Network Change Dilemma

[Jonny M]

I am currently on PAYG with Orange and a Nokia 6100, and having just realised I topped up about £25 in the last three weeks, have decided it's Contract Time [TM].

Now, I really like the Nokia 6230i, don't care about 3G, and just want a nice smallish phone. O2 are currently doing a deal where the 6230i is free on any contract, and this seems ideal.

My only problem is that Orange have been amazing, are O2 a lot worse? Are they £190 which the 6230i would cost on Orange worse? I can appriciate a tiny loss in customer service quality, but if O2 are a complete joke then there's no way I'd consider them. T-Mobile don't have a decent enough signal in my area to make it worth me going with them, and I just plain don't like Vodafone.

Also I'd rather buy straight from the networks' online store than through somewhere else, it just makes everything easier.

Thanks

[Aaron]

O2's online deals are great, especially if you're a heavy texter.

Their customer service is... OK. I can deal with it but phoning them is very preferable to e-mailing them if you want something sorted.

They've managed to mess me about when it comes to GPRS usage, but the error has always been in my favour. I just worry that one day they'll ask me for all the money I'm supposed to owe them.

[Jonny M]

Looks like I'll be porting into O2 when I've used up the credit on my Orange SIM then.

[Gunbuster]

I'm in a similar-ish position. I'm on Orange's Virgin Equivalent tariff, I need a new phone at some point. Orange don't do contracts as low as £19 a month with a free phone. I don't spend alot, but the o2 deals seem pretty good and they don't overbrand their phones like Orange do now. I tried the Orange K750i and the icons look plain horrific. So is o2 any good for the Edinburgh/Fife area?

[MD]

personally you cannot touch orange when compared to the o2 service, ESPECIALLY if doing it online, as with o2 you pay 50p a minute to call customer service, hence whey the online contacts are soo cheap.

personally, the best bet is the online tarrif from orange, 200 xnet minutes, 500 texts, free phone (D500, poss K750i but they oos at the mo etc etc) all for £30 a month, and thats like £50 worth of texts a month alone.

Don't go to o2 if you want to have both good reception and service, the online contract cost you more in the long run tbh.

m@

[Jonny M]

Also I've just found out that I can go on the Orange Student deal thing with a UCAS number, I don't need a NUS number.

So I'm sorted now.

[Aaron]

If you're a student then Orange are the way to go for sure.

personally you cannot touch orange when compared to the o2 service, ESPECIALLY if doing it online, as with o2 you pay 50p a minute to call customer service, hence whey the online contacts are soo cheap.

Apparently O2 are changing their customer service number to a national rate number. I got an e-mail from them the other day.

I also agree with Gunbuster about branding. Orange put really crappy customer software on their phones and brand the hell out of them. O2's branding is very minimal and their phones are often unlocked.

[Jonny M]

Can't be as bad as Vodafone though.

[MurphmanL]

Can't be as bad as Vodafone though.

Vodafone aren't too bad at branding some of their newer phone i've found. For example the Nokia 6680 from them has a small vodafone logo on the front, and a small one on the back. Nothing that can't be lived with
As far as software goes it starts out completely vodafone branded, with crappy icons and that awful red colour, and the annoying "How Are You?" 3g startup screen.
One thing they've failed to do though is stop users from changing the phone appearance, so it is possible to completely unbrand the software side of things making my 6680 more or less the same as everyone elses. Only thing you cant get rid of are stupid Vodafone Live! Links in the Go To screen, which i never use anyway

[Nemeliza]

Apparently O2 are changing their customer service number to a national rate number. I got an e-mail from them the other day.

I also agree with Gunbuster about branding. Orange put really crappy customer software on their phones and brand the hell out of them. O2's branding is very minimal and their phones are often unlocked.

Yes the number is now national rate.

O2 dont lock pay monthly handsets, only the pay and go handsets come locked.

[Atomic]

Can't be as bad as Vodafone though.

If its an SE phone and on voda then it'll be crippled. Idiots ruining good phones like that.

[Vimeous]

Glad to hear some people actually liking Orange support. Until now all I've ever heard are rants about how abysmal it is.

Personally I'm an O2 contract user and have been for 8 years.
I've found their support tends to be dependant on which company actually services your contract. In my case they always been fast and efficient and reasonably product savvy.

The Good and the Bad:
Good
Reception
It often surprises me how strong O2's signal usually is. Granted they suffer problems like all networks but in the distant lands I sometimes visit (Darkest Cornishwall) O2 have always given me better coverage than friends and family using Orange and Vodaphone.

Unlocked Phones
I've never had a locked phone from O2. If you're a serial phone-changer this makes your used handset alot more saleable as unlocking some models can be an exercise in pure frustration. Also if you happen to want a dual-SIM battery for contract and PAYG SIMs then buying O2 contract would save you all the unlocking hassles.

Bad
Upgrade Cost
My sister on the same contract but with a different division of O2 was offered a free phone and a week later I was told the same model would be £80. Of course once I'd highlighted the disparity the price vanished but I shouldn't have had to push them as hard as I did.

Phone Availability
If you like Nokia, Samsung and Sony you're sorted. However my GF wants a Siemens so she'll have to buy it separately if she wants to stay with O2 PAYG. I'm a Nokia fan so I'm fine.

Of course allthis reminds me I want to upgrade! Now a 6680 or a N90 ....... hmmmm