iPhone 4 on Three Ireland Network.

Kaskade

I have been on o2 for the last two years and the data coverage was very good but I often dropped calls. It was really annoying so as soon as I got out of the o2 contract I was straight over to vodafone to find that they were worse. No Edge and voice quality was not good when on 3g. Really there is no perfect network I am now learning.

I have just been speaking to somebody in three technical support. He said that the big switch on Friday to turn on data on 2g didn't work properly and they are trying to fix all the cells that are still not allowing data. He also said that a carrier update will be issued to fix the problem where the phone goes to 2g when there is sufficient 3g coverage. Seemingly the iphone goes to the 2g network to save battery by default but that needs to be stopped for Ireland as we dont have a proper 2g network. I have 10 days left before I have to leave so hopefully it will be fixed within that time and I can stay.

culabula

Kaskade wrote: »

I have been on o2 for the last two years and the data coverage was very good but I often dropped calls. It was really annoying so as soon as I got out of the o2 contract I was straight over to vodafone to find that they were worse. No Edge and voice quality was not good when on 3g. Really there is no perfect network I am now learning.

I have just been speaking to somebody in three technical support. He said that the big switch on Friday to turn on data on 2g didn't work properly and they are trying to fix all the cells that are still not allowing data. He also said that a carrier update will be issued to fix the problem where the phone goes to 2g when there is sufficient 3g coverage. Seemingly the iphone goes to the 2g network to save battery by default but that needs to be stopped for Ireland as we dont have a proper 2g network. I have 10 days left before I have to leave so hopefully it will be fixed within that time and I can stay.

I am sure the carrier update is is no small way to blame for some of the problems being experienced:

Fact: a 3IRL SIM performs much better on 3UK in Belfast that it does 'natively' in say, Dublin.
Fact: a 3UK SIM performs better in Dublin then a 3IRL SIM (3UK carrier file is at 7.2)
Fact: A 3 Italy SIM outperforms all of them all over the 32 counties on 3IRL/UK.

oceanclub

BOCH TRADE wrote: »

EDITED

It helps if you spam, not to make it so obvious.

I like it not very much.

P.

Kaskade

culabula wrote: »

I am sure the carrier update is is no small way to blame for some of the problems being experienced:

Fact: a 3IRL SIM performs much better on 3UK in Belfast that it does 'natively' in say, Dublin.
Fact: a 3UK SIM performs better in Dublin then a 3IRL SIM (3UK carrier file is at 7.2)
Fact: A 3 Italy SIM outperforms all of them all over the 32 counties on 3IRL/UK.

If the carrier update is causing such issues what is taking them so long to sort it out. Surely three are loosing massive money with all the iphone users opting out of their contract as a result of the data issues? I really hope it gets sorted. I am already on my third network within a month!!!!

culabula

Kaskade wrote: »

If the carrier update is causing such issues what is taking them so long to sort it out. Surely three are loosing massive money with all the iphone users opting out of their contract as a result of the data issues? I really hope it gets sorted. I am already on my third network within a month!!!!

Agreed.

corklad32

Anyone know if you can quit Vodafone/O2 within 14 days if the service isn't up to what you need?

seamus

corklad32 wrote: »

Anyone know if you can quit Vodafone/O2 within 14 days if the service isn't up to what you need?

If you order online you have 14 days by law to return the item to them with no penalty.

There might be an obligatory 7 days change-of-mind allowed on contracts signed in-store.

Kaskade

corklad32 wrote: »

Anyone know if you can quit Vodafone/O2 within 14 days if the service isn't up to what you need?

I don't know what their policy is but I know it is a lot harder than it is with 3. A friend bought a vodafone iphone4 yesterday, went home last night to find that the mic doesn't work, went back in to day to find out that they wouldn't exchange the phone they sent it off for repair. I would be livid. I thought all phone shops did a 14 day exchange if something was faulty let alone if you change your mind.

Irish fanboy

Apple are insisting that iphone 4 bought on any network with problems must be returned to apple only.They have a rapid replacement service were you will have a new phone in 2 days via UPS.It costs 29euro or a standard 7-10 replacement program which is free.
This phone is driving people insane.

discombobulate

Well in a reversal of what i've said earlier I decided to stay with 3 and the iPhone 4 and seems to be working great for me the last few days since doing the GPRS thingy described a bit earlier.

Kaskade

Irish fanboy wrote: »

Apple are insisting that iphone 4 bought on any network with problems must be returned to apple only.They have a rapid replacement service were you will have a new phone in 2 days via UPS.It costs 29euro or a standard 7-10 replacement program which is free.
This phone is driving people insane.

Thats bad form though, anything is bought with a fault should be exchanged straight away by the shop. I worked in mobile phone retail years ago and the policy was always 14 day exchange for pay as you go faulty phones and 28 days for post paid. I would be livid if that happened to me. We bought 2 business iphones from 3 and the speaker doesn't work with one and they are just sending out a replacement.

Seems to be a lot of issues with them, apple care could be €70 well spent.

Furp

I have been using my three ie Iphone in London for almost two weeks and I have had not issues whats so ever, except when I got back to Dublin at the weekend and the phone locked up around 3 times, then required a hard reset.

culabula

Furp wrote: »

I have been using my three ie Iphone in London for almost two weeks and I have had not issues whats so ever, except when I got back to Dublin at the weekend and the phone locked up around 3 times, then required a hard reset.

Exactly, performing much better on 3UK.

squonk

The latest in my saga is that I returned the iPhone 4 to them on the 8th. of August. I checked the tracker on the AnPost site, saw it was delivered, was happy and rang back now to 3 to pay the bill they sent me, along with a few questions as they said they were charging me for one month's contract usage, which I didn't use at all as I'd only had the phone about 24 hours.

The indian lady I spoke to told me they had no record of the phone being returned. I gave her my tracking number and left it at that. They are a complete shower of wasters these lot. I have, at least, my tracking data to hand and they certainly won't be getting any payments for a contract out of me as, as far as I'm concerned, I've fulfilled my end of the things by returning the phone via registered post. A bunch of monkeys could run a better service.

paulhaze

I ported my 085 in to 3 i assume its going to be a disaster trying to port to 086 or 087 [/QUOTE]

I am now up to 48 hours without a phone number since I left 3 and tried to port my number to Vodaphone, and they have just told me it will be this time tomorrow before anything happens, grrrrr

corklad32

Ugh to be honest at this stage ill take an o2 or vodafone number for a day or 2 whilst mine is ported back off 3 - as long as i can get out of the contract with this absolute shower of f***ing wasters

squonk

Sadly they're in charge of the National Broadband Scheme.http://www.dcenr.gov.ie/Communications/Communications+Development/National+Broadband+Scheme.htm

Not sure what the govt. means by 100% coverage because, what 3 are providing is rubbish right now. Surely they don't count GPRS? if they do it's proof once again that the govt. can't tie their shoe because they don't really get the concept of a shoe in the first place.

blaz

culabula wrote: »

I am sure the carrier update is is no small way to blame for some of the problems being experienced:

Fact: a 3IRL SIM performs much better on 3UK in Belfast that it does 'natively' in say, Dublin.
Fact: a 3UK SIM performs better in Dublin then a 3IRL SIM (3UK carrier file is at 7.2)
Fact: A 3 Italy SIM outperforms all of them all over the 32 counties on 3IRL/UK.

There is absolutely nothing in the carrier update that would have anything to do with the phone switching from 2G to 3G. Looking at the 3 UK carrier file, it is very similar to the 3 IRL carrier file, with the exception of the APNs for obvious reasons. There is no switch in any carrier file that could cause what you are describing above.

cian1500ww

blaz wrote: »

There is absolutely nothing in the carrier update that would have anything to do with the phone switching from 2G to 3G. Looking at the 3 UK carrier file, it is very similar to the 3 IRL carrier file, with the exception of the APNs for obvious reasons. There is no switch in any carrier file that could cause what you are describing above.

Well there's one way to find out, maybe someone could try using the 3 UK carrier file with the Irish APN's ??

fbradyirl

cian1500ww wrote: »

Well there's one way to find out, maybe someone could try using the 3 UK carrier file with the Irish APN's ??

Impossible. The carrier files are digitally signed, and as of 4.0, the iPhone will ignore the file if it is modified at all, so it won't work.

Believe me. I've tried.

cian1500ww

fbradyirl wrote: »

Impossible. The carrier files are digitally signed, and as of 4.0, the iPhone will ignore the file if it is modified at all, so it won't work.

Believe me. I've tried.

Bugger, whats the name of 3 irelands carrier file ?

culabula

blaz wrote: »

There is absolutely nothing in the carrier update that would have anything to do with the phone switching from 2G to 3G. Looking at the 3 UK carrier file, it is very similar to the 3 IRL carrier file, with the exception of the APNs for obvious reasons. There is no switch in any carrier file that could cause what you are describing above.

All I described is how well these very SIMs perform or don't perform. Something is responsible for it, I don't know what it is. 3IRL have definitely screwed a lot of things recently. For example, it now takes from Newry to Portadown to get the SIM back on-net and from Newry to Dundalk to do the same in the opposite direction. However, no such problems are incurred by a 3UK or 3ITA SIM.

In addition, since last week's (bungled, allegedly) upgrade, all sorts of odd little charges have appeared on my bill ranging from 2c to 41c, yet none of them should be there. Furthermore, my 3ITA SIM has lost all its credit where it has been happily roaming for 3 months without charge on 3 Like Home.

Besides, somewhere else, it's reported that 3 are apparently bringing out a new carrier file to fix things. Why, if it will do nothing (and of course, if it's true)?

blaz

cian1500ww wrote: »

Bugger, whats the name of 3 irelands carrier file ?

3 IRL carrier bundle:

http://appldnld.apple.com/iPhone/CarrierBundles/061-8689.20100716.Axp4r/Hutchison_ie.ipcc

3 UK carrier bundle:

http://appldnld.apple.com/iPhone/CarrierBundles/061-8687.20100716.Fr456/Hutchison_uk.ipcc

blaz

culabula wrote: »

All I described is how well these very SIMs perform or don't perform. Something is responsible for it, I don't know what it is. 3IRL have definitely screwed a lot of things recently. For example, it now takes from Newry to Portadown to get the SIM back on-net and from Newry to Dundalk to do the same in the opposite direction. However, no such problems are incurred by a 3UK or 3ITA SIM.

If you use a 3UK SIM in the Republic, does it ever roam on anything other then 3 IRL? If the answer is no, then you know why it works better - because it never has to switch between 2G and 3G.

Besides, somewhere else, it's reported that 3 are apparently bringing out a new carrier file to fix things. Why, if it will do nothing (and of course, if it's true)?

Because 3 would like you to believe it is an iPhone issue while it is in fact an issue with their network. It is always nice to blame someone else and a magic carrier update that would fix issues sounds very nice to the customers who suffer issues.

Again, I know what configuration options are available in a carrier file and there is none that could fix this issue.

culabula

blaz wrote: »

If you use a 3UK SIM in the Republic, does it ever roam on anything other then 3 IRL? If the answer is no, then you know why it works better - because it never has to switch between 2G and 3G.



Because 3 would like you to believe it is an iPhone issue while it is in fact an issue with their network. It is always nice to blame someone else and a magic carrier update that would fix issues sounds very nice to the customers who suffer issues.

Again, I know what configuration options are available in a carrier file and there is none that could fix this issue.

It often hops on to o2.ie just at the Boyne bridge, much to my consternation :-)

culabula

cian1500ww wrote: »

Well there's one way to find out, maybe someone could try using the 3 UK carrier file with the Irish APN's ??

You can certainly stick a 3IRL SIM in an iPad and use the tre.it APN as it is possible to adjust the APN.

blaz

culabula wrote: »

It often hops on to o2.ie just at the Boyne bridge, much to my consternation :-)

And you can use data while it is on o2.ie?

culabula

blaz wrote: »

And you can use data while it is on o2.ie?

Am sure you can but I never would! Have an aversion to bills. Data roaming is turned off at Newry.

blaz

culabula wrote: »

Am sure you can but I never would! Have an aversion to bills. Data roaming is turned off at Newry.

So what are you talking about then? I thought you were claiming a 3 UK SIM performs much better then a 3 IRL SIM. How can you know if you have data roaming turned off while in the Republic?

culabula

blaz wrote: »

So what are you talking about then? I thought you were claiming a 3 UK SIM performs much better then a 3 IRL SIM. How can you know if you have data roaming turned off while in the Republic?

I am claiming such.

I have been using these SIMs in the wild for five years: there have always been anomalies, comparing two exact same handsets side-by-side in the same situation.

At present and with regard to iPhone 4, the 3UK SIM will have a constant 5 bars and will hold a call where the 3IRL won't. In fact the 3IRL has to report "no service" south of Drogheda before the 3UK will eventually surrender and go down to 1 bar.

Before 3UK left 3 Like Home, I would always practice data roaming but these days I avoid it in order not to run up bills unnecessarily. However, that does not preclude me from turning it on occasionally to compare notes -it is only 10p a meg after all. If a push notification comes in, so be it. I see the relative strengths of the two SIMs/APNs or whatever is causing the differences.

More importantly I have a friend who is quite mad and who runs a +44 SIM in Dublin since 2001. Hubby picks up the bills. Despite my advice she has yet to appreciate that 3 Like Home is gone and is now running an iPhone 4 in Dublin 5 days a week with a 3UK SIM. She has all whistles a whistling and all bells a.......belling. This leaves me free to compare the performance of the two SIMs on the same network without worrying about the cost and to draw my conclusions. Last friday I saw a huge difference in network performance on foot of the "upgrade" on my 3IRL/iPhone -3G was more consistent- whereas hers did not need to change. My battery began to drain at a rate of knots hitherto unseen, but I was glad not to be having to toggle airplane mode constantly.

So, I guess that's what I'm talking about.