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Cell Phone Carriers Need to Die a Swift Death

S

SomeDudeAsking

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Nov 23, 2010
1,250
2
I really, really hate cell phone carrier companies. I mean really.

I've been trying to make sense of long distance charge rules for cell phones in Canada and it makes me want to bash my brain for the shear stupidity and gouging.

For example:

http://www.landlinefree.com/Canadian-Cellular-TelePhone-Long-Distance-Guide
You have a Vancouver cellular phone, and make a trip to Toronto.

Making calls to Toronto numbers will NOT be long distance. When you make a call, it doesn't matter where in Canada your cell phone came from, it matters where your cell phone is and where you're calling. Since you're in Toronto, and calling Toronto, the call is local. Order all the pizzas you want with your cell phone.
Making calls to Vancouver will be long distance.
Receiving calls from ANYONE will cost you long distance, whether the call comes from Toronto or from Vancouver. It also costs the caller long distance, since they're dialing a Vancouver number.
When your friends from Vancouver call you, it's a local call for them, since they're dialing a Vancouver number, but like I said, long distance charges will incur for you, even though you are receiving a call.
Receiving/Sending text messages will cost you the same that it would in Vancouver.
Another way of thinking about it

If you have a cell phone, calling an 800 number is always a local call. Whenever you leave your home area, and receive a call, it will count as long distance.
How to Save Money on your Cell Phone Long Distance

Several cell phone plans have a "long distance" plan, which can be very useful if you plan on receiving a lot of cell phone calls while you are out-of-area.
If you're in Toronto with your Vancouver cell, and someone from Toronto calls you, you're both paying long distance. If you call them back on your cell phone, then neither of you pay long distance.
Get a dialaround long distance plan. You can sign up with long distance companies, like Yak, that provide you with phone numbers to call, and then from there you can dial the number you want. So, you get a bunch of local numbers to call (or an 800 number that costs extra per minute), so when you're in Toronto, you can call the Toronto gateway, which will be a local call. When you call them, it connects right away, and then you manually enter in the phone number you want to call (so you might have to memorize some numbers), and it connects you. Then the call costs you only airtime + 3 cents per minute, instead of airtime + 20-50 cents per minute. This is especially useful when you need to make international calls.
Click to expand...

G-d dang it, I just want to make a freaking call and know what I will be charged, not do my taxes!!! One thing that I hope Apple does is buy out cell phone companies and actually make them offer simple plans and simple usage. In this day and age, there is no reason for these types of stupid rules that nickel and dime you when a phone should just work. I shouldn't have to do mental arithmetic every time I want to make a call, or look at my watch to see what time it is before I dial.

A BIG SCREW-U to all cell phone companies.
 
Same in the Uk mate.
The rate is the same anywhere in the UK
But if you travel in Europe charges are a joke.
And with some countries like the US locking iphone carriers you cant even put a local sim in from the country your visiting.

THEY ARE SO SO GREEDY.
 
Weiser878 said:
Man, that sucks.
I can't remember when they did away with long distance on cell phones in the US its been so long ago.
Click to expand...

But the US is also still behind the curve as receiving text messages costs you (or comes off your allowance) whereas we only pay (or use allowance) to send them. Do you pay (or lose minutes) for receiving cross-network calls too still?
 
I have said it many times: The long distance/roaming charges significantly impair the use of the iPhone. I wish Apple would use its leverage to make it so we pay a reasonable price for roaming and long distance. I gather for roaming it is not the carriers' fault, but the companies that own the communication systems linking landmasses charge the earth.
 
VulchR said:
I have said it many times: The long distance/roaming charges significantly impair the use of the iPhone. I wish Apple would use its leverage to make it so we pay a reasonable price for roaming and long distance. I gather for roaming it is not the carriers' fault, but the companies that own the communication systems linking landmasses charge the earth.
Click to expand...

It is a crazy really.
I can be on Orange in the UK, yet if I go to france and roam onto the French orange network (owned by the same company), then I will be essentially held to ransom for a lot of money. I can understand it when you roam onto a different companies network, but to be charged huge fees when you are on a network owned by your home network it is mad.
 
It's crazy with the big 3 carriers in Canada. Over a year ago Rogers even shrunk the local calling area in several cities resulting in a lot of peoples' local calls to become long distance. I wouldn't be surprised to see Bell and Rogers try to create long distance charges within their internet use too lol.
 
I hate this too, im from the toronto area but am at school in london. I kept my Toronto number, so i can call people in london... but god forbid i call toronto, or receive a phone call from anyone.

This is why i purchased My5 from rogers... saves me a TON of money
 
I think we've just hit on one of the few good things about wireless carriers in the US; we don't have any kind of domestic roaming or long distance on any of our major carriers. I do wish they'd become a bit more progressive in regards to contracts and how SMS/minutes are counted, but since I have all but switched to free SMS via Google Voice, and I don't use the minimum number of minutes my carrier offers anyway, I don't really care.
 
Most Canadian carriers charge 35-40¢ per minute in long distance, it's HORRIBLE. Not to mention - Rogers announced this week that they are increasing the price of inbound/outbound texts to those who don't have SMS plans from 15¢ to 20¢ stating that it's an increase that will help fund projects that will improve the network - uh.. BS. Improve the network? That's what they said about the $6.95 System Access Fee for several years (after they were told to stop saying it's a government fee), and heck I haven't seen any improvement in coverage/service in the 8 years I've been a Rogers customer, oh and we were supposed to have 3G over a year ago, that's never going to happen.

Carriers are more evil than the big Canadian banks. I seriously want to see Wind, Mobilicity, Shaw and Vidéotron all kick Rogers/Bell/Telus' derriere at the cellphone game, but that's not going to happen unless if they can manage to collectively blanket the country in towers, and in rural Manitoba - that'd be close to impossible.

I'm fed up with Rogers myself, but I'll live. I have a nice long distance option (1000 minutes), 6GB data, and other usual options and paying only $55 or so, but I always wish I was getting more, for less, of course.
 
If there was any real competition out there, SMS would be included with every voice or data plan for free. It's a joke to charge 15-20 cents for 160 characters, especially since it costs them practically NOTHING.
 
As long as we keep paying, which we will, they'll get more and more out of control with pricing. They are the new cable. Cable is insane, but we pay it so why would they try to make less money.
 
Weiser878 said:
Man, that sucks.
I can't remember when they did away with long distance on cell phones in the US its been so long ago.
Click to expand...

Our carriers would argue that the infrastructure expenditures are far greater because the coverage areas have to stretch over vast areas of uninhabited territory, which is carrier-speak for "you guys aren't going to do anything about it so we're going to gouge you".

That being said, we do get some benefits like free tethering and I would say that our networks are a lot more reliable (if these forums can be taken as proper indicators of the general experience on any of the major carriers).

I'd say all carriers suck for a variety of reasons. What I am excited for is when all major cities are blanketed in nearly free wi-fi supplanting the carriers altogether.
 
SomeDudeAsking said:
If there was any real competition out there, SMS would be included with every voice or data plan for free. It's a joke to charge 15-20 cents for 160 characters, especially since it costs them practically NOTHING.
Click to expand...

The fact that I pay $15 per month for 1500 texts is a joke. If the US mobile operators stopped double charging and adopted a caller-pays model like in Europe, I would figure out a way to redirect incoming SMS to an app that sends a text out via the data connection (like Google Voice or biteSMS or something like that) but still with my number so that others don't have any issues replying to it or realizing that it's me.

Someday...
 
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