topic When good time to change to PM... in Get Support

When good time to change to PM...

inPicton — Wed, 05 Jan 2022 06:11:30 GMT

I have ordered a SIM card. Should be here near end of week. Am wondering if anyone knows when things are back to normal after the fall promotion? Am with Virgin now but would rather switch to PM when wait-time is normal to port from Virgin to Public Mobile.

What is the normal wait time, anyway?

Regards, Paul.

Re: When good time to change to PM...

Rockdaddy22 — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 01:19:19 GMT

12 days at the moment.

http://productioncommunity.publicmobile.ca/t5/Announcements/Update-on-support/m-p/114863#U114863

Re: When good time to change to PM...

SD08 — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 01:23:24 GMT

From what I'd seen before the promo, the normal wait time was hours or maybe next day for a response. Now, because of the backlog in the wake of the promo, it's more than a week, possibly two weeks. Seems to be improving somewhat in the last few days, and they've just recently hired more mods.

Re: When good time to change to PM...

UDP7 — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 01:31:27 GMT

Honestly, if you look at the forums constantly, obviously it's going to scare you because that's where people are going to post about their problems, but you have to realize this is just a small percentage of people having problems. Majority of people ported their number with no problems.

What I suggest is port your number in the evening when the servers aren't stressed a lot and also that the porting process can happen during night time when you sleep (when you're not using your phone). Also, the main concern is inputting the correct information when porting a phone number. Make sure it's the correct account number, IMEI, etc. (whatever you're inputting, double check, triple check) and don't put dashes (heard that can screw it up) if needed.

Re: When good time to change to PM...

Rockdaddy22 — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 01:35:03 GMT

I'd only use account number when porting

Re: When good time to change to PM...

UDP7 — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 01:39:06 GMT

@Rockdaddy22 I'm curious then as to why Dave_M recommended using the IMEI number when porting in this post. http://productioncommunity.publicmobile.ca/t5/Announcements/Doing-wireless-different-has-its-ups-and-downs/m-p/95883#U95883

Re: When good time to change to PM...

Rockdaddy22 — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 01:50:53 GMT

I don't know why Dave said that, I really wish he wouldn't of. Most of the failedi see are due to wrong imei or pin. Account is pretty easy to get right.

Re: When good time to change to PM...

Korth — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 01:51:42 GMT

Normal wait time was same day. One or several mods always online during (Ontario) weekday business hours. Sending a private message to an online mod usually got almost immediate response, less than an hour of back and forth private messaging to explain details and answer questions, and maybe another hour for the problem fix to filter through the system.

Posting problems invites community assistance - and some people here (like the Oracles) are serious jedi masters when it comes to fixing phone problems, I am surprised at some of their answers and surprised that they almost always work. There's also sometimes a little wrong advice or bad advice, sometimes thread hijacks by other (frustrated) people, lol, so it's always best to wait for more opinions or googlecheck everything. Public posts also allow you to flag (all) the mods - they apparently have a system in place for responding interchangeably to these calls - and I'm unsure if this system extends to private messages (which might only address one specific mod).

I would personally wait until next month before switching to PM, lol, definitely too much backlog right now and probably too much backlash in upcoming weeks. You might be able to accomplish the transition flawlessly through self-serve - many people, most people have done so without issue - but right now there are technical problems and if you are unfortunate enough to have a technical problem then you could be stuck with no working phone service for (it looks like) a couple of weeks.

If you're planning on porting your number than you can save yourself a lot of worry by activating (and paying for) your service on PM maybe a week before your existing service gets terminated. And do all the number porting through one side (preferably PM's side, so you can get PM's support) instead of involving both carriers, or things can get confused and delayed and botched. Giving yourself a week overlap should easily allow a few days and a few days more to correct and recover from any problems, basically insurance that the number won't be lost.

Re: When good time to change to PM...

inPicton — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 01:58:38 GMT

Thanks to both of you for that good information.

This time of year, I'm not using my cellphone as much. If I wait too long, the Xmas rush will kick in, if not already. I think that I will bite the bullet and port as soon as I get the sim and tough it out.

My Virgin Mobile December payment of $80.18 went through today...

Re: When good time to change to PM...

Luddite — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 02:03:08 GMT

Wait if you wish but if you are careful no problem. Here's some reading for you:

http://productioncommunity.publicmobile.ca/t5/Getting-Started/The-Guide-to-Headache-Free-PM-Signup/m-p/99033#M18556

And some bits and pieces from around the forum:

- clear browser cache and turn off ad/popup blockers

- on the personal info page shorten your name(s) if more than 10 letters

- do not request the port-in during activation; take a temporary number, log out, confirm all services are active, log back into your account and select Transfer Number under Change Phone Number

- do not use any identifier except your account number EXACTLY as shown on your bill; it is the best item for any port-in request

- do not make any errors in the Authourized User; this must be EXACTLY as it appears on your bill

- do not use your number as the Alternate Number; use someone else's

- do not forget to click "I am authourized ...." BEFORE you entering your number (courtesy imm1304)

- do not cancel your account; that will happen automatically

Re: When good time to change to PM...

Rockdaddy22 — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 02:03:35 GMT

OMG $80 what do you get for that.

Re: When good time to change to PM...

inPicton — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 02:17:01 GMT

Ooops. Sorry. That 80-dollar payment was for some overdue stuff. Normally, it's abouty 57-ish.

Re: When good time to change to PM...

inPicton — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 02:19:43 GMT

If I understand correctly, I should do it at night when servers aren't as busy.

If done correctly, the change should take a few hours?

Only if done incorrectly, it takes 2-ish weeks?

Re: When good time to change to PM...

SD08 — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 02:25:53 GMT

Yes to all three. If done incorrectly, it would require you to get the help of a moderator, which would take up to two weeks.

Re: When good time to change to PM...

inPicton — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 02:29:23 GMT

"Yes to all three. If done incorrectly, it would require you to get the help of a moderator, which would take up to two weeks."

That's where I was going wrong. I was under the misconception that if all goes well, at this time, it will take 2 weeks for the entire process.

That's good to know.

Re: When good time to change to PM...

Korth — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 02:30:11 GMT

If a number port is done correctly it takes a few hours - both carriers and numerous database registries need to intercommunicate and sync up with the same data. I agree with the advice of doing it at night, just restart/reboot your device the next morning and it'll use the next number.

If a number port is done incorrectly it often requires the intervention of PM staff to correct. Current wait time for the mods is apparently expected to be around 12 days. You'd have to pay for both carriers during this wait and perhaps some days longer (because the mods cannot always correct bad number ports immediately, it can take a few days). I wouldn't risk it, personally, if keeping the number is important, I don't know how long the number can sit in limbo before it's lost forever.

Re: When good time to change to PM...

kav2001c — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 02:31:21 GMT

@inPicton the actual activation + port should only take an hour tops. Yes there are numerous bugs from last promo, but in general I see no reason system should not just work.

Main advice I would give is activate a temporary number first, once account is open THEN do number change to port in your Virgin number.

The problem is IF you run into an issue there are 2 places it normally happens; activation or port.

IF you have an issue it seems 7 to 14 days is turnaround time to get everything fixed.

Re: When good time to change to PM...

inPicton — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 02:37:41 GMT

Lots of good information!

"Main advice I would give is activate a temporary number first, once account is open THEN do number change to port in your Virgin number."

I assume from the above, there is an option during the process to pick a Public Mobile phone number? Pick the number, then do the "port" from Virgin to Public at a later date?

Thank you all.

Re: When good time to change to PM...

Korth — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 02:48:16 GMT

Yup, you can pick from a ton of unused/available phone numbers, lol. I think I spent a little too much time finding the one that I thought was "perfect". You can then change your number at any time, and at no cost, I think, although I don't really know and have never done this because I really like my "perfect" number.

But Number Ports through multiple carriers must be handled with more care. Once a number has been used, it goes to a pool of inactive numbers for a long time (six months?) before it can be reassigned. So if you want to ensure you keep your phone number you have to let it happen properly.

Re: When good time to change to PM...

SD08 — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 02:56:21 GMT

@Korth wrote:
Yup, you can pick from a ton of unused/available phone numbers, lol. I think I spent a little too much time finding the one that I thought was "perfect". You can then change your number at any time, and at no cost, I think, although I don't really know and have never done this because I really like my "perfect" number.

But Number Ports through multiple carriers must be handled with more care. Once a number has been used, it goes to a pool of inactive numbers for a long time (six months?) before it can be reassigned. So if you want to ensure you keep your phone number you have to let it happen properly.

To clarify, they give you tons of numbers to choose from only at sign-up time. They'll even let you customise the last 4 digits. However, if you want to change your new number afterward, they will only show you a few choices at a time, and no last 4 digits customization. It's best to spend a bit of extra time selecting a good number during sign-up if you think you might want to keep the new number.