3 Network Coverage

everlastingspirit

To quote something Alan Carr said: You'd be lucky to get a 3 signal if you were in a plane flying into a phone mast.

Personally never had a 3 contract but heard about bad signal in our area of the midlands so thought i would give them a miss!

sdduk

Three were i live is the best signal and Orange
To be honest it all depends were you live and what signal you get

when Three first started they were the worst but like some one else said on here the last couple of years they have really improved there signal

Has far as i know 3 don't get no 2g signal any more because Orange as turned it of to 3 who use to supply them

So my advise is if you are getting a good signal were you are stick with them it will only get better...

Most custom service is bad on all networks if you read the forum you will find a lot of people complain about Vodafone but then there is lots that are happy with them i suppose its who you get when you ring.

daleski75

choose the network which best suits YOU in the places you go if you ask anyone about coverage in general you will get a lot of conflicting reports saying 3 is excellent to 3 is rubbish.

sfralph

I have been with all the other networks and switched to 3 about 5 years ago. They have gone from strength to strength.

Our household has a total of 4 contracts - 3 phone and 1 mobile broadband. Coverage is great and data speeds superb with typical speeds at home now up to 14mbps.

OK the call centres are in India but find them polite, understandable and very helpful.

Looking forward to April when its upgrade time for an Iphone.

3 give you the ability to use your phone as you want - and no worries on big bills. My contract included 1gb data, now 3 allowed unlimited data for just £3 more.,..now truely unlimited data for internet radio streaming ect.

Also be aware that they are now collecting many awards following their network upgrades.

Well done 3!!! credit where it is due

Hammyman

ta10 wrote: »

I am on 3 now but deciding whether to remain on the network or switch to another one at the end of my contract.

Is there 3 network coverage as bad as it is made out to be? I have never used any other networks for my personal phone so I have nothing to compare them to. I am based in London by the way.

Thx

Three's network coverage is the widest 3G coverage of any network and in my area at least, they seem to be the only network increasing capacity at cell sites. In London you should have no issues.

matrix999

I joined Three (3UK) a few months ago.

** 3G coverage amazing!!
** Much faster than vodafone/O2 etc..
** Excellent value price plans (The One Plan is really good)

As has been said above, Three were poor to begin with but have certainly got their act together and improved big style.

Well Done :j

jnm21

Wow, this thread seems to have been dug up more times than I've had hot dinners!

As for the question, I have been with 3 (mainly) since 2008 - they are not brilliant (but what major company doesn't tread on a few customers toes). There are three factors (no pun intended) to why I left briefly:

Major negative - CS (either lying, incompetent and/or forgetful - when I cancelled my mobile broadband, they had no record of the conversation where I gave my 30 days notice - I recall it & the other where their staff told me some tall tales, such as it being his last shift).

Major positive (clicher) - 3G coverage - having been with them & had decent 3G coverage, going back to 2G (at work, etc.) was a no go.

Annoying negative (nearly pushing me to leave again) - they seem to change their backup 2G provision as often as their socks! (Orange to O2 & back to Orange I believe & cancelled in some areas where the 3G dark areas are small - to hell with you if you live/work in those areas - in parts of the building I work in, I can't even send texts, which was never an issue before.) I did read that they have an 'allow the customer to leave if they have any signal issues policy', but doubt it is that easy!

In summary, their prices plus 3G coverage just about outweigh their dismal CS plus changeable 2G backup.

Anyhow, some useful info is available at Offcom: http://www.sitefinder.ofcom.org.uk (though Everything Everywhere, i.e. Orange & T-mobile don't seem to update this site).

Best value I found was their 12 month sim only via topcashback (up to 5 months free or £65 for the year 300min/3000sms/1GB).

matyhaty

I have been with 3 for around 6 months now....
Was with orange years prior, and became exceptionally frustrated with their reception, dropping calls and the horrid T-Mobile integration.

A few bullet points:
- reception is good generally everywhere i have been. which is a fair few places
- reception on motorways is excellent and great for calls
- reception does drop off indoors. Expect dead spots in stone houses etc.
- data is excellent. So much better than orange
- unlike orange, if you have one bar, that is enough for data and calls. With orange, 1 bar meant 'do not call!'

Plans are cheap as. Top cash back tracked, but they did not pay. Nothing ventured nothing gained!

In short, if you looking for a mobile, look at Voda, o2, or three. Stay away from T-Mobile, Orange, and sub networkds (Virgin etc)

Hope it helps

sb300869

sb300869 wrote: »

I think three network are pretty good especially with the 3g coverage and the speed of it as well. I am on the one plan which is excellent and when they mean unlimited data, they do mean unlimited data unlike the other networks. I am also allow to use tethering which means using my mobile as a broadband modem and connect my PC and games console. The download speed is fast enough to stream BBC iplayer and watch movies via lovefilm.com. Unlike the other mobile network, the speed is not throttle either, no matter how much data I use, my average data usage about 20 gig per month. What other network allow you to do this ?. Average download speed when in Central London during the day time is about 1 to 3 meg and at home during evening/weekend it can be anything from 1.5 to 5 meg which is enough.

I no longer need my BT phone and home ADSL. There is no point anymore, just use my broadband from my mobile.

Thank you three network, you gave me a good excuse to ditch my home landline and adsl.

UPDATE OF THE ORIGINAL POST ABOVE:
Since this post, my work London SE1 postcode area, the local three mast was upgraded to hspa+, this means the download speed now average 6 to 8 meg. My home postcode area I am still waiting for the HSPA+ upgrade which will be happening soon. Nice to see they are still improving with the good work.

Notmyrealname

Where I live (rural market town), 3 have been the only network to upgrade their capacity. Mobile broadband is nearly as fast as my ADSL Max was. The 3G coverage is the widest in the UK and the speeds were far better than Orange that I was on before after stupidly leaving 3 a few years ago.