Rip off Britain (Especially O2) Anyone else been conned?

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Location
London
Personally I would never log into an unknown network, and I’d advise everyone else the same.
what do you mean by unknown?
In normal times I log into lots of public wifi, very often in the likes of spoons.
No more dangerous than being on the web in general if you are not passing any financial info?
 

Archie_tect

De Skieven Architek... aka Penfold + Horace
Location
Northumberland
I use Google Maps a lot for my work these days so need data wherever the wifi is weak... but technology and bundles are getting cheaper every year. I have O2 and always found themn helpful and reliable... maybe just lucky!
 

DRHysted

Guru
Location
New Forest
what do you mean by unknown?
In normal times I log into lots of public wifi, very often in the likes of spoons.
No more dangerous than being on the web in general if you are not passing any financial info?
When you log on via public WiFi you are trusting that the security is set up correctly, or that they are not hackers (hackers have been known to set up WiFi near units named the same just to get people to log in). It is easy to send sniffer packets to devices which can then take control, or monitor all information, or copy all information on the device, or all three. Quite a concern considering how much information is stored on modern smart phones.
Hence why I don’t use public WiFi, it’s unknown. If I was to ever use public WiFi I would ensure I was using a VPN first which reduces the risk.
 

newts

Veteran
Location
Isca Dumnoniorum
I use Google Maps a lot for my work these days so need data wherever the wifi is weak... but technology and bundles are getting cheaper every year. I have O2 and always found themn helpful and reliable... maybe just lucky!
I use data on the move, 90% of the area I cover wouldn't have wifi avialable (Westcountry & South Wales). O2 coverage in these areas is generally good, vodaphone & orange in the past not as reliable. It's the sharp selling practices of all mobile companies that is bordering dishonesty, but housebuilders, motor trade, insurance, banks & estate agents etc are just as culpable for having morals lower than a snakes private parts to ensure the satisfaction of the shareholders.
 

Archie_tect

De Skieven Architek... aka Penfold + Horace
Location
Northumberland
I use data on the move, 90% of the area I cover wouldn't have wifi avialable (Westcountry & South Wales). O2 coverage in these areas is generally good, vodaphone & orange in the past not as reliable. It's the sharp selling practices of all mobile companies that is bordering dishonesty, but housebuilders, motor trade, insurance, banks & estate agents etc are just as culpable for having morals lower than a snakes private parts to ensure the satisfaction of the shareholders.
That's true newts! ... not forgetting cabinet spokespersons.
 

Milkfloat

An Peanut
Location
Midlands
My mother pays £160 a month for Sky TV and the Internet. She has signed up for things that she cannot even use like Ultra HD for her SD TV. She refuses to do anything about it because the one time she tried she ended up being upsold and locked into another 2 year contract. I have offered to try and sort it out, but she won't accept my help.
 

winjim

Smash the cistern
Is it different in other countries?
 

Cycleops

Legendary Member
Location
Accra, Ghana
Is it different in other countries?
You can get contract phones here but most buy a phone (which are a bit cheaper than U.K.) and then use scratch card credits or you can use Mobile Money, which is like a bank account on your phone to top up. I’m on Vodafone, yes the same company, and I can buy 4.66 GB internet for 13cedis ( £1.60). Speeds are not great. There is a dedicated internet provider called Surfline who provide a more reliable but not much faster service through portable or mains modems.
 

Moodyman

Legendary Member
Is it different in other countries?

It's often better and cheaper. Many poorer countries bypassed older technology to the latest. The more developed countries had the headache of integrating new technology with existing infrastructure which adds to costs.
 
I bought an iPhone 5 when they came out in 2012. I think I paid £512 for it.

I tend to keep things until they’re no longer fit for purpose. My last two cars lasted 13 and 15 years and I’ve had my motorcycle for 23 years.

After 8 years the iPhone is still working at a reasonable speed, although I did replace the battery and charging port the year before last. The replacement parts cost £13.

I like the phone. It’s a nice size and seems more robust than the more recent models, which also seem a little too big to me.

The problem I have now is a lot of Apps won’t run on it, including the NHS covid trace app.

The biggest problem for me though is that the BBC Sounds app won’t run on it so I can no longer listen to Test Match Special when fishing or cycling. :eek:

This simply will not do.

So now I’m looking at current iPhone models and balking at the prices. I’d prefer an Apple phone as I use an iPad and Macbook Air at home and a Macbook Pro at work, so everything plays very well together.

The amount of money they want for these phones just doesn’t seem worth it for only 8 years use.

Edit:
This thread jogged me into action. I’ve just ordered a new iPhone SE 2nd Gen for £372. Seems to be a relatively sensible size and not as ball-bouncingly expensive as I feared.

Hopefully will future proof me long enough to be able to listen to us regain The Ashes?
 
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