Virgin 4G

dilli-theclaw · 28-02-2013, 17:05

So, Natalie just gave me her phone she got for her upgrade. Very nice of her indeed.

It is a (unlocked thankfully) Galaxy note II LTE edition.

I was just wondering when and if VM will be supporting 4g so I will be able to use all the features (eventually).

Dash: CF noob · 28-02-2013, 17:35

Coming soon ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

Sorry couldn't resist.

Ben B · 04-03-2013, 00:58

Well Phones 4U have launched a MVNO called 'LIFE Mobile' on EE's network and their press release states that they plan to launch 4G services on that 'later in the year' http://www.phones4u.co.uk/media/pres...h-life-mobile/. With Virgin already running on EE's network I would think that they would start to be able to offer 4G around the same time as LIFE.

04-03-2013, 15:36

Yeah, all the networks should be launching 4G this year so EE are just clinging onto exclusivity for as long as possible, even from their own MVNO partners.

Ben B · 04-03-2013, 17:01

I don't blame them, I'm with them and think it's worth it if you can get it

04-03-2013, 17:17

Their prices are absolute disgusting though.

qasdfdsaq · 04-03-2013, 18:18

My bet is July/August.

Ben B · 04-03-2013, 22:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jameseh

Their prices are absolute disgusting though.

My phone is £36/month on Orange (which I had it on for a couple of months), the same plan is £41 on EE so not much difference

qasdfdsaq · 05-03-2013, 15:57

The plan itself isn't that bad - as you say about £5 a month more - but most other headline prices are subject to quite substantial discounts if you shop around and EE's aren't. On Orange, you can get a free Note II with unlimited calls, texts, and 3GB data for £36 a month. On EE, the standard price is £46 a month + £30 for the phone, costing a total of £270 more for exactly the same, sans the LTE coverage.

Best I can find looking around, is £46 a month with a free phone + £25 cashback on that same package, so it'd "only" cost £215 more.

05-03-2013, 20:55

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ben B

My phone is £36/month on Orange (which I had it on for a couple of months), the same plan is £41 on EE so not much difference

I have an iPhone 5 on 3 with unlimited data running at 20Mbs on DC-HSDPA and costs £34, The closest on EE has a 20Gb limit won't be any faster and is £61 a month

qasdfdsaq · 06-03-2013, 19:52

EE's network currently runs at "Up to" 50Mbps in most places, shortly to become 100Mbps, DC-HSPA runs at "Up to" 42Mbps (or 28.8 if you're on Vodafone)

Not to mention the latter will have a lot more congestion - for now. And it's not download speeds that are the problem, it's latency, and you will be a lot faster on EE.

06-03-2013, 20:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by qasdfdsaq

EE's network currently runs at "Up to" 50Mbps in most places, shortly to become 100Mbps, DC-HSPA runs at "Up to" 42Mbps (or 28.8 if you're on Vodafone)

Not to mention the latter will have a lot more congestion - for now. And it's not download speeds that are the problem, it's latency, and you will be a lot faster on EE.

Well where I work people on EE are getting between 17 and 25mbs, I'm getting 20 ,sometimes as high as 28mbs+ for half the price and UNLIMITED. It will take a lot for me to ditch unlimited. When at home it's not uncommon for me to turn my iPhone into a hotspot connect my laptop to it wirelessly and download a tv show or 2. Whilst using my home connection for gaming.

With Sky unlimited and 3 unlimited I could never go back to limits.

dnh · 06-03-2013, 21:11

Virgin on 4g??? No chance they have just started capping their speeds at around 2mb http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tech/new...speed-cap.html

Ben B · 06-03-2013, 23:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bogof

Well where I work people on EE are getting between 17 and 25mbs, I'm getting 20 ,sometimes as high as 28mbs+ for half the price and UNLIMITED. It will take a lot for me to ditch unlimited. When at home it's not uncommon for me to turn my iPhone into a hotspot connect my laptop to it wirelessly and download a tv show or 2. Whilst using my home connection for gaming.

With Sky unlimited and 3 unlimited I could never go back to limits.

You're lucky then, the 3 signal round here is poor and isn't DC-HSDPA enabled, but I can get EE 4G. In my situation, £5 more a month seemed perfectly acceptable cause it means I can get fast reliable internet where I need it and I don't use mobile internet for streaming videos or downloading large files so I never run out/go over. If you can get the phone free on Orange/T-Mobile and not EE though then you can get it with them and then switch to EE free of charge ;D

07-03-2013, 11:14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ben B

You're lucky then, the 3 signal round here is poor and isn't DC-HSDPA enabled, but I can get EE 4G. In my situation, £5 more a month seemed perfectly acceptable cause it means I can get fast reliable internet where I need it and I don't use mobile internet for streaming videos or downloading large files so I never run out/go over. If you can get the phone free on Orange/T-Mobile and not EE though then you can get it with them and then switch to EE free of charge ;D

Yeah, if you don't need unlimited I guess its a good idea but in our home we really need unlimited or 50Gb at least. Even more so when working away and needing internet. Either pay the extortionate hotel rates or turn on my iPhones personal hotspot. Then watch Skygo on the laptop or iPlayer send receive large files. I think on some days I would use the entire 5gb in 5 hours. Then I'd be stuck for the rest of the month.