[kwlug-disc] Adventures in cellphone and ISP shopping

[CrankyOldBugger]

Thanks for clearing that up, Gary.  I can't keep track of who owns who
anymore...


On Wed, 11 Dec 2024 at 20:36, Gary Walsh via kwlug-disc <
kwlug-disc at kwlug.org> wrote:

> Freedom Mobile is owned by Québecor. It was formerly with Shaw but changed
> as a result of the Rogers Shaw merger. VMedia is also owned by Québecor.
>
> --
> Gary Walsh
> Sent with Tutanota, the secure & ad-free mailbox.
>
>
>
> 11 Dec 2024, 12:18 by crankyoldbugger at gmail.com:
>
> I thought I should give you an update on my adventures with shopping for
> internet and cellphone plans, since so many of you offered suggestions.
>
> Back in the Olden Days I was using vMedia for my ISP, getting 300/30 for
> around $90 a month.
> For cellphones, my wife and I had a "shared" account from Zoomer Mobile,
> aka Cityfone out of BC.  We were paying around $70 a month for 3gig data
> and endless yapping Canada-wide.
>
> My wife was the primary user of the shared cellphone account.  My phone
> sat on the charger and did nothing more than forward any incoming calls
> (usually spam) to my work cellphone, which is what I used primarily.
>
> Then one day I got a letter from Zoomer saying that they were being eaten
> by Rogers, please find enclosed two new Rogers SIMs, feel welcome to
> blindly use them without asking any questions...
>
> Around the same time I got a letter from my ISP vMedia stating that they
> were being eaten by Freedom Mobile.  I'm under the impression that FM is
> actually part of Rogers, but I couldn't tell you if that's just as a
> reseller or as an actual division in the company..
>
> My wife's phone (Samsung S12, I think?) has a cracked screen, so we
> decided she should get a new phone.  The current hot model is the Samsung
> S24FE, so that's what I'm shopping for.
>
> So, in preparation for Black Friday I regularly harassed KWLUG members for
> suggestions, as well as a few people at work, and of course my favourite
> non-google search engines...
>
> At this point, I was leaning towards Freedom Mobile for their cheap
> cellphone plans.  So prior to Black Friday, I dusted off my walker and
> braved a trip to Conestoga Mall.  This is when an employee at FM told me
> that my old Samsung Galaxy SIII wouldn't work on the newer networks.  So I
> left, empty-handed.
>
> Thinking that the guy at the store in the mall was just overanxious to
> sell me a phone, I phoned Freedom Mobile World Domination Headquarters to
> see if I could get the plan and phone from them directly.  Sure, we can
> sign you up for a plan, but we don't have any of those S24FEs in stock at
> the WDHQ, so you have to go into the store to sign up there, assuming they
> have the phone in stock.  Nasty people, telling lies like that.
>
> So I phone the store on Black Friday, and as you might expect, they didn't
> answer.  I left a voicemail that basically said, "shut up and take my
> money."  No reply.  The next day I phoned again, again no reply.
>
> So we went into the mall to punch someone in the face until they sold us a
> phone.  We went in the wrong mall entrance and came across a Virgin Plus
> kiosk.  For fun, I went over and started talking to the guy.  Long story
> short, we got a plan for Wifeski with an obscene amount of data, free
> calling, etc., for around $50 a month, and a shiny new Samsung Galaxy
> S24FE.  Done.
>
> I then decided on using voip.ms for my own cellphone, as many people
> recommended it.  So after a long wait for the porting to complete, I now
> have call forwarding set up in voip.ms that costs pennies a month.
> There's that problem solved.
>
> Finally, I signed up with CarryTel for internet.  Get this: 1000/50
> up/down for around $50 a month, including free modem rental.  Compare that
> to vMedia's 300/30 for $90 and BYOB modem.  It's kind of sad as vMedia used
> to be the place to get a deal...
>
> Shortly after I got all this settled, the guy from the Freedom Mobile
> store finally returned my call.  I told him a few of my Grandmother's more
> choice words...
>
> So thanks to all who offered suggestions.  It was a lot of work getting
> all this straightened out, but right now I think we're in a good position...
>
>
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