Sponsor's Message

They offer the promise of global availability to receive and make voice, SMS and, in the case of newer units, data calls from almost any location on the face of the earth.

But what's the reality?

Do all these much-touted benefits really pan out?

If this story published by the NBR is to be believed, there are many problems still to be resolved in some areas.

It seems as if the poor Vodafone customer who got landed with a bill of $4,700 for international roaming is pretty much in the same camp as those JetStream users who have also found themselves staring at massive debt through no apparent fault of their own.

As regular Aardvark readers will already know, there are some pretty simple ways to get around the problems of roaming charges and, as witnessed by the updates posted to this column, the Vodafone data-roaming did (apart from a few hiccups) work pretty well for me.

But a sample of two is hardly enough to offer much accuracy when it comes to the cost and reliability of services being offered by our mobile phone companies -- so I'm asking readers to relate their own experiences, good or bad.

And take a look at this story from Australia where Vodafone has acknowledged that short, per second-charged calls are popular and are eating into its SMS revenues. I find it amusing that their "remedy" to this problem is to simply charge more for voice calls.

So, without being bitchy, take a moment or two to relate your best and worst experience with Telecom Mobile, Vodafone or any of the second-tier networks that resell those services.

And why not tender some positive suggestions as to how these providers might improve the services they're offering.

You can post those comments to this forum.

If any Aardvark readers have an opinion on today's column or want to add something you're also invited to chip in and have your say in The Aardvark Forums or, if you prefer, you can contact me directly.

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