Virgin Mobile Canada - Some ups, some downs…

Before I get started on their service, I just wanted to say that I was quite excited to have an alternative cell phone provider. Roger’s, Bell & Telus each have their positives and negatives but Virgin is by far the most interesting company. Roger’s offers a great selection of cell phones that can appeal to any one. Bell offers a horrible phone selection but the best service in my opinion. Telus…well Telus is run by a bunch of hippies and anyone who knows me knows that I hate hippies.

On with the show
Virgin Mobile, a company that offers Canadians an alternative cell phone solution. Albeit an interesting one at that. Aimed at young adults and people like me (26) that don’t want to grow-up, ever. Their network is based on a partnership between Bell Mobility and Sir Richard Branson. This offers great coverage within Canada, but I wouldn’t purchase one of these phones if you plan on traveling.

The Phone - Samsung A300
The phone that I chose is the Samsung A300. A simple phone with (in today’s standards) a basic feature set. All the regular bells & whistles eg. Camera, browser, poly-phonic tones, blue-tooth, an interesting menu system with pigs, underwear, “sexy” lips and chainsaws. The battery is a horrendous display of what Lithium-Ion can in fact do. With average usage (5 - 10 calls/day @1-3mins each) I was recharging the battery every 24-48hrs. Turn on blue-tooth and there goes the neighborhood and your chance to make any phone calls.

The Samsung A300 is great for people that need a phone to be just that, a phone. The camera’s crap, the browser is sub-par and the screen is dull and boring. If you’re interested in functionality, go with something else. Just remember that if you are annoyed with recharging batteries everyday stay away from this phone.

The Service - Hmmm…..

Good things

1. No dropped calls
2. Sluggish browsing but it wasn’t that bad
3. Texting is fast and efficient
4. VM is straight-forward and easy to use

Bad Things

1. Talk about an odd billing system, I have no idea what is going on at any point. How many minutes have I used? How many text messages have I sent? Why is my balance consistently dropping when I have an unlimited plan? The point is, I understand what is going on but I would like to see some metrics. I’m a numbers guy and need to see/analyze what the hell is happening to my money. It’s really frustrating!!!!
2. Customer Support is non-existent in my experience. Not sure about you but I hate to be hung-up on, especially every time I call. Hey Virgin….all I wanted to know is why my bank transfers don’t work. Therefore, I was trying to give you more money!?!
3. Why the hell do my minutes expire? Did I not pay for them?
4. Bell actually beats Virgin at Phone selection….that’s really odd for a supposed “hip” company

The Conclusion
Judged by my reactions above, you can guess that I’m not too pleased. It’s great to have another provider in Canada, but good lord I’m not sure how long I will be able to handle this. Great phone service, no customer service, crappy phone selection, a billing system that would drive any reasonably intelligent person nuts….I’m all for Virgin trying to break the monopoly that Rogers has all us Canadians bending over for, but come on….”Unique” will only get you so far, us Canadians need more than a Flashy marketing campaign.

Rant done, Score (out of 100): 50

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