True Move 3G Iphone Package Being Downgraded For Me Mid March Anyone Else Get Notified?

[nycboy57]

I will be getting 3G up to 3gb and after that my iphone 4 goes to 256 k, so I called Truemove and asked what did that mean? They said that my plan expires and i will not get unlimited 3G any more, since I am in Bkk, and my area was mostly getting 3G, I was in good shape, the only thing I had gone over my call minutes and usually paid three times the 599 baht plan.

So that is the story, anyone else here about this? I went to DtAC, and AIS to ask about their Iphone plan and they all say they do not have 3G at all in Bkk. So basically i have to accept whatever 3G I can get and I do not know how much 3Gb of internet is actually.

When will that show up to 256 kb, they say I can check my bandwidth useage on the website. I tried to do that and see how much I have used over this year each month and could not figure it out. Dumb I guess so if anyone has any feedback and or experience with this please comment on this topic. Sincerely for your help. Cheers to all.

[Jiu-Jitsu]

What exactly is the problem? If you go over the 3GB limit and are not happy with 256kbps downloads, you can try using TOT or one of it's MVNOs.

TOT 3G

MVNOs

[lomatopo]

It sounds like True are implementing their "fair use" policy on existing/original iPhone contract customers, who have unlimited plans (now called 'Freesize"). The did introduce this fair-use policy a few months ago, but were applying it to new customers only, allowing original customers to be "grandfathered".

I guess it is not surprising that they would do this; many network providers are implementing 'fair-use' policies in order to manage network capacity and maintain service levels. In practice, they will turn off 3G access for you when you reach 3 GB, and only allow you to connect via 2G (GPRS/EDGE). Your phone should indicate this network mode.

I am sure they are apps. available from the Apple store which allow you to track usage on the phone. I'm a 'Droid so use "Droid Stats" which tracks voice, sms, wifi and 2g/3g, and even pops up alerts when you reach certain levels.

True seem to have an app for checking balances? http://appcenter.truelife.com/home/app_cat/48/Productivity/1/20101122132519

You can also send an SMS to 9789, with "B" in the body of the message. This returns service messages with current data usage. (Note this works for me as pre-paid True 3G user.)

http://www.truemove.com/iphone/en/price.html

About Fair Usage Policy

Fair Usage Policy is one of the terms and conditions governing data usage via TrueMove’s 3G* network. This policy has been designed to effectively manage customers’ use of data services via mobile phones and/or supporting devices. The Fair Usage Policy helps to ensure that all customers have an effective 3G* experience at appropriate speed levels. Many mobile network operators around the world implement this data management policy as a standard practice.

The Fair Usage Policy was established as a result of a small number of customers (about 1-2%) using the unlimited 3G* privilege for other purposes such as Bit Torrent applications by using a mobile phone as a modem or connection via an air card. Such usage negatively affects the 3G* efficiency and experience for the majority of customers (about 98%) resulting in significant speed decreases (other technologies such as ADSL are best suited for Bit Torrents). In order to provide efficient 3G* services and maintain optimum data speeds, TrueMove has implemented this Fair Usage Policy to ensure a positive 3G* experience for its customers as a whole.

Under the Fair Usage Policy, customers can use unlimited 3G* services without charge up to 3GB at the speed of 7.2 Mbps. Once this has been reached, they can still continue to use these 3G* services but at the speed of 256 Kbps.

Remarks: *3G services (on 850 MHz band frequency) is a part of network improvement and development in specific areas for a service excellence experience. TrueMove reserves the right to change and/or cancel usage of 3G services any time and will announce these changes through communication channels which TrueMove deems appropriate.

Frequently Asked Questions:

Which promotions are affected by the Fair Usage Policy?

The Fair Usage Policy is applicable to promotions which allow customers to use unlimited 3G services such as the iPhone 4 “Free Size” package (Baht 599/month) or the iPack 759 promotion.

What are the details of the Fair Usage Policy in relation to the iPhone 4 “Free Size” (Baht 599/month)?

With this promotion customers can use 3G services up to 3GB at the speed of 7.2 Mbps. Thereafter, they can still use unlimited 3G services but at the speed of 256 Kbps.

What are the details of the Fair Usage Policy in relation to the iPack (Baht 759/month)?

With this promotion customers can use 3G services up to 5GB at the speed of 7.2 Mbps. Thereafter, they can still use unlimited 3G services but at the speed of 256 Kbps.

Will iPhone 3G and 3GS customers who currently use the 599 Basic Package be affected when they purchase the iPhone 4?

iPhone 3G and 3GS customers can retain their subscription to the 599 Basic Package when they purchase the iPhone 4 (device with option to choose existing or new promotion). If they choose to use their existing promotion (599 Basic Package) with the iPhone 4, they will not be subject to the Fair Usage Policy.

Note this last item, re: "grandfathering". You may want to check with True showing them this wording.

Edited March 10, 2011 by lomatopo

[nikster]

So - yes this happened to me too, no I didn't get an SMS message about it.

I noticed that my speeds had dropped considerably for the last 2 days - today I called, and they said it's probably due to fair use. I tried to explain I didn't get the SMS and I had the old actually, really unlimited plan - no use of course, this is Thailand, they just switched me to the fair use plan. I am at the end of my billing cycle and had been using 3G a lot even back home because it's faster than most cafe's internet, and also faster than CAT CDMA.

Proof: My iPhone seemed to be stuck at 30KB/s download no matter what I was doing - it only occurred to me just now that this might be the fair use policy in effect. And it is!

I switched to my wife's iPhone, and lo and behold got 400KB/s downloads.... That's 4Mbits! Without download manager, speedtest to BKK was still 1.5Mbit, where on my own iPhone the website doesn't even load. Or maybe speedtest not working in downgraded mode is by design? Who knows.

Going to check whether they offer a higher limit for money down the road. As of now, I don't think they do. Customer service said I need to wait for new billing cycle, that's all. Nothing I can do or buy to make it faster now (he didn't know about my wife's iPhone though, hehehe).

[wpcoe]

When I took the train from Hua Hin back to Bangkok with my new "unlimited, but fair use" True 3G account, when we were in areas of EDGE-only coverage, I was still able to use speedtest.net tests.

When True shapes the 3G after the "fair use" provision kicks in, does it go to some modified 3G service, or does it drop to bona fide EDGE? I had assumed the latter, but now I'm not sure.

[bangkokmaid]

Is the 3GB limit rest monthly or is it over the duration of your contract?

[nullx8]

be carefoul about this ... i had once a very bad experience with true regarding this ...

they billed me 22.000 baht for nothing because of switched packages.

true move not worth the hazzle at all.

[AlanL1275]

What exactly is the problem? If you go over the 3GB limit and are not happy with 256kbps downloads, you can try using TOT or one of it's MVNOs.

TOT 3G

MVNOs

So the problem is they don't give you what they sell you!!!

Also when you sign up they say it is a 3month or maybe a 4month contract.

So that should mean they are bound by contract to give you the speed you signed up for, as they will want to enforce the contract period.

[Jiu-Jitsu]

What exactly is the problem? If you go over the 3GB limit and are not happy with 256kbps downloads, you can try using TOT or one of it's MVNOs.

TOT 3G

MVNOs

So the problem is they don't give you what they sell you!!!

Also when you sign up they say it is a 3month or maybe a 4month contract.

So that should mean they are bound by contract to give you the speed you signed up for, as they will want to enforce the contract period.

Is this true...or is it that you did not read the T&Cs before signing up?

Most people seem to be aware that there is a Fair Use Policy.

Do you have Unlimited 3G in your country? At what cost?

[billd766]

If you think this is bad imagine what it will be like if CAT and True finally get their 3G working legally and another 2 or 300,000 customers go onto the existing network before the backbone gets upgraded.

You may be better off with some tin cans and string.

[thaicbr]

Op. can't you download an app to check your 3G usage. On Android i use an app called 3g Watchdog.. that way i have the info at my finger tips.

[nikster]

Op. can't you download an app to check your 3G usage. On Android i use an app called 3g Watchdog.. that way i have the info at my finger tips.

The iPhone has a built in counter, actually. You can reset that when / if you want. So you'd reset it at every billing cycle. Then you'd always know where you are.

Personally, I find that if I kind of minimize my 3G network use, I never have a problem. I use 3G normally, but I follow some common sense rules:

- Pause any large downloads or torrents when tethering over 3G

- Don't watch YouTube or other online video excessively

- Use WiFi whenever possible. I used to not bother with free logins at the cafe and so on because 3G was usually faster than the DSL in most places.

True has an iPhone app that shows you your current balance and stuff, but unfortunately doesn't show your 3G usage in this billing cycle. They also don't have a service number to check that.

@Billd - yes there's only going to be ever more 3G users. I don't think the backbone will ever be an issue though - what will be an issue is that 3G has terrible scaling problems. If you have 20 active users on one cell, it will slow down tremendously. Over the air bandwidth is limited. Just try AT&T in the USA in a major city to see what I mean - it's slower than EDGE, if it works at all. The backbone is the last thing you need to worry about... anyway due to the limited over the air bandwidth, I think it's good that there's a fair use limit. If there wasn't we'd have people torrenting movies and whatnot, and unusable 3G for everybody.

[nikster]

Just checked the counter is here:

Settings -> General -> Usage - see "Cellular Network Data" sent / received.

Reset at every billing cycle and you're good.