Pros and Cons about Public Mobile

[Harvir_K]

Hi I just wanted to start a topic for people that want to join public mobile.So they know the good parts and bad parts. Also for the people that are thinking about switch away from public mobile.(including myself)

[MEU_21 · Accepted solution]

Pros, no particular order:

1. No home zone, other than the province that you reside in.

2. Good LTE service and coverage

3. Competitive monthly plans (usually with promos)

4. Various rewards to reduce bills

5. You pick what's important for you - Plans include a good mix and options for voice, text, data.

Cons, in no particular order:

1. Limited customer service - meant for somewhat tech savvy customers

2. Very limited international countries that can be called (the main reason I have not ported other numbers, I use voip but others are not as tech savvy)

3. BYOD and probably no option to get discount on a device as part of a retention offer (haven't tried)

4. Not meant for heavy data users (better deals are available for data plans)

5. Provincial boundary issues (add-on required, locking onto towers in other provinces)

[wetcoaster]

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@LovingTeddy wrote:
I switched from Freedom Mobile about 7 months ago to Public Mobile. Then I ported to Chatr when they have the double the data promo. Currently I am paying about 50 dollar for 6GB 3G data. Grande's that Chatr has its own zone thing (which is stupid, but I rarely out of my zone, mainly Kitchener-Waterloo and Toronto).

I value customer services and call center very much. Public Mobile customer services is next to none. True that you can use this forum to communicate with mod, but it is highly inefficient. It took 4 days for PM to Port my number from Freedom Mobile. PM's self service portal is never reliable and you will have difficulty Port back to PM with same number when you leave PM and come back again.

I rather pay more for customer services that I can call anytime than relying on a website to get my problem short out.

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Good for you, finding the provider that fits your needs best.

My personal experience is that I get faster and more solid customer service from PM's mods than from any call center customer service representative I dealt with when I was with other "full service" providers. My 70 or so hour delay in porting my number to PM had more to do with conflicting information, most of it given by a CSR at my previous provider (!), that resulted in user error in the automated process and needed a manual intervention by the PM mods / tech team. I for one am happy to have ended up with PM.

[LovingTeddy]

I switched from Freedom Mobile about 7 months ago to Public Mobile. Then I ported to Chatr when they have the double the data promo. Currently I am paying about 50 dollar for 6GB 3G data. Grande's that Chatr has its own zone thing (which is stupid, but I rarely out of my zone, mainly Kitchener-Waterloo and Toronto).

I value customer services and call center very much. Public Mobile customer services is next to none. True that you can use this forum to communicate with mod, but it is highly inefficient. It took 4 days for PM to Port my number from Freedom Mobile. PM's self service portal is never reliable and you will have difficulty Port back to PM with same number when you leave PM and come back again.

I rather pay more for customer services that I can call anytime than relying on a website to get my problem short out.

[Nicholas255]

Pros:
-90 day plan is wonderful, I love paying upfront and not worrying for 90 days, as opposed to 30 day plans where I'm always struggling to prepare my money for a necessary top up.
-Great value, I'm literally paying 50% less than I was on Telus for the same package.
- great online top up system
-Awesome discount system, almost nullifying your bill by referring enough people! And encouraging community involvement with discounts is great!
-My sim card was only $5 and shipped super quick

Cons
-they didn't advertise well enough!! I wish I knew it existed earlier

[Teezem]

Pros:

- Full LTE

- Good pricing

- Ability to lower cost

- 90 day plans

- Great community! 

Cons:

- Limited payment options but expected

- Some issues with the portal

[Quest]

Hi there, to All 

@Harvir_K

Pros:

• You have fully bulletproof, shock free data and voice plan (prepaid)
• Unbeatable roaming USA add-ons and shock free as well
• Access to LTE network, if you wish
• Very professional voicemail feature (good for business people)
• Great community of people that want to help each other

Cons:

• Limited payment options
• Not every one likes to use vouchers and credit cards
• Mostly for tech-savvy users
• Although it has a great community of people wanted to help each other occasionally it could be disorganized and filled with repetitions and endless discussions.
• Limited access to printed records of ussage (for a business people)
• Need a lot of patience in solving urging issues

[xCameron94x]

Its a good plan that includes everyone in Canada. I joined on the $120 promo deal in November. I liked that i didnt have to jump through hoops for a Quebec plan or a Manitoba plan (Im in Ontario). Im still extremley jealous of the rate plans they have over there compared to here.

But PM has been great so far, no issues what so ever

[zoomzoom87]

technically you are right, they do offer this plan and it is possible to jump hoops to receive it. But end of the day they still reserve the right to change it base on where you're actually located. 

I was about to get that Manitoba plan back in November, but PM came out with this no hassle 4gb for $40 plan. Couldn't say no. 

[WearySky]

Sure, but you asked if I could name another, and I could 😛

I still maintain that this plan is the best plan currently available for folks that don't want to deal with the QC plan hassle though.

[zoomzoom87]

yes, but it's quite the hassle, and they reserve the right to change your plan back to something equivalent to your area. I rather not deal with that. 

[WearySky]

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@zoomzoom87 wrote:

can you name another provider that can offer 4gb/month for $55/month..CANADA wide LTE

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Well, Koodo's Quebec plans (currently $49 for 6GB BYOD)... But you do have to jump through a few hoops if you want to get them outside of Quebec (but anybody can do it).  PM's plan still is the best value in-market plan for folks in provinces that don't have a big 4th in-market competitor though (MB, SK, QC).

[zoomzoom87]

can you name another provider that can offer 4gb/month for $55/month..CANADA wide LTE

[Jonavin]

Pro:  Bellus network (Freedom and Rogers just doesn't work well enough for me), deceasing pricing through rewards, 90 day plans. The last one is a pro for anyone who has asymmetric usage. Why get a 6GB plan if you only need it one or two months of the year. My usage varies from 1GB to 6GB, but across 3 months it's probably closer to 3GB. I wished there were 180 day plans. How about a Canada 150 plan for $150 for 150 days with 15GB of data? Too weird? Rate is same as Fall Promo at $10/GB.

Cons: no immediate support. No stores or place where you can quickly get a new sim (have to order spares in case you lose your phone). Some bugs with billing system that's getting better but would make my first point mute if they were all fixed.

[DealHunter]

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@WearySky wrote:

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@DealHunter wrote:

True, i was thinking of suggesting 24/7 Online Communitiy Chat System to have people have instant responses to issues.

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That would require significantly more support staff than PM currently has, which would result in increased prices.  I don't see that happening.

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Hmm, maybe not increase support staff but have 24/7 chat system with just the community. Something like a community chat system, we already have moderators and admins.

*In addition You could possibly setup a bot system that scans for key words using an algorithm to suggest quick answers.

[zoomzoom87]

Honestly don't go freedom unless you have phone compatible with their lte. Fido may be good, but can you get 4gb for $55 a month from them?

[zoomzoom87]

You can do it, I believe

[zoomzoom87]

Name three other Canadian carriers that offer $4gb lte per month for $55...go

This is still great value for many people. Freedom data is great, but not being able to use it with full bars is ridiculous. Been there before and switched to pm 6 months ago. I can't go back.

[zoomzoom87]

If you ported over.. Good luck

[WearySky]

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@DealHunter wrote:

True, i was thinking of suggesting 24/7 Online Communitiy Chat System to have people have instant responses to issues.

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That would require significantly more support staff than PM currently has, which would result in increased prices.  I don't see that happening.

[DealHunter]

True, i was thinking of suggesting 24/7 Online Communitiy Chat System to have people have instant responses to issues.

[RLBL]

A lot of this is personal so YMMV:

Con: No call center

Pro: Instant help from a public forum for minor questions.  As well, in my 20+ years of having cell service with various providers, I have only called once for a complaint when I moved to a low coverage area (Rogers) and the issue was never resolved for the past 14 years I lived there (by the accounts of my neighbours who still use the Rogers network for their own reasons).  So what was I paying extra for?

Con: Province wide calling on my plan

Pro: More data so I can select another app to make Can/US calls because my device is not really a phone but a tool that opens an app to make calls.  As a result, I choose to open one app (Hangouts) vs another (default Phone app) and voila

Con: Most people have not heard of PM

Pro: Good things come to those who wait, but those who rush in get the best seats.  As an early adopter, we get 1st crack at the deals before they are known to the masses.  And when it is known, you get to scoop the referal rewards (see below)

Pro: The signup process is left up to the users so you know exactly what you are getting
Con #1: The signup process is left up to the users, and users unknowingly make mistakes
Con #2: As there is no call center, so getting things resolved when they do go wrong has shown to be untimely (this is the biggest issue I have seen)

Con: Some things have to be setup yourself (like APNs etc..)

Pro: Not really a PRO, but tinkerers have no issue. And those who are not used to tinkering with their phones are forced to become a bit more savvy, which is never a bad thing because you never know when you might have to tinker again.

Con: If you lose your phone, you are hosed for awhile (no store front...)
Mitigation: Have extra SIMs on hand in case this happens. I have 2 for this reason, and you never know: Someone you know may decide last minute to sign up! (turned into a PRO)

Pro: Rewards: for auto-pay, signing people up, loyalty YoY.
Con: ???? I guess if you don't like savings and like throwing money away it could be a con I guess...

PM is the best overall service/price plan out there (imhymao).  Others have decent deals:

Fido: Fido has a good deal on IF you are already a customer, which I am not

Chart: Has a good deal ($10 off).. for 8 months... then the price gets jacked up by $10/month
Freedom: excellent data plan... IF you can get service where you live (which I can't.. and I live just south of Ottawa Center!)

I can go on....

Again, this was personal experience. YMMV. PM may not be the best deal in town for everyone as people have different needs.

[Garry]

I'm amazed at the backlash in just the first couple of pages. I didn't even read pages 3-5 because I was so disguisted with how entitled some people think they are. The $40 Promo is gone.......get over it.

Public Mobile is offering a $95 TELUS plan for $55. What else do you want?

If you're not happy with it, or think Freedom or any other carriers offer better for less......don't let the door hit you on the way out!

Public Mobile ranks right beside Telus/Bell for coverage and service @ 1/2 the price!  Sure there are some constraints that set them apart, but for 96% of the population it makes no difference. Savings are Savings!

[Mana]

If you are used to public mobile now, dont make the mistake for going back to freedom mobile.

I can tell you for sure that freedom mobile's network is terrible and I can proof exactly where there is no service or hardly any service within the GTA.
On top of that when you call them or go to their stores to complain about their service, they lie to you or make some bs excuses.
With them you don't get the support and service when you need it the most.

Their 5gb of data maybe more but it's useless data that you are paying for.

[david_l]

Pros: Cheaper than competition, Telus network

Cons: Slow customer support, cumbersome APN setting set up, no invoices - need to manually request and wait weeks, random billing errors, 

[Quest]

@DealHunterIf PM would become Fully On Line who knows what kind of powers they still could unleash.

[DealHunter]

Con: If you expect talking someone over the phone on the other side for services.

Pro: Service is in the forums and community.

Con: If you expect a instant response.

Pro: Don't have to deal with terrible crackling music while on hold.

Con: limited time on great promo's $40 for 12gb 😞

Pro: Decent prices all year round.

Con: Running out of things to post in the forums, wish I could help more.

Pro: Rewards program

Con: Data throttling

Pro: Coverage area

The list could go on....

[Harvir_K]

I'm going to stay at public mobile because i had gone to a freedom mobile store to see if i could get my old plan back and told them it had only been a week  since i switched. The guy that worked there said he was with public mobile too instead of freedom mobile. Because of freedom mobile coverage and speed.

[Yawsug]

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@CalvinW wrote:
@mimmo Well, I believe your comparison is unfair. You are comparing PM's promo pricing against other carrier's regular pricing. Fido recently had a promo of $60 for 6GB or $50 for 5GB for legacy customers. That is a much better than what PM has to offer. This is just a bad deal in general. The people that actually support this are those that are already on the Fall promo. They aren't the ones that have to cough up the $55.

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@CalvinW, were you not eligible for these promos?  As well here is the pricing for PM regular pricing for 90 day CANADA WIDE, golbal texting and 12GB.  With autopay rewards it will be $65 a month before any referral or community rewards you may earn.

So this is still a good deal straight up without a promo pricing.

[Samianauman]

@ShawnC13
Good info I checked that Link few hours earlier
I also Check Koodo virgin fido website too they were offering same kind of plan month ago or little longer then month ago don't remember 4 or 5 gb Canada wide and unlimited txt for 75 dollars but if you check now they all selling that plan for 100 dollar also they were offering starting plan byod 28 dollars raise that as well to 30 dollars basic plan in these situation if public mobile offering 53 dollars 4gb plus global text and unlimited province wide then it's a steal deal and win win for everyone it's close to half price compare what other offering my personal views I am pretty happy and satisfied with pm promo right now

[ShawnC13]

I thought I would help all those that aren't happy with the new promo here is a link to a mobile syrup articleabout carrier rates and promos http://mobilesyrup.com/2017/04/19/changes-canadian-carrier-rate-plans-week/