Should I Switch to a Discount Provider? What a loaded question, and it is going to take keeping feelings out of it to answer it properly. Lets start with some background to help us on our journey. The BIG Guys - Bell, Telus, Rogers The MEDIUM Guys - Solo, Fido, Koodo The SMALL Guys - Wind, City, everyone else ... Dont get confused already - the medium guys are really just the big guys little brothers disguised to fool you. Bell owns Solo, Telus owns Koodo, and Rogers owns Fido. Essentially you are buying into the same old system (not to say that it does not work). I would consider a discount provider one who is completely free from the shackles of the big guys. For sake of clarity and argument I am going to focus on Wind Mobile as they are the best and strongest option in the discount market. When it comes to plans, nobody can beat Wind. They are beyond affordable, many are unlimited, and some include US roaming as part of the package. They give all of the options and include so much at a fraction of what an average plan with the big guys looks like. If this decision was to be made on plan cost and inclusion it would be a no brainer -- Wind is the best choice. HOWEVER. If you really want to understand this next part I suggest you read my article that discussed why plans in Canada are so expensive in comparison with the U.S. It took some really big money for Wind to launch here. Infrastructure (towers/support centres/sales centres) alone would have cost hundreds of millions of dollars just to be available in major city centres. Even after all of that investment they are still inconceivably far from catching up to the majors. Wind has made leaps and bounds with the quality of their network, now being available in most populated areas. If you are a resident of a major metropolitan area (Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary etc) and dont leave the city much Wind is a great option. They are very strong in the major markets. Stepping down to big cities (Hamilton, London, Surrey, etc) the phones seem to work fairly well while outdoors. Many users complain about network quality when they are deep indoors, especially in their basements. Dead zones will start to pop up in these areas, but frequently they are due to natural and environmental issues. Go too much smaller in city size and things get very frustrating. In Niagara Falls for instance I have heard nothing but horror stories. Keep in mind though you always hear the bad before you hear the good. My conclusion in essentially this. Major city user that stays in their city, Wind is a great option. Big city user, proceed with caution. Anything smaller, be VERY cautious. If you are seriously considering a switch from your major provider speak to Wind about their use and return policy. Take the phone for a test drive to places you usually use your device and make sure you are getting good, clear connectivity. Another piece to consider is how much of your usage is done via Wifi.. if home is where you find your connectivity issues - are you even using them? If you are not glued to your phone 24/7, it is primarily for leisure, and you are generally anxiety free then save your money and go Wind. If you are the opposite, for that extra $30-$40 a month you are buying peace of mind.
Posted on: Tue, 16 Dec 2014 14:18:33 +0000
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