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Best network for internet?

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  • 30-03-2016 7:02am
    #1
    rizzee
    Registered Users Posts: 3,793 ✭✭✭


    Hi,

    I'm currently on Vodafone paying 55/month for unlimited calls,texts and 5gb of internet. I'm constantly hitting my internet usage and find myself more often than not purchasing add-ons each month.

    My contract is up next month and I have decided to not upgrade and move to pay as you go,whether I stay with VF or not is another story.

    I would like something along the lines of 250min,250 texts,10gb minimum data and to pay around 20 or 30 a month on prepay.

    Is there any network out there that has a plan like this? Not bill pay or sim only 30 day direct debit plans (don't want networks having my bank details) ,going abroad a few times later in the year hence why I don't want to be bill either.

    Thanks


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    #2
    jay93
    Registered Users Posts: 3,323 ✭✭✭jay93


    Meteor for €30 unlimited calls and texts and 15GB Of data they deduct the €30 for the plan. I think the 15GB is on offer for 6 months and then the data will revert back to 7.5GB.

    https://store.meteor.ie/4g/pay-as-you-go


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    #3
    bugfreebob
    Registered Users Posts: 233 ✭✭bugfreebob


    rizzee wrote: »
    Hi,

    I'm currently on Vodafone paying 55/month for unlimited calls,texts and 5gb of internet. I'm constantly hitting my internet usage and find myself more often than not purchasing add-ons each month.

    My contract is up next month and I have decided to not upgrade and move to pay as you go,whether I stay with VF or not is another story.

    I would like something along the lines of 250min,250 texts,10gb minimum data and to pay around 20 or 30 a month on prepay.

    Is there any network out there that has a plan like this? Not bill pay or sim only 30 day direct debit plans (don't want networks having my bank details) ,going abroad a few times later in the year hence why I don't want to be bill either.

    Thanks

    Meteor prepay Simplicity Plan currently gives 15GB , unlimited minutes and 400 texts for €20 per month.

    The 15GB is a promotion and is supposed to drop to 7.5GB after 6 months but maybe it will be followed up by another promotion? The 400 texts are using the MyMeteor app and include 100 international. If you want unlimited regular texts go for the €30 plan.

    Meteor also offer free roaming throughout Europe including 1GB per month and they allow unrestricted tethering.

    Vodafone is a good network but as you point out , it is expensive. Avoid Three and all their resellers - network is broken for more than a year.


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    #4
    rizzee
    Registered Users Posts: 3,793 ✭✭✭rizzee


    Thanks a mil, I'll definitely look into Meteor! 15gb is plenty and like you said, in 6 months time they might keep it ,or other networks might have a better deal then.


    With their roaming on PAYG, does that mean I can use my phone like I would at home and get 1gb data to use ?


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    #5
    bugfreebob
    Registered Users Posts: 233 ✭✭bugfreebob


    rizzee wrote: »
    Thanks a mil, I'll definitely look into Meteor! 15gb is plenty and like you said, in 6 months time they might keep it ,or other networks might have a better deal then.


    With their roaming on PAYG, does that mean I can use my phone like I would at home and get 1gb data to use ?

    Apologies - I was mistaken - the Free Roaming is Bill-pay only at the moment. You could sign up for a SIM-only deal with only a 30 day commitment - though I know you prefer not to do this. However, Meteor do offer free incoming calls on pre-pay when roaming in Europe, and they have a day rate of €1.99 for 100MB, or €15 for 1GB. I would watch carefully to see what happens on 1st May. The wording on the Meteor site says free roaming is currently for Bill-pay only. This suggests they have introduced it ahead of the EU deadline for allowing European users to use their minutes and data at home or in EU. Also - the 6 month limit on the 15GB no longer appears on the website? Perhaps this is now the standard cap?


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    #6
    wheresmybeaver
    Registered Users Posts: 1,120 ✭✭✭wheresmybeaver


    +1 for meteor. I changed over to them from 3 in January primarily for data (I tether a lot for work) and it's a huge improvement. I'm on bill pay 30 day contract and the data allowance on the packages is good. The roaming deal is excellent and is now builtin to the latest packages so that you get automatic 1gb of data each month when roaming. No more panicking when forgetting to switch off mobile data!

    Be extremely wary of three and the networks running on it. I was an o2 customer and the reliability and speed of the network went to shyte after not too long. Their offering basically is free data for everyone and sure why not use it as your home broadband! They also don't enforce caps in most cases. Which means brutal speeds for everyone else. Meteor have reasonable caps and enforce them which bodes well for future reliability.


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    #7
    ED E
    Registered Users Posts: 36,167 ✭✭✭✭ED E


    If speed is your focus Vodafone, Meteor for middle of the road (value vs speed) and Three + MVNOs for the budget centric (most bytes for your euro).


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    #8
    rizzee
    Registered Users Posts: 3,793 ✭✭✭rizzee


    Time to change soon so said I'd post again in this thread!

    Tesco are doing good deals at the moment too , keeping the options open


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    #9
    bugfreebob
    Registered Users Posts: 233 ✭✭bugfreebob


    rizzee wrote: »
    Time to change soon so said I'd post again in this thread!

    Tesco are doing good deals at the moment too , keeping the options open

    Don't go there . Tesco is on the old O2 network which used to be ok but is being run into the ground since Three took it over. No 4G or HD Voice and base stations are being decommissioned all the time to reduce costs. Roaming is a rip-off. 4G is not just about speed -it is also about coverage.

    You won't beat the €20pm deal from Meteor and they have a solid 4G network with good roaming options. Look at they Comreg site - they recently published a report comparing the mobile networks. Both Three and the old O2 networks came last with O2 the worst for data. They didn't include the MVNOs but if the network is bad then the MVNO won't make it better. In fact the MVNO is worse because it doesn't allow 4G or roaming deals etc.


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    #10
    galljga1
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,938 ✭✭✭galljga1


    + 1 for non Three/O2 and their MVNO derivatives. They really have gone to hell since the merger.
    I have just changed a Meteor account and an O2 account to Vodafone and have found huge improvements in all non municipal areas in which I rotate. Will be changing a Three account over this week.
    Vodafone are number one for quality in my area which is mainly Kildare and Meath.


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    #11
    BannerBarry
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 452 ✭✭BannerBarry


    On Meteor has the reception improved as some years ago I tried but found no acceptable reception in rural areas?


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    #12
    bugfreebob
    Registered Users Posts: 233 ✭✭bugfreebob


    BannerBarry wrote: »
    On Meteor has the reception improved as some years ago I tried but found no acceptable reception in rural areas?
    Meteor is massively improved with their 3/4G rollouts and when they built out their rural network to enable them to dispense with Vodafone roaming. Give it a try again.


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    #13
    galljga1
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,938 ✭✭✭galljga1


    BannerBarry wrote: »
    On Meteor has the reception improved as some years ago I tried but found no acceptable reception in rural areas?

    Its not great where I am. Get a PAYG sim and try it for a month.


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    #14
    BannerBarry
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 452 ✭✭BannerBarry


    Great idea, well worth getting the PAYG. I doubt the 4G reached my area yet but must check out when I do my next phone upgrade... Whenever I get money :-(


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    #15
    Bob24
    Registered Users Posts: 10,905 ✭✭✭✭Bob24


    My view of the different offerings (excluding MVNOs, which I don't think bring much the the market):

    Vodafone: expensive and fast speeds. Good for light and "average" users who value network performance over price. Not really suitable for heavy users as they don't have any decent plans with large allowances.
    Meteor: in the middle of the pack: decent speeds and larger allowances than Vofafone. Possibly the best option for "average" users or heavy users who want better performance than Three (at a higher cost).
    Three: cheap price and generous allowance. Suitable mostly for heavy to very heavy users (in terms of quantity of data, not expected speeds) or "average" users who are cost oriented.


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    #16
    rizzee
    Registered Users Posts: 3,793 ✭✭✭rizzee


    Just said I'd give an update. Contract is up in the next week or two so I'll be moving to meteor, 20 a month deal 15gb Internet and free calls


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    #17
    BannerBarry
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 452 ✭✭BannerBarry


    Check the reception with a meteor customer in your area first. Different areas have different signal strength and you need the best reception in the area you frequent most. Too late if you are in a contract at that stage.


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    #18
    GIMP
    Registered Users Posts: 1,080 ✭✭✭GIMP


    Agreed, Meteor is patchy still in a lot of areas.


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    #19
    rizzee
    Registered Users Posts: 3,793 ✭✭✭rizzee


    Stuck with Vodafone, 30/month PAYG. Calls and texts to any network and 5GB internet. Very happy with the signal so said i'd stick with them for the time being, plus I just found out my phone isn't sim free but locked to them soit will have to do for now.

    Thanks for all your help and suggestions.


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    #20
    BannerBarry
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 452 ✭✭BannerBarry


    Great it's working out on the signal. Best of luck with it going forward.


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    #21
    Dravokivich
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Music Moderators, Politics Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 22,360 CMod ✭✭✭✭Dravokivich


    rizzee wrote: »
    Stuck with Vodafone, 30/month PAYG. Calls and texts to any network and 5GB internet. Very happy with the signal so said i'd stick with them for the time being, plus I just found out my phone isn't sim free but locked to them soit will have to do for now.

    Thanks for all your help and suggestions.

    If you've finished a Bill Pay Contract they should be able to give you an unlock code for it free of charge as you've paid off the cost of the phone.


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    #22
    rizzee
    Registered Users Posts: 3,793 ✭✭✭rizzee


    I sold the phone I got off them months ago! Using something else.


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    #23
    beauf
    Closed Accounts Posts: 22,648 ✭✭✭✭beauf


    bugfreebob wrote: »
    ... Look at they Comreg site - they recently published a report comparing the mobile networks. Both Three and the old O2 networks came last with O2 the worst for data. ...

    Which report are you referring to. https://www.comreg.ie/


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    #24
    bugfreebob
    Registered Users Posts: 233 ✭✭bugfreebob


    beauf wrote: »
    Which report are you referring to. https://www.comreg.ie/


    http://www.comreg.ie/_fileupload/publications/ComReg1627.pdf

    Table 2 on Page 28 summarizes the average speeds measured by Comreg on the drive test of the networks. You can see that Three and O2 are bottom of the heap on all the average speeds, compared to Meteor and Vodafone, with the old O2 network (now Three) coming out worst at - 2.9Mbps on 3G.

    Note that these drive tests focus on main urban centres and national link roads. Hence the reality nationally is probably even worse for Three because their 4G coverage is very limited compared to Meteor & Vodafone. The drive tests also ignore the horrendous handover problems experienced by Three users going from the old O2 network to the Three network. The drive tests likely used one phone locked to each network and technology permanently.

    These measurements back up the experiences documented by Boardsies on a daily basis. Hardly any surprise.


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    #25
    OldMrBrennan83
    Closed Accounts Posts: 26,658 ✭✭✭✭OldMrBrennan83


    This post has been deleted.


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    #26
    lorenzo63
    Registered Users Posts: 24 ✭lorenzo63


    rizzee wrote: »
    Stuck with Vodafone, 30/month PAYG. Calls and texts to any network and 5GB internet. Very happy with the signal so said i'd stick with them for the time being, plus I just found out my phone isn't sim free but locked to them soit will have to do for now.

    Thanks for all your help and suggestions.
    why don't you try unlock.ie they can unlock any phone so long as you provide the make, network etc. They'll charge a fee of course 15 to 20 euros. Maybe less.


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