[3GScottishUser]

Well the doubting is over.

Both of 3's new web options are available to add-on in the 'My 3' section of the services menu.

Still no confirmation whether these will work in voice areas or just in 3's own video (UMTS) coverage areas.

[gorilla]

Not that anyone should doubt the above post, but I've just checked and it's there.

[3GScottishUser]

The £45 a month package is a non-starter if they dont have fallback onto GPRS.

Who would consider buying such a restricted coverage when considering a mobile Internet service?

Until it is confirmed that 'Wireless Web' has coverage to match other networks it will be totally hamstrung. Just think how useless 3's voice service would be if it had no 02 roaming facility. I suspect the above will be a big hurdle for 3 selling this deal. The Mobile Web add on is'nt really an issue as its designed for handsets and everyone buying those should know that most services are limited to 3's video coverage areas.

[frazzel]

I have asked for the add on to be applied but still waiting for it to become activate on my account.
Still not showing up on my3 on handset or web for my account, must be taking a while to go through on the system!
Wish it would hurry up, mind you should not moan as I got a fiver apllied to my account due to the delay in serivce ;)

[a_ukboy]

On speaking with Three's tecnical dept they have told me the service has not been launched yet and won't be for a couple of weeks!! they have also deactivated my add on :(

[3GScottishUser]

Thats nice of them...... at least you wont get charged for something that doesnt work!

What a shame 3 dont do the prep and launch things that actually do what they say when they appear on the market.

[Hands0n]

'Tis precisely why I am sitting back and waiting for it to become a confirmed reality. I've had my share of pioneering with 3, and have not entirely enjoyed the experience to date. Coupled with any prospect of having to "deal" with their CS I am left utterly cold to anything new they launch. Until I can get it myself from My3 I'll not be partaking of the facility.

BTW, does anyone know what the minimum contract period is for the Add On? With the other 3 Add Ons it is 6 months ......... What's the scoop with these Internet services?

Taking up 3GSU's comments about network availability and roaming. My take on this is that anyone seriously considering their UMTS Internet offering should ensure that they have sufficient 3G coverage in the areas of their living and working. Otherwise disappointment is almost bound to occur if roaming on to O2's GPRS facility is not possible. And in such a case I really don't anticipate too much sympathy from 3's CS.

[bsrjl1]

It's a 1-month minimum.

[a_ukboy]

Its working!! finally!!!

[Hands0n]

That was a quick "couple of weeeks" a_ukboy :) Nice to see nothing changes at 3 lol.

But enough of that - spill the beans, what is the facility like? I've seen what pages they have on offer, but are they any good on your handset, speed of loading, quality of text and images etc ......

[bsrjl1]

Seems fine to me, just exploring. No access to Google or The Register :-(

Or Talk3g! But Opera's nice :-)

[a_ukboy]

Really, have you got opera working? i have it on my handset but i cant get it to work!!

[bsrjl1]

Yes Opera works well. Just set it to use the 3 APN, can't get to the Opera pages but it browses the BBC OK.

For information, you can browse on O2 but if you goto a site that's not allowed you just get the "You are now outside the video service area" page.

[getti]

Have you tried setting up a POP3 email account on the phone?

[bsrjl1]

Tried an IMAP one for my work, no joy. Also it says in the docs that you can't browse on O2, but if you started a session on 3 it will still work. But I've found no problems.

[gorilla]

I added it about an hour ago and it was working within half an hour. It's pretty good, although I haven't had a decent play with it yet. Has anyone signed into msn or ebay? What's that like?

[bsrjl1]

eBay seems OK, at least it's useful if you're keeping an eye on an item ending soon. I wouldn't try to list an item!

[getti]

Not available on threepay yet :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: .

Oh well wont matter to me for long. Come the 30th September, I should be on an I-Mate JasJar (M5000) with Vodafone PAYG :D

Well maybe

[ads]

The £45 a month package is a non-starter if they dont have fallback onto GPRS.

Who would consider buying such a restricted coverage when considering a mobile Internet service?

Until it is confirmed that 'Wireless Web' has coverage to match other networks it will be totally hamstrung. Just think how useless 3's voice service would be if it had no 02 roaming facility. I suspect the above will be a big hurdle for 3 selling this deal. The Mobile Web add on is'nt really an issue as its designed for handsets and everyone buying those should know that most services are limited to 3's video coverage areas.

Im sorry but your problems with 3G coverage are not reciprocated by others I feel...

I for one never roam onto O2 because I can receive a full 3G signal in and around Sheffield without a problem; I dont believe coverage is as bad an issue as it was a couple of years ago.

For people that travel (ie by train etc.) I can see there will be blackspots in coverage between cities but why would that be such a problem for a someone that is merely checking/replying to email? Lets face it you are not going to be downloading massive files which would require a constant connection :confused:

[Ben]

I agree to the extent that I don't think data access on '3' is 'useless' without GPRS fallback. At the end of the day, '3' have the widest 3G coverage of any UK operator and the product being purchased is being purchased with a view to using data at 3G speeds. I find it unlikely that purchasers of this add-on will be in fringe or uncovered areas - if you're going to add £45 a month to your '3' bill then I'd assume you're a happy '3' customer in strong 3G coverage.

I also hope that the increased data traffic by heavy users will spur network rollout, especially as '3' will see exactly where data connections drop off if there's no fallback.

[3GScottishUser]

Dont forget that GSM covers 95% of the Geogrphic area of the UK.

You can cover 75% of the population with just 25% geographic coverage.

So 85% population coverage = 35 - 40% geographic coverage??

The point is that in many areas like Scotland 3 is only available in very limited areas where there is specific population density. If they roaming onto GSM, fine then you can use voice and text and that's OK for a phone service but if you cant use data (and it's not been clarified if Wireless Web falls back onto GSM/GPRS) then its a big gamble for many who travel to less populated areas including some pretty big towns.

Wireless Web is going to have to be justified by business users or very active mobile data users and it has to compete with the other services available. Vodafone and Orange now have over 70% population coverage on UMTS and 99%+ coverage on GSM so one has to appreciate that paying 3 might gain a user some speed in some additional areas because of their greater UMTS coverage but at the same time one could find whole areas where no service at all was available.

Looking forward to 3 clarifying exactly what happens when Wireless Web customers move out of UMTS coverage.

[Hands0n]

Any decision by the buying punter will [advisedly] have to be based on what the notified coverage by 3 is - and that is relatively easily checked on the coverage locator on their website. To not check this before buying into the technology as it is currently deployed would be folly on the individual's behalf.

We are facing [with UMTS] what we faced with early GSM coverage and even moreso PCN coverage from Orange and One2One where the availability of the latter was, frankly, quite dire. Time passed and network roll-outs and improvements continued to the point where one barely considers the difference - as if there even was a substantial one in terms of availability.

To be sure, a pure UMTS delivered solution will be under par in comparison to a dual-available UMTS/GSM delivery prospect. And the latter is now a very real proposition from [most of] the "big four" operators and no doubt the MVNOs will follow too. A choice-rich future awaits us in this respect.

Where will 3 be in all of this? Who knows for sure. They have a task on their hands to extend their coverage to match that of the incumbent operators. They'll need to do this before GSM gets switched off or they will always be the 5th wheel - and we all know where that normally resides on a car :)

So Mobile Web and Wireless Web - are they attractive propositions? Certainly Mobile Web has its attractions for what it is and how much it costs. Wireless Web, in my considered opinion, is a complete non-starter at that price, especially given the foregoing. I would advise the cautious approach and perform a personal analysis of the competition and one's needs before taking the plunge into Wireless Web.

And so, as always, the rule of "Caveat Emptor" (buyer beware) applies. I'd love it to work for 3 (and us, the Customer) if the benefits exist.