Update on Wireless in Canada

It’s no secret that Canadians have been at the mercy of the “big three” cellphone carriers in Canada with little to no competition for far too long. 

So, how are we doing now that we have at least one new choice?

The honest truth about consumer choice in Canadian cellular is that for a long time we have had none.  Sure, there has been three carriers but if they haven’t been secretly meeting in dark alleys to discuss rates they at least have not been competitive.  The result is that pricing for voice and data has been extremely high in Canada until recently.  So, what changed?  New blood!

The latest carrier to enter the scene in Canada is WIND Mobile and they bring with them a refreshing focus on consumers.  While their plans are not earth shattering they at least represent a decent option for some.  I’ll get back to WIND in just a bit.

Our big three – or rather, ‘big two’ since Bell and TELUS are conjoined twins – milked consumers to the point of breaking but with no choice, what could we do?  The government dragged their feet for a long time but FINALLY offered cellular spectrum in an auction open to everyone but Rogers and Bellus.  These companies finally saw that some form of competition was coming and I think that is when they decided to become more competitive; well, at least Bellus did.  Roger’s plans have changed very little, probably because they are still on a high from being the exclusive carrier of the iPhone.  But of course, that is no longer true either, so hopefully we will see changes from Rogers.

I personally use Bell and am happy with the rates they have for data.  I still pay far too much overall for my cellphone but they have improved.  Of course, they still are not connecting with their customers in any measurable way.  While Rogers has made strides on Social Networking sites like twitter there is nothing from Bell that I have seen and little from Telus.  I’m pretty sure Bell executives are still scratching their blue hair over that new fangled site “MySpace”. [to any Bell executive reading this I apologize.  You hair is actually a very nice shade of blue, I meant the guy in the office two down from you.]

WIND Mobile does represent the kind of company we have been waiting for in Canada but how are they doing so far?  Apparently they signed up 10,000 subscribers in their first month.  Uhhhh…

Ok, maybe some would think that is good considering they are new, they have limited coverage, they spend all day playing with Microsoft Surface, but the point is they need to do MUCH better.  They are currently looking to raise money to roll out in other cities, but return on that money would have to be extremely speculative at this point.  Lets hope they are able to get on Dragon’s Den and win over at least a couple Dragons.

Things are looking a bit better for Canadians but we have a long way to go.  Let’s try to support new carriers as much as possible, or at least the carriers that are trying to change for the better.

High Resolution Images of LG IQ

Last week I had a chance to play with the upcoming Windows Mobile 6.5 LG IQ smartphone. Unfortunately, the lighting in the venue was less than ideal for pictures. I snapped what I could at the best I could, but they’re not my finest device shots. Thankfully, I now have some really nice clean shots of the IQ so I’m posting them here for everyone to enjoy.

Click on the images below to view the original size image.

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Rogers Gets its Hand Slapped

In a mirror image of what is happening in the US, Rogers has been told to stop making claims of being the “most reliable’ network in Canada. Rogers has been making this claim for a long time now but Telus has finally taken them to task on these claims.

What I’m really surprised at is Telus’ slightly between-the-lines assertion that this has actually been true until November 6th when they rolled out their HSPA network. If you think about that, this claim isn’t actually saying that Rogers’ network is inferior now but that there is simply no basis, or no third-party data to assert this claim. In other words, it’s actually possible that Rogers’ network is the more reliable but they need the backing of a third party in making this claim.

The flip side of this could very well be that Telus and Bell may actually have the more reliable network but they too would have to have confirmation to make that claim. At this point they don’t seem to be making trying to lay claim to these bragging rights, they simply want Rogers to stop their advertising campaign.

I’m personally a Bell user and find their network to be as close to rock solid as wireless can be. Their HSPA network actually gave me better signal strength than their own CDMA network.

The New Cellular Competition in Canada

FINALLY there is some competition happening in Canada. Unfortunately it isn’t a new cellular provider but at least there are some new and decent things happening. How does some competition for Rogers stranglehold on GSM and iPhone sound?

I’m referring to the launch of the new HSPA network by Bell and Telus. Ok, ok, I suppose its technically “networks” but there is so much sharing going on with these two companies we really have to call it a single network. That’s not really a bad thing as it means exceptional coverage for Canadians; up to 93% of the population of Canada according to Bell.

While we are on this topic I should mention that coverage will continually improve over the next short while. Bell and Telus are both in the process of identifying coverage gaps and applying to use each others towers for those gap areas.

Since I’m a Bell customer I’ll let you know my experiences with their network. I’d rather give more print time to Bell right now anyway, because their data plans are fairly decent. More on that in a bit.

Bell’s HSPA network went live on Wednesday, November 4th, well ahead of their original schedule. The plan initially was to launch in early 2010 which was then bumped to late November. Bell moved that date to Friday the 6th and just a week before launch bumped it again to be on the 4th. I like that! I don’t remember the last time Bell was aggressive with a roll out. Maybe spells a new mindset at Bell? I hope so.

Bell’s real motivation for rolling out in November was to be all set for the Olympics in Vancouver in February 2010. They even signed a sweet roaming agreement with AT&T to snag all the roaming iPhones when they visit.

Being the cautious Canadian that I am and in showing great restraint I didn’t run right out and hook my plan to Bell’s new network at the time of launch. I waited a good and proper 4 hours…then ran in! I had an unlocked AT&T Fuze (aka a GSM version of the HTC Touch Pro) burning a hole in my pocket.
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Build Quality Issues with HTC Touch Pro 2

It looks like HTC might be running into some build quality issues with the Touch Pro 2. Forum member MightyMike over at PPCGeeks has posted some pictures showing the battery door starting to bulge out on the sides of his Telus Touch Pro 2. If you look carefully, you can make out where the battery door is not sitting right. It’s hard to see in the pictures, but it is much more noticeable in person. This isn’t a “one-off” either, 2 of my co-workers are running the Touch Pro 2 and have noticed this very issue on their devices. It’s not clear if this is a heat related problem, or if it has something to do with wear and tear on the device. Mind you, wear and tear shouldn’t be something to be concerned about on such a new device. It almost looks like a heat related problem, but the phone doesn’t tend to get very warm.

It’s also not clear which devices are experiencing this problem. All the devices in the office, as well as the one posted by MightyMike, are Telus branded. So it could be an issue limited to that particular model. We won’t know if AT&T’s version is affected by this until after it’s launched and people have had a chance to run with it for a little while.

Hopefully the fix for this won’t be anything too involved. Perhaps a simple replacement for the battery door is all that is required.

Forget about Telus, but not Bell

Lately it seems all we talk about is Rogers and the coming wireless competition in Canada but what are Telus and Bell up to these days?

Of course, Telus has the wonderful HTC Touch Pro2 and the HTC Snap coming soon but their mobile data plans are just as horrible as ever! Here is a taste of just how bad:

Ok, so that’s $60 for 3gig? BTW, if you happen to go over your plan by a gig…$50 more. Telus…ummm…wake up??

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The War for Canada’s Wireless Customers

When it comes to a competitive marketplace for wireless in Canada, there has been a serious void for many years. Bell, Telus, and Rogers have managed to keep prices high, contracts long, and light on choice. It got so bad that Canada decided to restrict the big 3 from bidding on the new spectrum that was auctioned off last year. It was made available to new companies that are looking to setup camp here in Canada.

Sadly, winning that auction doesn’t mean you’re going to be greeted with open arms. Telus (along with Bell and Rogers) are now taking action to slow the introduction of another wireless carrier. Its to the point now that they are accusing Globalive of cheating the Canadian ownership requirements.

This article, over on the National Post, outlines what Canadians have had to deal with for far too long – high prices for little services. I’m less than thrilled to read that wireless penetration has actually dropped in recent years. Then again, how surprised can one be when carriers are offering 3 year contracts and still charging top dollar for their devices. To be fair, once the wireless auction was completed last year, the big 3 did start to improve their prices and customer support. Has true competition scared them into changing or would these changes have happened regardless? Either way, it’s going to be interesting to watch things play out over the next 6 months.

Competition is Creeping up on Rogers

Today I was reading that Telus is planning on a soft roll out of its GSM network in BC this year! Their plan is to be able to go live in February in time for the Winter Olympics.

I must say, I am plesently surprised by this news. Rogers has had a wonderful romp as the only GSM provider in Canada. They’ve flaunted and taken advantage of the fact. It is going to be fantastic to have some real choice.

Since Bell and Telus are joined at the hip these days (merge already!) Bell will probably be going live with GSM at around the same time. Perhaps they will soft roll out to the Toronto area. If so, I know someone that can test it out (pick me, pick me!)

Of course, the more public this GSM rollout becomes the more urgent is the need go live quickly. Delays will cause customer hesitation as they won’t want to buy CDMA phones. Plus, Rogers will miraculously become everyone’s friend by offering continually better incentives designed to lock subscribers in for 3 more long years.

Take our advice, wait for the GSM competition to heat up and then take advantage of the inevitable deals.

No matter how you look at it, all this new GSM goodness will be very refreshing. With how quickly Telus seems to be moving we aren’t going to have to wait too much longer.