3mobilebuzz brings you the latest news, reviews, opinion and hype on 3 from across the web. Find out what other people are saying about all of 3’s mobiles, price plans, products and services online, plus troubleshooting hints and tips.
Fred (@wingdisk) of tekimage has been trialling the INQ Mini 3G and has gone as far as to compare it to Superman!
He has been putting it through its paces testing out the Skype and Twitter apps and uploading photos straight to facebook.
Fred also talks us through his experience with 3’s 3G network and the improvements he’s seen over the months, due to the work that 3 has been doing to enhance and expand its network.
So, who does Fred see using the INQ Mini 3G? Not just the youths of today - pop over to his blog post and find out. Do you agree?
As reported over the past couple of weeks, we provided 8 fashion addicts with HTC Heros and INQ Chat 3Gs so they could report from the catwalk for free to celebrate 3 offering free Twitter throughout February & March.
The girls took full advantage of the offer and tweeted profusely all day long. Check out #FreeTwitteron3 for a review of the day, from what’s on trend in Spring / Summer 2010 to who bought what (and a lot of buying was done!)
The girls really enjoyed the phones they were using, Natasha (@natashabailie) said of the Hero:
“I was given a HTC Hero phone, which took some getting used to, but if you like gadgets and nifty handheld devices then you will love the (super) Hero phone on 3mobile.”
Whilst half the girls had HTC Heros, the other half had INQ Chat 3Gs which went down a storm with Fiona of SaveOurShoes, a self-confessed technophobe:
“I got to play around with an INQ Mobile for a bit. And now, I am addicted to tweeting, twitpicing and being a general nuisance.”
Follow them on Saturday to find out what they’ve been doing and what amazing stuff they’ve been seeing.
@nechbi from mypocketOS has also been spreading the word about Free Twitter on 3 throughout February and March, and makes a good point that “if you haven’t used Twitter before, now is a good opportunity to try it out for free.” So why not have a go?!
Morning everyone! Wanted to let you all know that 3’s BigGiveAway is happening today, all day from 9am to 7pm.
Every hour 3 is giving away 100 dongles and 80 one month Spotify Premium subscriptions and it’s completely free to enter.
3 believes that the internet is for everyone and wants to give everyone the chance to use it. There have been other dongle giveaways, which had a good reception from customers at UKGadgeteer - but this one will be even bigger.
Good luck everyone - let us know if you manage to win anything!
As part of our work with 3 we arrange a lot of different handset trials – it’s a great way to get feedback on new phones and see what the end consumer thinks of 3’s products.
To mix things up a bit, I decided that my girlfriend Laura would be a good guinea pig for a trial we’re currently running for the Sony Ericsson T715.
This little handset is very cute, comes in pink (which I knew she’d love), but most importantly of all – it’s aimed at people who might like to use the internet a bit more on their phones, they just don’t know it yet.
Laura’s a low intensity internet user. She uses Facebook a bit, emails to stay in touch with friends…and that’s about it. I was keen to find out if, with the extra online functions of the T715, Laura could be coaxed into using the internet on her mobile, and get into Twitter!
Have a look at the below video, where we made efforts to get her onto the micro-blogging service…
We had a bit of a glitch signing up to the service using the phone itself, which was a shame. On the upside, Laura really liked the handset, and seemed keen to follow Arnie, and hopefully others… Continue reading…
3 has asked us to share some important information with you, which will affect coverage in the London area in the short term, but will benefit the wider network of UK customers in the long term.
The improvement work is scheduled on 3’s London network, and is due to start on November the 2nd.
The work is part of 3’s ongoing drive to keep network standards as high as possible across the UK.
3 already have the UK’s biggest 3G network, and clearly this is a position that it wishes not only to maintain, but to improve upon still further.
The work is due to be completed by Christmas, and disruption to customers should be minimal.As the work is carried out, each site being worked on will be out of action for up to 8 hours. During that time:
Mobile Broadband users won’t be able to connect
Phone customers may notice an increase in the number of dropped calls
To minimise any disruption, 3 has provided a service where you can sign up for free text alerts about engineering taking place in your area.Just go to www.three.co.uk/london and follow the on page instructions.
If you need any further advice then we’re happy to help. We’ll also be compiling questions for the 3 team, so let us know if there’s any additional info you’d like to know – just drop us a line in the comments or email phil@3mobilebuzz.com
3 have announced that when out and about, users of net services are all over Facebook and Bebo. Silicon Republic discusses the results that show the two sites account for roughly 43 percent of usage, with a clear distinction highlighted – pay monthly customers use Facebook, whereas pre-pay opt for Bebo.
This however wasn’t all the survey revealed as explained by David Kent, “These findings are the first in a series from 3 that clearly define the rapidly increasing trend of social networking ‘on the move’ as an important lifestyle choice for both pay monthly and pre-pay customers. With the increased profile of social networking portals such as Twitter we anticipate this percentage to grow significantly by the end of 2009.”
The shift to mobile social networking is well and truly happening, but can things move as fast as Kent suggests? “With consumption moving from PCs – currently 95pc of access – to devices such as mobile phones, TV and games consoles accounting for 50pc access within the next five years.”
While some of you may be mobile internet experts, there are still plenty of people who haven’t made the move to ‘on the move’ when it comes to the world wide web. Hoping to resolve that however, is Andrew Lim over at Recombu.com, who has outlined the best ways for mobile warriors to get their Twitter and Facebook fix while out and about.
Some nice tips, including mentions for the INQ phones. Are you a big mobile internet user? Let us know if you have any tips for mobilising the masses!
3 have announced that before Christmas this year consumers will be able to get their hands on Mobile Wi-Fi, a natty device that converts 3G into Wi-Fi, allowing you to connect several devices at once using only one signal.
The device (smaller than a mobile phone at 86 x 45 x 10mm) will allow users to check emails on a netbook while downloading music from iTunes to an MP3 player at the same time as a friend browses the internet on a laptop. Marc Allera, Sales & Marketing Director at 3 UK said ‘Consumer demand for easy and affordable internet access on the go is growing fast and we’re responding to that by announcing the UK’s first wireless modem.’ Simple to set up, and needing only a 3G signal, this could be ‘the most flexible and convenient way to get online since the arrival of the Mobile Broadband dongle’.
Ben Smith has let his Twitter followers know the good news, and Chris Davies over at SlashGear has posted about it too.
We’ll have a limited number of MiFi devices for trial when they are released. Let us know if you’d like to get your name on the waiting list.
The 3mobilebuzz newshounds have noticed that Vodafone are currently pushing their current offer of free Facebook access for users for this week. Just a week?!
Like Skype, and Windows Live Messenger, Facebook is of course free to access for all 3 users all the time. No time limits, nothing for you to worry about. If you haven’t logged on in a while, you might just like to indulge in a bit of mobile poking. You never know, you might find you quite like it…
The guys at broadbandsuppliers have been keen to point out that 3 is ‘contributing its share’ to the lowering of mobile broadband prices to the consumer by reducing its rate on packages.
They detail the packages available, such as the ZTE MF 627 USB modem for £19.99 with 1GB of download for an extra £10, and the Ready To Go package, which has dropped £10 to £39.99. Highlighted as ‘one of the cheapest and impressive broadband suppliers in the UK‘, the guys seem to like the range (and prices) of the available packages.
Thanks very much to everyone who participated in the big dongle giveaway, as explained here on oquiz.com, and congratulations especially to those who won – and now find themselves the proud owners of a sleek looking black and green dongle…
A quick glance around twitter has shown that a number of the happy recipients are making themselves known already, spiky 7 expressing her sentiments with a mighty “Hurrah!!!!!!!”, whilst Shortlisted exclaimed “Hurrah - won a dongle from 3 - wish I had a laptop I’d want to take out in public”. Lxalon’s response was a touch more worrying “*keels over dead* I actually won something in a prize draw!”
Winners be warned though as success can breed ill-feeling. Just look at agoss’s most recent tweet asking “where is @jamespenycate? He’s gone all aloof now he’s won a dongle from 3”. Gents, share your dongle!
Remember Liam Green-Hughes? He’s the guy who volunteered to see if he could mesh an E160G mobile broadband dongle and Ubuntu (a reminder right here).
Well, he did it and has posted about it over on his site. With a full step by step guide of how he managed it, this is an article for the purists but well worth it if you are busting Ubuntu and Easy Peasy on your EEE PC. Nice one Liam.
Steve O’Hear turns his thoughts to Facebook and whether or not it’ll be the mobile web’s killer application. Especially considering mobile variations of the site are now being used by around 15 million worldwide.
As part of the discussion he cites his article at Last100 relating to the much talked about INQ device. This leads to the idea of data as the new voice and text for all consumers, not just those at the top-end of the market. It’s interesting stuff. What are your thoughts? Will Facebook be the future of mobile web?
Both UK Gadgeteer and Electricpig have focused on the story of 3 planning to introduce a home router that will “allow people to connect their whole network via 3G, instead of just a single laptop or desktop via a USB dongle”, according to UK Gadgeteer. Electricpig explains how the router would use a 3 SIM card that receives 3G signals, and then share this connection with other devices. “It’s a clever idea,” say Electricpig, “and one that’s bound to please anyone with dodgy phone wiring at home, or those keen to dodge a 12 month contract, BT line rental or bundled internet deal.” They’re also excited about the idea of connecting up your Wiis, your iPhones and your internet radios with the router, but also warn it may be a while before this becomes a reality as “It’s still in development, and there’s no word on pricing or a release date”
UK Gadgeteer also mention the main topic at the 3 conference, mobile broadband download speeds: “Mainly aimed at Vodafone, 3 are claiming customers should be more worried about signal strength and the impact of other traffic, and not just the headline connection rate”. They also report on the news that 3 hope to increase the number of mast sites from 7,500 to 9,000 by 2009, increasing UK coverage to 98%.
Fred (@wingdisk) of tekimage has been trialling the INQ Mini 3G and has gone as far as to compare it to Superman!
