Comments on: Not-so-Smart Telecom http://www.eire.com/2004/not-so-smart-telecom/ Government, Infrastructure, Business Mon, 07 Nov 2011 07:06:19 +0000 hourly 1 By: Vivian Osagie http://www.eire.com/2004/not-so-smart-telecom/comment-page-1/#comment-430248 Vivian Osagie Sun, 31 May 2009 11:20:39 +0000 http://www.eire.com/wordpress/?p=124#comment-430248 Having read through all your comments, i decided to leave a reply just to let people know that there are some satisfied smart telecom customers out there. We (Partner & 1) joined smart in Aug 2006 as we just moved (although got billed wrongly in the first bill and it was rectified the next month). We had offers from friends working with eircom telling us to leave that smart is rubbish but we did not. So in Oct that year when smart was supposedly 'closed' nothing happened with our broadband or phone. I went out only to hear that smart has closed but my services were intact, friends in eircom could not believe it when we told them we still have broadband and phone from smart. We started with broadband (3MB) and phone for 45euro/month inc VAT and had my TV was with NTL. In 2007, we were offered free trial for TV for 3months which went on almost smoothly and now for 86euro/month (inc VAT) we get 6MB, phone and cable TV. That is a saving of at least 25euro a month as we used to pay a total of 110euro when they were separated. Bottom line is; new companies will have teething problems ie the overbilling issue with our first bill. But as time goes on they get better. Their customer service isn't the best, but it is way better than eircom (which i will not go into)and they are improving. All i can say is after 3years with them (Aug 06-May 09) i am reluctant to leave smart because they offer great service and we are living proof of it. Things don't always work out well with service providers but in our case smart has been fantastic. i am considering moving but will only move to where smart has coverage. That is how satisfied i am :) Having read through all your comments, i decided to leave a reply just to let people know that there are some satisfied smart telecom customers out there. We (Partner & 1) joined smart in Aug 2006 as we just moved (although got billed wrongly in the first bill and it was rectified the next month). We had offers from friends working with eircom telling us to leave that smart is rubbish but we did not. So in Oct that year when smart was supposedly ‘closed’ nothing happened with our broadband or phone. I went out only to hear that smart has closed but my services were intact, friends in eircom could not believe it when we told them we still have broadband and phone from smart.
We started with broadband (3MB) and phone for 45euro/month inc VAT and had my TV was with NTL. In 2007, we were offered free trial for TV for 3months which went on almost smoothly and now for 86euro/month (inc VAT) we get 6MB, phone and cable TV. That is a saving of at least 25euro a month as we used to pay a total of 110euro when they were separated.
Bottom line is; new companies will have teething problems ie the overbilling issue with our first bill.
But as time goes on they get better. Their customer service isn’t the best, but it is way better than eircom (which i will not go into)and they are improving. All i can say is after 3years with them (Aug 06-May 09) i am reluctant to leave smart because they offer great service and we are living proof of it. Things don’t always work out well with service providers but in our case smart has been fantastic. i am considering moving but will only move to where smart has coverage. That is how satisfied i am :)

]]> By: Radoslaw Zylinski http://www.eire.com/2004/not-so-smart-telecom/comment-page-1/#comment-81262 Radoslaw Zylinski Sat, 06 Jan 2007 04:22:40 +0000 http://www.eire.com/wordpress/?p=124#comment-81262 Still you have to remember, that competition in Ireland means: Smart & IBB offers unlimited download - REAL cable broadband... (cable- only by Smart) The rest of the "industry" is too greedy (customers simply allow them for this, because of lack of knowledge and too much money to spend). Chorus from Cork after giving broadband without download restrictions, soon offered free upgrade from 1Mb to 1,5Mb but.... there is a catch: download limits in small print!!! Nobody likes to spend money on new network hardware and connections, but to rip off us... It's easy - with Eircom MONOPOLIST + mentally stuck in past times staff. There is still hope for changes... but why it takes so long?!! Still you have to remember, that competition in Ireland means: Smart & IBB offers unlimited download – REAL cable broadband… (cable- only by Smart)
The rest of the “industry” is too greedy (customers simply allow them for this, because of lack of knowledge and too much money to spend).
Chorus from Cork after giving broadband without download restrictions, soon offered free upgrade from 1Mb to 1,5Mb but…. there is a catch: download limits in small print!!!
Nobody likes to spend money on new network hardware and connections, but to rip off us…
It’s easy – with Eircom MONOPOLIST + mentally stuck in past times staff.
There is still hope for changes…
but why it takes so long?!!

]]> By: Caroline Leggett http://www.eire.com/2004/not-so-smart-telecom/comment-page-1/#comment-60750 Caroline Leggett Thu, 19 Oct 2006 20:24:16 +0000 http://www.eire.com/wordpress/?p=124#comment-60750 To those who fancy a shift to Smart Telecom, please bare in mind that they are only Smart in name and not in customer service, service provision and fault correction. Lets start with recent events, my husband and I arrived back to Ireland after some time away to find our Smart universal remote wasn't working(new batteries didn't do the trick). So we reported this to Smart, who said a new remote would be issued and would take 3 days to reach us- in Dublin....6 days later we are still waiting, and for 6 days we have been waiting for a manager to call us re the cost of 25 euro. At least once a month we have to report a fault with our phone and broadband and digital TV. More often than not its on a Friday we come home to discover that all of the previous are not working and neither are the staff at Smart until 9am on Monday. Whatever you do think long and hard before a change to Smart Telecom, stick with the devil telco you know because you don't know that your new provider isn't totally incompetent. Customer beware! To those who fancy a shift to Smart Telecom, please bare in mind that they are only Smart in name and not in customer service, service provision and fault correction. Lets start with recent events, my husband and I arrived back to Ireland after some time away to find our Smart universal remote wasn’t working(new batteries didn’t do the trick). So we reported this to Smart, who said a new remote would be issued and would take 3 days to reach us- in Dublin….6 days later we are still waiting, and for 6 days we have been waiting for a manager to call us re the cost of 25 euro. At least once a month we have to report a fault with our phone and broadband and digital TV. More often than not its on a Friday we come home to discover that all of the previous are not working and neither are the staff at Smart until 9am on Monday. Whatever you do think long and hard before a change to Smart Telecom, stick with the devil telco you know because you don’t know that your new provider isn’t totally incompetent. Customer beware!

]]> By: Michael O'Reilly http://www.eire.com/2004/not-so-smart-telecom/comment-page-1/#comment-58609 Michael O'Reilly Mon, 02 Oct 2006 20:09:16 +0000 http://www.eire.com/wordpress/?p=124#comment-58609 And today 2nd October Smart have closed down and left a message on my house phone to contact Comreg for an alternative and as of now 2100hrs on 2nd nothing on the Comreg site- So back to the very first message on Smart ! you were totally right. And today 2nd October Smart have closed down and left a message on my house phone to contact Comreg for an alternative and as of now 2100hrs on 2nd nothing on the Comreg site-

So back to the very first message on Smart ! you were totally right.

]]> By: Noel Griffin http://www.eire.com/2004/not-so-smart-telecom/comment-page-1/#comment-58103 Noel Griffin Tue, 26 Sep 2006 12:38:34 +0000 http://www.eire.com/wordpress/?p=124#comment-58103 Why not try Perlico? Very helpful and cheaper than all around? Why not try Perlico? Very helpful and cheaper than all around?

]]> By: Tom Moriarty http://www.eire.com/2004/not-so-smart-telecom/comment-page-1/#comment-54040 Tom Moriarty Tue, 15 Aug 2006 08:34:46 +0000 http://www.eire.com/wordpress/?p=124#comment-54040 Eircom charge the highest rates in the country for fixed line calls to most destinations. Thankfully competition has arrived and there are savings to be made by the consumer. Cinergi Telecom is a 100% Irish company which guarantees, in writing, to always be cheaper than eircom, 35% cheaper on many international calls. The rate to USA quoted above is out of date and is as low as 9.14 cent per minute. This Company gives all of the items mentioned by John O'Neill in a posting above and yet people still stay with eircom. Cinergi's broadband prices start at €9.99 per month, half of eircom's prices. How will true competition flourish if the majority of the population stay with the most expensive provider in the country?? Maybe when interest rates continue to rise and people start needing to save money they might wake up and move! Eircom charge the highest rates in the country for fixed line calls to most destinations. Thankfully competition has arrived and there are savings to be made by the consumer. Cinergi Telecom is a 100% Irish company which guarantees, in writing, to always be cheaper than eircom, 35% cheaper on many international calls. The rate to USA quoted above is out of date and is as low as 9.14 cent per minute. This Company gives all of the items mentioned by John O’Neill in a posting above and yet people still stay with eircom. Cinergi’s broadband prices start at €9.99 per month, half of eircom’s prices. How will true competition flourish if the majority of the population stay with the most expensive provider in the country?? Maybe when interest rates continue to rise and people start needing to save money they might wake up and move!

]]> By: grace otoole http://www.eire.com/2004/not-so-smart-telecom/comment-page-1/#comment-53146 grace otoole Tue, 08 Aug 2006 17:56:49 +0000 http://www.eire.com/wordpress/?p=124#comment-53146 I joined them basically to have broadband on our first computer.Their flyer stated they did all the connections.Which they confirmed when I rang.They said a letter of confirmation would be out in a week to sign and nothing could happen until they received it.After waiting some time for it to arrive, I came home one evening and my daughter said a man left in a box today.I rang them the next day thre was 22 in the queue in front of me,to cancel as the connect-it -yourself box was not what I was expecting and I still hadnt received the paperwork.That was six months ago and I am still receiving bills for broadband I dont have and a phone line I asked them to cancel.Which they say is still live (not used) because I didnt fill in a "cancel my line" form. Try getting through to that on the smart telecom phone line - its impossible because its not there.Customer care at Smart now tell me they want 460 euros to disconnect the line. Incidently we connected to broadband with ntl the week after I cancelled with Smart. THEIR representative came out to the house asked where I wanted the connection and set up the whole computer for me in half an hour. No magic required ! I joined them basically to have broadband on our first computer.Their flyer stated they did all the connections.Which they confirmed when I rang.They said a letter of confirmation would be out in a week to sign and nothing could happen until they received it.After waiting some time for it to arrive, I came home one evening and my daughter said a man left in a box today.I rang them the next day thre was 22 in the queue in front of me,to cancel as the connect-it -yourself box was not what I was expecting and I still hadnt received the paperwork.That was six months ago and I am still receiving bills for broadband I dont have and a phone line I asked them to cancel.Which they say is still live (not used) because I didnt fill in a “cancel my line” form. Try getting through to that on the smart telecom phone line – its impossible because its not there.Customer care at Smart now tell me they want 460 euros to disconnect the line. Incidently we connected to broadband with ntl the week after I cancelled with Smart. THEIR representative came out to the house asked where I wanted the connection and set up the whole computer for me in half an hour.
No magic required !

]]> By: Greg Smyth http://www.eire.com/2004/not-so-smart-telecom/comment-page-1/#comment-50120 Greg Smyth Sun, 09 Jul 2006 05:44:32 +0000 http://www.eire.com/wordpress/?p=124#comment-50120 Joined Smart thinkng I would save money and have broadband. Yes, I have saved money after leaving Eircom but no broadband. Rang their customer service which was courteous but provided me with no real information. Initially they said I would have broadband back in August / September '05, the girl still couldn't tell when I was supposed to get it, practically a year later. Basically shouldn't advertise what they can't deliver. Joined Smart thinkng I would save money and have broadband. Yes, I have saved money after leaving Eircom but no broadband. Rang their customer service which was courteous but provided me with no real information. Initially they said I would have broadband back in August / September ‘05, the girl still couldn’t tell when I was supposed to get it, practically a year later. Basically shouldn’t advertise what they can’t deliver.

]]> By: Blagger http://www.eire.com/2004/not-so-smart-telecom/comment-page-1/#comment-48535 Blagger Mon, 26 Jun 2006 17:33:11 +0000 http://www.eire.com/wordpress/?p=124#comment-48535 Im sure the information /response you where given did'nt meet your requirements back in 2004 - i'm sure if you check their website and customer care centre now you'll find a more informative guide to your requirements, it seems the business has grown and its growing and improving the service levels with its client base. Im sure the information /response you where given did’nt meet your requirements back in 2004 – i’m sure if you check their website and customer care centre now you’ll find a more informative guide to your requirements, it seems the business has grown and its growing and improving the service levels with its client base.

]]> By: Michael Brennan http://www.eire.com/2004/not-so-smart-telecom/comment-page-1/#comment-33443 Michael Brennan Mon, 03 Apr 2006 17:27:45 +0000 http://www.eire.com/wordpress/?p=124#comment-33443 Brilliant research and absolutely fantastic delivery. As an ex eircom employee with over twenty years experience in telcos, I find Smart Telecoms, advetising campaign highly entertaining and it is patently obvious that the proffesionalism involved is with the advertising agency and not with Smart Telecom. Brilliant research and absolutely fantastic delivery. As an ex eircom employee with over twenty years experience in telcos, I find Smart Telecoms, advetising campaign highly entertaining and it is patently obvious that the proffesionalism involved is with the advertising agency and not with Smart Telecom.

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