BTs internet based sister company Genie are running what would appear to be a fantastic promotion at the moment. A free sim card with unlimited free WAP calls and unlimited SMS messages on their pay-as-you-go tariff. Sounds too good to be true! Well, it is!
I received an email telling ... Read review
Advantages: good if you are going to be a heavy user Disadvantages: NOT FREE
BTs internet based sister company Genie are running what would appear to be a fantastic promotion at the moment. A free sim card with unlimited free WAP calls and unlimited SMS messages on their pay-as-you-go tariff. Sounds too good to be true! Well, it is!
I received an email telling me about this offer and thought "what an amazing idea!" and so promptly applied. The application process on the web site (www.genie.co.uk) ... ...phone and the sim card was free no financial details were required.
The sim card arrived two days later and I was kept informed of the process, from ordering, through dispatch to delivery by email. Very impressive.
I inserted the sim card into the new handset and it registered as being on the BT Cellnet service! Great... now a test. I tried to send a short SMS to my husband's phone. I waited and waited and after about ... more
BTs internet based sister company Genie are running what would appear to be a fantastic promotion at the moment. A free sim card with unlimited free WAP calls and unlimited SMS messages on their pay-as-you-go tariff. Sounds too good to be true! Well, it is!
I received an email telling me about this offer and thought "what an amazing idea!" and so promptly applied. The application process on the web site (www.genie.co.uk) was simple and quick and as it was a pay-as-you-go phone and the sim card was free no financial details were required.
The sim card arrived two days later and I was kept informed of the process, from ordering, through dispatch to delivery by email. Very impressive.
I inserted the sim card into the new handset and it registered as being on the BT Cellnet service! Great... now a test. I tried to send a short SMS to my husband's phone. I waited and waited and after about three minutes the phone came up with a message that it had failed to send the SMS.
I called customer services today. "You have no credit on your phone" was the response. I then explained the offer and was told that the only way to get the "free" SMS service was to have credit on the card. I thanked the operator and hung up.
I called the service centre again as I had noted that there was an option for registering a complaint during the call filtering process. I selected this option for the second call and, despite calling a "dedicated Genie number" got put through to a BT switching centre staffed by someone who confessed to not knowing the first thing about Genie. He went away to ask and came back with an even worse answer. Not only would I have to buy £10 credit to be able to use the phone I would have to top this up with a further £10 every 30 days.
Now I only managed a "E" for my further maths "A" level several years ago but even I can work out that free SMSs are actually going to cost me in excess of £120 a year. Hardly free.
When I pointed this out and that neither the website, email or bumph that arrived with the phone made this clear all I was told was that I could make a complaint but I would need to phone the Genie number and they didn't have it! Great!
So, back to the website to see who I could contact. There is a help section on the website but I have no idea what is in it - I couldn't access it! There are no contact details listed anywhere else other than for the sales team (who I rang but they could not assist!).
In vain I have guessed at an email address and wait to see if anyone will bother getting back to me...
The Genie website appears to be well set out although there are some links which are less than intuitive.
The calling plans on offer are not bad either, especially if you are going to be a heavy user of the phone (from 2p per minute off-peak) and with the free WAP and SMS functions you could make quite a saving. For me, however, I will not be changing from my BT Cellnet Line Advance as this only costs me £90 for 15 months with 100 free minutes (anytime) per month. Bargain and much cheaper than £120 before you start!
I will update this opinion as and when I hear anything from Genie....
CLAIRE'S BOTTOM TEN TIPS - for mobile phones
1 - before you go out to get a phone be realistic about how much you are going to use it and when - this will enable you to select the correct calling plan.
2 - Pay-as-you-go phones are ideal for giving to children as you can control the amount they spend whilst giving them a way of contacting you in an emergency (for me it was always 10p in my pocket for a payphone!)
3 - Do read the small print (although in this case I did and it was silent) and watch out for minimum charges and contract lengths.
4 - once you have identified what you want it pays to shop around both on the high street and on the web.
5 - If you don't feel comfortable purchasing on the web go back to a high street dealer and explain the deal that you could get online - they may match it.
6 - If you already have a phone then sim only deals can save you a fortune (where you just get a sim card and no new phone)
7 - If you have been with a network for sometime check that you are not entitled to some perks - they don't advertise the fact that BT will give you free phone upgrades after a year!
8 - Use a PIN number on your phone, especially if it is a contract phone so that if it is stolen it becomes harder to use.
9 - Use your phone considerately....exercise mobile phone etiquette
10 - If a deal looks too good to be true....it probably is!
Advantages: can be cheap if you only use your inclusive minutes Disadvantages: can end up being tied into a situation and you can fall foul of BTs policy of overpricing
The tao of Claire must be "if you find something you want you can always get it cheaper!" and so began my quest for a mobile phone. In a very "anorak-ish" kind of way my boyfriend (now my husband) and I spent a very long and boring Saturday constructing an Excel spreadsheet into which we plugged a plethora of information regarding mobile phone tariffs in a vain attempt to establish which mobile phone tariff would be best for us at the time. I do ... ...side as attempting to quantify "three months free", "50 mins free minutes anytime", "500 free off-peak minutes", "£5.00 free calls" and "£100 cash-back" into meaningful spreadsheet figures was a nightmare! In the end (and it was a close run thing) we scientifically (!) determined that the BT Cellnet Pay in Advance package was the one for us.
Off we went to the BT Cellnet shop (two in fact) and duly purchased a phone each. Credit, where credit is ...
CareBear 30.04.2001 (22.05.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of BTCellnet
Advantages: Cheap, reliable, good handsets, great coverage Disadvantages: Expensive to use abroad
...I have since changed to BTCellnet for cheaper call rates. Currently the cheapest and best value pay as you network to be on is BTCellnet, however is customer service compromised as a result of cheaper call rates? Well read on and you’ll find out…
Call charges ~~
But first I’ll give you all the basic stuff on call charges:
PEAK RATES (Per minute) Landline ~~~ 25p
BTCellnet mobile ~~~ 10p
Other network ~~~ 50p
WEEKEND (Per ... ...minute)
Landline ~~~ 10p
BTCellnet mobile ~~~ 10p
Other network ~~~ 25p
Voicemail ~~~ 10p per minute at all times
Text (SMS) ~~~ 10 per text at all times
Customer service ~~
Customer service is not brilliant on BTCellnet; last time I called I was left on hold for 18 minutes. 5-10 minutes is acceptable but 18 minutes is absolutely ridiculous. However BTCellnet redeemed themselves when I was finally put through to a real voice the problem was ...
Disillusioned 07.11.2001 (13.11.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of BTCellnet
Advantages: Good coverage, pay upfront is good value, network is keen to retain existing customers Disadvantages: Inept customer service, exorbitant charges for calls to other mobile networks
If you are thinking of changing your mobile, perhaps even changing your network, don't just cancel your old contract and go for whatever appeals in your local phone shop. You could be throwing your money away...
By all means do your research and find out which handset you want next. Feel free to have an in-store prod & poke, ask your mates, check out the opinions on Ciao. But if you've had a pay-monthly contract with Cellnet for more than a year, ... ...WITHOUT calling the network and asking to cancel first. Even if you have no intention of actually doing so, the threat of cancellation works wonders.
Having operated an Ericsson T10s for almost two years on a pay-monthly basis, and become all but joined at the hip to my Palm V over the same period, I was thoroughly fed up with two things; firstly, the random way in which the T10s would switch itself off, and secondly, having to carry around two ...
TallTone 21.08.2001 (24.08.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of BTCellnet
Advantages: Good deals are available, if you persevere. Disadvantages: Don't even BOTHER phoning the helpline
I feel as though I’ve been with BT Cellnet since our good Scottish friend, Sandy Graham Bell, cranked his handle, spoke to his mother in the next room , and said “Fit like, Ma? Can ye hear me? I’ve invented a telly-phone!”
Old Ma Bell didn’t actually answer, because she was deaf as a post.
And BT Cellnet have valiantly kept up this tradition – of being deaf as a post.
I don’t do basic facts, as you know. ... ...overdone the Glen Ord, the tales have a point.
So here is the tale.
I have four phones on one account with BT Cellnet. These are (mostly) for business use. My own, and three in works vehicles. And believe me, they are worth their weight in gold when some decrepit old Transit breaks down miles from nowhere. Or when my foreman needs advice to deal with a stroppy client.
Sorry, delete that last sentence. There is no such thing as a stroppy client. ...
Aspen 05.08.2001 (31.10.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of BTCellnet
Advantages: Cheap calls and good coverage. Disadvantages: None.
Are you unsure which pre-pay tariff to go for?
Are you baffled by all the different tariffs and prices of different telephone calls?
Or how good the coverage is of the different networks?
Then please read this opinion before making your choice.
I personally chose BT Cellnet - Pay as you go, as it has a very good service coverage which I think it has one of the best, and I am sure that you won’t find cheaper talk time.
When my husband suggested ... ...I’m the sort of person that has to look around and compare all the service and tariff information, to make sure that they get the best deal, and then will still probably end up at the very first shop that I went in - much to my husband’s annoyance!!
I wanted a mobile phone because of the dark nights and being a woman travelling alone with a young baby. At least having a mobile phone, I had a “lifeline” should ever I need ...
Xyanthe 12.04.2001 (27.04.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of BTCellnet
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Advantages: Cant think of one Disadvantages: Expensive, Staff
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