Guest Terrapin Posted November 3, 2005 Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 I've just picked up what I believe may be the first MDA Vario sold in the UK from my local T-mobile shop, they got them in stock this morning. Unbelievably they are free on the Web 'n' Walk 200 tariff, which is an 18 month contract with 12 months half price (£38 for 40mb gprs + 200 minutes). They are £59.99 on the Web 'n' Walk 100 tariff (£30 for 40mb gprs + 200 minutes). Both tariffs are slightly cheaper if you go with their "self service" option. T-mobile seem to consider the Vario a 3G device, I'm not entirely sure what they mean by this as the HTC Wizard isn't to my knowledge 3G compatible. It's possible that the Vario supports 3G or simply that all of the T-mobile 3G services are available over gprs. Well I'm going to plug it in and wait for it to charge. I think orange are going to lose quite a few customers to T-mobile over this device. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest leshemnoam Posted November 3, 2005 Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 I think orange are going to lose quite a few customers to T-mobile over this device. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I have been with orange for five years. I have been waiting since Sep(when my contract ended) to upgrade to the htc wizard. but now with no release date for the UK I think I’m off to t-mobile. Don’t know much about t-mobile hidden costs, coverage, CS etc’ so any advice would be appreciated Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lekus Posted November 3, 2005 Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 I have been with orange for five years. I have been waiting since Sep(when my contract ended) to upgrade to the htc wizard. but now with no release date for the UK I think I’m off to t-mobile. Don’t know much about t-mobile hidden costs, coverage, CS etc’ so any advice would be appreciated <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I'm in the same boat, been with Orange for a year now, want to upgrade to the Wizard but it doesn't look like that will happen on Orange. My contract end's tomorrow so I'm not waiting any longer; I'll be jumping ship to T-Mobile. I've seen a deal to go on Relax 100 for 12 months with a payment of £21 for the Vario itself, which should bring the total to £273. If my calculations are correct then that's a great price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ziggys101 Posted November 3, 2005 Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 I've been with T-Mobile for 6 months now after quite a few years with Orange, as far as I'm cocernend the coverage is comparable but the customer service is better. The my t-mobile service on the net is superb allowing you to almost see realtime usage of your free minutes and GPRS usage. So go for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest leshemnoam Posted November 3, 2005 Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 I've been with T-Mobile for 6 months now after quite a few years with Orange, as far as I'm cocernend the coverage is comparable but the customer service is better. The my t-mobile service on the net is superb allowing you to almost see realtime usage of your free minutes and GPRS usage. So go for it. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> thank you for all your help and advice i went to the closest t-mobile shop to were i work and they said they'll have it next week(heard that one before :roll: ) so I’ll wait till then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest steve_smith Posted November 3, 2005 Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 thank you for all your help and advice i went to the closest t-mobile shop to were i work and they said they'll have it next week(heard that one before :roll: ) so I’ll wait till then. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I want one of these too ;) Since our nearest T-Mobile store is some 20 to 30 miles away, I want to order one online. However, the web'n'walk tarrifs appear better on the T-Mobile website than in other web stores (don't know about the shops?). As far as I can see, on the T-Mobile website, you get 12 months out of your 18 month contract at half price (so only paying full price for 6 months). I've looked at Scancom.co.uk and Expansys, and they have the opposite offer (ie. only 6 months at half price, 12 months full price). The problem is, the MDA Vario is not on the T-Mobile website yet .... :shock: I have emailed them to ask when it will be available to order online. Steve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pondrew Posted November 3, 2005 Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 All good news. I'm mega tempted myself as would love an MDA Vario and 40mg GPRS. Downside is I'm only 9months into an 18month contract BUT I could offset the cost by cancelling the £10 gprs bundle on that contract (almost as much as the monthly charge while half price on Web N Walk!). I'd then use the GPRS-less sim in a C500 Smartphone and the new Web N Walk sim in the Vario. And the lack of VGA res bothers me. Surely now Smartphones are all QVGA it's not unreasonable to expect Pocket PC Phones to ALL go VGA. I thought that was set in Microsofts new platform definitions. :?: I'm VERY intrigued that T-Mobile are insisting the Vario is 3G. That's just strange. If anyone can shed light on this please do... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lekus Posted November 3, 2005 Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 (edited) Ordered mine earlier this evening, will be my first PPC phone and hopefully a nice replacement for my C500 ;) When I called Orange to cancel my contract and get a PAC, the guy hadn't heard of the Vario or Orange's own M3000, he suggested that I was talking about the M5000. To be fair I suppose the M3000 hasn't been released in the UK so he shouldn't know about it, but still... :roll: I have a sneaking suspiscion that the talk of the Vario being 3G is internet rumour. I remember looking over the OMAP spec sheets for the Wizard and it had built in EDGE support, so unless some extra chip(s) have been added for 3G (at extra cost!) I don't see T-Mobile deviating from the standard design. I'd love to been proven otherwise though! Edited November 3, 2005 by lekus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pondrew Posted November 3, 2005 Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 Besides which the MDA Vario was released in Germany by T-Mobile where NO MENTION was made of 3G. Methinks T-Mobile UK are setting themselves up for a fall as the T-Mobile reps themselves are leading peeps to believe it's 3G (the girl I queried it with on T-Mobile 150 responded to my asking what her describing it as 3G meant by saying it meant it could do video calls)! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest stretchy Posted November 4, 2005 Report Share Posted November 4, 2005 (edited) Ordered mine on the phone this morning, took the self service option @ £35 in months 10-15, £16 per month in 1-9 & 16-18, CS is 50 p per minute via 150 on the handset, but there is an 0845 number also. May get the phone tomorrow, failing that Monday morning, can't wait:-)) Insurance is £7.99 per month, free for the first two months, but they dont promise 24hr replacement like orange, I may cancel insurance after the two months. Edited November 4, 2005 by stretchy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The G Man Posted November 4, 2005 Report Share Posted November 4, 2005 Ordered mine on the phone this morning, took the self service option @ £35 in months 10-15, £16 per month in 1-9 & 16-18, CS is 50 p per minute via 150 on the handset, but there is an 0845 number also. May get the phone tomorrow, failing that Monday morning, can't wait:-)) Insurance is £7.99 per month, free for the first two months, but they dont promise 24hr replacement like orange, I may cancel insurance after the two months. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Just wondering where you ordered the MDA Vario from? Did you phone T-Mobile directly? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest stretchy Posted November 4, 2005 Report Share Posted November 4, 2005 Just wondering where you ordered the MDA Vario from? Did you phone T-Mobile directly? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Yes, http://www.t-mobile.co.uk/Dispatcher?menui...xtpageid=shop_t Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest shadamehr Posted November 4, 2005 Report Share Posted November 4, 2005 Forgive me for being slow... But does the Vario have a front facing camera? Very simply, that should answer whether it has the potential for 3G or not. I appreciate, like the old Nokia 6630 with no front facing camera, that you can do this if you wish... But I know of no new 3G phone WITHOUT a front facing camera, and the new Windows SmartPhone recently announced for 3G has front camera too. So I find it incredibly unlikely that they would make the Vario with no Front Camera if it IS 3G. And as I don't think the Vario has a front camera, I extremely doubt it is 3G. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pondrew Posted November 4, 2005 Report Share Posted November 4, 2005 Moved to HTC Wizard section. News item linking here will follow shortly... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pondrew Posted November 4, 2005 Report Share Posted November 4, 2005 And as I don't think the Vario has a front camera, I extremely doubt it is 3G. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> A device doesn't have to have video calling to be a 3G device, it just has to have UMTS. The advantage of which is obviously the massive increase in download/upload speeds that comes with 3G technology. I'm not saying this because the MDA Vario has UMTS (it hasn't!), just making sure peeps realise 3G doesn't necessarily have to mean Video Calling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest shadamehr Posted November 5, 2005 Report Share Posted November 5, 2005 A device doesn't have to have video calling to be a 3G device, it just has to have UMTS. The advantage of which is obviously the massive increase in download/upload speeds that comes with 3G technology. I'm not saying this because the MDA Vario has UMTS (it hasn't!), just making sure peeps realise 3G doesn't necessarily have to mean Video Calling. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> My original quote: "But I know of no new 3G phone WITHOUT a front facing camera, and the new Windows SmartPhone recently announced for 3G has front camera too. So I find it incredibly unlikely that they would make the Vario with no Front Camera if it IS 3G." The days of bringing out a 3G device without video calling capability/front facing camera, a la Nokia 6630 and its 'in hindsight' video desktop stand, are long gone mate. Front camera is not a TECHICAL requirement of 3G device, for sure, but a 'given norm' faeture these days, as per my post Pondrew. I'd put the house on the fact that a NEW device without a front camera, WON'T therefore be 3G in future - not cos its not possible, just cos its well no longer practical - Nokia managed to learn this the hard way to save other manufacturers doing so in future *lol* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest adchaffey Posted November 5, 2005 Report Share Posted November 5, 2005 Ordered mine on the phone this morning, took the self service option @ £35 in months 10-15, £16 per month in 1-9 & 16-18, CS is 50 p per minute via 150 on the handset, but there is an 0845 number also. May get the phone tomorrow, failing that Monday morning, can't wait:-)) Insurance is £7.99 per month, free for the first two months, but they dont promise 24hr replacement like orange, I may cancel insurance after the two months. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> It's good to see so many people in the same boat as me! My contract with orange ends in, let me see, about a week now, so I'm tempted with a move to T-Mobile. Does anyone no more about the insurance they offer though?? I have to be honest, I've certainly made use of the orange insurance over the years! Also, does anyone have any official figures on coverage of the networks to compare? A nice colour coded map would be great!! ;) I just need to be sure before I move. I've been with orange for almost 5 years now, it's hard to see any other network in my pocket! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest wi11 Posted November 5, 2005 Report Share Posted November 5, 2005 Just tried to get one from t-mobile shop in town (Sheffield they still have 1-2 in stock afaik if anyone's interested). I wanted to switch from Orange to T-mob, but failed the credit check, probs because of the flat I'm renting. Am well gutted, as got to handle the phone and like it's size compared to my C500. Will try again online I think, when the phone appears on there. FWIW, I was impressed with customer service by guys in shop. They were apologetic about a 1hr delay in getting a credit check result (not their fault) and offered to ring me back when they got the result to save further waiting around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jpalmer99 Posted November 7, 2005 Report Share Posted November 7, 2005 (edited) I'm actually headed over the UK this week from the US and wondered if you can just buy the Vario from T-Mobile if you already have a T-mobile service/data plan? Edited November 7, 2005 by jpalmer99 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Phil Lee Posted November 7, 2005 Report Share Posted November 7, 2005 On Friday I tried to order a Vario via Scancom. I wanted the Web n walk 100 plan on an 18 month contract. On that plan I would have got the phone for free with 6 months at half price lin rental, working out at a total bill of £450 over 18 months or £25 per month. Unfortunately there was a problem with a credit check so I needed to pay a £100 deposit for the phone and a £250 deposit for roaming. I called T-Mobile to try to resolve the problem and spoke to an extremely helpful person. He ran two credit checks on me and said there was no requirement for a deposit showing on his system. He then told me he could sell me the phone on the same price plan with 12 months half price line rental and the phone costing £59.99, working out at a total of £425.98 or £23.67 per month. Needless to say I went for that option. The order was placed at about 3:30pm and Royal Mail attempted to deliver the phone at 9am on Saturday morning. Unfortunately I was away for the weekend so went and got it from the sorting office this morning. I don't think I've ever had such good service from Orange. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ken Millar Posted November 7, 2005 Report Share Posted November 7, 2005 Hi, Well you MDA Vario users all seem to be happy bunnies! I am an Orange C500 user who is extremely interested in migrating to a Pocket PC based handset. As you will all know Orange are (by all accounts) not going to release their Vario (M3000) in the UK hence I have been looking to move to T-Mobile (Web'n'walk seems an amazingly good deal). Can you experts confirm whether the Pocket versions of Microsoft Word and Excel are included with the T-Mobile MDA Vario offering? Thanks KenM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Phil Lee Posted November 7, 2005 Report Share Posted November 7, 2005 Pocket Word and Excel are included in the OS so are on the Vario. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest SkUk21 Posted November 7, 2005 Report Share Posted November 7, 2005 hi guys - i cant seem to find the link to t-mobiles vario - can anyone please provide a link cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pondrew Posted November 8, 2005 Report Share Posted November 8, 2005 Fraid T-Mobile haven't updated their website with the Vario yet but it's available over the phone or from T-Mobile stores. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest tecinv Posted November 8, 2005 Report Share Posted November 8, 2005 You maybe interested in this thread: Wizard price watch - the cheapest wizard http://www.modaco.com/Wizard_cheapest_pric...h_-t231342.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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