Bell Mobility: Unlimited Mobile Browsing available on Smartphones (Grandfatherd plan)

[cdr108]

hi all ... can someone give me the link to bell retention plans?
i did a search and for some reason nothing came out.

also, since we're talking about the UMB here ... is that usuable if i want to get the iphone 5, or must i get a data plan?

tia

[alanbrenton]

Friend of mine just saw the alert for the first time.

So alerts are only received for going over 1 GB?

[boojay]

I've been on UMB for a full year now, routinely going over 1 gb, averaging about 2 gb per month, peaking at 6 gb one time, tethering, creating hotspots with no issues or notifications.....yet. So far, so good! Have been really happy!

[WorldIRC]

So alerts are only received for going over 1 GB?

Well, I only have the one story to share.

[bargain man]

I've been on UMB for a full year now, routinely going over 1 gb, averaging about 2 gb per month, peaking at 6 gb one time, tethering, creating hotspots with no issues or notifications.....yet. So far, so good! Have been really happy!

exact same usage as mine and i havent got it either. Hopefully it stays that way

[alanbrenton]

I've been on UMB for a full year now, routinely going over 1 gb, averaging about 2 gb per month, peaking at 6 gb one time, tethering, creating hotspots with no issues or notifications.....yet. So far, so good! Have been really happy!

exact same usage as mine and i havent got it either. Hopefully it stays that way

If I cannot download usenet material anymore, I might give up my $50/month Bell 25/10 and use our UMB's instead.

[whiteGSR]

So alerts are only received for going over 1 GB?

i hit 1.3gb and 1.5gb respectively in the past 2 months and no alerts

[ibdpman]

Looking for tips to negotiate with Bell to reduce our monthly bill, I came upon this thread yesterday. It's been an interesting read and i'm not so sure that changing our plan is a good idea anymore.

Currently we have this family share plan (postpaid) (1 HTC Touch and 3 dumbphones):

600 anytime minutes
500 Min CDN LD Promo
6pm to 9pm Calling
unlimited incoming calls
Fun 20 with Mobile Browser

*Still paying for system access fees...

Being new to all this i'm confused and hope you can help me understand the process. If we want to actually start using the Fun 20 add-on (that we have been paying for over 5 years...), we have to follow these steps:

1. Get a sim card
2. Get a smartphone (locked to Bell)
3. Go to a bell store and have a rep switch our info over to the sim card while keeping the plan intact
4. Make sure to have the right apn settings
5. Enjoy!

Is the above correct?

All the phones are eligible for a hardware upgrade, does that change anything?

Will only one phone on the family plan be able to use UMB or will it be shared? Currently all the features are shared and UMB works on the dumbphones.

Thanks!

[Xyralia]

I have read most of the thread and searched the thread for Virgin and I'm still not sure. Does this work well with Virgin's 10$ UMB?

I currently have a Samsung Gravity Touch with Virgin on a Talk and Text Choice Plan which now also includes pay per use data (between 5$ for less than 25mb and 30$ for up to 3Gb) but I also have an Unlimited Mobile Browsing option which I made sure to keep.
All this is in a 36month contract that ends this spring. I am eligible for a phone upgrade.

I am thinking about getting a Samsung Galaxy S2 - should I upgrade to it (and pay off the tab progressively with 10% of my plan) - risk of losing the UMB in process or being told by CSR that it isn't compatible with smartphones7
- or -
get it at BB on another account (50$ + 150$ tab + 100GC +55 BB rewards as per this thread in hot deals) and switch in my current SIM to it thus keeping my current plan and not risking losing UMB.

Open to suggestions on other phones as well.

[donx]

This thread has been very quiet recently.

Anyway, just an update about my usage in last few months, as you can see, my monthly usage has been more than 2GB last 6 months:



So far I haven't received any alert yet. I did see the yellow color from the usage history in August though, when I had almost 9 GB usage that month (my son used my tethered data watching youtube a lot in our cottage that month). I stayed home most of the time, but did not bother to change from 3G to wifi when I am home, if there is any limit applied in the future, I may change the way how I use my iPhone's data then.

[Xyralia]

I have read most of the thread and searched the thread for Virgin and I'm still not sure. Does this work well with Virgin's 10$ UMB?

I currently have a Samsung Gravity Touch with Virgin on a Talk and Text Choice Plan which now also includes pay per use data (between 5$ for less than 25mb and 30$ for up to 3Gb) but I also have an Unlimited Mobile Browsing option which I made sure to keep.
All this is in a 36month contract that ends this spring. I am eligible for a phone upgrade.

I am thinking about getting a Samsung Galaxy S2 - should I upgrade to it (and pay off the tab progressively with 10% of my plan) - risk of losing the UMB in process or being told by CSR that it isn't compatible with smartphones7
- or -
get it at BB on another account (50$ + 150$ tab + 100GC +55 BB rewards as per this thread in hot deals) and switch in my current SIM to it thus keeping my current plan and not risking losing UMB.

Open to suggestions on other phones as well.

Since Donx revived the thread, I might as well update as well. I ended up buying a used Galaxy SII since I didn't want to go through the hassle of doing the 150$ tab switch to prepaid to cancel crap. I also tried getting a new phone but the rep said she couldn't just keep what I had since my plan is also grandfathered. She said I would have to call myself to get it approved or something. I called Virgin, got transfered a few times and they said they could transfer my plan but that they couldn't put my UMB on a new contract. Getting a new phone (subsidized) at Virgin obliges them to create a new contract it seems and they can't just add the phone to your account (well unless you were buying it outright).

I got the used phone for 180$ with 2 extra batteries, a standalone charger and a case. Seemed like less of a hassle. Just popped my sim card in and it works. Browsing still shows as UMB. =)

I would've bought a Nexus 4 but no stock...

[alanbrenton]

This thread has been very quiet recently.

Anyway, just an update about my usage in last few months, as you can see, my monthly usage has been more than 2GB last 6 months:



So far I haven't received any alert yet. I did see the yellow color from the usage history in August though, when I had almost 9 GB usage that month (my son used my tethered data watching youtube a lot in our cottage that month). I stayed home most of the time, but did not bother to change from 3G to wifi when I am home, if there is any limit applied in the future, I may change the way how I use my iPhone's data then.

$@#%@%#@^@^ !!!*

* You lucky ducky. My download speed at home is only between 1-2 Mbps but I was surprise that at my local Go Station, speed test indicated 8 Mbps download and 2-3 Mbps upload. Speed must be dependent on how many people are using their Bell data plans within the same cell tower/site/repeater.

Good to know UMB is alive and kicking and that one or two experiences with usage warnings were the exceptions rather than the norm.

[alanbrenton]

WorldIRC (or other telecom experts), would a BIS data plan involving the new BB10 OS still be incompatible with UMB, that is, render the UMB feature dormant? Not sure if RIM had changed the way its phones can be used (personal use not requiring BIS).

I know BIS has its advantages like BBM and compressed/encrypted data but not sure if RIM is taking a different approach this time.

TIA.

[donx]

Since Donx revived the thread, I might as well update as well. I ended up buying a used Galaxy SII since I didn't want to go through the hassle of doing the 150$ tab switch to prepaid to cancel crap. I also tried getting a new phone but the rep said she couldn't just keep what I had since my plan is also grandfathered. She said I would have to call myself to get it approved or something. I called Virgin, got transfered a few times and they said they could transfer my plan but that they couldn't put my UMB on a new contract. Getting a new phone (subsidized) at Virgin obliges them to create a new contract it seems and they can't just add the phone to your account (well unless you were buying it outright).

I got the used phone for 180$ with 2 extra batteries, a standalone charger and a case. Seemed like less of a hassle. Just popped my sim card in and it works. Browsing still shows as UMB. =)

I would've bought a Nexus 4 but no stock...

Thanks for sharing. It is good to know that Virgin UMB CAN be transferred to Bell UMB.

[WorldIRC]

WorldIRC (or other telecom experts), would a BIS data plan involving the new BB10 OS still be incompatible with UMB, that is, render the UMB feature dormant? Not sure if RIM had changed the way its phones can be used (personal use not requiring BIS).

I know BIS has its advantages like BBM and compressed/encrypted data but not sure if RIM is taking a different approach this time.

TIA.

Don't know how the BB10 plans will function yet (I assume BIS plan will be required for provisioning). I've never tried combining UMB with BIS. Right now, BIS is required for a BB to function (for the most part).