Orange going down hill

[Guest hugekebab]

I agree.

I've been thinking of ditching Orange lately.

The main problems I can see at the moment are:

1. a lack of decent handsets (im hoping this will change with the spv m3100 rumour.)

2. bad contracts, a lack of flexibility; they desperatly need a web and walk facility, 3g pdas are effectively useless without an unlimited surf for a reasonable price, this is probably going to be what forces me to go

with T-Mobile.

I spent around 1200 pounds last year with them, and with the spvm5000 the most they would offer me was 400 minutes a month with no bandwidth or texts included...pathetic, because I have proven to them that I will outspend my contract, so they are simply losing out by not offering me anything better...sent the m5000 back after I realised how bloody huge it was...was a throwback to eighties filofaxs imo.

oh and hello everyone this is my first post. :)

[Guest pd.ryder]

Well HELLO hugekebab and impy78. Welcome to the forum.

Roll-on HTC's Hermes (MDA Vario II). Ah, wifi, 3G, WM5, ahhhhh.....

[Guest impy78]

Well HELLO hugekebab and impy78. Welcome to the forum.

Roll-on HTC's Hermes (MDA Vario II). Ah, wifi, 3G, WM5, ahhhhh.....

Thanks!!!

Roll on Wednesday when my local phone repair shop gets the right cable to debrand my N70, I say!

[Guest Darko8472]

I agree with most of what's been said already, so I won't throw any other opinions into the pot :)

If it weren't for the fact that I recently signed up for another 18 mnth contract, I'd be asking for my PAC code right now. T-Mobile has some pretty sweet deals on at the moment... but meh. 17 months to go :/

[Guest pd.ryder]

i think the writings not only on the wall its well & truely dried !!!.

Like it :) , and Welcome.

[Guest toon9]

Over the past three weeks I have gone through the motions of cancelling Orange care insurance, dropping to lowest tariff (?19) on both the handsets I have had connected to Orange for the past 9-10 years.

I then, again with boths handsets, applied for the PAC codes and bought out my contract 3 monoths early.

Not on a single occassion was I asked by any Orange CS rep why I was doing this.

I hasten to add that it turned out to be cheaper to buy out my contract than continue and pay the rental 'til the end of my contract - how did that work..............don't ask me !!! (Maybe they screwed up - but my maths isn't that bad - it was definately cheaper)

I was on ?19 tariff, for May and June = ?38.

Two handsets = ?38 * 2 = ?76.

Well I was charged ?66.44 to "buy out"

They simply do not care...........

[Guest shenson]

Asked to transfer my Orange ED50+access pack contract to PAYG myself last week. I used my mobile almost exclusively for internet access and until now that was the best way I could see at a reasonably price. Though the occasional ?1 on the unlimited PAYG GPRS would come close.

It is of course now completely blown away by the T-mobile unlimited GPRS which works out at ?15 a month on SIM only and ?17.50 when the pro version becomes available. I'll probably cancel that and go to a more regular tariff when the right 3G deal comes along: though I have to say that MDA Pro is very tempting.

I spoke to Orange retentions and thought I'd tell them about my internet use to which the reply was "so you use WAP a lot?". I gave up at that point. I think the old phrase about "will the last person out please turn off the lights" seems appropriate here.

[Guest raiderz]

Last month I rang OCS up for an upgrade for my cousin (he hadn't ever haggled before) he was using his phone for business use but was on normal domestic user, they said they couldn't match 3 at all and he would have to pay ?59 for the phone and that was the best they could do.

I rang them back, asked what to do to become a business customer, they wanted a fax of his cheque book and letterhead.

Waited 2 days rang them back asked the same question about upgrading, but this time to the small business support team and it wasn't a problem, they matched and bettered the 3 deal and gave him the phone for free.

What amazes me is he wasn't paying any extra at all, on the same tarriff, whether domestic or small business user, but OCS seem to treat people differently.