I recently wrote about how I am very unhappy with Vodafone's service. Basically, I have a 3G data card with them that doesn't work with my new MacBook Pro and they've made it clear that they can't care less. They wouldn't, for example, freeze my account until they have a card that does work with my computer. Instead, they want me to keep paying them for the data card until my contract runs out in February. In my last post, I felt helpless about it. Today, I don't.
The Sticking it to Vodafone article by Aral Balkan, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 2.0 UK: England License.
I discovered that T-Mobile has several plans where you can use your phone as a modem for your laptop. They actually have data plans that support this. AFAIK, this makes them the only company currently to offer a mobile data solution for Mac users with new laptops. I just signed up for their Flext 35 + web 'n' walk Max plan which comes with "Unlimited Internet".
Of course, the "Unlimited Internet" claim is pure Grade-A bullshit. They have a "fair usage policy" of 10GB/month. Fair usage policies are a dishonest practice that should be made illegal. A fair usage policy basically misleads customers into thinking that they are getting an unlimited service and tries to justify it by using tiny print to disclose that the service is, actually, limited. It is misleading and shouldn't be tolerated.
So, in addition to the 10GB/month data, you get a £180 talk/text allowance for £57.50 / month (with an 18 month contract.)
T-Mobile definitely are not saints but they have a service that I can actually use.
For an additional £20, I ordered the T-Mobile MDA Vario II phone which uses Windows Mobile 5.0. Apparently there is a straightforward process for getting it to work on OS X. I was going to go with the Nokia E61 but it doesn't have a camera or a touch screen and that put me off of it big time. (That and the sub-par experience that some of my friends have been having with the N70s and N80s.)
I'll post a review of how it all works once I receive the phone tomorrow.
The Sticking it to Vodafone article by Aral Balkan, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 2.0 UK: England License.
I hear you Aral, I cannot wait to get back to Orange when my contract runs out. :( I had similar a “unlimited usage” from Bulldog Broadband. When I realised I was getting charged the max additional charge for extra data every month I called up only to find out “unlimited usage” actually meant that I could go on the Internet whenever I wanted, but not download however much I wanted. Gee thanks!
I actually cancelled my Vodafone 3G card a month ago (I was at the end of my contract so no biggie) I too was a bit miffed by their lazy approach in providing a solution for expresscard laptop users.
I’m not surprised with the ‘Fair Use’ policies for unlimited services – T-Mobile were one of the first to introduce them when they were Mercury, at that time though it was on calls at the weekend, as they were ‘free’ from midnight Friday through till midnight Sunday.
I agree though that this practice of using the word ‘unlimited’ should be stamped out as it is misleading and probably contestable through the Office of Fair Trading. However like some many other things in the mobile telecom world it’s only allowed to happen because of the cartel like attitude they have.
Actually Verizon has a solution with an express card or use a new phone like LG’s VX8300:
http://www.macworld.com/weblogs/editors/2006/10/evdo/index.php
and evdoinfo.com has info for mac users:
http://www.evdoinfo.com/Tips/PC_5220/Mac_EVDO_20050712475/
They also sell the cards through their sister site:
https://booster-antenna.com/verizon/
It’s probably for us only but it might be useful to other mac users who read your blog.
-e
Thanks, Ethan. That is US-only but, as you point out, it might be useful for readers from the States.
Careful with T-Mobile, they screwed me out of a deposit refund, by hiding behind one of their 3rd party sales associates. They overcharged my wife, and we had to go through the FCC, via written letters to resolve the issue.
And yeah, that tactic of advertising unlimited service, with a 10G cap is quite bad.
Then again…maybe I tell my clients I’ll make unlimited site revisions, and then in small print add, “1 revision limit”.
[...] In my previous posts, I was complaining about how I lost the ability to use my Vodafone 3G data card when I bought a MacBook Pro as Apple has abandoned the PCMCIA slot in the new MacBook Pros in favor of the newer ExpressCard slot and how Vodafone could care less. This is a problem that affects more than just Mac users, as from what I hear, Dell is doing the same thing with its new laptops. Yesterday, I posted that I found a new service by T-Mobile that allows you to use your mobile phone as a modem with an attractive data plan and that I ordered a T-Mobile Vario II (a rebranded HTC TyTN/Hermes). Well, this morning, I had a knock on the door at around 8.30am and my new phone and connection were handed to me by a friendly Royal Mail driver. [...]
I got the new Vodafone USB 3G MobileConnect modem yesterday to use with my MacBook Pro. It was shipped with a PowerPC only driver installer!! I managed to get it to work though, by downloading the latest drivers from the Vodafone Business website.
In fact, I am posting this through my Vodafone MobileConnect modem.
That’s great, but where can I find the driver on the site. I’ve tried everything but can not find the download!
[...] Recently, I very publicly moved from Vodafone to using a Windows Mobile phone on T-Mobile because it was the only mobile internet solution available to me in the UK as a Mac user. Here’s an update on how the past few months have been with T-Mobile and my Windows Mobile Phone (the MDA). [...]
[...] If you’re wandering what this is about, see this topic, starting with the Abbey National Business and Vodafone: Two companies that just don’t “get it” and Sticking it to Vodafone articles. [...]
Yeah, this is terrible service… what ever happened to customer loyalty. You can’t even ask for the manager anymore they just stick another co worker who pretends to be someone big!