3G Network

[craig]

Many thanks to all who have welcomed me to the org :eek:. Having had a 3G network from T-mobile for internet access, i discovered there claims of 99% coverage of the uk to be untrue, 3g is lost somewhere between inverness & wick. Having called t-mobile to ask if they have any plans to provide 3g to the highlands, i was told they have no idea if or when such service will reach here. Yet, they did not offer me any reduction in my phone contract, What is the point in selling 3g smart phones in tescos and shops in the highlands when the infrastructure has'nt even been put in place to use them ??? How hard is it for these companies like t-mobile, orange and vodaphone to erect a 3g dish ? they are happy to lock you into a contract, but not so sympathetic or helpful when you cant access the package you subscribed to.

[Gizmo]

It's not that different from the DAB Radio thing, both Tesco & Argos sell DAB Radios yet there is no network coverage in this area that i know of, each time i check coverage on the site below it always says 'No Digital Radio Stations Are Available In Your Area At The Moment'

http://www.ukdigitalradio.com/coverage/search/default.asp

I work in Argos and see quite a few DAB Radios being bought....i always wonder just what they are being used for....it's certainly not listening to Digital Radio thats for sure.

And anyway...most of these big companies are still unaware that we have tarmac roads & electricity, they dont care about a load of hillbillies like us :)

Giz

[Solus]

I believe that you can turn off the 3g part of the phone , set it to GSM setting , it then should lock on to the nearest mast.

[huh]

I believe that you can turn off the 3g part of the phone , set it to GSM setting , it then should lock on to the nearest mast.


Yeah. But people like to hook up their phones to their laptop when they're on the train or on holiday or whatever to access the internet. 3G would be comparable to low end broadband, quite fast. GPRS is worse than dial up.


It's not that different from the DAB Radio thing, both Tesco & Argos sell DAB Radios yet there is no network coverage in this area that i know of, each time i check coverage on the site below it always says 'No Digital Radio Stations Are Available In Your Area At The Moment'

http://www.ukdigitalradio.com/coverage/search/default.asp (http://forum.caithness.org/go.php?url=http://forum.caithness.org/go.php?url=http://www.ukdigitalradio.com/coverage/search/default.asp)

I work in Argos and see quite a few DAB Radios being bought....i always wonder just what they are being used for....it's certainly not listening to Digital Radio thats for sure.

And anyway...most of these big companies are still unaware that we have tarmac roads & electricity, they dont care about a load of hillbillies like us :)

Giz

A good solution would be to get a freeview box and hook it up to a decent pair of speakers. There's quite a lot of radio on there and freeview reception is alright here (where I am anyway, every channel at full strength).

I believe one of the main reasons they haven't done it is that they think the price it costs to build and maintain new masts or whatever will be more than the income generated from the few people who will use it in our sparsely populated highlands. Unfair, but there's not much we can do.

[NickInTheNorth]

You'll probably find they claim 99% of the UK population have coverage. Very different to 99% of the UK!

[craig]

GPRS, is 2g, very similar to early dial up, it's painful, similar to watching paint dry, this community, caithness, need to be heard, let see more community spirit.