HTC

[ade_law]

I am now completely fed up with my magic,

vodafone took forever to release the froyo update and when it did come we ended up with a phone thats slower, buggy and uses battery faster than a very fast thingy.

I have been with vodafone for 9 years, phoned vodafone hoping that would count for something.... Im not due an upgrade til october but could upgrade in june leaving me with a 30month contract on the next phone. First "sollution" would be to go to the nearest vodafone store to get a free battery which we all know wouldnt solve the issue. Next would be to send it off to HTC for 10days and get 40ukp credit on my account which again wouldnt solve the issue.

even after pushing the point and trying to go up the support ladder im left with 2 options.

1) Live with the phone til June upgrade, take a 30month contract and probably be in a similar state as I am now with the next phone in

18months. 

2) Cancel my contract in october and go elsewhere.

Both those options leave me with a very bitter taste in my mouth, thanks vodafone for rewarding my loyalty.

Ade

[Andy]

Hi Ade,

Firstly, if it's not been said before, welcome to the eForum, it's great to see new faces here

I'm sorry to hear your of your experiences both with the phone and the upgrade process. I'm keen to see if we can restore your faith somewhat and to that end, I've sent an email to your forum registered address. Just reply with the requested information and one of the team will be in touch as soon as they can to discuss your available options.

Thanks

Andy

Moderator

eForum Team

[ade_law]

Thanks, email recieved and replied to with relavent info

Good to see some response to this problem, reading this forum and talking to customer service on the phone really hasnt filled me with confidence.

Ade

[EddyOS]

The issue here is that the Magic wasn't designed to run FroYo so the stock components are being pushed to their limits.

IMHO I'd look for an upgrade and get something a bit better - the Galaxy S II will be out by then as will the new HTC handsets

[ade_law]

update... just had a phonecall from ben at the online team. very helpful indeed. the future is bright its definetly not Orange :-)

upgrade for very reasonable money incoming :-)

Ade

[Ben_H]

Thanks for your time, Ade.

We'll keep an eye out for your call once you've had a chance to have a peek at the handsets we discussed. If you have any questions in the meantime, don't hesitate to let us know. I'm really glad I managed to get a few options for you despite what happened in the past

Cheers, Ben

Web Relations Team

[trashcansinatra]

This is all very well sorting out deals for individuals but how about actually addressing the issue for people who want to keep the phone?

Vodafone have had plenty of time to come up with an answer or at least let us know what is being worked on, if anything.

Really really poor show Vodafone.

[Ben_H]

Thanks again for your time, Ade

I'm thrilled I managed to organise a discounted early upgrade with the Nexus S. You'll have to let me know how you get on with it! You can leave any feedback you'd like to pass onto my manager via our Short Questionnaire. Any comments are more than appreciated

trashcansinatra 

I'm sorry to hear you're suffering with your handset experience. Our repairs process is in place for customers who don't want to let go of their HTC Magic devices just yet. I would point out that the handset was designed for much older software than that available now so as the OS gets more elaborate and advanced, previous devices will inevitably work at different performance levels. The early upgrade system is one route a lot of customers are taking to ensure they get the latest models designed for the current platforms sooner. We're just being as flexible as we can with our options.

Cheers, Ben

Web Relations Team

[ade_law]

im sorted, nexus showing up around midday today assuming the courier doesnt mess it up. 

If your stuck in a long contract like I was then defo give the eforum guys a poke they Ben was friendly and helpful and got me sorted really fast.

Ade

[iwinter]

So is this option available to all of us in the same situation?

I've been a Vodafone customer myself for 10 years now and am in a similar situation in that I've been somewhat screwed over by the whole debacle with the Magic amongst other things.

I was even told when I signed up for my contract that I'd be able to upgrade my phone 3 months before my contract expires, which is now yet the site says I can't.

Two contract renewals running now I've asked for a paper copy of my contract and paper bills and been told I'd get them but haven't seen one in years, which is somewhat annoying as I'm pretty sure some years back Vodafone changed my contract part way through as I was suddenly getting charged for texts I hadn't previously been charged for.

I'm glad to see Vodafone have made the effort to help at least one of their customers after months of us Magic users being treated pretty damn poorly but where do things stand for the rest of us including those of us who have been continually lied to by Vodafone's sales staff left right and centre each contract renewal?

[Kay]

Good Morning iwinter,

I'm sorry to hear of the problems you've experienced with the HTC Magic, of course I'd like to see what I can do for you aswel.

An email is on it's way, please reply back with the details requested and I'll be in touch as soon as possible.

I look forward to hearing from you shortly.

Best Wishes,

Kay
Web Relations Team

[Playtoe]

The Vodafone site is now offering me an early upgrade, but the offers are not attractive enough to keep me as a custome!

[iwinter]

Yes, customer services are going to phone me, but as they've already told me in an e-mail that my contract is due to end 2 months later than I'm sure it's meant to end (how can an 18 month contract started in December end in August? - that's 20 months) I'm not sure they'll really be able to restore my confidence. But then, that goes back to what I was saying about having never been sent copies of my contract despite sales always having told me they'd send it. What sales tell you never seems to correspond to what you actually end up getting. Any early renewal is going to add onto this so effectively it'd be 2 years before I could renew again, which, when I only want year tie ins but can't get them anymore so have to settle for 18 months isn't really acceptable.

Thankfully I'm moving house in a few weeks so am not limited to Vodafone for coverage anymore at the new house because the new house gets strong reception from multiple providers. Still, I guess I'll see what they have to offer whenver they phone me, so it better be decent.

[iwinter]

Spoke to Ben on the phone last night, even though there's nothing attractive for me to upgrade to price wise right now I'm impressed by the service from him and his team.

Vodafone are onto a good thing there, it was a pleasant suprise getting such a helpful and knowledgeable response for pretty much the first time since I've been with Vodafone. I hope this is a sign of things to come!

So if anyone from higher up in Vodafone ever reads this- listen to Ben and his team, unlike many of your other staff I've dealt with in the past him and his team actually understand customer service!

[Ben_H]

Hi iwinter,

I just wanted to pop on after one of the moderators brought your post to my attention. I'm thrilled to hear that despite not being able to find the right handset and contract term just yet that I could be of help. You're more than welcome to come back in future to see if the phones we discussed drop in price once they're superceded in the coming months. Let me know if the team or I can help with anything else

Cheers, Ben

Web Relations Team
Vodafone UK

[Ian_C]

Hi iwinter,

Thanks very much for your post concerning your conversation with Ben yesterday.

I'm Ben's manager and I'd like to thank you for this fantastic feedback. If you haven't done so already, I'd be grateful if you could leave some feedback for Ben here.

You've mentioned that currently there isn't anything you want to upgrade to, but if that changes in the future, just pop back onto the forum and I'll make sure that Ben or one of the other members of my team gives you a call.

Best Wishes

Ian

Web Relations Team

[mre15]

Hi,

I have been having similar issues with my phone. I cant get more than 6 hours from the battery unless I turn off bluetooth, gps and 3g, which kind of defeats owning a smart phone.

I have now got the issue of a faulty home button.

My problem though is online my contract update is not due until 3rd Nov so I have quite a while left.

I can get a day from my phone as long as all the above mentioned are turned off, I have tried the so called fix on this forum several times but no joy.

What are my options given the upgrade date is so far away.

Cheers.

[Lee]

Hi there mre15,

Many thanks for your post. I'm really sorry to learn that you've been experiencing problems with battery life and that your home button no longer works. I'm sure, owning an Android device myself, that this is highly frustrating.

Initially, with so long left on your contract, it might be worth popping over to our General FAQ's thread where there's lots of information about getting your handset repaired, free of charge, under warranty.

Cheers,

Lee

eForum Team

[mre15]

Lee,

Thanks for the reply, I am quite prepared to take my phone in for repair, however reading through this forum the battery life problem can never be fixed regardless of what is replaced.

I am quite prepared to do it as it costs me nothing but would probably be an expensive waste of time for yourselves.

I have tried your recommended fix for the battery several times, it just doesnt work.

Regards.

Mark.

[andy_g]

All,

I'm a first post newbie on any forum anywhere and as a log-term Vodafone customer have been moved to do this as I am bitterly disappointed with my HTC Magic phone post Froyo upgrade and the lack of any meaningful customer support from Vodafone.

I have experienced serious problems with my phone ever since the OTA Froyo update and have contacted Vodafone Customer Services twice in order to explore the options.  On my first call in January the technical support woman who I spoke to was "unaware" of any issues affecting the phone, despite me highlighting the multitude of posts on the forum detailing the problems and advised me to contact HTC as it was a manufacturer issue as opposed to a Vodafone one.  This is clearly not the case as Vodafone sent the OTA update and had apparently rigorously tested it for compatability.

On my second call in February, after discovering from another forum post that the bluetooth toggle was the culprit for the excessive battery drain, I called to find out what measures Vodafone had put in place for a workaround as all I wanted was to be put back onto the original Android 1.6 firmware and get my original usable phone back.  However I was then given the "we can send your phone away for repair line" which, from reading other posts on the forum is as much use as a chocolate fireguard and cannot solve the bluetooth toggle issue.

Bluetooth is important to me as I need to conduct work hands free and for the past four months I have been severly impacted with no tangible support from Vodafone and am becoming more and more disenfranchised with the service that I am receiving.  I either have a non-mobile smart phone or a mobile non-smart phone, when I am paying for a mobile smart phone.  Incidentally my wife is on exactly the same contract as me with exactly the same phone but never received the OTA update, something which must have been stopped at Vodafone's behest, and is very satisfied with her original phone and firmware; something that I imagine would apply to many of us on this forum given the option of returning to Android 1.6.

Unless Vodafone buck their ideas up considerably both myself, my wife, and our family will not be renewing contracts with them.  I have seen shining examples of customer service from network operators at my workplace, it is just a shame that Vodafone is not one of them.

Andy