Unlimited data for wifi onboard at what I think is a good price.

[Kinver Canopies]

Hi all.

 

Not sure if this is any use to you guys but I've just signed up for this unlimited phone, messages and data plan.  

 

It's costing me £18 a month and the coverage is great with 4G 5G and the rest..  They sent me a code so if anyone signs up using it they get a £10 Amazon voucher.

 

I know WIFI ONBOARD sell routers that need sims so just thought it may help someone. 

 

https://i.smarty.co.uk/dHOKML

 

ANYWAY THAT's the link above.. If you use it I also get a voucher so happy days all round.

 

 

[GUMPY]

Smarty was better when you got a free month for recommending someone. I managed best part of 3 years free internet  using that.

[IanD]

Smarty are also on the Three network which has poorer cross-UK coverage than EE -- which is generally reckoned to be the best network for boaters.

 

If you are happy with Three then Smarty are indeed one of the best deals, especially because of no contract and flexibility (but also see Scancom for prepaid deals).

 

If you prefer EE then 1p mobile are best for short-term/flexible deals (£20pcm for 200GB), if you want a longer-term deal and don't mind paying upfront then Scancom (via Amazon) are the best bet (£11pcm for unlimited data with 600GB FUP):

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/EE-Unlimited-Data-Sim-Preloaded/dp/B0BV35VQBL?ref_=ast_sto_dp

Edited July 6, 2023 by IanD

[dmr]

I think Smarty actually are Three and its their low cost brand that offers even less support than standard Three, so good for those who don't need help.

 

This sort of thing, companies having a low cost brand to compete with themselves, is not usual. Its better to be the competition than have competition.

A (failed) example from the boating world is Barrus Shanks as a low cost competitor to Barrus Shire.

[IanD]

9 minutes ago, dmr said:

I think Smarty actually are Three and its their low cost brand that offers even less support than standard Three, so good for those who don't need help.

 

This sort of thing, companies having a low cost brand to compete with themselves, is not usual. Its better to be the competition than have competition.

A (failed) example from the boating world is Barrus Shanks as a low cost competitor to Barrus Shire.

I assume you didn't mean "is not usual"? Because it is usual, in many business areas -- as you say, it's better to offer a cheaper low-end service yourself under a different name (to try and stop cannibalisation) and at least get *some* business (and profit) from it than let somebody else take that market share away.

 

There have been failed examples where it was done badly, but also many successful ones where it was done well, Smarty being one example.

Edited July 6, 2023 by IanD

[Tracy D'arth]

I had Smarty, the 3 network was so bad that I had to change to Lebara on Vodaphone, unlimited  data, calls and texts for £25 a month.

£50 recommendation bribe. 

[GUMPY]

Strange that I've never had a problem with Three, I guess it's down to the standard of your router and how capable you are of managing the connection.

🤔

[IanD]

10 minutes ago, GUMPY said:

Strange that I've never had a problem with Three, I guess it's down to the standard of your router and how capable you are of managing the connection.

🤔

No it's down to location; if you're in a good area for Three then they're an excellent choice (the cheapest with high data rates and unlimited data).

 

But if you're moving around the canals a lot and especially spending time out in the sticks, EE have the best coverage for usable connections:

 

https://www.opensignal.com/reports/2023/04/uk/mobile-network-experience

 

 

Edited July 6, 2023 by IanD

[GUMPY]

I moved around the country in our boat/caravan never had a problem maybe I'm just lucky 😆

I do carry an EE sim,  only ever used it once in the middle of Ireland as I reached the 12gb roaming limit on Smarty.

I really must use the data on it before it expires.

[ditchcrawler]

30 minutes ago, GUMPY said:

Strange that I've never had a problem with Three, I guess it's down to the standard of your router and how capable you are of managing the connection.

🤔

I do OK on Three/Smarty but then I don't move much

[IanD]

46 minutes ago, GUMPY said:

I moved around the country in our boat/caravan never had a problem maybe I'm just lucky 😆

I do carry an EE sim,  only ever used it once in the middle of Ireland as I reached the 12gb roaming limit on Smarty.

I really must use the data on it before it expires.

 

A travelling boater (or caravanner) is least likely to have a coverage problem with EE. That's what the survey of a huge number of mobile users -- not just you -- clearly shows... 😉

 

(beware of the Peter Principle -- "my experience means everyone else will have the same"...)

Edited July 6, 2023 by IanD

[GUMPY]

Whoosh and @IanD didn't even have to duck🤔

[Alan de Enfield]

If our experiences are of any interest ...........

 

We always had "3" and "EE" whilst on the on waterways and the only place we couldn't get "3" we couldn't get "EE" either, and a boat alongside was on Vodaphone and they had No signal either.

 

"3" has proved more than adequate, and financially better than any other provider.

 

We have just had the last 5 weeks touring the highlands of Scotland with most places so remote and so far fron any civilisation they could not be compared to the bustling metropolis of the canal system.

 

Again my "3" has performed superbly except in one location of around 500 yard square around our Sons remote (6 miles off road)  cottage in the middle of the mountains. However SWMBOs "EE" still works there, so I agree EE appears to offer better coverage than 3 (but not by much)

Son's Broadband is sent down to his house from a satellite dish at the top of the 'hill'. Their neighbour ( the converted watermill) have only had a telephone, and a TV for the last 2-years, before that, connection was deemed impossible.

Both properties water supply is from the Burn running alongside the watermill

There are still areas in the UK living in the 18th / 19th century as far as technology and access is concerned.

[jonathanA]

i'd be a bit wary of relying on any claimed 'speed test' results.  Kevin keeps telling us the 'EE' is the Uk's fastest network, 3 make the same claim and of course Voda are claiming the 'most reliable' network.  All include small print showing root metrics, opensignal or whoever as the 'source'  in my experience these things are often influenced by advertising or sponsorship spending.... just saying. 

 

Vodafone and 3 are merging (subject to Regulatory approval) so potentially the fastest/most reliable once merged... who knows but it will be a while before the merger makes any real change. 

 

Personally I had such a bad experience with 3 that i would do without a mobile phone rather than use them again 

[doratheexplorer]

14 minutes ago, jonathanA said:

 

Personally I had such a bad experience with 3 that i would do without a mobile phone rather than use them again 

Ditto.  I'm not sure the customer service of any telecoms company is great, but Three are utterly abysmal.  If you're on Three, just pray nothing goes wrong.

Edited July 6, 2023 by doratheexplorer

[IanD]

10 minutes ago, jonathanA said:

i'd be a bit wary of relying on any claimed 'speed test' results.  Kevin keeps telling us the 'EE' is the Uk's fastest network, 3 make the same claim and of course Voda are claiming the 'most reliable' network.  All include small print showing root metrics, opensignal or whoever as the 'source'  in my experience these things are often influenced by advertising or sponsorship spending.... just saying. 

 

Vodafone and 3 are merging (subject to Regulatory approval) so potentially the fastest/most reliable once merged... who knows but it will be a while before the merger makes any real change. 

 

Personally I had such a bad experience with 3 that i would do without a mobile phone rather than use them again 

The opensignal report I referenced is not tied to any network, and it doesn't just rely on "speed test" results or those from a small number of people -- if you read it, it looks at various aspects of network performance, split up by network type (4G/5G), application, and usage, and collected from a huge number of users.

 

For some use cases a network other then EE comes out top (e.g. Three is good for 5G, and especially for gaming -- see the report), but for the thing most boaters are looking for -- consistent usable performance in as many places as possible -- EE comes out top, which is what the snapshot I posted shows.

 

That doesn't mean the Three and O2 won't work perfectly well for many people, as noted above by several posters -- just that EE is most likely to work for the largest number of people, because that's how statistics work...🙂

[GUMPY]

2 minutes ago, doratheexplorer said:

Ditto.  I'm not sure the customer service of any telecoms company is great, but Three are utterly abysmal.  If you're on Three, just pray nothing goes wrong.

Been on 3 for 10 years, only time there was a problem that I couldn't sort, maintenance on my local mast overrunning, they refunded me 2 months payments in compensation. It all still worked just at  greatly reduced speed went from good 4g back to bad 3g.

[ditchcrawler]

39 minutes ago, GUMPY said:

Been on 3 for 10 years, only time there was a problem that I couldn't sort, maintenance on my local mast overrunning, they refunded me 2 months payments in compensation. It all still worked just at  greatly reduced speed went from good 4g back to bad 3g.

How can something cheap be good? If you pay more it must be better

[Rob-M]

I've used Smarty for a few years now and not had any issue getting coverage for working or streaming TV.

[Ewan123]

Yep, we've had Smarty for nearly 3 years now and it's really good value. No creeping annual price increases either. Never had any problems with signal that other networks haven't also had from talking to people using others. Lee & Stort, Grand Union (Brentford to Foxton and Braunston), North Oxford and Coventry canals all seem good. I've got 40Mbps download speed outside Atherstone today

I honestly don't understand those who complain that the 3 network is useless (at least in the areas I've mentioned)!

Edited July 6, 2023 by Ewan123

[blackrose]

I'm switching from 3 to Smarty next week as my 3 contract has finished and they're offering me a new contract at an increased price! So much for loyalty and existing customer service. I'm satisfied with the 3 network and the other benefit of Smarty is that you can freeze your account for up to 6 months at a time which is useful for me when I go travelling. You can't to that with 3.

 

The only other network that works at my mooring is the aforementioned EE, but it's a LOT more expensive.

Edited July 6, 2023 by blackrose

[Rob-M]

5 minutes ago, blackrose said:

I'm switching from 3 to Smarty next week as my 3 contract has finished and they're offering me a new contract at an increased price! So much for loyalty and existing customer service. I'm satisfied with the 3 network and the other benefit of Smarty is that you can freeze your account for up to 6 months at a time which is useful for me when I go travelling. You can't to that with 3.

 

The only other network that works at my mooring is the aforementioned EE, but it's a LOT more expensive.

We only pay for the months we are on the boat which is handy for when I have to go home to go to the office.  I like that Smarty isn't on fixed monthly renewals so you always get a months usage regardless of when you renew so often I'll not renew for a few days or weeks.

[IanD]

5 minutes ago, blackrose said:

I'm switching from 3 to Smarty next week as my 3 contract has finished and they're offering me a new contract at an increased price! So much for loyalty and existing customer service. I'm satisfied with the 3 network and the other benefit of Smarty is that you can freeze your account for up to 6 months at a time which is useful for me when I go travelling. You can't to that with 3.

 

The only other network that works at my mooring is the aforementioned EE, but it's a LOT more expensive.

EE is a *lot* more expensive if you go direct to them, less so if you go via an MVNO like 1p Mobile or a reseller like Scancom.

 

Three -- or Smarty -- are still cheaper if they have coverage where you are. And if you're not on the boat all the time, Smarty (or 1p Mobile) let you pause/change deals on a monthly basis, which is excellent.

[GUMPY]

1 hour ago, ditchcrawler said:

How can something cheap be good? If you pay more it must be better

There is also the fact that because we pay for something we  have to say its good in order to justify our choice

 

[IanD]

If you want to check network coverage (3G/4G/5G) for all the networks where you are -- or anywhere else -- you can see maps at https://bidb.uk/

 

Enter postcode and hit "go", then scroll down to the "Cellular data" panel which shows the four networks, hovering over each of them brings up 3G/4G/5G coverage on the map -- you can pan the map and zoom in and out to see entire areas.

 

Can't guarantee it's always correct, but it has been for the places I've tried. The best network will be different depending where you look, for most of the canal places I've tried either EE or Three has the best coverage.

 

P.S. Uplands Marina seems to be in an EE dead spot, all the other networks (even O2 and Voda!) are better there -- so general statements like "EE has the best coverage" don't apply *everywhere*... 😉

Edited July 6, 2023 by IanD