A while back we gave you an overview of everything 4G; we touched on High Speed Packet Access Plus (HSPA+) as well as, LG and LTE. As we continue to roll out our HSPA+ network we’re seeing more and more questions from you guys so we thought we’d let you know exactly what it means for you and where we’re currently at with the roll out.
As many of you may know, HSPA+ is the next evolution of 3G technology; it’s designed to carry large amounts of information at higher speeds, so in a nutshell, it means faster access to the mobile internet for our customers. By the end of the year we aim to have rolled HSPA+ out on the majority of our 3G network, we aim to fully complete the roll out early next year. Those of you that are using one of our latest Mobile Broadband products or a Samsung Galaxy SII may have already experienced HSPA+, these devices come fitted with a chipset that allows them to use HSPA+ technologies.
Once you’re online, HSPA+ makes browsing, uploading and downloading smoother and faster too. You’ll find huge improvements in viewing photos, downloading attachments and watching online videos.
When it’s fully rolled out on our network we’ll be able to let you know more details. We’re the UK’s fastest growing mobile network and we were designed for the internet, so we’re really excited to be embarking on this journey. Next stop: LTE trials! I’ll give you an update on that one as soon as I can.
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@Dean – Sorry to read that you are not happy. I have sent you an email requesting some account details so one of our social media care team can contact you and discuss this in more detail. We do have a traffic management policy which you can read here, this policy isn’t about punishing anybody – it’s about giving all of our users the best possible experience. Even if you do live or work in a busy part of our network, you won’t have your traffic managed unless you’re using a disproportionately large amount of data. Most of our customers won’t be affected.
DO NOT TAKE OUT THE ONE PLAN!!! I AM PERSONALLY ON THE ONE PLAN AND I AM BEING THROTTLED!!!! unlimited data yet they have introduced throttling as of 12 may 2012 for top 5% of users. pathetic, illegal, ive emailed ceo david dyson and am looking elsewhere PS 3UK-YOU CANT SELL ‘UNLIMITED WITH NO THROTTLING CONTRACTS AND THEN THROTTLE PEOPLE-ITS ILLEGAL!!! I am now looking for alternative contracts
@Steve – wow that’s pretty impressive
I’m afraid we’ve no plans to increase our MBB data limits at the mo as we think it’s pretty competitive, but we’re always looking at our plans, so never say never.
We’ve recently been enjoying your new HSPA service here in rural Gloucestershire – consistently getting download speeds as high as 13 Megabits and always more than 5 Mbits. Much faster than conventional land line broadband! Do you have any plans to offer data plans above 15Gbytes per month. That’s been your maximum for a long time, and now you’re offering services that are many times faster than they used to be, perhaps there needs to be the option for bigger data plans?
@Danny – I’m afraid we don’t have a map or coverage checker available yet showing what areas you’re able to get HSPA+ in although this is something we’re looking at for the future. The average speed at the moment is anything from 1 – 4Mbps, with a lot of customers reporting much higher speeds.
hi, just wondering if my area has been upgraded to hspa+ live in w7 london. Mobile broadband speeds are pretty slow, 2-3 mb tops
If my area hasn’t been upgraded yet, wondering when it will be? and is there anything i can do like add an external antenna to boost the broadband speed, have solid walls.
@Nigel Barker – I’ve sent you an email to get your account info…
I understand that Three is rolling out a femtocell solution called Home Signal & as per Johanna’s suggestion I called 333 to inquire if I could get one as we live in rural Norfolk in n old farmhouse with thick walls so Three signal is non-existent once you move more than a few feet away from a window. We do have pretty decent broadband speeds however (6+Mbps down & 0.8Mbps up).
Sadly when I called I got a terrible runaround from everyone I spoke to.
First I called 333 explained that I have a new contract that reception is awful except right by a window & that I wanted to have a Home Signal box. After taking all my details & putting me on hold several times he gave me an 0800 number to call which I did.
I called 0800 number & the guy who answered assured me that it was toll free which I am still dubious about as I thought that 0800 numbers cost 15.3p/min. However the guy couldn’t help me as this was apparently the support number for people who already have a Home Signal box. He therefore put me through to yet another person who after taking all my details & putting me on hold several times gave me an 0844 number to call for the Options Team. I asked why this was a paid call & why he couldn’t just put me through but he said it was impossible.
I called the 0844 3380330 number but discovered that I was in fact talking to regular Three telephone support but paying for the privilege. After taking all my details & putting me on hold several times the lady said that she would put me through to the correct person to get a Home Signal box. After a couple of minutes on hold listening to music the line dropped & I was cut off.
Please can one of the moderators arrange for someone who can help to give me a call?
@Scott Bryan – I’ve checked for any upgrades in your area and there are not planned upgrades in your area at the moment. We are constantly improving our network so hopefully there will be upgrades soon.
Hello and good day, I hope you can provide a little information. I am enquiring into further improvements with the 3G signal in Wakefield city centre, I have a flat in the centre and at best I get a maximum of 1 bar depending on where I am in the flat. On the three coverage map there is a black spot right on my location, so basically do you have any plans to roll out more masts to cover these black spots. My post code is (REMOVED)
Many thanks for your time and support.
Scott.
@TK – I’ve dropped you an email to get some more info from you and to hopefully get this resolved once and for all.
Can a mod from here please contact me regarding the internet filter. I asked for it to be removed and for some reason it is back on and the Customer Service rep told me it was off. I keep getting mixed responses from everyone at three. I would like to talk to someone as soon as possible.
Thanks
@ TK – I’ve taken a look at your postcode and you’re in an area with strong indoor and outdoor coverage, there’s work being carried out in your area at the moment which is why you may be experiencing coverage issues. Once that works complete you should start to see an improvement
W5 [Removed by mod]
Thanks
@TK – So we can look into this for you could you please provide us with your full postcode
Having painfully slow speeds and constant disconnections on The One Plan on my Samsung GS2. The customer service lady told me there is apparent upgrade work on postcode W5. But there is no record of this on the coverage checker on the three website. Any info please?
Thanks
@James Phethean – Indeed it is… If you call the team on 333 they should be able to give you some more info.
What is the situation regarding Femtocell introduction? I live in Cornwall and reception in my cottage is very poor.
Is it coming anytime soon??
@M.Smith – I don’t have any additional info you at the moment.
Any additional info regarding this planned mast would be appreciated, just wanted to confirm reasonable coverage at the (removed) postcode in the near future please.
Thank you @Kaz, I do not need to know the location, just that it will cover the village in question. I have been informed of new masts before in the area, none of them yet reaching the village at all. Many thanks for confirming.
@M.Smith – For security reasons we are not able to give out mast locations I’m afraid.
Many thanks for the ultra quick response @Johanna with regards to the postcode yo22 5an. Is it possible to identify the planned location for this new mast and as to whether it will indeed cover the whole village, as is currently possible via Orange 2G? Loving the speed and performance of the network in most other places! Many thanks.
@M.Smith – I’ve had a look at your postcode and there’s some maintenance taking place on your nearest mast – due for completion on the 17th Feb. There’s a new mast planned but no date yet I’m afraid.
Hi,
Just another quick check on the postcode YO22 [removed by Mod], still hopefully awaiting news of a mast which will cover the village with 3G?
Thanks.
Mark
@ Akram – Thanks for getting in touch with us, sorry for the confusion on the call. The Galaxy Nexus does have HSPA+ technologies so when it’s rolled out in your area you’ll be able to experience faster speeds. Unfortunately until the roll out is complete we can’t confirm the areas that have HSPA+, we’ll update you on this as soon as we can.
Hi,
I rang the Three technical support team to ask about HSPA+ earlier today. I wanted to know if HSPA+ was available in sheffield yet as I have a Galaxy Nexus and have not noticed it.
The person that I spoke to didnt have a clue what HSPA+ was never mind when it would be rolled out. I was really shocked at the lack of knowledge to say she was in tech support.
After putting me on hold twice she finally came back to me and said it was coming in September but it would ONLY be available via a MiFi dongle.
I have been told on the Three UK Twitter page that the Nexus would benefit from HSPA+.. any chance you could clear this up for me?
Ta chuck
@Ribeiro – We’re still rolling out HSPA+ on our network, until the roll out in complete we can’t confirm where HSPA+ is at the moment. Glad to hear you’re enjoying being part of our network
Hi,
I would like to now if is there any mast planned for Yeovil with HSPA+, in the town centre?
Thanks, I’ve been loving your network, but it would be wonderful if I had a faster connection
@ Dave – Great to hear you’re happy with the service that we provide
Unfortunately we cannot confirm any work that’s been carried out on our masts until the upgrade is complete. We’ll let you know more when we can.
Hi Mods,
I know you cannot provide info on the masts that have not been given the HSPA + treatment however is it possible that you can confirm the mast at my locality, AB12 4TP has been upgraded.
I saw some men with a van working on the mast some 2 weeks ago and wonder if this was the upgrade to HS being implemented.
BTW,
Lately I have seen an awful lot of negative posts on the service and coverage provided by 3. I have been with all four of the mainstream networks and in my 5 years with 3 I have not had any serious issues so keep up the good work!!. At present I use a 3 Iphone and non HSPA+ dongle and owing to being close to the mast I get data speeds of some 4-6 MBPS pretty much all of the time and at the end of my MBB contact will definitely look to upgrade to the premium HS dongle.
@Al – Just checked your area and I’m afraid there are no planned new masts at the moment. Sorry I can’t give you more positive news, however we are always improving our network and hopefully there will be improvements in your area soon.
Hi, are there any new masts planned in my area? (removed) Currently getting no existent coverage indoors, have been putting up with it for a few years, but losing patience! Thanks
@Rich – we passed your feedback on, but if you want to chat to the network team we can arrange a call for you. I’m emailing you now…
Hi Johanna/Kaz,
Just wondering if you had contacted the network team and had any reply? I don’t want to sound like some guy whinging about not getting X-amount of speeds but after running several speed tests near the mast (not just my home!) I do think the service should be better imho. The problem as I see it is (at least on my HSPA+ enabled SGS2 – could be verified by engineers on their testing equipment) is that the signal can all too easily lose HSPA+ signal (dropping to HSPA or 3G with immediately vastly inferior speeds generally under 1 Mbps) as you go away from the mast. This is to be expected of course, but the troubling results I have experienced show you regularly lose HSPA+ connection as near as around approx 30 meters from the mast! This is in particular the case when going uphill from the mast… maybe the result of nearby building/trees right next to the mast in that direction? In practical use this all means that the mast has at least in one direction, got the efficient range of about say 50 meters! If engineers could visit the site and run some tests and if required boost the mast signal it would be much appreciated! Thanks again for your help!
@IA – I’ve checked your postcode and there is a new mast planned for your area, no date confirmed yet though. We don’t offer unlimited browsing but our deals are pretty competitive! Does your friend live in the same postcode as you?
Hi,
Really happy with the Three Network before but I still have a few problems.
My Postcode is W2 [removed by Mod]. In my house, the signal is full bars but the download speed is 12.8kb/s(average) but when I go outside in a open field but right next to my house, the download speed increases to 40.3kb/s(average). Is there any upgrades taking place in my area as I have been experiencing this for 1 year now but I was happy but now I’m getting a bit fustrated as I am now using HSPA+ Dongle and I am still getting the same speeds even though the dongle says I am getting HSPA+ signal. I have been researching other Mobile Broadband companies and T-Mobile sticks out the best as my friend said the signal is absolutley perfect and the download speed is 3 times better that than Three’s download speed. Also, apparently T-Mobile has unlimited browsing usage, why can’t Three do this? Please can you fix the range of my nearest transmitter or upgrade them or build more transmitters near my area as I am really disappointed now. Please fix this as soon as you can. Also, Please email me your reply as well as posting a comment on this blog. Thanks!
@lee jarrett
None of the networks are getting LTE anytime soon. The spectrum required for this will not be auctioned until the end of this year. commercial Deployment is at least a year away and this will only then happen at a speed dictated by the networks. Some experts are predicting that it will not be widely available until 2015.
I think you are referring to a trial of LTE which is being done by three O2 and EE under a temporary allocation of spectrum being given to the operators but they need to give this back at the end of the trial period.
Trust me I am as disappointed as anyone at this delay and in the meantime we will need to put up with what we have at present. Three to their credit are launching HSPA+ which will provide 21mbps at launch hopefully doubling in the near future. Note these are theoretical maximum speeds but 7-10 Mbps should be widely attainable but you will need a compatible handset or dongle to get this.
@Harrowing – I’m dropping you an email now to get some account information from you, as I’m afraid we’re not a technical team.
@Kaz, you ignored the DNS Error Hijacking (BTW, if HTTPS gets forced on the link I provided, change it to HTTP as new browsers won’t send Referrer Information between domains on HTTPS)
I thought your dongle blocking system was top-notch? Seems to be with every SIM I try except the SIM you can’t block without change of T&C. You get a error page when you try and visit a site saying that Dongle usage is not allowed.
As for the Traffic Management, any type of slowdown of traffic intentionally is Throttling which below states you do not, nor will do when I signed up.
| Moderator on December 15, 2010
| @Stew – No throttling, just enjoy the good deal
http://blog.three.co.uk/2010/12/15/new-all-you-can-eat-data-on-the-one-plan/comment-page-2/#comments
I’m sure you remember calling me a lair when AYCE was first introduced in regards to the Throttling issue?!(0.3Mbps after 1GB usage per month)
Do you remember that Kaz? Back in January 2011 when a flood of other people started reporting the same thing and you kept insisting this was not the case and it eventually hit most mobile network news sites and was pretty much fixed over night. (Yes, I used to have the username LoneThread, which Kaz knows)
|Vincent Mia on December 30, 2010
|Hi mods. I would like to confirm the findings LoneThread has posted with almost identical statistics. Definitely throttled after 1gb of usage at around 300kb. I have run many tests in several locations.
|Moderator: Kaz on December 31, 2010
|@LoneThread – I can ensure you there is no throttling in place for The One Plan. We are looking into your issue and will get back you asap. It’s going to be after the new year now.
|Moderator: Kaz on December 29, 2010
|@LoneThread – This does not sound right, The One Plan has All you can data on both contract an PAYG. It does not matter how much data you use. Are you still having problems?
| Dilber on December 19, 2010
| Hi, I have 1plan. Can i use my phone sim in 3 dongle to use internet???
| Moderator on December 20, 2010
| @Dilber – yes you can, so long as you adhere to the Ts&Cs
All above comments from http://blog.three.co.uk/2010/12/15/new-all-you-can-eat-data-on-the-one-plan/comment-page-3/#comments which I’ve archived on several 3rd party sites in-case you decide to change/remove the comments. Anyone right now can find further comments about Dongles being allowed if they wish on those pages.
Now would you please mind not making me look like a liar to save your own face and dealing with the current problems.
@Harrowing – Thanks for your comments, we believe everyone should have access to the internet and to make sure you receive a good service we do from time to time have to manage the traffic on our network. To read more about this, please read our traffic management policies here If you would like me to arrange a call to discuss these comments with our Technical Support team, please let me know. Regarding the use of dongles with a Phone SIM, it has never been in the Terms that you can use a phone SIM in a dongle on The One Plan, we just didn’t have a way of enforcing this. Lastly, there has only been 1 The One Plan, it’s still the same today. Please let me know if you would like to discuss this in more detail. Thanks
Just a extra bit of information, your DNS Hijacking of invalid URL’s also grabs the Referrer (Aka the site that sent the person to the invalid URL)
I’ve put a test page up at http://sites.google.com/site/threeuktest/ which confirms this information is in the information sent to broadbanderror.three.co.uk. This could be considered spying. You may wish to look into the legality of this.
As of 8PM, speeds have improved back to their normal state. Is this a 5PM-8PM throttle? Please explain this network changes. Especially the DNS Error Hijacking as alot of people could be angered by this.
I don’t know what you’ve done but I’m seeing reports of awful performance across your network today. It also seems you just made changes and introduced DNS Error Catching as proven by http://broadbanderror.three.co.uk/main?InterceptSource=0&ClientLocation=uk&ParticipantID= now being the result for a incorrect URL. (I’d prefer my browser to send me to Google and I think forced -with no opt-out- DNS Hijacking is illegal for a ISP but will need to check into this – Especially considering the amount of details in the Error URL!)
It looks like a throttling system to 512Kbps has been introduced. Is this after so much data has been used in the day? Or is it just a network issue to go along with the other changes you’ve made today? It still allows burst’s so of course Speedtest.net says 6Mbps (Yesterday it said 9.8Mbps!) but it becomes very apparent when trying to stream a video or doing a file download. APN is 3Internet
I’d appreciate being able to Stream YouTube, not even HQ on phone works and as I said other people in other area’s have said they are having the same issue. I expect their posts haven’t passed Moderation yet?
Of course as I’m using a Dongle in HSPA+ which you out right deny is impossible and against T&C when its not for me (One Plan 2010, remember that Plan? The one where you said outright that dongles were allowed and then made a U-Turn a few months later!) I’m more than happy for you to terminate the contract with no charge to me if you are going to carry on with your new DNS Interception and Throttling system. Same as you blocking me from using a Dongle, that breaches the T&C that I have with you, hence the 2 versions of the One Plan. I really liked being called a liar on a previous comment someone made when you know as well as I do that dongles where allowed and STILL ARE for the early customers of the One Plan.
Can we please get a explanation?
P.S. I’ve recorded a video showing all these issues, I’m sure it’ll help by my posting it on YouTube tomorrow? Let me know if this is what you wish me to do so it can help you “diagnose” the issues
@Adam – I can confirm the Nexus does support HSPA+. However we have not yet announced where HSPA+ has been rolled out, so your area may not benefit yet. We will be announcing our HSPA+ roll out soon.
Hi,
I have a galaxy nexus and a hspa+ dongle both on 3, the dongle is consistently faster than the nexus, is there a way to check the nexus uses the hspa+, it never shows H+ at the top but the dongle always shows hspa+.
Thanks,
R Adams – Great to hear you have an interest in our One Plan. I’ve taken a look at your postcode and you appear to be in an area with strong indoor and outdoor coverage, there appears to be no maintenance work underway – as you guessed, you’re in the middle of two masts so you could be switching between the two.