Live areas from Smart

StickyMcGinty

hey garfield. any chance of the dunshaughlin co. meath exchange ever being enabled?? or are we too far in the stix to get smart?

number 018259XXX

cheers

Vinny

Corleone

hey guys, for all you Whitehall exchange people out there, I got a phone call from a very nice rep at Smart today. She basically said i'll be waiting another 2-4 weeks for the exchange to go live.

I gathered from the conversation that 4 weeks would be an absolute maximum wait and that 2-3 weeks would be more reasonable, but then again they did tell me I would be connected in March/April!

She also said that I was indeed one of the first 100,000 customers eligible for free line rental (nice to know!) and asked if changing my number would be a problem. I said no, and she seemed quite happy with that! Hopefully this will improve my chances of getting broadband sooner than 4 weeks

digitaldr

I'm on the whitehall exchange too - I don't mind waiting as I won't be changing my number!

Raisers

There have been couple of people asking for news on North Main Exchange but left unanswered.

So, Garfield please, if u have any info when will North Main Exchange go live post it for all of us waiting for months now.

Is it end of may or in june perhaps?

Thanks

stagolee

i've signed up for a line of sight test with IBB but i have been reading some bad things about their service. i just checked my number (rathmines exchange) on smart's website and they say it will be july/august before the exchange goes live.

so two questions really:
1. is IBB's service that bad?
2. when smart say july/august do they mean 2005 or 2027?
summarily which is the better bet?

(ok that was sort of three questions)

nag

Garfield: DOUGLAS, Cork?

Raoul Duke

Don't know if this has been brought up by someone else or not or if there's another thread running with it. I couldn't be bothered opening up another thread about it so I thought I'd get my rant off here.

2 or so months ago we were informed that signing up for Smart's telephone service would speed up our broadband application and set up when it became available (I'm on Dolphin's Barn's Exchange). So that's what I did. Finally, after the usual "but I sent you that direct debit mandate a month ago" stuff that delayed my application, I got a call last week telling me that I was ready to go. It would now only be the 12 days wait. Whooppeee!

Today, I got another call from Smart. I've been told that I now have to sign up for Eircom's phone rental again, which will take about 10 days. When that's up and running and I've got an Eircom a/c no. again (I thought I'd seen the last of them), I'm to ring Smart and only then can they start the 12 day wait period for broadband! What kind of bullsh!t is this? I know about the court case, but Smart told me that Eircom won't allow them to give me broadband unless I'm paying them line rental at the time of the switch over.

Is this right? Anyone else get told this crap? Even though I imagine it's not their fault I feel like going Postal on Smart's asses. The fact that their offices on Baggot street are only about 1 foot away from me right now would make that pretty easy as well.

robo

I know that we were told that Crown Alley was suppose to go live at the end of May - I have my modem from them for the last 2 weeks! But anyone got an up to date date from them lately?

Getting a bit peeved off at this stage!!! :rolleyes:

Benny_Cake

I'm also on Crown Alley,though I haven't received a modem yet,rang Smart yesterday and was told I'd hear from them in the next week.I was also asked,yet again,if I'd sent in the direct debit mandate (which I did,last March),and the CAF form for changing my number.Its getting a bit tiresome to be repeatedly asked the same questions.

Any idea when orders start to be processed for Crown Alley Garfield?Need to get rid of Eircom quick!

steve-o

robo wrote:

I know that we were told that Crown Alley was suppose to go live at the end of May - I have my modem from them for the last 2 weeks! But anyone got an up to date date from them lately?

Getting a bit peeved off at this stage!!! :rolleyes:

No-one ever contacted me to say I was connected. The dialtone on my phone changed so I knew I'd been switched over. I just plugged in the router and I was in business.

beller b

stagolee wrote:

i've signed up for a line of sight test with IBB but i have been reading some bad things about their service. i just checked my number (rathmines exchange) on smart's website and they say it will be july/august before the exchange goes live.

so two questions really:
1. is IBB's service that bad?
2. when smart say july/august do they mean 2005 or 2027?
summarily which is the better bet?

(ok that was sort of three questions)

Re 1) YES YES YES
Re 2) Add approx 4-8 weeks i'd say

beller b

Raoul Duke wrote:

Don't know if this has been brought up by someone else or not or if there's another thread running with it. I couldn't be bothered opening up another thread about it so I thought I'd get my rant off here.

2 or so months ago we were informed that signing up for Smart's telephone service would speed up our broadband application and set up when it became available (I'm on Dolphin's Barn's Exchange). So that's what I did. Finally, after the usual "but I sent you that direct debit mandate a month ago" stuff that delayed my application, I got a call last week telling me that I was ready to go. It would now only be the 12 days wait. Whooppeee!

Today, I got another call from Smart. I've been told that I now have to sign up for Eircom's phone rental again, which will take about 10 days. When that's up and running and I've got an Eircom a/c no. again (I thought I'd seen the last of them), I'm to ring Smart and only then can they start the 12 day wait period for broadband! What kind of bullsh!t is this? I know about the court case, but Smart told me that Eircom won't allow them to give me broadband unless I'm paying them line rental at the time of the switch over.

Is this right? Anyone else get told this crap? Even though I imagine it's not their fault I feel like going Postal on Smart's asses. The fact that their offices on Baggot street are only about 1 foot away from me right now would make that pretty easy as well.

Have to say thats exactly how I felt a few weeks when we were all being lied to, I tought Smart had got past all of that & got thieract together re keeping the customers informed. I really can,t understand what is thier problem wrt keeping the customer up to date..It saves everyone a lot of grief.. Over to you Garfield I trust you WILL keep us informed???

Raoul Duke

beller b wrote:

Have to say thats exactly how I felt a few weeks when we were all being lied to, I tought Smart had got past all of that & got thieract together re keeping the customers informed. I really can,t understand what is thier problem wrt keeping the customer up to date..It saves everyone a lot of grief.. Over to you Garfield I trust you WILL keep us informed???

Update: Just off the phone with Eircom. They told me that it would take 4-5 weeks to get my Eircom account!! What the f.uck is going on here!

Garland, it was after listening to you advice that's got me into this situation. If I still had an Eircom a/c I'd have my Smart broadband in 12 days, but because I listened to you I now apparently have a possible 7/8 weeks to wait! :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:

Tell your call girls to expect a very angry man to ring them tomorrow.


Also, anything to say Garland?

Sponge Bob

Raoul Duke wrote:

2 or so months ago we were informed that signing up for Smart's telephone service would speed up our broadband application and set up when it became available (I'm on Dolphin's Barn's Exchange). So that's what I did.

Today, I got another call from Smart. I've been told that I now have to sign up for Eircom's phone rental again, which will take about 10 days. When that's up and running and I've got an Eircom a/c no. again (I thought I'd seen the last of them), I'm to ring Smart and only then can they start the 12 day wait period for broadband! What kind of bullsh!t is this? I know about the court case, but Smart told me that Eircom won't allow them to give me broadband unless I'm paying them line rental at the time of the switch over.

Eircom bull**** 101.

A person would be safe if all they had was Smart CPS but if its Single Billing (incl Line Rental also known as WLR ) you must go back to eircom for a last lil squeeze of your nads.

I trust Smarts order handling system now spots this anomaly and that their CS people inform you of it clearly when you are looking for BB .

Raoul Duke

Sponge Bob wrote:

Eircom bull**** 101.

A person would be safe if all they had was Smart CPS but if its Single Billing (incl Line Rental also known as WLR ) you must go back to eircom for a last lil squeeze of your nads.

I trust Smarts order handling system now spots this anomaly and that their CS people inform you of it clearly when you are looking for BB .

Why is it "now" and not before? Why is "it" at all? Surely it must be the height of uncompetiveness and a restriction of trade by Eircom. Are Comreg's hands so tied/weak that they can't do anything to stop this? Is it all down to this court case or was it always like this? If it was always like this then, Garland, you damn well lied to me/us.

Sponge Bob

Raoul Duke wrote:

Why is it "now" and not before? Why is "it" at all? Surely it must be the height of uncompetiveness and a restriction of trade by Eircom. Are Comreg's hands so tied/weak that they can't do anything to stop this?

Comreg gave Eircoms Single Billing Transfer section , in Castlebar, a glowing recommendation for efficiency , see

http://www.comreg.ie/_fileupload/publications/ComReg0432R.pdf

Comreg believe it to be easy to transfer .

Raoul Duke

Sponge Bob wrote:

Comreg gave Eircoms Single Billing Transfer section , in Castlebar, a glowing recommendation for efficiency , see

http://www.comreg.ie/_fileupload/publications/ComReg0440.pdf

Comreg believe it to be easy to transfer .

Can't find what you were refering to in that pdf. But am I to understand that even if there wasn't this court case that I would be required to go back to Eircom in order to get Smart's broadband?

Sponge Bob

I fixed the link for you , sorry.

The same kind of problem applies to Bitstream Transfer. If you wish to transfer your DSL service from IOL to Digiweb it must also 'go back' to Eircom , however nominally.

Comreg regulate to allow transfers out of Eircom but fail to allow transfers from other operator to other operator via Eircom . Eircom will always be in the loop as

a) They own the line
b) They maintain the national number database

This applies to LLU / Bitstream DSL / Wholesale Line Rental (known as Single Billing) /Number Portability and what have you . I would be most concerned if Smart were selling Single Billing to customers who actually asked for BB , especially as an interim solution, in view of your problems Raoul.

Here is the Comreg guide to how single billing _should_ work (2 page PDF)

http://www.comreg.ie/_fileupload/publications/CG10.pdf

Raoul Duke

Sponge Bob wrote:

I would be most concerned if Smart were selling Single Billing to customers who actually asked for BB , especially as an interim solution, in view of your problems Raoul.

So Garland's "advice" to us instead of being helpful was completely the opposite and actually harmful. Has he come back and recinded that advice at any time? I haven't being following all this and the other "Smart" threads so I could have missed his grovelling apology. I wont accept anything less.

Blaster99

Who is Garland?

Sponge Bob

He'd better . Garfield never thanked me for the interim call forwarding package that I invented for him either , I have not investigated whether the CS droids have had it embedded into them yet

crawler

There are some golden rules in Telco ( was thinking about a Telco bible for a while now!)

1) Do not advertise something you do not have
2) Do not depend totally on other people's infrastructrure - they own it, they wont let you eat their lunch. Besides you do not increase your asset value or the inherent value in owning your own network
3) Deliver exactly what you say you are going to deliver
4) Build it first, then tell the people, in Ireland you do NOT have to be first to market
5) Do not wrap complex financial fund raising activites around vapourware
6) Do not begin dialogue with your customers if you do not intend to finish it
7) Do not try to be all things to all people - find your market and become an expert at it
8) Respect the Competition, it exists. It's a consolidating market and will be for a long while
9) Check regulatory and legal positions FIRST, then decide what to do - dont cry if you find yourself in Court for not doing homework
10) Always always protect the industry in your actions - it's fragile and can be easily damaged, you will end up with enemies and you need friends.

robo

steve-o wrote:

No-one ever contacted me to say I was connected. The dialtone on my phone changed so I knew I'd been switched over. I just plugged in the router and I was in business.

What exchange was this?

steve-o

robo wrote:

What exchange was this?

I'm on Dolphin's Barn.

iano

Sponge Bob wrote:

He'd better . Garfield never thanked me for the interim call forwarding package that I invented for him either , I have not investigated whether the CS droids have had it embedded into them yet

Are you sure that this "call forwarding solution" is actually viable?

The Smart Telecom rep who phoned to advise of a further delay stated categorically that Eircom have refused to forward calls to the new Smart numbers. She claimed that there was no alternative to a complete break and new number. She further claimed that Eircom had refused to place a recorded message advising of the new number.

She tried to downplay the difficulty by suggesting that Smart Telecom would look after updating Directory Enquiries and sure wouldn't a couple of text messages let everyone know the new number.

steve-o

iano wrote:

She tried to downplay the difficulty by suggesting that Smart Telecom would look after updating Directory Enquiries and sure wouldn't a couple of text messages let everyone know the new number.

They offered me a €20 credit to "phone all my friends to tell them my new number". Make sure you get the same offer!

i71jskz5xu42pb

I got the same call for the same exchange with the same option to take a new number as a result of the Eircom vs. Comreg case. Perhaps Smart could have been more upfront but I'm so anxious to ditch Eircom as a direct provider that I'm more than happy to call the all people that use my land line (both of them) with a new number.

Paschal.

P.S. Would all the Muppets who keep posting requests for updates here just pick up the phone and call Smart – it’s got to be faster.

Corleone wrote:

hey guys, for all you Whitehall exchange people out there, I got a phone call from a very nice rep at Smart today. She basically said i'll be waiting another 2-4 weeks for the exchange to go live.

I gathered from the conversation that 4 weeks would be an absolute maximum wait and that 2-3 weeks would be more reasonable, but then again they did tell me I would be connected in March/April!

She also said that I was indeed one of the first 100,000 customers eligible for free line rental (nice to know!) and asked if changing my number would be a problem. I said no, and she seemed quite happy with that! Hopefully this will improve my chances of getting broadband sooner than 4 weeks

dave oc

I got a phone call from one of the smart reps too, telling me what i already know and how its going to be another 1 or 2 until until they get things sorted with eircom.

When i asked about call forwarding he said any calls to my current number( if i was to change to their new number) would just fail, so theres no call forwarding!

Guess ill just have to wait a while longer

CyberGhost

man,.. Smart looked so promising, but what a dissapointment...

WezzyB

Your phone number 1860XXXX is in the exchange PHIBSBORO.
Broadband will be available to you in the near future.
Would you like to avail of this amazing offer?

Just back from my holidays I was hoping that Smart would have got around to enabling the Phibs exchange while I was gone, unfortunately not.
They did ring while I was gone but said that they had problems with the Phibs exchange but did not give any date or details on the delay.

Although they did change the message that comes up on their website for my phone number to say that it will be available 'in the near future' ... very vague!