Three mobile broadband

Just thought I would add my ten pence worth.

I bought my Pay as You go dongle a few days ago and it set it itself up ok on my laptop, albeit with a few problems and delays. The first thing I did when I got online was to speed test it. I do my testing on the PC PitStop site and choose the 'London' server. The results were pretty much what I expected....absolutely nothing like the speeds advertised by 3. However, although it does disconnect from time to time ( I seem to average two bars in my area) it normally allows access to the Internet almost permanently. Speeds were :- Ping. average 150ms. Download. average 240kbs. Upload. average 80kbs. Certainly nothing to shout about...but at least I could download and send/receive Emails.
We must bear in mind that this is cutting edge technology and is still in its infancy. No-one can expect mobile bandwidth at the same speeds as cable etc. Stick with it until its sorted itself out and I think you'll be pleased in the end...... remember how basic and problematic the original mobile phones were!.

Well having been unable to sleep, I decided to try and use my three connection. I started using this service 3 monhs ago and all was well. About three weeks ago I could barely get a webpage up, and my e-mail server kept timing out on me.

I have tried the latest firmware (e220 dongle) and software, bu to no avail. Speeds of 0 to 2.5Kbps. I am currently writing this as in the middle of the night I have managed to obtain download speeds of upto 10Kbps. Trying a speedtest gave download 70kbps and upload 49Kbps. I have a 93 to 100% signal on HSDPA in Twickenham area. I am guessing this is just a capacity issue? I will try three, but on reading the above messages I am not holding my breath.

Thing is this sevice just won't work for me in the day or evening. i can't get e=mail or even do a google search!

Maybe it's because I'm in a built-up area of Manchester* but I really, really can't recommend anybody get this product.

+ Pros
• Can be used anywhere, on the move, etc

- Service Cons
• Slow, very. - A myriad of speed tests puts me somewhere between dialup and ISDN.
• Unreliable. - Will often connect and sit there with the light on, yet responds to nothing for several minutes.
• Unreliable II. - Sometimes flits between HSPDA and 3G. Total loss of connectivity for (tens of) minutes when this happens.
• Dodgy. - The 7GB allowance I purchased was barely dented due to the above, yet expired after 30 days. (Good scam you got there Three!)

- Website Cons
• Top Up I. - In order to top up, you need to register a debit/credit card. In order to do that, you need to take out the SIM in order to get the number.
• Top Up II. - In order to register the card, you have to verify on a 3rd party site. You can only access Welcome to 3 when the 30 days expires. Duh!
• Password. - Using a Mac (OSX) you can't recieve text messages to the device. So can't have your password sent. My sis** was told to stick the SIM in a friends 3 phone - erm, she doesn't have mates on 3!

* Although if that's the case, why is my area festooned with 3 mobilper-fast speeds and not even small print disclaimers?
** Man in Altrincham 3 shop said because I live in the city centre that affects it - my sis lives miles from the centre in a quiet residential area. Excuses excuses...

- Summary

I really can't recommend this to anybody under any circumstances whatsoever if you live in a big city. Apparently it's okay in London. Woopee doo. It's an absolute disgrace and if I could be arsed, or knew the proceecure, I'd put a formal complaint to the advertising facists or trading standards etc. It really doesn't consitute "broadband" by any stretch of the imagination. A total $&*^!ing waste of time, money, and effort.

p.s. You can get me at onepablo-at-gmail-dot-com if you're a 3 bod and want to know more!

"3 mobilper-fast speeds" = "3 mobile adverts with super-fast speeds"

No idea how I managed that!!

Originally Posted by Unregistered

I do my testing on the PC PitStop site and choose the 'London' server.

I usually use ADSL guide but on your site, I averaged (after 3 tests)

Download Speed: 89 kbps (11.1 KB/sec transfer rate)
Upload Speed: 174 kbps (21.8 KB/sec transfer rate)
Latency: 437 ms

[matthew]

Originally Posted by Unregistered (OnePablo)

I usually use ADSL guide but on your site, I averaged (after 3 tests)

Download Speed: 89 kbps (11.1 KB/sec transfer rate)
Upload Speed: 174 kbps (21.8 KB/sec transfer rate)
Latency: 437 ms

Your Upload Speed Is Faster Then Your Download, Did You Run The Test While You Was Browsing Other Internet Pages? If Your Upload Speed Is Correct Your On About, 1.5-2.0mb Connetion, Not Bad For Mobile Broadband.

[nom8s]

I will keep it short and sweet

Ordered the USB stick on Wednesday
Received Thursday AM
Requested Returns Number after less than an hour

The customer service and ordering was a doddle,
the delivery was superb.
Installation was also trouble free,
Connected first time and stayed connected.

Only problem was speed, wow I could not believe how slow. Less than dial up.
Two or three times I measured the speed, only once did it get above 50, on upload and download.

I am not willing to part with my money for 18 months for that.

Hope this has helped you to make up your mind.

[Moderator] Do Not Post Excatly The Same In 2 Different Threads.

Originally Posted by matthew

Your Upload Speed Is Faster Then Your Download, Did You Run The Test While You Was Browsing Other Internet Pages? If Your Upload Speed Is Correct Your On About, 1.5-2.0mb Connetion, Not Bad For Mobile Broadband.

No mate, no other activity. Not running any servers, don't have any malware, etc. Great huh?

Btw, You Type Funny - It Must Take Extra Effort?!

[matthew]

Originally Posted by OnePablo

No mate, no other activity. Not running any servers, don't have any malware, etc. Great huh?

Btw, You Type Funny - It Must Take Extra Effort?!

Just Make Me Wonder, Download Speeds Should Be Faster Than Upload, But If You Say Your Not, Then Well Its Not Bad.

You Could Say I Type Funny, When I Dont Type With Capital Letters At The Begining Of Every Word, I Can Type Faster, But Doing What Im Doing, Pressing The Shift Button At The Begining Of Every Word, I Just Think It Makes What I Say Look Better, Its Hard Not To Now, Its A Habit Of Mine.

Originally Posted by matthew

You Could Say I Type Funny, When I Dont Type With Capital Letters At The Begining Of Every Word, I Can Type Faster, But Doing What Im Doing, Pressing The Shift Button At The Begining Of Every Word, I Just Think It Makes What I Say Look Better, Its Hard Not To Now, Its A Habit Of Mine.

GREAT! FROM NOW ON I'M ONLY GOING TO TYPE IN CAPS; SO PEOPLE KNOW I MEAN BUSINESS