Genius? no2 (Genie)

Member Name: as2101

Product:	Genie
Date:	29/05/02 (1237 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cheap, Good range of services, Can all be done via the net

Disadvantages: Customer service is dire, New website is more complex to use, Things don't always work as they should

Genie Mobile is the web-based division of mm02, or, to you and me, BT Cellnet. The company, Genie, begun with a range of internet services, such as being the first site to offer free texts from the internet. It also offered free text alerts of email, cheap lcal rate home internet access and mobile 'Alerts' (offering news, horoscopes, charts etc. via text message for free). Its aim from the start was to combine the technology of the mobile and the internet. Indeed, many of their adverts used to feature the idea that their technology could change your life forever and make everything wonderful. Maybe not. Anyhow, it still offers the services listed, however, for over a year now it's also offered a virtual mobile network (Virgin is a virtual network on T-Mobile, for example).

WHAT'S IT OFFER ME THEN?

Genie Mobile are different to other mobile providers. Their mobiles can only be bought through their website, and there are only a limited range available. Technical support is through the internet, or very expensive premium rate numbers and there are only three tariffs available, which will be mentioned later. However, by cutting costs they are able to offer excellent deals- almost unlimited free text messages and WAP, and, if on contract, very low call charges.

However, the question in my mind before joining Genie was whether it was worth the hassle of forfeiting my 0870 technical support, and range of tariffs with Vodafone to swap to Genie?

WHAT IT COSTS

I text a lot, and I've gradually seen my Vodafone contract bill rise. I also use WAP regularly to check email, and at 10p/min with most operators, it also gets pretty expensive.

Therefore, the offer of 600 free texts a month (contract - or 300 if you connect to pay-as-you-go Genie) and free WAP looked good.

I believe the actual price plans for new customers have recently changed slightly- and therefore, it seems a good idea to check
the Genie website- or 02 as it's all labelled up now! Bah! Things were different in my day...

I found the new range of price plans more difficult to get my head around than the old ones, but maybe that's just me- be sure to read the small print carefully however!

GETTING YOUR NEW MOBILE

You can connect to Genie by buying a new PAYG mobile from their website, much in the way you do with other networks, by buying a PAYG sim-card (or, for the non-technical, the little piece of plastic that lets you connect to a network :-) ), by buying a contract sim-card, or by getting a free phone on contract.

I connected by buying a PAYG sim-card, so this is really the only way I can comment on.

Firstly, remember that you can only use Genie sim-cards in phones that;
1)Will work on Vodafone or mm02/Cellnet. These are either phones purchased on these two networks, or phones which are dual or tri-band. This is because T-Mobile and Orange operate on different frequencies to Cellnet, which is used by Genie.
2)Are not locked to Vodafone, T-Mobile or Orange;
Basically, you should be able to use any
*ex-BT Cellnet mobile (contract or PAYG)
*ex-Vodafone contract mobile
*mobile bought sim-free (ie not connected to a network)

With any other type of phone a small fee is likely to be payable, to 'unlock' the phone. There's loads of detail on this on the Genie site, although they refer to it as 'unlatching'.


The PAYG sim-cards have been up and down in price like a yo-yo. This is my first complaint, as the service they provide has not changed. It always annoys me to think that something I've bought for £15 may be given away next week.

Anyway, to buy the sim-card you go through their website, which is easy to use, and within 2 or 3 minutes your sim-card will be ordered. I was also impressed with the fact I was emailled several times saying that they were p
rocessing the order.
The sim turned up in less than a week, with a handy user-guide.

I popped it into my phone, and topped it up, following the instructions, and I was off. Everything was very simple. However, small problem, I was still being charged for WAP...

This was simple enough however, I was still connecting through Vodafone, and I needed to change my WAP number to the Genie one. Basically, my phone was dialling the wrong number. It did tell me how to do this on the Genie website however, so I was fine.


COVERAGE

Increasingly this isn't an issue anywhere in the UK, although T-Mobile is a bit dodgy round here in Lincolnshire at times. Overall, I was used to never being unable to make a call with Vodafone, and this is still the case. No problems.

SUPPORT

This is where I have my little moan...

I have tried emailing to ask simple questions, however, it has usually taken at least a week for a reply- and this is usually an auto-reply, that ignores your question.

For example, I asked if I can port my number to them after starting with a new number, ie, can I buy a sim-card, with the number 07732 5*4***, but 2 months down the line, port my old Vodafone number to it, and change my number back to 07900 5*86**. Complex question, I know, :-)

Anyway, the reply, basically said it was free for me to port my number- which isn't at all what I asked!

The help on the website is good, but with £1/minute phone support and useless email support, service is an issue. Apparently, emails get forwarded to real people if you put the word 'complaint' in the subject, but I've not tested this tip.

Anyway, if you want anything like number porting, or phone upgrades (the ability to get a new phone for free after being on contract for 12 months, through keeping the same provider), I wouldn't recommend Genie. Trying to get sense out of them can be a bi
t like raising the dead...

EXTRAS

Briefly, it's worth also mentioning, all Genie users get text messages informing them of new email, online web mail also accessible by WAP, text alerts of horoscopes, news etc. and international roaming (the ability to use your phone abroad- although they won't tell me the prices... :-\ ).

All services I've used with other operators, and found very useful. Being told by text message when I've got new email is really useful!

OVERALL

I can't fault Genie's prices, coverage, the number of services on offer and their basic aims. However, their customer support really lets them down, as I always feel that it's invaluable to be able to share your problems with another human being.

If you want to save money, you use your mobile a lot, send a lot of texts , and are willing to put up with trying to solve problems yourself, Genie is for you. My bills were £30 or so a month, now all I spend is around £10 on credit every month. Therefore, I'll have saved £240 in a year. Worth having really... That's 150 pints of beer (or probably about 4 in London)...

However, if you're not short of cash, and are a medium to low user, a contract with a company such as Orange might prove a less stressful experience.

Summary: