EE's degraded service and coverage - time to leave after 15 years?

NFH

Thanks ZhugeEX for the insight. Another question - are Orange-branded customers ever likely to receive 4G? Or am I going to lose my favourable tariff at some point anyway when I decide I want 4G?

ZhugeEX

NFH wrote: »

Thanks ZhugeEX for the insight. Another question - are Orange-branded customers ever likely to receive 4G? Or am I going to lose my favourable tariff at some point anyway when I decide I want 4G?

Very very unlikely you'll get 4G on Orange. EE 4G is the brand for 4G. Orange and T-Mobile customers will have to move over to the EE brand if they ever want to get 4G. So yes, if you wanted 4G you would have to move over. However, one good thing is that % discounts you have on your orange account would carry over to EE. But £ recurring discounts do not carry over.

And yes, i think the way EE have handled the merger in terms of branding has been absolutely atrocious. It's left everyone confused and even their staff aren't fans of the way it's been handled. I think EE will be the most advanced in terms of network, no doubt about that. But when it comes to customer service and brand awareness i think EE have already earned themselves a bit of a bad rep. It's entirely their fault for that.

I'd suggest looking at Three's 4G deals, or even Tesco Mobile 4G if O2 provide good coverage for you? But tbh 4G really isn't needed at the moment and especially if you only use a small amount of data each month. 3G DC-HSPA+ should be good enough for that (Especially when backhaul upgrades are complete). What's going to be good for EE and Three is their roll out of 800Mhz 4G in rural areas at the end of Q2 next year. If they can roll it out quick enough the majority of the UK will get 4G in no time at all. Hence why EE are quoting 98% coverage after only 2 years! (They're already at 60%!)

NFH

ZhugeEX wrote: »

But tbh 4G really isn't needed at the moment and especially if you only use a small amount of data each month.

The reason I use under 800MB each month is because the bandwidth on EE's 3G service is so low. Although I can get as much as 18Mbps on Orange 3G sometimes, most of the time it's under 1Mbps.

What the networks should do is give 4G to everyone at no extra charge, but cap speeds at the maximum theoretical 3G speed for those who don't pay a premium.

The networks have existing capacity problems on their 3G spectrum which causes customers to experience slow 3G speeds. On the other hand, 4G delivers much greater capacity, allowing many times more customers within the spectrum. The networks should be enabling as many customers as possible for 4G rather than creating disincentives through higher charges. This would alleviate capacity in the congested 3G spectrum for those who do not have 4G-capable phones. If there is to be any price difference between 3G and 4G technology users, those using 4G technology should be charged less because they use an uncongested spectrum with lower per-customer operating costs for the networks. Three sensibly proposes to charge the same for 4G as it does for 3G. Other networks are surcharging for 4G only because the more stupid consumers are willing to pay more for an increased theoretical speed which makes little difference on a mobile phone. 4G is more about increased capacity than increased speed, because if the 3G spectrum was not congested, there would be no noticeable difference in speed between 3G and 4G on a mobile phone.

ZhugeEX

NFH wrote: »

The reason I use under 800MB each month is because the bandwidth on EE's 3G service is so low. Although I can get as much as 18Mbps on Orange 3G sometimes, most of the time it's under 1Mbps.

What the networks should do is give 4G to everyone at no extra charge, but cap speeds at the maximum theoretical 3G speed for those who don't pay a premium.

The networks have existing capacity problems on their 3G spectrum which causes customers to experience slow 3G speeds. On the other hand, 4G delivers much greater capacity, allowing many times more customers within the spectrum. The networks should be enabling as many customers as possible for 4G rather than creating disincentives through higher charges. This would alleviate capacity in the congested 3G spectrum for those who do not have 4G-capable phones. If there is to be any price difference between 3G and 4G technology users, those using 4G technology should be charged less because they use an uncongested spectrum with lower per-customer operating costs for the networks. Three sensibly proposes to charge the same for 4G as it does for 3G. Other networks are surcharging for 4G only because the more stupid consumers are willing to pay more for an increased theoretical speed which makes little difference on a mobile phone. 4G is more about increased capacity than increased speed, because if the 3G spectrum was not congested, there would be no noticeable difference in speed between 3G and 4G on a mobile phone.

Oh i agree 100%.

My comment was more in relation to people who have been touting 4G as 100% essential in all cases. I agree that when on LTE it'll free up capacity on 3G and that Three are the only network going about this right.

What's going to be good is when VoLTE is rolled out next year on EE and Three. Means we won't need CSFB to 3G.

NFH

ZhugeEX wrote: »

What's going to be good is when VoLTE is rolled out next year on EE and Three. Means we won't need CSFB to 3G.

And this isn't planned by Vodafone and O2?

ZhugeEX

NFH wrote: »

And this isn't planned by Vodafone and O2?

I don't know Vodafone and O2's plans.

They could be doing it next year too? But i don't know for sure 100%.

EE and Three will have it next year 100%.

dealer_wins

I will be saying goodbye to T-Mobile/EE in December after 10 years. Service has become abysmal, with dropped calls, internet not working and call quality issues a plenty since spring this year.

ZhugeEX

NFH. I know you were saying that you don't want to consider Three but i'd certainly consider them around March to July time.

Three will be releasing a Voice over Wi-Fi app for Android and iPhone providing a seamless experience where you can make calls over Wi-Fi when in an area with no or poor signal. It's similar to O2's TU GO app but promises to be a lot more integrated with the OS and more reliable. Think of it as similar to BT's smart talk.

This, coupled with Three's 3G and 4G network, low prices and 800Mhz/VoLTE roll out will certainly make them a network worth considering. I've been on Three for a while and have no issues with them at all. My O2 work phone is great as well but i don't see O2 as a good network just yet. Their 3G network still needs work as does their call quality.

I believe EE are also working on a similar app (think T-Mobiles clever connect) but i don't know a release date for that or if it's even going to be green lit.

NFH

ZhugeEX wrote: »

I believe EE are also working on a similar app (think T-Mobiles clever connect) but i don't know a release date for that or if it's even going to be green lit.

Yes, I know about this, but they seem to be taking their time. I started another thread about this, but nobody seemed to know anything.

This would be great when abroad, because I always use local SIM cards and it would be fantastic to receive calls on my UK mobile number without paying roaming charges. Currently I have to set an "extended absence greeting" on my Orange voicemail greeting telling callers to redial on my Flextel number, which routes to the foreign mobile number at no cost to me (but at great cost to the caller).

ZhugeEX

NFH wrote: »

Yes, I know about this, but they seem to be taking their time. I started another thread about this, but nobody seemed to know anything.

This would be great when abroad, because I always use local SIM cards and it would be fantastic to receive calls on my UK mobile number without paying roaming charges. Currently I have to set an "extended absence greeting" on my Orange voicemail greeting telling callers to redial on my Flextel number, which routes to the foreign mobile number at no cost to me (but at great cost to the caller).

I'm pretty sure it's been delayed. The trials team in EE head office know nothing about it so it's still in development (behind closed doors) at the moment. At a guess i'd say it'd now be Q1 2014 which is the same time Three will release their version (If the EE app hasn't been canned already).