone

200 Mins
5000 Texts
Unlimted Internet
300 three to three mins for 12.90 a month - 1 month rolling contract

Very pleased!

Deirdre_UW

We have been with 3 for approx 7 years ,
have an old sim = £5.70 inc vat 300 voice messages, 25 wideo messages, 150 text, 25 inclusive video or picture messages, Inclusive download £5 choice from music, games, tv, ringtunes and all their videos.

Our £5.70 direct debit went out of bank account on 12th October £337.06 (£5.70 monthly & £331.36 internet usage)!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We have a bar on the account - not in contract. They three updated their systems on 29th Sept 2012 & bar not in place.

Our son uses the phone.

Called three and basically nothing they could do , we are to blame as they warned us via text messages on 3rd October (after the event) .
Got money back from bank, cancelled direct debit, made bill payment for £5.70 October bill and told them im esculating complaint to OFCOM. They said would now incur a monthly fee as no direct debit in place of £4.20, I advised i would pay way in advance before the bill was due so no reason to collect money.and not accepting extra charge for DD.
They have no terms & conditions re cap or no visable information regarding the charge of £2. per mb of the data they say was used on 29th Sept when they were updating system.

Now received second bill with the charge of £5.70 monthly, direct debit £4.20 & £2.21 for 0.0400 mb & entertainment/music/messaging 13(what i dont know) = £1.946 be for vat.

What are my options as want to give 30 days notice and leave without paying theses charges that they have no small print on or cant give a breakdown on.

p.s have offered us a 50% reduction if take a £5 add on, or 50% if dont use internet even if included in our package or £200. refund. I have not accepted.

Any help would be greatfully appreciated.