Vodafone Connect Card

[3reefs]

One of my worst purchases!

We had been wondering about carrying a laptop on board, but had hesitated with the usual stories about short battery life and the need for frequent recharging.

Saw Vodafone Connect Card (PCMCIA) when looking for a new mobile phone. The salesman said it would be quick and would work almost everywhere. Well, there are lots of places in UK and France where we had a weak signal and it either would not connect, or was hopelessly slow.

When I got back and saw the size of the bill I was horrified.

I don't plan to use the card again, so it is back to text messaging on the mobile to stay in touch with family and friends, and leave the PC behind, with a sigh of relief. Of course I have a 12 month contract which cannot be terminated early and, no, I cannot upgrade to a better/different card or tariff.

Is this experience shared by others?

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[ChrisE]

Currently 3G accessibility is fairly restricted and on the French coasts I've yet to find anything other than GPRS which runs at about a tenth of the rate of 3G. I'd also agree about the lack of strong signals in France and some parts of the UK but otherwise I'm hooked on 3G access which gives me fast-ish broadband connectvity within the M25 and on parts of my train journey up from Lymington to London (not noted sailing areas admittedly) but also around Southampton. I rely upon the card for getting my weather forecasts before sailing.

If I was paying for the service personally, I'd probably wait a year or two until the costs come down from their current levels. I'm sorry that your experience was so bad but I rely upon mine to run my business and it is a business expense so perhpas not comparable with personal use.

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[Mariner]

What the sales person no doubt forgot to tell you was the high cost of using the GPRS network abroad. We actually sell the connect card on a pay as you go. Although the tariff is higher than a contact we find this suits most of our customers better as they do not normally use the card all the time. If you just require to download your weather info and a few emails it can be quite economical. We have had no reports of any difficulties connecting to Vodafone’s GPRS service whilst in the UK.

Gary

Info at <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.marinercomputers.co.uk/acatalog/accessories.html>http://www.marinercomputers.co.uk/acatalog/accessories.html</A>




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[webcraft]

Why not just use a normal mobile, local SIM card and local dial-up access?

I checked my e-mail nearly every day and even made a couple of updates to clients' websites on our recent 6 week trip round Ireland. I bought an O2 Pay As You Go card in Dublin for 30 Euros which came with 30 Euros worth of credit, and topped it up with E20 once. I still had E10 credit left when we arrived back in N. Ireland five weeks later. I think it was costing me 12 cents a minute (about 8p) in the evenings and at weekends to dial a Dublin ISP number.

Atthough the baud rate is only 9.6Kbps that's plenty for text e-mails - so long as you remember to reply and compose offline - and you can certainly send a lot more info than you can with text messaging.

When I wanted to call the UK or check for text messages from home I just changed back to the UK SIM card (although I think I might invest in a separate handset next time).

As for laptops needing recharged - what's the problem? a 150W invertor will do this, costs about £30. OK, it's a bit severe on the domestic battery(s) - but no worse than a fridge. Just remember to plug it in whenever the engine is on and you'll be OK - my Thinkpad recharges from flat in about an hour.

- Nick




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[SpottedBlue]

Which 3G card/phone/service do you use?

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[ChrisE]

Vodafone 3G connect card using Vodafone data services. £150 to buy the card on a £40/month contract for 150mB data contract. Have been using it for six months and am generally happy with the deal.

As I said in my earlier note this is probably a bit expensive for non-business users but as I spend my life on the road/client sites it is a necessary service for my business.

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[Grehan]

This is now an Old Topic, but to add my fourpennyworth . . .
We've now given up and thrown the blimmin thing overboard. This after 18 months of persevering with Vodafone UK and then trying Vodafone Espana.
The technology is fine, but the cost is ridiculous.

At least the amounts both national companies siphoned, or tried to siphon, from our bank accounts, was.

After six months of pressurisation - calls. faxes, letters, etc - Vodafone UK reimbursed about £1,250 of incorrect charges.
The final straw was Spanish Vodafone charging 300euros for one month, then 200euros for the next. Incorrect billing for both data transfer and 'overhead' charges. These amounts were approximately ten times what they should have been according to the Contract, Terms, etc.

You have been warned!