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> Phones4u crap service
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A lot of the problem with Phones 4 U (as several posters have pointed out) is that they try and push customers onto o2 and Vodafone tariffs. Why? Because Phones4U connect o2 and Vodafone customers onto Singlepoint as the service provider. Now Singlepoint is owned by the Cauldwell group. The Cauldwell group also owns a chain of high street mobile phone shops - anyone guess which chain that is?
[Edit] Oh and in case you didn't know - Singlepoint can be about a bad as P4U themselves - some people have no problems with them at all but there are plenty of people out there who have had some nightmare experiences with them!
High street mobile phone chains are typically staffed by people simply wanting to make a bit of easy money - the shops will hire people based on their salesman abilities rather than their specific phone knowledge (makes sense if you are trying to make as much money as possible I suppose!).
OTOH local independent phone shops and independent online retailers are usually set-up and run by people with specific industry knowledge (they need it to be able to flourish in a market with high buying power competitors like CPW/Link/Phones4U etc.) So chances are you will be able to speak to someone who knows what they are talking about, is genuinely interested in making sure you are a happy customer (word of mouth is a crucial means of gaining new customers for them), and can actually help you make the right choice about your mobile. Online indenpendent resellers will also typically be cheaper than high street stores but don't be tempted to use high street store pricematches as these just squeeze the independents even more and eventually they will dissappear - besides you would probably get far better customer service from an online independent than you would from a high street chain anyway!
[ This Message was edited by: simon69c on 2003-06-10 08:34 ]
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Posted: 2003-06-10 09:30:15
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The main problem with Phones4u is their guvnor - Mr. Caudwell.
He seems to think he is a business genius, and delights in telling any journalist who will listen how he is better than the "corporate tossers" who populate most companies.
Well, if timeshare sales is the business model he is trying to copy then maybe he is a genius. With high pressure and misleading sales techniques he is building a customer base, sure. But the crap service offered by his second-hand car salesmen will quickly erode this.
And as for his pathetic rip-off of The Gadget Shop which is found in some P4U branches - it looks like a hippy stall at festival.
Pathetic.
Go to CPW, they may have their faults but they know about phones and have good customer service. And no, I don't work for them - just a satisfied customer.
Dunc
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Posted: 2003-06-10 13:14:08
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@suicidebob - Ok, I sympathise. I spent 3 hours on the phone to Lifeline today! They are shite - almost shite enough to be on the Pony4U payroll! I appreciate your plight and your clarification
@pbwuk1234 - Sounds like you're about to find out why it was such a good deal!
I just object to the Caudwell Clan because I don't like being given the hard sell when I shop. Maybe when buying a car you expect it, but a mobile?! CPW pay is, obviously, commission-based, but structured such that we are genuinely able to give independent advice without being financially swayed one way or the other. With places like 4U, it's all about getting you to take out their dodgy insurance policy and how much they can milk you for.
The reason for this:
If they don't hit their monthly targets, they get NO commission. Go some way to explaining anything??!!
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Posted: 2003-06-13 04:32:32
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Although the lack of competance at phones 4 u worked in my favour...I went in a few weeks after the T68i came out, as they said that all phones were free on all networks, and got his new woman (obviously in her first week) and convinced her not only that this should include the t68i (which it didn't) and also that as orange phones came with Orange care, there would be no point in taking their insurance, and she gave me the phone no probs! hahahaha!
They phoned me up a couple of months ago about upgrades, and were most upset to find Orange had given me a free t610, 2 months before the old contract ran out.
"Oh, we were offering an upgrade to a t68i......." (how I can be upgraded to the same handset i already had, I have yet to understand).
And CPW gave me a couple of right old laughs in the past couple of weeks. Firstly I went in with the purpose of buying a bluetooth dongle - which I refused to as they were £80. The guy seemed to tkae real offence at this and asked why. I explained that I could get one for £40 online. At this point he told me that it would be no good to have a dongle which slotted into the port with no lead because... "Bluetooth can't go round corners" -
"really i thought it was an RF "
"a what?"
"a radio frequency"
"no it's a beam of light".
"Bye"
Then I went into the huge new CPW in leeds, and asked to upgrade the firmware as they have an SE centre in there. At this point I was given a ticking off, for trying to confuse them, as CPW calls firmware "software"...so i told them to stick it where the sun don't shine, and bought a ticket to london....
And don't even get me started on CPW insurance.....
[ This Message was edited by: impy78 on 2003-09-28 14:56 ]
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Posted: 2003-09-28 15:33:54
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>Later on (less than a year later) I decided to get my phone software
>upgraded to t68i software. I went into the shop who said they would
>need to send away to do it (I didn't realise there was an SP near
>Manchester then) and they would give me a replacement phone.
hey jalu, can you tell me where the service centre near manchester is (saves me calling sony ericsson!)?
cheers
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Posted: 2003-09-28 22:57:57
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Phones4U aint dat bad I Bought a new T68i from them fri just gone I wanted a o2 enn but they didnt have any so ahh asked where I Could get the PAYG T-MOBILE enn unlocked, and they gave me directions didnt think theyd do that btw lol
This message was posted from a T68i
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Posted: 2003-09-29 02:49:42
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I had a conversation at work with a colleague in our upgrade dept who said p4u are cowboys!
This message was posted from a T610
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Posted: 2003-09-29 03:56:39
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Use the high street stores to test new phones and see which one you really want then go online and order it from mobileshop.com for contracts or expansys.com or mobilefun.co.uk for sim free.
[ This Message was edited by: macki_c on 2003-09-29 11:51 ]
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Posted: 2003-09-29 12:48:31
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