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Mobile/cell Phone Signal

Ray

By Ray
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Ray

Ray

Posted
Posted

I know this has been discussed before but it's possible the answer changes over time.

We currently use BT/EE for the complete home package but this month's bill is a joke and our contract is expiring soon.

So while onboard a boat does anyone have a recommendation please for a different provider with reasonable signal access? Given, of course that it's going to be patchy.

Thanks in advance

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kpnut

kpnut

Posted
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I use Vodafone network for the Broads and have just swopped to lebara. I must say it’s been a brilliant breath of fresh air to pick up the phone, press a couple of buttons and then have the phone answered within half a minute - 3 times yesterday while I got myself in a muddle and once today. It therefore looks like their customer service is excellent. 

Coverage over the last couple of years with the Vodafone network seems better than what I used to get with O2. 
 

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Mouldy

Mouldy

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Hi Ray.  We too are with BT/EE.  I’m not impressed with their price increase either, but I’ve been with them for many years, since an absolute nightmare with home broadband from TalkTalk.

As Deb is still working, largely from home, reliability in the service is paramount, so we’re going to soldier on with them, as they’ve proved to be very reliable, both where we used to live and now in Norfolk.  We have full fibre to the home, with good speeds guaranteed.

As far as mobiles are concerned, we’ve been with EE for a long time too.  Their customer service is good, when needed, as opposed to Vodafone who were a nightmare.

You might get a good sim only deal from one of the secondary suppliers, like Lebara or Smarty.  Their service piggybacks on the major networks and are generally quite reasonably priced.

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Ray

Ray

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Lebara is looking like the way to go so far, their sim only prices easily beat BT even after the Broadband discount.

I'm intending to drop the landline and TV packages altogether, they are pretty much redundant for us as long as we still buy a TV licence we can get what we need.

BT offered me a deal... for only £10 more a month I could have exactly what I have now with a more exciting description 🙄

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Mouldy

Mouldy

Posted
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29 minutes ago, Ray said:

Lebara is looking like the way to go so far, their sim only prices easily beat BT even after the Broadband discount.

I'm intending to drop the landline and TV packages altogether, they are pretty much redundant for us as long as we still buy a TV licence we can get what we need.

BT offered me a deal... for only £10 more a month I could have exactly what I have now with a more exciting description 🙄

We don’t bother with BT TV and I may well drop the landline.  All we ever get are cold calls, which do provide some great entertainment if you engage with the person on the phone.  We have Amazon Prime, which even with the forthcoming price increase, is still good value for what it offers.  I gave Sky up a loooong time ago - another company that talked the talk, but with lamentable customer service.

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Ray

Ray

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21 minutes ago, BrundallNavy said:

I have a Smarty sim, unlimited month by month contract £10 per month.  Works most places ok even Horning. 

I was just looking at them (an ad popped up just as I was looking at sim contracts... go figure!) Good prices 👍

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81011

81011

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I've recently switched to talkmobile (part of Vodafone and therefore uses their network) from Sky.... a seamless switchover, very well priced for SIM only  and a bonus of EU roaming included for when holidaying abroad..... Highly recommended!

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grendel

grendel

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Loddon and Rockland are the 2 places that I have difficulty, ok at high tide, but at low tide you drop below the signal, a long pole helps (one of my dongles has external antenna and getting this high up helps at these locations

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Mouldy

Mouldy

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3 minutes ago, grendel said:

I have 2 wifi dongles, one is on )2 PATG data and the other is on 3 (who I believe use the EE network) the O2 one is a 20Gb data sim that lasts until run out or 12 months, the 3 one was 25gb and lasts for 2 years

Fairly certain that 3 use their own network.

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RS2021

RS2021

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BT do seem to offer you broadband 'deals' which are more than you are paying, but with added extras... which you probably don't want. If you keep asking they will offer deals without the extras. My deal ran out just before their infamous 14% price increase. I waited until the last day and managed to get a deal £2 less than what I had been paying before (still more than 'brand new customers only' though). I think they are starting to realise they will lose loads of customers if they don't reduce prices. I see their 'brand new customer only' deals are now lower than March. So negotiate before you leave.

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  • 8 months later...
Karizma

Karizma

Posted
Posted

Just gone through this thread again as I would like Santa to treat Karizma to some sort of 'mobile phone signal booster' .........

I have a EE mobile phone 'package' that has a massive 200gb of data per month (doubled up due to having BT broadband), and when on the boat we use this to hotspot to the laptop; to watch TV through Sky Go and films through Netflix. We can get a good enough mobile signal in most areas, but there are a few places where the signal is there but sometimes just not good enough!

I've seen that you can purchase a Portable WiFi Router, where you insert a data sim, which then provides a wifi signal that I could connect the laptop to, but having so much 'data' available on my phone contract I'm reluctant to purchase another SIM card to use for wifi access - typical Yorkshireman !!!!

Has anybody got experience of one of these mobile phone 'signal boosters' that have an external antenna, a signal booster and an internal antenna, which claim to boost voice connections, as well as improving mobile internet?

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Karizma

Karizma

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thanks for the replies guys - sound as though you are all using either a 'Mobile Wifi Routers' which take a SIM card (of your choice) to get Wifi, that you then connect your device to, or a call / data Sim package which goes in your mobile phone.

I'm wanting to find something that booster a poor mobile phone signal i.e. something like a 'mobile phone signal booster' that amplifies a weak signal, that your phone can then connect to, for both voice calls and data usage - anybody used one / got any experience of one?

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OldBerkshireBoy

OldBerkshireBoy

Posted
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On 14/12/2023 at 20:28, Karizma said:

I'm wanting to find something that booster a poor mobile phone signal i.e. something like a 'mobile phone signal booster' that amplifies a weak signal, that your phone can then connect to, for both voice calls and data usage - anybody used one / got any experience of one?

I brought a booster and the signal bars on the phone went from 0 up to 3 or 4 with it showing 5 bars on the odd day. It wasnt one in the link below but does look exactly the same. RV sites have 12v versions.

https://www.docallboosters.com/

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Karizma

Karizma

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4 hours ago, OldBerkshireBoy said:

I brought a booster and the signal bars on the phone went from 0 up to 3 or 4 with it showing 5 bars on the odd day. It wasnt one in the link below but does look exactly the same. RV sites have 12v versions.

https://www.docallboosters.com/

Hi OBO, thanks for the feedback; thats one of the websites I've been looking at, but wanted confirmation that they do 'what it says on the tin'!!

Do you know if they also pick up and boost Wifi signals (as well as mobile signals)? I'm assuming not, but you might surprise me :default_biggrin:

Any recommendations on set ups, functionality, etc, based on what you found?

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