lemc6125
Posts:8
 | | 11 Jul 2008 10:39 AM |
| I was a prepaid vodafone customer and recently switched to 3 mobile... and i love it!
I'm on a plan, which I've always been very nervous about because I felt that I couldn't control what I spent, but 3 make it easy.
I pay $49 per month and get $350 worth of calls, sms, videocalls etc every month to anyone PLUS $240 worth of calls, sms, etc to anyone on three every month.
Their rates are cheaper than optus, MUCH cheaper than telstra, and the same as vodafone. But, what sets 3 aside from the others is that their $49 cap includes $590 worth of calls ($350 if you know no one on 3), where as optus is $300 value, vodafone is $310 value, and telstra doesn't even offer caps!
The one thing that my partner was concerned about when I told him that he should consider moving to 3 mobile was the coverage. 3 has 3G coverage in major cities and regions, but what's best is that if they don't get coverage in their network, they'll switch to the telstra network! So you can still receive and make calls ANYWHERE is australia that has reception with telstra. If you make calls in these areas, you will be charged at telstra prices, but your mobile clearly states when you are in these areas, so you can't make these calls without realising that you'll be paying telstra prices.
Another feature of the 3 $49 cap, which my travelling housemate is very jealous of, is that you can use $100 of your $350 value to call overseas. He signed a contract with telstra before I signed up with 3, and is paying premium rates to call his overseas friends. If he had of signed up with 3, he would be able to call overseas friends as good rates and, if he didn't use more than $100 worth of calls, he wouldn't be paying anymore than $49!
Sorry if this is long, I just wish that someone had told me about this before! | | | |
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becc
Posts:35
| | 15 Jul 2008 8:02 PM |
| I am with 3 as well and their caps are fantastic! I am on the $29 plan, which gives me $120 worth of calls plus 100 minutes to 3 phones (which my entire family and several of my friends have). Plus all of the other extras.
However I have found that the reception is not that great..I have been having some major troubles with getting reception in areas which I should and have done before, so I'm not sure what is happening there...... | | | |
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candy_cane0303
Posts:5
| | 25 Jul 2008 1:09 AM |
| Okay, i am with 3 aswell and have been for 2 years.
i found them really great at the start until they started to charge me for things i hadnt used!
For example, they charged me approx $200 for using mobile internet on my phone! i didnt even know that you could use my mobile as a modem on the computer for the internet until they charged me for this! i tried and tried to explain to them that i had not used the internet on my phone however, they would not have a bar of it! i even ended up going to consumer affairs regarding this to no avail. in the end i had to pay for something that i did NOT use. there has also been a few more incidents but i will not bore you with them.
i would just like to make you aware of what could happen with 3 so you dont get caught out like i did! please ALWAYS check ur bills and make sure they are not charging you for something you did not use!
i just cant wait til my contract ends!
anyway that is just my opinion! good luck! i hope it all goes well!! | | | |
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sarahwilltoo
Posts:4
| | 26 Jul 2008 6:44 PM |
| I've been with 3 for a few three years. I love them! They have the best value caps. I'm currently on their new $69 cap which gives me $650 of value! You can't get their cap value anywhere else.
The only thing that I don't like about 3 is that now I'm in a regional area i don't have video calling. Bring on more coverage....! | | | |
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jodels
Posts:101
| | 29 Jul 2008 4:38 PM |
| [quote]So you can still receive and make calls ANYWHERE is australia that has reception with telstra.quote]
Do you mean anywhere in Australia that has reception with Telstra 3G? I can't see it working everywhere in Australia with "Telstra coverage" or all of the angry CDMA customers would have gone to it instead of Next G. I think what Telstra has done by rural areas is really wrong. I was a CDMA customer and already hated dealing with them but did so because it was the only coverage I could get within a 15km radius. When they took away CDMA we tested every single Next G handset at our house and got no recption. Telstra train their staff to believe only what Telstra says. Telstra says we have coverage so their staff told us we were wrong when we could get coverage. In the end I told them to stick it and went to prepaid caps with Vodafone. I don't even care that I don't have reception anymore. Vodafone have been fantastic and I'm saving so much money. We then stopped dealing with Telstra all together. Changed our 3 phone lines and internet over to Westnet. | | | |
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brokenxsmile
Posts:7
| | 04 Aug 2008 7:21 PM |
| | I just signed up to Three last week. I got the LG Viewty phone for free on the $29.00 cap. The cap includes much more than my Optus prepaid did, and now my dad and boyfriend have signed up to three, so we can call each other (for up to 200 minutes per month, each) and talk for free! Also, if you refer a friend both they and you get $25 credit for free | | | |
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NORTI
Posts:5
| | 04 Aug 2008 9:38 PM |
| Telstra DO have caps. They are also the ONLY ones with the best coverage.
Bah Id hate to be a Optus customer right now thou...... | | | |
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janecody
Posts:136
| | 04 Aug 2008 10:03 PM |
| | I am on 3 too, l am pre paid and don't do the caps. I get 150 mins free 3 to 3 mins and 150 free sms's to any carrier. I get my recharge doubled if l do $50 or $100 and now l have my new 3 skype phone l also get 4000 free skype mins to ring anyone on a skype phone or on their cfomputer as well as 10000 free skype sms's to skype of course. WQe have mostr of my family on 3 or skype now and it helps to free up my credit for calls to school or the doictors etc you know where you are on hold forever only now l don't worry about it and my credit usually last me 2 months. | |
Janecody | |
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Poweranna
Posts:40
| | 16 Aug 2008 10:57 AM |
| | I am with optus pre paid for us its the best offer as you pay for 6 months not month to month I do not use the mobile as much so this is very handy. | | | |
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MissTrish
Posts:1
| | 21 Aug 2008 1:03 AM |
| | I'm surprised no one has mentioned Virgin before. I'm with Virgin on a $30 cap, which gives me $140 of calls/texts/MMS to all networks and free unlimited calls/texts to other Virgin mobiles (very handy when my little brother needs to be picked up from a party or something, I don't have to rush through the conversation to find out where he is!). I have found the service I have received so far to be excellent. Yes, occasionally you do have to wait on hold for a bit if you call customer service (I think the most I've ever waited was 10 minutes during a particularly busy period, they're normally faster than that) and the staff have been very good at responding to any issues I had and resolving them quickly. I strongly suggest that anyone looking at getting a new mobile phone should look into what Virgin has to offer, they've got plenty of caps available and I was pretty happy with their prepaid service too which is why I was happy to switch to a contract with them. | | | |
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duritz
Posts:19
| | 21 Aug 2008 2:11 PM |
| I am on 3 and have never had any problems (prepaid).
I have noticed lately though that where I used to get reception out of 3's zone but with telstra coverage, I don't anymore. My phone now only works in 3's zone which is a pain. | | | |
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Bekksta85
Posts:21
| | 21 Aug 2008 4:07 PM |
| | I dont think I can get three as it is not available in my area :( | | | |
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reet57
Posts:5
| | 18 Sep 2008 8:46 PM |
| I've been on Optus for about 6 years but am not a big user. Our service provider is TPG and they have taken over Soul and started up TPG Mobile. My husband was on Virgin prepaid and is also not a big user. The reason we both decided to switch was that for their special opening price of $19.95 you get $300 worth of calls!
Can't remember all the fine print but seems to have all the main conditions others have mentioned. This will certainly cut down Telstra home phone usage too! | | | |
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keatic01
Posts:7
| | 22 Sep 2008 10:41 AM |
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I have had problems paying for things I haven't used as well. You said you went to consumer affairs, but did you ever speak with the telecommunications ombudsman?
I was with Optus when I was getting extra charges, and when I called them to complain they were pretty rude to me and told me it was my fault and that I had to pay up. As soon as I contacted the ombudsman and made a complaint, a head honcho at Optus was on the phone to me apologising and I didn't have to pay a cent of it. The ombudsman has a lot of power in these situations and almost always sides with the consumer! | | | |
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skydivej
Posts:1
| | 06 Oct 2008 3:49 PM |
| I was with Optus until I was incorrectly billed for a call that dropped out. When they refused to correct the bill I transfered myself, my brother and two friends to Vodafone.
If you have issues with paying your bill and the call rates are the same, why change from prepay with Vodafone to a term contract with 3? If its getting caught without credit that worries you, you can list a credit card with Vodafone and you've then got a way to buy credit in a hurry (without needing a shop) when your car breaks down that *one time* you take a shortcut through a dodgy suburb....
By signing up for the same call rates but on contract, are now locked into a provider with coverage that is definitely not as good as Telstra and if you talk over your cap, you're going to be hit with a large and utterly unexpected bill. (I know it seems totally unrealistic that you can do it with a cap that big, but that's just until the first time you do it! Picture the month where everything turns to chaos; your girlfriend splits from her partner, your cat dies, your mum isn't feeling well etc etc etc)
My mother was with three and like many have said here, things started out well but over time things went from bad to worse. And whenever any issue arises, I end up having to call their call centre, as she gets lost with all the numbered options and is unable to understand their strong accents! | | | |
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unibomba17
Posts:11
| | 09 Oct 2008 9:37 PM |
| | I am with 3 as well. I just upgraded to a new phone. With that the $29 plan now has $150 worth of calls as well as your free minutes. On top of that, by ordering over the net, i get $50 credit off my next bill. I have been with them for about 4 years now and never had a problem. | | | |
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jacjackjackii
Posts:107
| | 20 Oct 2008 11:58 AM |
| I am with 3 and have had many issues but for the most part they have been very good about it. Although i do notice you sometimes get charged for things you havent used - so far i have been lucky & they removed all charges.
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cazmac
Posts:2
| | 11 Sep 2009 9:57 PM |
| My hubby and I have been with 3 for more years then I can remember on the $29 plan. Over this time more and more of our friends have also switched over to 3 and are now at the stage like we are where their kids are on 3 as well (mine are on the $19 plan). Love that we can call each other for nothing.
I have only had to ring the call centre once and they were very helpful. Have not been charged for anything we haven't used as yet (touch wood) but I make sure I check the bills each month when they come in.
I haven't noticed lack of coverage but I don't travel alot outside of the capital cities. | | | |
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bellegb
Posts:83
| | 12 Sep 2009 6:19 PM |
| | We were with 3 in a metro town but when we moved to a rural town on a major highway, we had very little coverage. We would love to go back to them as their plans were great, but until coverage in our area is improved it's not worth going back. | | | |
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marianne101
Posts:30
| | 23 Sep 2009 6:54 PM |
| | I switched to TPG late last year and their $19.99 cap is fantastic. I have never used the full $300 worth of calls etc. and even though I'm not a huge mobile phone user, its nice to know my bill will be the same every month. | | | |
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