Cancel 3G contract if unhappy? (for Vodacom3g

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leonb

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Vodacom3G,

I live in an area (Secunda) which is said to have excellent 3G coverage - according to the vodacom website. What happens if I buy a 3g data contract, but I dont get a 3g connection most of the time (e.g. only GPRS). Can I then cancel the contract?

Is there another way to make sure I'll get a 3g connection in my house before getting the contract?
 
leonb,

if the Vodashop (or a similar shop) in your area is any good I'm sure they will be prepared to perform a demonstration in your home to confirm the 3G connection quality.

or ask around to find person whom has already invested in a 3G card and ask them to come and test the unit in your home.

or if all else fails, I have some business in Secunda every so often: pm me your details and I will contact you...

Grub
 
leonb,

There are two options open here:

1) Get an on-site demo, as Grubsner suggested, even if it's someone with a 3G phone.

2) PM me your exact address and I'll ask the radio guys to comment.

I do know that the shops should check your coverage before they sell you a contract. Check with them if this includes a "cool down" period. If so, you can always take the card back if it does not work.

Did you manage to navigate down to your street level with the Vodacom map? What does the coverage look like?
 
Yes, I navigated to street level, and does fall in the "excellent coverage" according to the map. But I also see that the coverage ends very abruptly: from EXCELLENT no NONE in a matter of a few meters - which makes me worry a bit.

Has anyone in the forums actually used 3G in Secunda before. Grubsner??
 
Hi, In relation to everything said here, I started a new 3G contract yesterday but been having problems ever since. Before I even signed I checked 4 times to makesure that my area is covered by 3G (I live in Rondebosch, Cape Town). I checked with the 3G guys on 082 155 and checked the vodacom 3g coverage map that quite clearly says 'Excellent Coverage' shown in green over my street, everything points to excellent 3G coverage in my area). To my horror, I can not connect to the 3G network, only GPRS. I was on the phone with Vodacom last night, and they cant explain it. Please can someone suggest why I have been unable to connect to the 3G network at my home? I tired in the evening, and very early morning, and no success.(Also note that i have managed to successfully connect to 3G in Cape Town CBD, however the signal strength is very poor and i also get cut off every few minutes, so i now have to use GPRS at home and at work.)
Any suggestions?
 
Who Do You Call?

I work for a publisher and am going to need connectivity next year at the Cape Conference Ctre when they run the big book fair.Connectivity to demo the podcasts from our journal NATURE, as well as the trimmings such as online testing,powerpoint downloads,case studies, etc that support our textbooks
The people at 082 155 are v pleasant, but not too sussed. One suggested I get someone (ie, a pal) to go and check. Now , I'm concerned that my service (in Corlett Drive, opp Wanderers) seems very patchy and often really slow.Often I have to fall back on my landline or put in my MTN sim;their GPRS seems reliable;I wish I had been able to compare before marrying Vodacom 3g! (But I seem to have kept getting the guy who specialised in polyphonic ringtones and Beyonce screensavers when I enquired). I particularly notice 3G fading and sometimes dying as more people log in

QUESTION: how do I go about making absolutely sure I will be able to connect reliably? Does anybody use 3G on the Foreshore? Or can someone suggest how I connect to an authoritative person at Vodacom?

Its a major fair , see http://publishsa.co.za/media_release.doc and I can't make a fool of myself
 
CORY said:
QUESTION: how do I go about making absolutely sure I will be able to connect reliably? Does anybody use 3G on the Foreshore? Or can someone suggest how I connect to an authoritative person at Vodacom?
f
Click to expand...

Connecting reliably is like asking how long a piece of string is? On a personal note I have used 3G on the Foreshore many times (using it now) and it's been very stable, and reliable - a lot more stable then some of the areas that I use the service in up in Johannesburg...

The best person to contact at Vodacom via these forums would be vodacom3G - best to drop him a PM - and he'll give you the help/assistance you are looking for. Other than that see what our forumites have experienced in using the service either via some of the threads, or by asking...

We (forumites) all seem to want to help to create a better, and value for money service for some of the broadband operators out there, and Vodacom is certainly one of the operators who take customers concerns very seriously (based on my own past experiences)
 
Hi, I have sucessfully been using 3G in Table View and Stellenbosch, I had many problems in Rondebosch but it was mainly because there is a signal overlap where I was working. My phone would switch between cell masts conitnually and almost always drop calls. I eventually found a place to stand where I only got the signal from one base station.

Pray tell though, what is the URL for the Vodacom coverage map, I would like to see how well 3G coverage is in Table View.

Overall I am very impressed with 3G, I am using VPN to my office and it works like a charm. (even on 3 bars of signal strength)
P
 
Thanks Ploempie, Yikes!!! I don’t have 3G coverage at my house according to the map :-( sad indeed!! But the funny thing is that I have a 3 bar signal and it also shows 3G present, I get transfer speeds of 184 K? Go Figure. Hopefully Vodacom are on a speedy 3G rollout drive :-)
 
Ply Measure, Phaff. The map might be old. Vodacom is constantly putting 3g antennas up all around the country and the tech guys are probably too busy with other things (pre paid bundles) to update the map often. But at least you are getting 3G.
 
Last night I listened to the sorry story of a friend of mine. He got the 3G 1GB contract and modem in March 2005. He has found it so useless that he has stopped using it. There is not even GPRS signal at his office building. He has now installed ADSL at both his home and office and leaves the little orange monster in the laptop bag.

He feels hopeless. Last night he told me that he has basically decided to let the contract run until Feb 2007 and basically pay R600 p/m for nothing.

The question is: How many other 3G users are out there that has basically given up?

V3G, I will PM you with his information. Maybe you can help him?

VMS
 
Please do.

Normally if something is so badly broken, something substantial must be wrong. For example, if he can't even get GPRS it's very weird unless he lives in a very remote area, but then he probably won't get ADSL either.....

Not to sure if he logged the problem before, but we'll fix it. I'll check for your PM, thanks.
 
Yes...

Also tried cancelling my contract a short while ago because I wanted to get back to using ADSL again.

No wI have to wait till my 24 month contract expires.

That's a very long time :(
 
VMS, had a long chat to your buddy. He lives in Centurion and works in Silverton.

He says in both areas he has full 3G signal, so I would assume also full GPRS coverage.

F***s actually told me in general his system works but he has seen a fair number of disconnects. I suspect he's on old firmware / dash versions, so we need to first sort that and see if the disconnect problem goes away.

We need to find a way to communicate new upgrades, etc. to the user base. I'll work on something.
 
vodacom3g said:
We need to find a way to communicate new upgrades, etc. to the user base. I'll work on something.
Click to expand...

Way to go V3G - thanks for all your ongoing support on the forum - always great to know that the network regards each customer as important and will try whatever it takes to sort out their issues.
 
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