o2 and why you should not use them

Overheal

void rant () {

Right i've been pissed with 02's charge costs for a while so today when the phone went try I decide its time to switch to Meteor.

Friday. Carlow Town. 13:30.

So I goes to the o2 shop to get the phone unlocked and the first words out of the woman's mouth are "We don't unlock phones here. Go to [shop]."

So I go to [shop] which is a dodgey looking place where I've only ever gone to get a hashpipe (next to Penny's). "Phones Unlocked Here!". Grand.
Get in, and the shopkeeper is a strange awl guy whos talking to some customers trying to outright rob them of their sense "Can I sell you this? Can I sell you that?"
And, he wanted me to leave my phone with him for 4 hours while he did who knows what else to it. All for the bargain fee of 25e.

Fcuk that, says I.

So I goes to the 02 shop and after I explained to her how stupid it is to be sending people [there!] and she says oh ok then you can call Customer Service. Oh! how lovely. Leave the shop, p*ssed off with your one, ring the customer care up - sorry you have insufficient credit for this call. Its customer Service, you bastards! I already pay you enough tripe!

So I go to Meteor and fill them in. they let me use their courtesy phone and after wrestling with automated menus for a few minutes I get onto another girl that starts to get through the unlocking process (yay!) when she goes 'oh sorry - I see on your account you need to top-up by an extra 22.50e before I can unlock your phone (total 150).' I had the phone switched off billpay a few months ago and they refused to account for the 4 years I was paying them heaps for that.

Basically, fcuk off o2: use anything else. they overcharge and their deals arent anything special and they are complete bastards when you want to switch service.

} // end rant

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

everyone is a complete bastard when you try to switch service.

biko

Get vodafone people! /shill

Cathmandooo

*flashback flashback* A few years ago I was doing the same, switching from O2 to Meteor - Needed phone unblocked, it took about a month of constant phonecalls to get them b*stards to unblock my phone, head wrecking!! I'd never go near them again :mad:

I love Meteor!!!!!!!

connundrum

I found Vodafone were more than happy to see me leave.

Maybe it was because I would complain on a weekly basis about customer service, signal strength, dropped calls, double charging for texts, the price of texts, the standard of phones available etc.

Give up mobiles altogether. You'll feel better for it, and the cancer won't get ya.

Cool_CM

Meteor aren't much better mate, when i switched over from 02 a few years ago 02 were grand with giving me my unlocking code, took about a week or 2, when i actually changed my number over, some idiot at meteor brought over a number that resembled my number but with the last 2 digits swapped around, which effectively meant not only did i still have my number on o2, but i also had somebody elses 02 number given to me, I wasn't very impressed and neither were they, it took about a week for meteor to sort out. Aside from that they're grand but i've been waiting for my phone unlocking codes from them now for about 2 months.

Cathmandooo

Mordeth wrote: »

everyone is a complete bastard when you try to switch service.

The people in Carphone Warehouse all said O2 are the worst, but I'm sure they all have an element of trying not to lost your custom, naturally

jobonar

When i switched from Vodafone to Meteor i rang Meteor and they took care of everything. No problems

kf1920

I bought a sim free phone, awhile back

Or so i thought, when i went to change over to meteor, my phone was locked to O2!!! WTF

i had already asked meteor to change the number over, so while it took O2 ages to fix this i had to do without my phone on a bank holiday weekend!

Down with O2!

ScumLord

I would have thought meteor would be happy to unlock it for you considering they're getting a new customer, quick easy sales is all they want I suupose. Never had any trouble with Vodafone it's always yes sir we'll do that straight away sir.

Mr. Incognito

Vodafone are also arseholes. I had so much trouble with them when I was leaving (basically some twerp mis-sold me on this 300 mins lark) that their customer service refunded me 100 off my last bill. three months later I get a solicitors letter from a credit control company chasing me for the 100 which they hadn't credited and had sold onto a third party debt collector.
It took me two weeks of phonecalls to get it sorted and the only reason they credited it in the end was because they lost their replies to my complaints.

Never never again- meteor- never one problem.

Also, funny this should come up. That happened to me a year ago (and I have the responses to prove it) and only today my mother cancelled her vodafone bill after they hadn't credited her last payment and cut her off, a new metor customer right there.

MOH

Cathooo wrote: »

The people in Carphone Warehouse all said O2 are the worst, but I'm sure they all have an element of trying not to lost your custom, naturally

In my experience, the people at Carphone Warehouse are the worst.

Rb

Cathooo wrote: »

The people in Carphone Warehouse all said O2 are the worst, but I'm sure they all have an element of trying not to lost your custom, naturally

Yeah but in fairness, what difference does it make to the customer service agent at the end of the line?They're not working on commission, they're not getting bonuses for customer retention, there's absolutely no need for them to act the bollocks.

The only time commission would come into it is for new business, i.e new phone sales/contracts, which certainly isn't applicable in service switching.

The only issue would be the actual switching process, if O2 made it an extremely difficult process and were hiring absolutely simpletons, however I'm sure getting a phone unlocked isn't the hardest thing to be doing so at the end of the day, it's just O2 staff acting the bollocks.

manc

do a search for something like "free remote mobile phone unlocking" and you might get sorted. Operators use the same technology to unlock your phone.

you get 3 or 5 attempts before you can no longer unlock it remotely, but that just means you go to a phone shop with "Phones Unlocked Here!", there is one on Camden street that use to do it for €15 that will do a hardware unlock with a pc.

Sam Vimes

Cathooo wrote: »

The people in Carphone Warehouse all said O2 are the worst, but I'm sure they all have an element of trying not to lost your custom, naturally

i've always found o2 to be the best for unlocking tbh

manc wrote: »

do a search for something like "free remote mobile phone unlocking" and you might get sorted. Operators use the same technology to unlock your phone.

you get 3 or 5 attempts before you can no longer unlock it remotely, but that just means you go to a phone shop with "Phones Unlocked Here!", there is one on Camden street that use to do it for 15 that will do a hardware unlock with a pc.

that only works for certain models of nokia phones

Overheal

no fcuk it: I had no time today and had **** to be doing: I just topped the phone for 25 there. damn them to hell.

trellheim

Switching is made deliberately difficult despite Comreg trying to simplify it.

spiritcrusher

Switched from O2 to meteor a few years ago, rang up O2 to get the unblock code said they'd ring me back in one or two days with it. Waited a week, rang them they had the code right there (obviously trying to squeez the few extra quid outta me). Switched to meteor then that day, no bother.

Terry

Switched from AH.

flywheel

and moved from Mobiles / PDAs

neilled

To be quite honest, each network makes f***ups. I've worked for o2 in the past and now flog products for a number of different operators and each of them have customer service issues with overcharging, customer support that don't know how to send settings, porting.

It happens. If I were to give opinions about the networks it would go in order.

O2 - probably the best all round in terms of priceplans and handsets right now and in customer care. I have no particular reason to like them as they wouldn't allow me to stay on when i went back to college but in general I feel they're the best.

Vodafone - big red giants. The corporate network and the network for customers with higher usage. New data addon good value but their phones are horribly customised and customer service is a tad cold fish.

Meteor - The young pretender with a giant of a big brother lurking over its shoulder to back it up (eircom). CS has a habit of screwups, provides good value but still suffers from its early reputation of having poor coverage. Lack of high end handsets a factor.

Three - theoretically should be the networks for nerds, techies and students. Offer good value plans, some pretty innovative services but lousy customer service and billing keeps screwing it up for them. Keep on going like this and they'll keep their market share static. Yes I'm a customer of theirs and intend on staying.

Stepherunie

I've always found O2 great for unlocking - the only time i had any hassle was when the IMEI didn't match on my account to the phone I was using as I had returned one and never updated my account.

Customer Service just said change it online and ring back tomorrow. However it wouldn't let me do it myself so I rang back and not only did the change the IMEI but they gave me the unlocking code there and then. Last time i needed the code the guy emailed me the full information as to how to access the unlocking panel and the code just to make sure i had it all there.

This is in contrast to my two friend who were in College in Greece for three months. They were on Meteor and despite ringing in the 2 months before they went away they got there codes about 6 weeks into their 12 week trip after many phonecalls to meteor.

Sponge Bob

All the above named operators and even the scummy carphone warehouse are all upstanding and gentlemanly when compared to the AWFUL pit of despair that is the 3 Ireland network and customer 'service'experience.

Our man in Havana

Sponge Bob wrote: »

All the above named operators and even the scummy carphone warehouse are all upstanding and gentlemanly when compared to the AWFUL pit of despair that is the 3 Ireland network and customer 'service'experience.

Very well put, Bob.

Chiaki

when i was working for meteor we used to have war with o2 and vodafone but i always made sure i got codes/phone numbers etc. best way to deal with the phone operators is to keep names and ask for supervisors. eventually you will get results, usually within an hour

IncredibleHulk

Chiaki wrote: »

when i was working for meteor we used to have war with o2 and vodafone but i always made sure i got codes/phone numbers etc. best way to deal with the phone operators is to keep names and ask for supervisors. eventually you will get results, usually within an hour

Anyone tried Tesco phone?

Sully

Overheal wrote: »

void rant () {

Right i've been pissed with 02's charge costs for a while so today when the phone went try I decide its time to switch to Meteor.

A lot of people find Meteor ****e, and 10x worse then O2. You didnt switch to the best of networks :P

Friday. Carlow Town. 13:30.

So I goes to the o2 shop to get the phone unlocked and the first words out of the woman's mouth are "We don't unlock phones here. Go to [shop]."

So I go to [shop] which is a dodgey looking place where I've only ever gone to get a hashpipe (next to Penny's). "Phones Unlocked Here!". Grand.
Get in, and the shopkeeper is a strange awl guy whos talking to some customers trying to outright rob them of their sense "Can I sell you this? Can I sell you that?"
And, he wanted me to leave my phone with him for 4 hours while he did who knows what else to it. All for the bargain fee of 25e.

Fcuk that, says I.

As far as I know, O2 Shops dont unlock mobiles. You have to make a request with Customer Service, who I believe request it of the phone makers (or something similar). So, the lady in the shop decided to make your life that bit easier and recommend you head down to an unlocking shop (most of which arent anywhere near professionalism, but thats to be expected in such a shop). I think 25euro is a good price, and most shops charge depending on the phone as some are harder to unlock then others.

So I goes to the 02 shop and after I explained to her how stupid it is to be sending people [there!] and she says oh ok then you can call Customer Service. Oh! how lovely. Leave the shop, p*ssed off with your one, ring the customer care up - sorry you have insufficient credit for this call. Its customer Service, you bastards! I already pay you enough tripe!

You do need to call Customer Service. But, most O2 Shops make the call for you in the shop - but maybe some type of requests need to be done by the customer.

So I go to Meteor and fill them in. they let me use their courtesy phone and after wrestling with automated menus for a few minutes I get onto another girl that starts to get through the unlocking process (yay!) when she goes 'oh sorry - I see on your account you need to top-up by an extra 22.50e before I can unlock your phone (total 150).' I had the phone switched off billpay a few months ago and they refused to account for the 4 years I was paying them heaps for that.

Basically, fcuk off o2: use anything else. they overcharge and their deals arent anything special and they are complete bastards when you want to switch service.

} // end rant

No supprises there.. Meteor will be glad of a new customer and 9 times out of 10 will do anything to get you in. Standard realy. All networks have a policy that you need to spend X amount of money before they will give out unlocking codes.. I guess you didnt spend much credit while with them so didnt hit their target.

It resets on every upgrade I believe.

At the end of the day, what you described is normal with most networks in Ireland. O2 and Vodafone would be the leading networks probably, with O2 being the cheapest. Iv always found there customer service to be very good along with Vodafone - who are that bit more expensive.

Iv to laugh about Vodafone though. My mother had awful problems with her upgrade from them, and they werent very helpful so she decided to terminate her contract and paid up what was requested by them. A few weeks later she got threatning letters in the post about money owed etc.. I do believe the last contact was when she told them she is paid fully up and all further accusations will result in legal action.

Hitchhiker's Guide to...

three are woefully bad - had to leave them after too many conversations with their customer 'service' department gave me too many headaches

meteor seem to be the best

rainbowtrout

i think from what i remember of my time working in the o2 call centre that they will give out unlock codes if your sim card needs to be replaced, whether that be because it was damaged or lost.

100gSoma

Lads, maybe I can get some real opinions here... I use my phone for surfing mostly. Sky news and the like. mobile sites like gmail mobile, and google mobile etc.

anyway, O2 charge me 9.99euro a month for 10mb of surfing quota. 10mb!!!!

three offer 250mb per month for 9.99euro!

now I understand everyone is saying three are terrible, but with prices like that, how can they be? They also offer me 200 minutes anytime any network minutes. O2 are terrible on price. total rip off.

Vodafone / Meteor / Three all offer cheaper surfing from your phone. why are O2 so tight with data charges? surely there is alot of you out there iwth N series nokias etc who like to surf ebay or google on the phone. how do you manage it price wise?

all feedback appreciated

LuckyStar

neilled wrote: »

To be quite honest, each network makes f***ups. I've worked for o2 in the past and now flog products for a number of different operators and each of them have customer service issues with overcharging, customer support that don't know how to send settings, porting.

It happens. If I were to give opinions about the networks it would go in order.

O2 - probably the best all round in terms of priceplans and handsets right now and in customer care. I have no particular reason to like them as they wouldn't allow me to stay on when i went back to college but in general I feel they're the best.

Vodafone - big red giants. The corporate network and the network for customers with higher usage. New data addon good value but their phones are horribly customised and customer service is a tad cold fish.

Meteor - The young pretender with a giant of a big brother lurking over its shoulder to back it up (eircom). CS has a habit of screwups, provides good value but still suffers from its early reputation of having poor coverage. Lack of high end handsets a factor.

Three - theoretically should be the networks for nerds, techies and students. Offer good value plans, some pretty innovative services but lousy customer service and billing keeps screwing it up for them. Keep on going like this and they'll keep their market share static. Yes I'm a customer of theirs and intend on staying.

I have gone from O2 to Vodafone to Meteor and back to O2 again and always got the phone unlocked first time over the phone.

O2 are the best network, great customer care, nice phones and their Freedom price plan is good.

Vodafone are ridiculously expensive, a lot of their phones have VODAFONE written all over them and as far as I remember they charge for voicemail?

Meteor were terrible, granted they are cheap but the signal let me down- I had coverage absolutely everywhere exceot my own house. Also my free texts were never free. 10 phonecalls with my head out the window too many and I went back to O2.
I will say though that Meteor had this great thing of texting you whenever you missed a call, even if your phone was off or out of signal (:rolleyes:)- that was great, wish O2 had it!!

Our man in Havana

I have just moved from 3 to o2. I find their Freedom price plan great and signal is far better than meteor. As said Vodafone is ridiculously expensive. Vodafone do give you free voice mail but I never use it so its no use to me. I have never had a problem with o2.

dotsman

I have just moved from O2 to Three. Was with O2 for years and never had any problems with them (cheaper than Vodaphone). Never tried Meteor, I think their reputation for ****e coverage when they first started up is still in my mind - and I hate their ads! I only went with Three because they are much cheaper than all the others.

Anyway. Loads of customer service problems with Three. They really are a bunch of amateurs. Took almost a month from when I first applied until I got the actual phone. Absolutely no problem with switching my number from O2 - took about 10 minutes.

If, however, Three's customer service continues to be as bad as I have so far experienced, I will go straight back to O2 with open arms.

I have to say though, now that I am (eventually) all set up, Three's products do seem great!

As regards who's cheapest? It all depends on your usage, but if you play around with callcosts.ie, for the various variations of my usage it tends to be Three, followed by Meteor (about 25% more expensive), closely followed by O2 (a further 5% more expensive), followed by Vodaphone (maybe a further 10% more expensive).

As regards Customer Service, I think (and this is not just for mobile phones) that it's all down to luck. 7 years with O2 and never a problem, a month with Three and loads of big problems! O2 must be doing something right!

Oh and op? I don't think your issues with unblocking phones was anything to do with O2, from my (small) knowledge on the matter, I don't think any of the O2, Vodaphone, Three (are their Meteor?) shops unblock phones. The question is - should you not have gotten a new (better) phone when switching to Meteor? That was one of the reasons that Three tempted me.

blackbelt

The bastards rang me up to tell me how much I use my phone and offered that they give me a bill phone on "special offer".The deal sounded ok but 1)I have reservations over using a bill phone as I want to know exactly how much I'm using/not taking liberties texting/ringing and 2)I don't want them taking direct debit from my account as I don't trust the bastards.

When I was talking to them over the phone,I asked if they could do me a special rate on international texts as my gf is from Italy and over 90% of texts are to there and they said no.7 years of being an 02 customer who tops up every few days.

Very soon,I may switch to Meteor.At least I can get free texts and calls to some people every month by only spending 20 euro.

the_syco

Commander Vimes wrote: »

that only works for certain models of nokia phones

All phones cept the newer BB5 phones can be unlocked by flashing, I think.

=-=

o2 myself. CS is so-so. Usually half decent, and the shop staff are generally OK.

Went from Eircell, to Meteor, to o2. So far, o2 has the best coverage and the price plans are generally ok. Loved Meteors "top-ups" that they'd give you if you spent X amount in one month. Had €30 of unused credit on the phone when I left Meteor: their service was so dire that I could never use the credit, and Meteor to Meteor phone calls usually broke down after 2 minutes 50 seconds.

=-=

Finally, OP, I do hope you use the Calling Cards when calling you other half, and that you use the online texts as much as you can?

Saint_Mel

If your on SpeakEasy and want to avoid the €150 top-up rule just
tell them you are going to China on holidays and will be getting a
local sim card there. O2 do not have a roaming deal with China so
they will unlock the handset for you.

I did this last week and had my unlock code read out to me approx
2 minutes after making the call.