# mobile broadband (dongle)



## l77 tuf (Feb 24, 2010)

my t mobile dongle was up for renewal today so called t mobile they say they wont move on £15 a month so i ended my contract with them 

my parents/daughter have the 3 mobile 12gb package pay up front £79.99 

i went on a site and got the same deal for £52.95 for same thing delivered to me 

so they are coming right down in price at the moment


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## tiderus (Feb 24, 2010)

Hi, iv'e got a Vodafone dongle and found it very slow. When I ordered it the rep said being as I was a long standing customer, he would do  the contract over 18months, not the usual two years. I thought it was strange at the time, and low and behold it's too slow. A better move would have been to go pay as you go as I dont use it only when out wild camping. Upon asking around they all seem slow, and Voda seems one of the better ones. Still worth it when out in the van when its raining with nothing to do.
 Yes I know I'm leaving myself open to that one, but we are in our sixties.
 Rgd's Graham.


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## ajs (Feb 24, 2010)

tiderus said:


> Hi, iv'e got a Vodafone dongle and found it very slow. When I ordered it the rep said being as I was a long standing customer, he would do  the contract over 18months, not the usual two years. I thought it was strange at the time, and low and behold it's too slow. A better move would have been to go pay as you go as I dont use it only when out wild camping. Upon asking around they all seem slow, and Voda seems one of the better ones. Still worth it *when out in the van when its raining with nothing to do.*
> Yes I know I'm leaving myself open to that one, but we are in our sixties.
> Rgd's Graham.



i'm sayin nuffin.

.. the only word that springs to mind begins with a wubbleue and ends with ahahhhhhh  


yer 3G numpty 

 regards 
aj


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## robjmckinney (Feb 24, 2010)

*Problem with 3*

I have had a 3 dongle for over a year found it totally useless wildcamping, much like our contract 3 phones!

Will be dumping on renewel date to look at others with better coverage!


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## ajs (Feb 25, 2010)

.
  hi folks... 


  so far I’ve been into 4 mobile company shops and asked the same question about dongles...
telling them that i want to use it on top of mountains, in the wilderness, away from town etc etc 

 and they all said the same.... forget it... don't bother..



 so i havn't 


   regards 

  aj


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## magbrin (Feb 25, 2010)

3 fairly useless in Scotland except in central belt, where it is mainly good.  However if you do pay as you go ( and go for topping up as online credit - not getting top up card or number) the cash credit does not expire, and it works abroad.  It is probably very expensive compared with packages (haven't needed them as we use it so little) but at least you only pay for what you use, and if there is no reception you do not pay


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## Barbt (Feb 25, 2010)

We find the 3 dongle works very well in the Western Highlands, no problems at all.  However we live in Kent and that's a different story altogether.  We have been with 3 mobile almost since they started.  At that time they were connected to O2 and used their masts but a couple of years ago they transferred to Orange and as a result in the house we don't get any signal at all despite them promising that within a few months ( that was almost two years ago) the signal would improve.   Its been ridiculous using the landline to call mobile numbers  so we are ditching 3 when our contract ends in a couple of months.  Meanwhile we have discovered that Tesco pay as you go is excellent value and as they are linked to O2 ( who tend to be very expensive ) the signal is great.   You can get a free simcard online, then if you top up with £10 they give you a free £10 as a welcome gift.  But that's not the end of it - any time you top up they triple the credit!


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## derekfaeberwick (Feb 25, 2010)

I'm parked in Kircaldy at the moment and I'm using my Vodafone dongle.

  3G+ = 7.2 Mbs. Quite fast and I always get a signal of some sort, even at Abbey Saint Bathans, although that was about as slow as a slow thing can be.


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## barryd (Feb 25, 2010)

I got a 2 year contract in 2008 with Vodafone for a 3G dongle.  The service was better then than it is now.  You nearly always get a connection but more often than not its 2G not 3G so very slow.

I have a theory about this degrade of service.  Everyone is getting 3G phones such as the iPhone and all these phones now connect to the net.  So they now have a bandwidth problem on the mobile networks.  Over usage is causing a bottle neck hence the slow down of our dongles!  Its just a theory though.

Im going to get a big directional wifi antenna and start experimenting with that once I have got over the shock of shelling out £2200 for a new rear axle.

BD


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## kenjones (Feb 25, 2010)

*Dongle*

My Vodaphone contract is up next month.
What a waste of money that has been, so slow even if you are able to connect.
Will be changing to pay as you go until I find something better.
No more restrictive contracts for me.


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## robjmckinney (Feb 25, 2010)

*Tesco*

I got my daughter a Tesco contract sim cancel anytime for her 3G Iphone clone and it won't do any downloading unless she additionally tops it up. So now we have another contract we pay £10, gets £30  of calls which she don't use so the computer side is unusable.

I would be very careful and ensure whatever phone company you use, make sure it does exactly what it says on the packet!


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## PaulC (Feb 25, 2010)

tiderus said:


> A better move would have been to go pay as you go.
> Rgd's Graham.


I don't think there is such a thing as a genuine PAYG dongle now vodafone has 30 day use by period.


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## t&s (Mar 9, 2010)

we use the " 3" mobile network dongles for the web but to keep cost as low as possible it is better to purchace and use one in each country you visit and intend to use the net


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## shortcircuit (Mar 10, 2010)

derekfaeberwick said:


> I'm parked in Kircaldy at the moment and I'm using my Vodafone dongle.
> 
> 3G+ = 7.2 Mbs. Quite fast and I always get a signal of some sort, even at Abbey Saint Bathans, although that was about as slow as a slow thing can be.



Come on Derek from Berwic your in Kirkcaldy.

Use my T-Mobile Nokia N73 as a modem and get quite a good service including 3G


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## jayeastanglia (Mar 13, 2010)

I had my 3dongle for 2 years now and its ok if near towns or at least on the outskirts but as soon as going into the countryside especially norfolk=no signal..Now my orange dongle wont work at my storage unit but the 3mobile one will explain that then...And I was told when i got my orange dongle it would work ok as long as theres a orange signal but yet at my storage place i get mobile phone signal but no dongle signal


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## Deleted member 9215 (Mar 13, 2010)

im on 02 and at home i get a full signal 3g on my moblie yet on my dongle i geat a GPRS signal whitch you all know is slooooooow


dunk


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## n8rbos (Mar 13, 2010)

whatever did we do before mobile phones/computers etc ?


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## kangooroo (Mar 13, 2010)

n8rbos said:


> whatever did we do before mobile phones/computers etc ?



We used to talk to people rather than text/email them, had real friends instead of virtual/E-friends, had more free time, took more exercise and spent more time with family and friends.

Having said that I have made (and met) many new friends online from all over the world, found my Kangoo-Roo online and would never wish to turn back the clock to the pre-'puter age.

Internet-addict KangooRoo


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## Milfy (Mar 14, 2010)

l77 tuf said:


> my t mobile dongle was up for renewal today so called t mobile they say they wont move on £15 a month so i ended my contract with them
> 
> my parents/daughter have the 3 mobile 12gb package pay up front £79.99
> 
> ...




what site is this on? not been able to find same 12gb package for £52.95


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## Admin (Mar 14, 2010)

When my 3 mobile broadband contract was up for renewal I spoke to retentions and got:

MiFi mobile broadband router.
15Gb monthly transfer.

For £17 per month. I was paying £25.00 for 7GB


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## norma (Mar 17, 2010)

Can anyone recommend the best dongle for touring in Ireland (republic)?
Norms


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## bigboack (Mar 17, 2010)

norma said:


> Can anyone recommend the best dongle for touring in Ireland (republic)?
> Norms



Buy a pay as you go when you get there as it will save on roaming charges, It will work out cheaper if you intend to use it a lot.


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## sagart (Mar 17, 2010)

Slightly off topic? But if anyone, like me, uses a smartphone to access the Internet, Opera 10 Mobile final version has just been released.


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## norma (Mar 17, 2010)

Was intending to do that but wondered if anyone knew who the best provider was for general coverage........


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## sagart (Mar 18, 2010)

PaulC said:


> I don't think there is such a thing as a genuine PAYG dongle now vodafone has 30 day use by period.



Not too sure of this, I'm on PAYG with a dongle and mine certainly does not expire after 30 days


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## sagart (Mar 18, 2010)

norma said:


> Was intending to do that but wondered if anyone knew who the best provider was for general coverage........



Up here, generally, Vodafone gives the best coverage though the O2 network is used by some of the emergency services. If you have a phone which switches networks this turns out to be ideal in emergency situations.


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## kangooroo (Mar 18, 2010)

sagart said:


> Not too sure of this, I'm on PAYG with a dongle and mine certainly does not expire after 30 days



True - there are still a few of the older K3565 vodafone dongles available whereby the 1GB data top-ups have no expiry date.  There are some available in branches of Maplins and Amazon - with orders fulfilled by.... Vodafone!!


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## tresrikay (Mar 18, 2010)

I have got a 3G dongle payg, which seems excellent when in Hayfield , Leek and Bakewell....minimum £10 for a month. An O2, minimum £2.50 per day..... which is about as long as it takes to do anything, anywhere.
I only use them when (on the road) but I think they will get better as time moves on.


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## bill2b (Mar 19, 2010)

PaulC said:


> I don't think there is such a thing as a genuine PAYG dongle now vodafone has 30 day use by period.



We have had our Vodaphone dongle for a year now no contract, and you buy £15 blocks. not long after we got it we noticed the credit was up to £29.90 I asked them about it and it had been paid by a pay at the till person (not me lol) anyway thay asked me if I wanted to escalate it but I said "no its OK thanks" he he

Not very fast a lot of the time, my Mobile with Virgin is more reliable which is a bit of a shame but at least the money does not go away unless you use it!


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## l77 tuf (Mar 20, 2010)

thats it no more t mobile were on 3 now and its ok for us even in remote locations its slow but ok for us


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## magbrin (Mar 20, 2010)

tresrikay said:


> I have got a 3G dongle payg, which seems excellent when in Hayfield , Leek and Bakewell....minimum £10 for a month. An O2, minimum £2.50 per day..... which is about as long as it takes to do anything, anywhere.
> I only use them when (on the road) but I think they will get better as time moves on.



3 dongle with HANDSET (not mobile broadband) sim card works - where there is reception home and Spain (& most of Europe?) - does not expire and has no minimum and no limit.  Top up with cash credit, online.  (So I am told but I am at the moment arguing the loss of £10 way back in December and as the "free" sim card I got did not work I had to pay for a new one £1.99)


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## defitzi (Mar 21, 2010)

*defitzi*



barryd said:


> I got a 2 year contract in 2008 with Vodafone for a 3G dongle.  The service was better then than it is now.  You nearly always get a connection but more often than not its 2G not 3G so very slow.
> 
> I have a theory about this degrade of service.  Everyone is getting 3G phones such as the iPhone and all these phones now connect to the net.  So they now have a bandwidth problem on the mobile networks.  Over usage is causing a bottle neck hence the slow down of our dongles!  Its just a theory though.
> 
> ...



 do tell us more about these big ariels? And will U keep us informed as to progress tata


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## defitzi (Mar 21, 2010)

*defitzi*



n8rbos said:


> whatever did we do before mobile phones/computers etc ?



we didn't believe anything lying, bullsh*tting mobile salesmen told us


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## champstar (Mar 28, 2010)

Hi I am looking for a decent mobile dongle that will work in Scotland..esp the west highlands...can anyone recommend a good one.

ta


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## kangooroo (Mar 28, 2010)

champstar said:


> Hi I am looking for a decent mobile dongle that will work in Scotland..esp the west highlands...can anyone recommend a good one.
> ta



When travelling around the West Highlands and John O'Groats last year, I used the vodafone K3565 dongle at £15 per 1GB data with no expiry.  These have now been replaced by a 3GB version which requires topping up every 30 days but a few of the older ones are still available from some Maplin stores and Amazon.


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## gairn (Mar 28, 2010)

Hi there
I also have a vodafone Huawei K3565 which I got about a year ago. I've used about £2 of credit. When I got it the guy in the shop said to use it at least once in every 180 days to prevent it expiring. It's not the quickest but it certainly seemed the cheapest option at the time. It was called "vodafone top up and go". All the other networks wanted a contract and/or had 30 day expiry which was no use to me. It doesn't work abroad though. It's ok on my xp netbook but the software for my linux netbook was tricky to install and is temperamental. If it wasn't available i wouldn't have bothered as my limited usage doesn't justify the contract cost. Better off using a free hotspot in a pub or something!
Cheers
Gairn


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## Slither (Mar 30, 2010)

I've got one of these with a Micro SD slot in it, so works as a flash drive too. Awesome investment!


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