[timothythetim]

Unsurprisingly it was some guy who I could hardly understand a word he said.
They were phoning me because my contract is up in a few months.
Tried to get me to upgrade right now for free to some lg phone. I wasn't having any of that. He tried to go through various offers, but I told him that I was probably going to leave three because of the dropped calls (which have got worse recently, btw) and he said "OK, bye" and hung up.
I probably will end up sticking with three though, beacuse they are cheap and give you good phones for free. I'm hoping to get an N80.

[Ben]

Very wise to hang on for that N80, especially as, like you say, you'll probably be able to swing it for free.

This proactive calling of customers to try and upgrade them early seems like a generally good idea for minimising churn. I don't suppose you know if you'd have been renewing for 12 months or 18?

[timothythetim]

Nah, I should have asked, but I presume that it would have been 18 months.
I'm on the 500 mins at 100 texts plan at the moment and I said I wanted more texts, so he offered me more of everything for £22.50 a month....for the first 6 months. Although he said you can change to a cheaper plan after the 6 months are up.
Still, I don't think I would ever agree to any spur of the moment deal from a phone call like that. Before I commit to buy anthing, I always research it and usually end up getting it online.

[Ben]

That's very sensible of you and, in all honesty, that's what I usually do as well. I do make the odd rare impulse purchase, but the majority of the time I do it your way. The Internet makes it so easy to get reviews and compare prices that there's really no excuse for making a 'bad' purchase anymore.

One thing Three do risk by doing this is a bit like when banks send (or used to send) out emails. The userbase expects the communication and so is easily fooled by others claiming to be the real deal. There are too many companies out there who make their way in the world by calling up customers as if they're a network and offering them a free phone, and so perhaps advising anyone who receives such a call to ring the network back, if they're interested in the offer, on a verifiable number is best.

[3GScottishUser]

You have to be careful with these cold calls that seem to be 3. I don't know how but 3rd party companies seem to be calling 3's customers with upgrade offers etc. Much of this activity is by dealers and its been a concern for many as tales like the above seem to be quite common on boards about 3 and telecoms in general. Quite disturbing that valid customer information appears to be falling into the hands of some very high pressure telesales reps. I have heard that some use random dialling but with 3's numbers having 7 digits after the dialling code they would have to make a vast number of failed calls before hitting a valid number, then again perhaps as a non-connected call costs nothing and I guess the smart sales folks will have investigated what valid number series are out there.

A word of caution. Dont buy anything on the phone regardless how good the deal is - get their number and call them back.

2nd word of caution, dont assume 3 always offer the best deals. The whole market has changed in the last 6 months and right now the cheapest deals seem to be on 02!! 3 are hell bent on including video and content in tarriffs now (they have to to make the 3G business look viable) but others dont and you can get a Samsung Z320i i-mode 3G handset on Telefonica-02 for free with a free BT headset, free e-mail and picture messaging until June 2006 and 1000 minutes of voice calls to any network anytime plus 150 texts each month at just £35/month. You also get to use minutes as videocalls if you like - they cost the same as voice...... 3 charge £60 a month for much, much less!!

Ben has highlighted T-Mobile's Flext tariffs..... well worth a look. Free handsets from them too.

I suspect there will be plenty to choose from when your contract expires and I hope you will shop around without preconceptions to get the best deal available. BTW: You dont get dropped calls to the same extent on 'integrated' networks. Only 3 have to 'roam' and thats when the call dropping happens usually. All the rest have both UMTS and GSM networks and can switch seamlessely between both....another useful feature.

[timothythetim]

Cheers, 3GSU
Yeah, I know all about the reasons for three's call dropping and really miss vodafone.
With any luck, some other network will be offering the N80 for free or freeish with a tariff that suits me.
Although, I just got a hefty scholarship so might go sim-free :D

[Ben]

You know it makes sense! (http://shop.vodafone.co.uk/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.viewPayMonthlySims) I absolutely love my £25/month SIM-Only deal :D A free £40 extras pack (£120 value) goes a long way!

[timothythetim]

Looks pretty good, although I would mind a cheaper 30 contract with less stuff. But if I've got enough cash, I might just go for it.

[crowfield99]

Its funny you say you got your first call from three, when I was on Orange Pay As You Go you would get someone calling you whio would say "I am calling from Orange, how much do you spend a month."

For one I think this should be stopped, and two. Allow people to ring up. Sure when you are ready for an upgrade you will do it yourself.

[timothythetim]

Got another three call today, but this time it was from a guy in Glasgow so I was able to understand exactly what he was saying.
He said he was just phoning up to see how I was getting on, although I'm pretty sure he was trying to get me to upgrade.
I told him about the N80 and he said yeah, you are probably best waiting for that, but he can't confirm anything about when it's coming out.
I also had a bit of a moan about the dropped calls due to the 2.5/3g switch (although, they have got alot better recently) He looked up my adress on the coverage checker, and it turns out that my house is supposedly bang on the line between 3g and 2.5g coverage. Bit of a bummer, but as I said it isn't so bad anymore.
He also took the video value pack off that I had been meaning to do for a while because it's a bit rubbish.

The contract is in my mum's name because I was only 17 when the contract was taken out, and he told me about changing the name of the account holder. All I have to do is to get my mum to phone up and get some code then I phone up with the code and the account is transferred. Which is pretty good. He says that the benefits of upgrading were better than taking out a new contract, but I'll need to check that. The main advantage is, of course, being able to keep my number.

I really wish the N80 would hurry up and get released so I can decide what to do.

[3GScottishUser]

I am also on a border area, allegedly and it was hell on 3 with dropped calls and despite numerous promises it never improved. Having moved to Vodafone I have experienced a world of difference both in terms of call reliability and customer support.

I would be looking at T-Mobile (who have an integrated GSM/UMTS network) now if my contract was coming up for expiry. The Flext tariffs are simply unbeatable value and they have free N70's available with some dealers offering 1/2 price line rental for up to 9 months.

Well worth investigating.

[timothythetim]

Yeah, flext really does look good, but I deffo want to wait for the N80. So I'll see what the deal is when it comes out.

[gorilla]

I too received a call from a scottish lad claiming to be from three. I didn't have time to talk to him, but he did say he was just checking up to see how I was getting on and that as I'm near the end of my contract (less than 2 months to go now :)) I was due an upgrade and improved line rental. As I said I didn't have time to talk so he is calling me back tomorrow.
Now I'm wondering what the offer will be and will I be tempted to stay. I have to say that I've been fairly happy with three, not had any real problems. The walled garden still bugs me every now and then, but I can live with it. I was checking out the 6280 as an upgrade option but I'm not sure I could go to a S40 from my current 6680. I might just cancel and do what Ben has done and get a 30 day contract and wait for the N80 which will do everthing I want.
If I'm offered rental around £22 and a free 6280 I might take it.

I'll let you know what happens.

[solo12002]

from a scottish lad claiming to be from three ay claiming to be may be from another firm. I would ask for his number and check it out fully!

[timothythetim]

I too received a call from a scottish lad claiming to be from three. I didn't have time to talk to him, but he did say he was just checking up to see how I was getting on and that as I'm near the end of my contract (less than 2 months to go now :)) I was due an upgrade and improved line rental. As I said I didn't have time to talk so he is calling me back tomorrow.
Now I'm wondering what the offer will be and will I be tempted to stay. I have to say that I've been fairly happy with three, not had any real problems. The walled garden still bugs me every now and then, but I can live with it. I was checking out the 6280 as an upgrade option but I'm not sure I could go to a S40 from my current 6680. I might just cancel and do what Ben has done and get a 30 day contract and wait for the N80 which will do everthing I want.
If I'm offered rental around £22 and a free 6280 I might take it.

I'll let you know what happens.
Sounds exactly like what happened to me. I'm pretty sure he was from three as he removed stuff from my account, but yeah, you should probably check.

[gorilla]

Well I got called back this evening. It was a different guy, but I'm positive he was from three. He offered me a choice of the 6280, an LG phone and the moto. I enquired about the N80, but he had never heard of it. I explained briefly what it was, but he was still none the wiser. I told him that I would prefer that phone and he said ok and hung up before we even got the chance to discuss tariffs. There was no hard sell.

[timothythetim]

Yet another call from three today. He claimed he was some senior guy in the bradford office but I have my doubts because he sounded foreign and was spouting what sounded like a lot of rubbish.
Because my contract is now over, he offered me some LG phone, some sony one or the N80.
I was quite suprised to be offered the N80 because I didn't think it was out yet. He offered me it on some 500 mins and 250 texts plan for 35 quid but on an 18 month contract with 8 months half price. I wouldn't be able to keep my number either. I told him I wanted to keep my number and I might switch to T-mobile. He said that they wouldn't give me a PAC (are they allowed to do that?).
Anyway, I said hmm nah, I don't really wanna spend that much and the cheeky git said beggars can't be choosers!

I then asked him about the internet on three phones and he said that I could access it for 10p per 100kb, on the phone they way you can with other networks. I told him that that was rubbish.
He then started going on about some nonsense about drinkin french wine and bread.
He's phoning me back on Tuesday.
Was a bit surreal. Maybe it was an Apirl fool.

[maxspank]

^Sounds very suspicious to me, not being able to keep your number, sounds like they maybe a 3rd party dealer, and you are legally entitled to your PAC, if they're saying they can't give you your PAC and you can't keep your number on the deal I would stay away, or if you really want to go for it request written details before you agree to anything.

[Hands0n]

I used to get calls from Orange 3rd parties. They'd introduce themselves by saying "Hello, I'm calling from Orange and you are entitled to an upgrade". My response normally would be "Could you just repeat the bit you mumbled under your breath please". After a bit of persuation they admitted who they were and I'd inform them that I only deal with the network operators directly which normally resulted in a rather resounding [and satisfying] "click".

BTW, to help avoid being annoyed by such calls you could subscribe your phone number/s to the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) (www.tpsonline.org.uk) Unless you've given permission elsewhere [and that can be easy to do!!!], they cannot call you unsolicited. We've got all of our landlines and mobiles registered there - the silence is deafening :D :)

[timothythetim]

You know it makes sense! (http://shop.vodafone.co.uk/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.viewPayMonthlySims) I absolutely love my £25/month SIM-Only deal :D A free £40 extras pack (£120 value) goes a long way!
The word on the street now is that three will unlock 6680s that are out of contract for 15 quid. I might do this and get a vodafone sim only plan for a while.
See the 25 quid a month one, does that include some data? It just says 1000 texts, could I use fewer texts and do some web browsing?

[Ben]

It's the £40 extras pack, giving you £120 of SMS, MMS and/or data usage. Data usage comes out of the £120 at the standard rate of £2.35/MB. That's approximately 51MB of data if you were to use no SMS or MMS.

I'm in love :D A tariff has never fit me so well!

[timothythetim]

Fantastic, I think I'll go for that then as long as three allow me to leave.
I just wasn't sure as all it said was 1000 texts a month worth £40.

[Ben]

Yeah, they tend to do that across all their offers. My first Vodafone contract included 100 free texts which was, in reality, a £6 extras pack that I could use for whatever I wanted. Of course, £6 (£12 real value) doesn't go very far!

I did confirm that it's the extras pack when I moved to SIM Only, though, and can confirm that on my bill it states "+ 40 pounds extras pack". It also states "+ 1000 Texts" as if I get that also, but that's an outright lie, just like how my old bills used to read "+ 100 Texts + 6 pounds extras pack". Dirty rotten...

[whatleydude]

...when I was on Orange Pay As You Go you would get someone calling you who would say "I am calling from Orange, how much do you spend a month."
.


That's WELL bad man.
Immediate response: "If you're from Orange then surely YOU can tell ME!"

:p

[3g-g]

That's WELL bad man.
Immediate response: "If you're from Orange then surely YOU can tell ME!"

:p

The line I like is, "Hi, I'm calling from Orange, can you just tell me your mobile number as you're due an upgrade". Which then continues into, "we can definately save you money on what you spend just now". Oh can you? Save me money on a free phone, that's interesting, please explain!

[Hands0n]

Somewhere along the line there is a leakage of Orange numbers into the hands of third party mobile suppliers. I used to get inundated with these calls until I registered with TPS. Thereafter the calls dropped off, but persisted. I would inform the operator that (a) I was registered with TPS and they were in breach and subject to a £1,000 fine for each occurrence and (b) that I only ever dealt with the mobile network operator. They'd normally and courteously apologise for any inconvenience and say goodbye.

I've not experienced the same "leakage" from the likes of Vodafone and 3 - although today an "ambulance chaser" did call on my 3 number to ask if I had any injuries that I'd like to claim against a £21Mln pot laying around idle in the UK somewhere. Thoughts of the latest Securitas raid came to mind, but that was £25Mln afaicr :)

Two questions I asked were (a) Why they thought I had been injured anywhere and (b) where they got my 3 number from - neither of which the caller could answer satisfactorily. I bade them farewell

Funny old thing, this "leakage" of numbers!!

[Ben]

I think it goes further than just numbers being leaked. I suspect that there are companies out there simply dialling every number in a given prefix range :( When you have several numbers in sequence this becomes painfully obvious and rather predictable.

[gorilla]

Ben, on the voda 30 day contract sim, if I port my number to that, can I then take out a proper 3g voda contract at a later date and keep that number?
Thanks

[Ben]

As far as I am aware you can migrate your tariff to a normal contract tariff just as you would on a regular contract. However, I doubt you can apply for a 'new' contract and transfer your number. For that, I would imagine, you'd have to port out to, say, a PAYG SIM on another network, then back again.

I can't verify any of that though I'm afraid, though logically speaking it's how I'd expect it to work. If it's important to you then you may need to give Vodafone a call for clarification.

[gorilla]

Cheers, that's what I thought.

[timothythetim]

Woooooo!
After 10 minuntes of convincing the CS guy that cancelling my contract was the best option he let me cancel the contract and gave me my PAC.
I have to wait for another 29 or so days for my 12 months to have elapsed so I can get an unlock code for my 6680. I do have another phone I can use in the mean time so that doesn't really matter.

How can I go about porting my number to a vodafone sim only contract? Am I definitely able to do so, beacuse it is a online deal only?
Would I be able to get the deal if I phone up?

[Ben]

Well, I switched to it over the phone, so they should be able to help you. I wasn't porting in though, I was literally just changing my priceplan straight to it rather than taking a handset upgrade.

[timothythetim]

Cool, I phoned them up earlier today and they weren't there because its a holiday but I'll try them on monday.

[timothythetim]

Tried today and they were there so I just ordered the 25 quid a month one and ported my three number.
Woot!

[Ben]

Congratulations! I hope it all works out :)

[gorilla]

I've just got off the phone with 3 and successfully requested my PAC and also paid £15 to get them to unlock my 6680. I haven't got the unlock code yet, but I'm told someone from the technical department will be calling me to talk me through the process.
Having read some of the horror stories about 3 CS, I was quite surprised by how the helpful they were. I did have to hang up and call back with my imei number, so make sure you have that when you call, but apart from having to tell them why I'm leaving again, it was relatively painless. Now fingers crossed that the unlock code will be forthcoming.
I'll keep you posted.

[Hands0n]

Did you have the 6680 with them from the start of the contract or did you "upgrade" to it from the likes of eBay? I quite fancy getting my 6680 unlocked but I was an eBay upgrade :) and I have read previously that 3 don't like supplying the unlock codes or those - my contract started out with an E1000, but I already unlocked that myself.

[gorilla]

Did you have the 6680 with them from the start of the contract or did you "upgrade" to it from the likes of eBay?

I took out the contract with 3 on the 6680 handset. You should give them a call anyway. I was surprised that once I had been given my PAC the girl said I could get the handset unlocked for £15. I hadn't even suggested it up to that point, although I was about to!

[gorilla]

Well, I had 3 customer services on this afternoon and they provided me with an unlock code which did not work twice :mad:
At the outset he explained that I could only enter it twice. He did not tell me to take the sim card out, but instead told me to input the code and see what happens.

Does anyone know if you can unlock your 6680 with the original sim still in?

I entered the code correctly, I am positive.

They have escalated the problem for me, but I'm less positive now.
Oh 3, you were so close to providing me with 12 months satisfactory CS :p

[Hands0n]

Oh 3, you were so close to providing me with 12 months satisfactory CS :p

I do believe that is a classic oxymoron (http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=oxymoron) :rolleyes:

[timothythetim]

Phoned up three today, paid them 15 quid with my debit card, confirmed my IMEI and they said that some three guy for their technical support would phone me up later on this week with my unlock code.
The only thing is, I need to have an active 3 sim in my phone, and I don't have one. I'll need to borrow a friend's one.

All this leaving three business is going suspiciously well...

[gorilla]

Well I got the call back from 3 today and I now have an unlocked 6680. :D
Now all I have to do is sit back and wait for the voda sim to turn up.

[timothythetim]

Good stuff.

I got my vodafone sim last week but my 6680 is still unlocked.
We should do a swap or something :D

[timothythetim]

My 6680 is free from the clutches of three!
(Poet and I don't even know it)
It's so nice to have proper internet access.

[gorilla]

It feels good doesn't it? Still no sign of my voda sim :-(

[timothythetim]

It sure does, although vodaphone 3g reception isn't the best in my area.

[gorilla]

I rang vodafone and my sim is coming, and they are giving me their 30 day free trial of sky mobile TV. I asssume the 1000 texts can be used in combination with MMS and data?

[Ben]

I asssume the 1000 texts can be used in combination with MMS and data?
Yes, it's the £40 extras pack which equates to £120 of SMS, MMS and data usage.

[gorilla]

Thanks Ben. It'll be like a new toy. What was I thinking 12 months ago when I joined 3?