Is it me or does Orange like to keep everything secret?
I started out with Freeserve years ago on their heavy user package which was then £29.99 a month. There wasn't a lot of options less than that in those days. They did drop the price to £27.99 when there was a lot more competition about.
Then they changed to Wannado and I was still on their maximum package.
Then they changed to Orange. I carried on paying my £27.99 a month believing that to still be the going rate for Unlimited until I went and had a look at their website one day (well I don't often bother because I use Outlook Express for my mail) and only then did I realise that they no longer even offered a £27.99 package and that their Unlimited had gone down to £19.99 (with free wireless box). Nowhere was it advertised on their home page, only if you went in to actually look at their packages (and why would you if you were already subscribing?). I immediately switched package and also asked why I hadn't been informed. They said it had only just started!! Hmm, well they would say that wouldn't they.
Then there's the thing about speed. Every time I've checked it's come up with 2 meg being the maximum available for my area. Tonight my son told me that his mate was getting 8 meg and he only lives a few doors away. He tried resetting something (too technical for me) and then said I should phone them and ask why I wasn't getting it. Tried that and hung on the phone for 20 minutes and gave up.
Again I logged into their website and found a place where it said "upgrade package and speed". Now, I thought that was just for people on the lower price wanting to upgrade to the dearer one but when I clicked on it, it said I could now get 8 meg but I had to "order" it and it would take up to 10 days!! I'm sure it was supposed to be upgraded automatically when it became available.
So why aren't they telling customers this? Why do you have to stumble across this information? Admittedly it said it would be free but I think they should be telling customers what they can get, not letting them go on in ignorance.
I haven't had any problems with the actual service, apart from this total lack of communication or information from them.
I did actually change my line rental and phone to Talk Talk with a view to getting free broadband, but after reading all the bad press about it I thought I'd stick with the devil I know for the time being (oh and the fact that by ordering the 8 meg speed I had to agree to be tied into a new 12 month contract)!!!!!
So that's my experience with it. No information unless you search for it and no technical support.