PostFone - An Post Mobile

drunkmonkey

Another new entrant on the Vodafone network, http://www.postfone.ie/

No real offers yet, no data tarrifs...

Mimikyu

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drunkmonkey

I don't see any great offers coming, it's on the Vodafone network, not exactly the home of cheap calls.

Don't know why they didn't just start selling Vodafone in the post offices rather than start a whole new mvno. An post used to sell Vodafone/Eircell if I remember correctly.

Mimikyu

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Shelbo

drunkmonkey wrote: »

Another new entrant on the Vodafone network, http://www.postfone.ie/

No real offers yet, no data tarrifs...

Saw this in the post office last week - they're only offering 4 phones and a SIM so not a great offering - call & text rates are ok though compared to the big operators - they have matched Tesco Mobile on basic rates but they haven't given the double value credit offer on top ups that Tesco Mobile give so Tesco Mobile are much better value overall still.

No data tariffs yet - no doubt they will come in due course - if they want to match Tesco Mobile on that they'll have to be pretty competitive - you can use Tesco Mobile free double value credit for GPRS browing so you can browse plenty of pages for free in effect which is great or you can buy one of their data bundles - 50MB daily bundle for €0.79 or €2.99 for 350MB weekly bundle which are pretty good value compared to the others.

Random

more players in the market always welcomed from me

Can't read the link on my mobile. Do they get a new prefix or?

drunkmonkey

082 or 090?

Lay your bets gentlemen!

Sully

Is it genuine? That website looks awful.

Honda08

drunkmonkey wrote: »

082 or 090?

Lay your bets gentlemen!

its actually being run with 087 numbers!!

Random

Sully wrote: »

Is it genuine? That website looks awful.

% Rights restricted by copyright;
http://www.domainregistry.ie/Copyright.php
% Do not remove this notice

domain: postfone.ie
descr: An Post
descr: Statutory Body
descr: Discretionary Name
admin-c: AKR181-IEDR
tech-c: ENS2-IEDR
renewal: 26-February-2011
status: Active
nserver: AUTH01.NS.EIRCOM.NET
nserver: AUTH02.NS.EIRCOM.NET
nserver: AUTH03.NS.EIRCOM.NET
source: IEDR

person: John Cronin
nic-hdl: AKR181-IEDR
source: IEDR

person: Eircom Net System Dept.
nic-hdl: ENS2-IEDR
source: IEDR

would that verify it?

mossie

Sully wrote: »

Is it genuine? That website looks awful.

It is genuine. Talk and text only for now. Aimed more at older people and people who don't want their kids having internet access I think.

Shelbo

Random wrote: »

more players in the market always welcomed from me

Can't read the link on my mobile. Do they get a new prefix or?

You're right - competition & lower prices always welcome especially in these times!

You get an 087 no but you can keep your own no & port it if you like.

Random

and postfone is gonna show up on the screen of my phone or vodafone? are they completely independent of vodafone from a customer point of view?

Our man in Havana

Vodafone coverage at Tesco prices is win for me. Are SIMs actually available yet?

mossie

Haddockman wrote: »

Vodafone coverage at Tesco prices is win for me. Are SIMs actually available yet?

I work for An Post so I know a little about this. SIMs are available but it's being rolled out gradually. Most main POs should have them by now smaller offices will take a while. To start there will be 300 office nationwide stocking SIMs, depending on how it goes more will follow

Random wrote: »

and postfone is gonna show up on the screen of my phone or vodafone? are they completely independent of vodafone from a customer point of view?

It will show postfone. It will use the vodafone network and have 087 prefix but in all other ways is totally separate. Customer services, top-ups etc will hve nothing to do with vodafone.

ct5amr2ig1nfhp

30c for receiving a text while roaming (outside EU). Ouch.

Mimikyu

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Our man in Havana

Yes, it is free with every other network.

watty

Captain Morgan wrote: »

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Tesco use O2 backhaul and masts but have their own infrastructure, so not just a Tesco sticker on O2 network.

I find it hard to see how this will work. Is it simply Vodafone resold (unlike Tesco)?

Ironically eircom and An Post was once P+T.

Our man in Havana

Is this venture destined to go the same way as postbank, i.e. becomes non-viable and closes down after a year to 18 months leaving its' customers to find a new provider?

StephenM_smc

Haddockman wrote: »

Is this venture destined to go the same way as postbank, i.e. becomes non-viable and closes down after a year to 18 months leaving its' customers to find a new provider?

Or shutdown and re-appear under a different name (NIB customers use An Post branches for banking now)

Mimikyu

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Our man in Havana

I am surprised they did not take their own prefix. The use of 087 will likely lead to complaints from idiots that buy vodafone credit by mistake.

Mimikyu

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GenericName

I think the core network is being managed by these guys, completely separately from Vodafone.

http://www.aspidersolutions.com/news.asp?NID=50&MID=4

drunkmonkey

I reckon it's a major blunder on An Posts part, they should have got back into bed with Eircom and offered fixed line and Eircom mobile services and brought back the p&t model.
As the captain said it's a half arsed business but from vodafones view point it's a win even it's a failure as it insures an post can't get in bed with any other network for the next few years.
Eircom need a major high street outlet after the collapse of 3G, an post would have been perfect.

Gillo

Captain Morgan wrote: »

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Have to disagree there, it suits the market they are after, who only really want a phone for calls and some texts, preimarily the older end of the market who aren't really interested in high mega pixel camera's, browsing that interweb thing on a phone and GPS.
The model is very similiar to Tesco and that works for them.

Only bad point I can think of is the 087 prefix, that'll be a nightmare. Although there was a scheme a few years ago where you could buy a top-up voucher in the post office and it would work on any network strangely it never took off, so it's possible they have set up something similiar with Vodafone ie, the voucher will work for both Vodafone and Postfone.

ardmacha

The use of 087 will likely lead to complaints from idiots that buy vodafone credit by mistake.

At this stage a substantial amount of 087 numbers have been ported to Meteor, Three, O2 or Tesco anyway. You can't just say give me credit for 087 any more.

As for roaming in Canada, most people do not go to Canada or the US in a year. This service is not designed for the World Traveller, but for teenagers, grannys etc.

chrislad

I would assume that they have the facility for customers to reject incoming texts. The logic for being charged for calls is that it's your choice to accept/reject/divert so you are charged accordingly. With SMS, its received. Simple as.

Gillo

They have their rates advertised, so it people choice whether or not to use the phone. TBH it's a very small point to nitpick on, if anyone is that worried about recieving texts while abroad, just leave the phone off.

Mimikyu

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Gillo

It's a one small point out of the whole pricing structure, how long are most Postfone customer going to spend abroad each year compared to in Ireland where they are getting cheaper calls? The money they saves on calls and text in Ireland should easily off set the money spent to recieve the texts.
Alternatively, they could contact Postfone before going abroad and have texting disabled on their accout. Another option is someone is that worried about a couple of cent (in which case they really should be going on foreign holidays anyway), could tell all their friends and relatives to not text them while they are abroad.

At the end of the day they are doing a pretty good offering.

Mimikyu

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chrislad

Gillo wrote: »

They have their rates advertised, so it people choice whether or not to use the phone. TBH it's a very small point to nitpick on, if anyone is that worried about recieving texts while abroad, just leave the phone off.

That's BS of the highest order. The vast majority of people take their phones with them. Most will be aware of the charges and stick to them. Being charged for something you have no control over isn't right.

Gillo

chrislad wrote: »

That's BS of the highest order. The vast majority of people take their phones with them. Most will be aware of the charges and stick to them. Being charged for something you have no control over isn't right.

Yes I agree that most people would bring their phone with them although I don't that the majority will mind paying the charge you seem set on highlighting, and no I don't work for them.

ardmacha

Of course you mind paying for the "You are roaming on ****" and "You can call home by ringing ****" etc.

jesus_thats_gre

GenericName wrote: »

I think the core network is being managed by these guys, completely separately from Vodafone.

http://www.aspidersolutions.com/news.asp?NID=50&MID=4

Something like that

jesus_thats_gre

Captain Morgan wrote: »

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I would be surprised if you are charged for rec texts. You can't prevent people texting you like.

I know it is clear as day on the website but it is too retarded for me to accept as being the case.

Sam Vimes

jesus_thats_gre wrote: »

I would be surprised if you are charged for rec texts. You can't prevent people texting you like.

I know it is clear as day on the website but it is too retarded for me to accept as being the case.

It's standard practise in America afaik. For example: http://gthing.net/the-true-price-of-sms-messages

jwcurtin

Sam Vimes wrote: »

It's standard practise in America afaik. For example: http://gthing.net/the-true-price-of-sms-messages

Jaysus thats crazy, i send about 1500 texts (even more sometimes) a month, so if i receive a text for every text i send it would cost me $600 a month! Thank god for PAYG unlimited texts in Ireland! €20 well spent!;)

Davy

jwcurtin wrote: »

Jaysus thats crazy, i send about 1500 texts (even more sometimes) a month, so if i receive a text for every text i send it would cost me $600 a month! Thank god for PAYG unlimited texts in Ireland! €20 well spent!;)

Well the US does similar to us, like you are charged $1 a day for the first text, and free after that etc

jesus_thats_gre

jwcurtin wrote: »

Jaysus thats crazy, i send about 1500 texts (even more sometimes) a month, so if i receive a text for every text i send it would cost me $600 a month! Thank god for PAYG unlimited texts in Ireland! €20 well spent!;)

Oh I know. Thankfully, most of the practises over that side of the ocean weren't ever implemented over here. I like to think that those sort of practises are the reason that Europe's mobile networks developed at a far quicker rate than they did over there.

Our man in Havana

The whole pay for all calls received is mad.

Davy

jesus_thats_gre wrote: »

Oh I know. Thankfully, most of the practises over that side of the ocean weren't ever implemented over here. I like to think that those sort of practises are the reason that Europe's mobile networks developed at a far quicker rate than they did over there.

Its a condition of comreg and the EU that you receive texts for free while roaming in the EU. Sadly they cant control external EU roaming

snubbleste

Just been looking at www.postfone.ie
It seems to be expensive compared to other networks, not even competing imo

Our man in Havana

I just switched to Postfone. I am delighted to have Vodafone coverage at Tesco prices.
Better than those crazy O2 charges.

ingen

Haddockman wrote: »

I just switched to Postfone. I am delighted to have Vodafone coverage at Tesco prices.
Better than those crazy O2 charges.

except you dont get double the credit that you do with tesco mobile

Our man in Havana

The "double" credit on Tesco is only valid for 30 days.

ingen

Haddockman wrote: »

The "double" credit on Tesco is only valid for 30 days.

yes i know that, but when making calls the double "bonus" credit gets used up first out of interest, what does it say on the screen of the fone for the network name?

Our man in Havana

It says Postfone.

drunkmonkey

Can you get onto the interweb?

I'm currently paying 4.8 cent a minute with a free gig of data, they'd want to get a lot cheaper before I'll be making the switch..