i'm going to be in london next week - are there any stores that i can walk into to see the Raphael in person?
i live in the US and this is my first time in the UK, so i'm not familiar with the providers and stores over there.
thanks
Aaron
Yes. Inkino have them in stock (www.inkino.co.uk). Although their store is quite small, they keep a good range of phones at good prices. They are also reliable (and honest) and an HTC Partner. They are at 48 Tottenham Court Road W1T 2EF. Tel: +44 (0) 207 631 4567.
I would be careful with some of the other shops on Tottenham Court Road, particularly some of the smaller ones.
PS No, I don;t work for Inkino!
Can I just add that I have bought my QTEK S200, Trinity and Touch Pro from INKINO. You may not get the very best price (you are generally talking only a few tens of pounds on a £500 product), but the service and assistance I have had from the guys who work there is second to none.
I went in yesterday with a problem on my Touch Pro and it was sorted straight away with no quibbles whatsoever. All the people who work there know their stuff when it comes to HTC and will be very straight with you. They are an HTC Authorised Ultimate Partner. They do not hard sell or push something they know is not what you want or need. A BIG contrast to some of the other stores in that area!
There are in fact two INKINO stores. The one at 48 Tottenham Court Road is within another shop and can get busy, the other is a little down the road at 9 Great Russell Street, bigger and generally more staff but no less quality of service.
(A big thanks to Alan, if you're listening, for yesterday - its working fine)
PS I don't work for them either.
remember to look around all the shops at tcr because theres a wide range of prices from 490 to 650 there
THANKS! everyone, appreciate it
Related
My xdaii hard reset itself over a week ago, It now boots up to the o2 screen and freezes. I called o2insure as i pay a monthly premium they have had no stock for weeks, called o2 select services and after seven hours on the telephone they escalated my call to a supervisor. I was again informed that they had no stock and a loan phone (not an xda) would be sent to me last saturday, it did not arrive! called again today still out of stock, however my local store has stock and so does o2 sales as detailed on their website. When I spoke to the supervisor for the third time today and told her this i was informed that these are seperate companies!
O2 just seem to want to sell a product with several bugs and offer no support. I am totally fustrated, any comments please gents
I can only say that as a loyal Orange UK customer who left the fold just to get my XDA2, I'll be switching back to Orange just as soon as my minimum expensive O2 contract expires. O2 customer service (is there any?) seems designed around the "Make life hard and you'll sort out the whingers from the serious problems" theory. When you have a problem you need to be very, very patient to get anywhere, and be prepared to get passed from department to department to get the simplest answer.
Orange, by comparison, are just about perfect. I even felt slightly guilty about leaving them after 10 years of customer satisfaction, but they didn't have the XDA2 last November. No wonder Orange win customer satisfaction prizes. I honestly can't imagine O2 winning anything.
Darryl, I think you've been unlucky with your XDA2. Most of them seem to be fine. Mine certainly is very good indeed. It's O2 that sucks, not the hardware.
Well im now waiting for my third xdaII, Orange were right to wait until some of the bugs were fixed! Spoke to Orange today they cannot confirm as to when their version will be generally available
I couldn't agree more with the comments above. I would strongly advise people hold onto their cash and wait for Orange to release their version. I, too, was a loyal Orange customer for 8 years and only had a few problems Ialways pushing the envelope!). O2 cut me off while abroad last week after they had demanded a £100 deposit to allow international roaming. When I got back it was because I was over my £50 credit limit by £3!!! Ask to speak to a supervisor and you can't - the "procedure" is to have them call you back within 24 hours - do they? Of course not. Can't wait for my 12 months to be over!
Everyone have a look at my post in this section labelled "See what O2 can do for you" (yes, it was meant tongue in cheek!)
Daryll.....if your local store has stock and Select are going to offer a replacement rather than a repair, then what Select should do is forward your case to high level complaints who can then call the store to confirm they have stock and authorise them to take the XDA out of their stock.
Please note, it MUST be done that way. Normally what was said about the stores etc being a different part of the business is true so don't expect to walk into a store and get stuff swapped etc if it wasn't bought there normally!
- NB. This only applies if your are actually an O2 customer - and that isn't as daft as it sounds - if you are on O2 but get bills from Carphone Warehouse, Singlepoint (vodafone) etc. then this won't apply. It can only be done "in house"
I can speak with hand on heart when I say what I see day-to-day in the company does my head in, but there are quite a few us who do know what we're doing (just not enough of us).
All I can say to those of you who have had a problem here and there is write to head office (address on bottom of your bill - bath rd, slough) and tell them (polite letters tend to get read more!) and if you've had good service then do the same! It's the only way things get highlighted!! - We do the same!
Cheers
All,
have to say that o2 UK have managed to plumb the depths of lousy service and total indifference to customers requirements. They have increased accessory prices for XDaII as well as reducing the contents. They are managed by a centrally run policy which does not admit to deals being done in other stores and a refusal to honour previously agreed prices.
SHODDY SHODDY SHODDY!!! is the best way to describe them, if you are a customer I would urge you to leave them and if your not I certainly wouldn't join!!!
Dont buy any product from their stores as your likely to get it cheaper, quicker and less hassle from the web (uplands mobile) or other online provider.
Such a shame that a company which brought us a great device can't live up to its customers legitimate expectations!! If you have any more comments please post on this thread.
Thanks
Pete
I can say that was also the case for me at stockport branch, Asking about XDA 2 accessories to be told information like - "yeah we dont know about that" or "no there isnt such thing available for the xda2" !!! what!! when i know there is something available for it and get told there is no such thing, lets just say i dont goto the o2 shop anymore. (was about car kits)
Cheers
shody!
Well sad to say..............
I agree, the service supplied by o2 is crap.
I have been working overseas, my biggest bill was £150, my normal bill was around £12 - £35, I'm away for 7 months, I return home and recieve a bill for £540, when I question it, they say, well pay it and then we will sort it out. I say no,lets sort it now. The answer I get is the computer says its correct although we have major problems with our new system sending out or not sending out correct bills, just pay it and we will return it if youre found tobe right, .....I think not!
So yes,changing companies going to Vodafone, dear but seems tobe more on the ball.
O2 problems seem to be becoming more common lately.
I am on orange now simply because I got fed up of the high tarrif I was put on and I had too much trouble trying to change it. The website fails to complete an order as I always get "We are sorry.... Please call xxx" halfway through entering my address details to start a new contract.
Phoning O2 is even worse, after being transferred to different departments so much I ended up doing a circle I went to an O2 shop. They say they cant do xxx instore so give me one of their phones to call and dial a number. Person on phone says theyll try and do xxx but better going in a shop "cuz they'll definitely be able to do it instore" IM IN AN O2 SHOP MAKING THE CALL!
There is someone else I know who is on O2 Online and they simply arent reading his e-mails correctly and giving dumbed down irrelevant responses. Phoning up to sort out problems is too expensive when in certain situations its O2's fault theres a problem.
Ash
O2 are are the biggest pile of **** MAN
Anyone know of a place where O2 complaints will be taken seriously or can be at least accumulated until a point where the number is enough for O2 to take notice..online petition or something?
The ISP Pipex used to leave many customers with no option but to put up with poor service or switch providers, but a website by angry customers called 'pipexwoe' was set up to collect people's bad (or good) experiences and present them in a collected form. Since then the ISP made significant improvements which may have been in part due to the awareness raised by the website so much so there was talk of changing it to 'pipexwow'.
Something like this needs to be done for O2, they cant simply go on with poorly trained sales staff, a buggy website, buggy billing system and incompetent telephone and e-mail based customer service.
I'm still stuck with O2 just for insurance on the physical XDA 2, but that took about 10 failed website order attempts (yes I now have 6 new O2 e-mail addresses though :roll: !), 50 minutes of phone calls, an hour on top on hold and 2 trips to an O2 shop. Being on hold was ok but every 7 minutes they cut you off and tell you to ring again - i.e. throw you right at the back of the queue again! I got an alternative phone number from the O2 shop without the cut off and got through in 10 minutes... silly!
Ash
On a general basis, I don't know of anywhere you can air your grievances.
But if you (as an account holder) have a serious complaint that you are getting no joy with via Normal Customer Services then they do have a HLC (High Level Complaints) team based in Leeds.
Whilst I have a phone number for them (and I'm not gonna post it here for obvious reasons), you can insist on your complaint being referred to them. They usually deal with complaints via OFCOM, but they are there to deal with referrals.
Having used them twice, I've found them very good. They sorted out my account problems, and compensated me accordingly. This was after normal CS said they couldn't do any more !
HTH
Mark
Agreed. You never get anywhere with O2 unless you are on Friends and Family! :wink:
O2 - the other side
I think caveat emptor applies.
I tried to buy my XDAII last Xmas a voucher to pruchase it for £150, but O2 did not seem able to honour it. I took it to Car phone warehouse who honoured the voucher.
I sent a respectful letter to O2 , and they sent me a £50 M&S voucher.
Mr.G
All
I agree with the respondent who has suggested a website to co-ordinate and publish and publicly punish o2 for their lousy service. I dont know how to go about it but I'd be more than willing to help if anyone knows how to set it up.
Further, aren't you guys amazed that the number of companies with hi level complaints departments these days? That alone says more about the standard of service delivery that anything else possibly can.
These are entire departments set up to protect the CEO etc from the legitimate complaints of customers and to appear to the regulator as customer focused.
If that were true, they would surely spend less on complaint resolution and more on frontline service delivery. If it were true, then the very mechanisms and processes which have given rise to their existence would work effectively on our behalf.
or am I just being silly!
Send letters of complaint to;
Mr McGlade
260 Bath Road
Slough
Berkshire
SL1 4DX
This is the CEO of o2 UK, then you'll get a response from the hi level complaints team......wonderful!!
Please keep this thread active and lets see if we cant get them to change their approach to customers!!
peterbutler19 said:
Send letters of complaint to;
Mr McGlade
260 Bath Road
Slough
Berkshire
SL1 4DX
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wouldn't bother, he leaves in a month or so.
Try the Customer Services Director...
I've had enough of 02 recently, they've messed my billing around to the point where even though i've sucessfully paid everything in full by Direct Debit, I still get randomly disconnected and then I have to spend 50p a minute calling them to get it sorted out.
I've got the same contract as i'm on now with Orange, so i'm unlocking my xda2 and moving over.
I left O2 last week too, My bills were approaching £70 a month and i wasnt using any more minutes than i usually do, they seem to be ripping me off for data access, when i phoned them, they couldnt even find any data access on my bill and i just couldnt get a straight answer out of them as to why it was so high,
Plus my 12 month contract was up so i phoned them to see if i could get a free motorola razr out of them as i would have been happy staying with them really but when i asked they just said i would be better canceling my contract and getting a phone from a 3rd party supplier as i would get a better deal, so i did, but not with O2 this time !!!,
When i was about to leave orange many years ago, they bent over backwards offering me free phones and discounts if i stayed with them, not with O2, they just said i was better off leaving and that my contract would terminate in 30 days, they dont seem to care if they loose customers anymore
I cant see me going back to O2 anytime soon now
The thing that swayed me to 02 was the text bundles that they offered at a time when orange weren't offering, which is mainly what I use my phone for. Now, I can get exactly the same contract with orange, and without all the 02 hangups it's time I went back.
There's a lot of different resellers about and equally many roumers of who's good and who's dodgy at the moment . So that we all know who's who out there, heres a little Thread with Vendor reviews.
If you have something positive or something negitive to say about a seller please say it here.
Also please rate your vendor XX out of 10, I might add a field to the vendor wiki.
Vendors and prices here >http://wiki.xda-developers.com/index.php?pagename=HTC_Raphael_Vendors
I've always used Expansys / MobilePlanet. I'm USA so MobilePlanet.
There is some atrocious whining in their forums from - for want of a better term - EXTRAnoobs.
But in my dealings they are professional, rock solid and I've never had any problems.
Onthegosolutions
I have used Maobile Planet in the past and had no specific problems.
For some years not I have been using OntheGoSolutions and I have been pleased because I always know who I am speaking with. Seems to have very little turnover and they are small enough that I can communicate with one person. They are definitley not the cheapest but have at least twice in the past lowered a price for me when I pointed out an advertised lower price elsewhere.
I bought my Raphael online from Expansys Canada... All I can say is the transaction was very easy, and shipping was SUPER FAST!!!
Ordered it Friday afternoon (approx 3pm), after a small billing problem (I gave them a different phone number from the one on my Credit Card account), confirmed the order on Monday morning at 10am (they aren't opened on weekends), I had the device in my hands Tuesday just before noon...
All in all, besides the phone # problem, I'm very happy with the transaction. It was easy, smooth and fast...
Inkino UK
To all in London and southeast
Eugene at Inkino (I never knew I needed one), 48 Tottenham Court Road www.inkino.co.uk is a mine of information on all things HTC. They are one of the few, if only, HTC Ultimate Partners and it shows.
I have bought my Trinity and now Touch Pro from there.
Yes I could probably get a few pounds off here or there but the service and honest opinions I have had from Eugene and his collegues at the sister branch 9 Great Russell Street mean that I will simply not buy from elsewhere. If I have a problem I know I can call up or drop in and I will speak to someone who knows his products inside out and is a straightforward trader.
Pleasure to do business with.
I ordered mine from Expansys UK. I live in Cyprus and Expansys is propably the best choice. Although I should have used Expansys Cyprus, the UK site was 40 Euro cheaper so I went with them. The service is excellent! Prices are among the best in the market. (630 EURO inc. DHL shipping fees).
They support Paypal, which is a big plus in safety matters, and by using DHL you get your phone in record time.
All in all, i am a happy customer=p
I'm in the US and I bought mine from Clove. A tad more expensive, but I was having problems with Google Checkout (which Handtec uses for overseas orders). Clove was a little slow to receiving my order, but once they did they shipped it out within hours. DHL got it to me in 2 days, all the way from UK to California, and by 10am no less.
One thing about Clove (that I appreciated) is that they require you to confirm the order by calling your CC company and requesting the 6-digit charge authorization number for the charge. Maybe it's an extra hassle, but it's nice to know they're serious about your security.
I would order from Clove again, but of course now I have no money.
I'm in the US and purchased from Smart Mobile Gadgets. All was as they said, including Saturday delivery.
I ordered my TP from On the Go Solutions in July. They said they would call and make sure I still wanted it before they would ship. They also shipped the day the said they would, a month in advance. I am very satisfied with the way they do business.
This is a statement of one set of circumstances and does NOT impute or call into question the credibility or otherwise of this particular organization. There may be an explanation - but so far - my client has not received one.
A client of mine bought direct in a Buy It Now eBay auction from a company with a high level of positive feedback with thousands of positive transactions on eBay. Their public site is - Popular Electronics http://www.popularelect.com.
Approx 24 hours after buying eBay declared the auction NULL AND VOID and advised my client that they do not have to pay. eBay stated:
"As eBay removed the item, you are no longer obliged to send payment for it. Please don't send money or respond to any emails from the seller.
If you've sent payment but haven't received the item, please wait a reasonable period of time for delivery. If you don't receive the item, please contact us again by clicking "Contact Us" on any eBay Help page and selecting the following contact options:
Buying and Finding>Fraud and Payment Concerns for Buyers>Item Not Received or Item Not as Described (you paid)"
My client has called and emailed the company direct and not received any replies.
I've carefully reviewed the eBay email and header codes and believe the email is genuine and not a phish. All the auctions that for TouchPRo's that WERE on ebay from this company have disappeared at 9/3/2008 14:00 EDT.
I leave you to draw your own conclusions.
BEWARE OF THE TIGADUACELLULAR!!!
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=2617797#post2617797
Has anyone actually baught anything from tigerCellular out there? If so let us know are they real or fake? thanks... im betting the latter but you never know
2call.nl 5/10
Got my TP from 2call.nl
Price without contract (as I use company sim) was good and delivery was very fast.
However, as my TP came with the know problems (GPS instable and hot, black paint falls off,...), I asked 2call within two weeks after pruchase to take my device back and replace it by a new one.
They refused.
As price and delivery is not the only thing I expect from a retailer of a some hundred euro device, I personally will not buy at 2call.nl again.
I'm thinking about possibly gambling that the Elite Team gets 3G working for U.S. frequencies on the existing Touch Pro's.
A quick Google Shopping search yields a lot of prices way to low to be legit. What are they going for legit, and any good recommendations for U.S. based sellers?
the cheapest i've seen it from a reputable seller is from plemix. they have it for $787. here is the direct link:
http://www.plemix.com/phone-htc-touchpro-phone
I bought 2 units from an ebay seller. Perfect transactions, with next day air optional. He's not the cheapest, but answers email and is a pleasure to deal with. He has been locked in as the only seller I will deal with in the US. He even carries (and has in stock) the Advantage and Shift.
Seller's store is located here (smart-mobile-gadgets' store)
At this moment...he has 94 available here in the US, and at a list price of $200 less than my unit, and $150 less than my wife's. Guess that's what I get for my lack of patience!
A real shame that Phones4U are the latest High Street brand in the UK to crumble into administration. Whilst I do not know the complex contractual workings or business model of Phones4U, I do know that EE and Vodafone want more of your money, so in order to achieve that they stamp out the little guys who brought them so much business in the past.
What this means for the UK consumer is less competition, fewer deals, higher prices, longer waits for newly launched devices and networked locked and/or branded phones. Carphone Warehouse is hanging in there but they are probably having to strike some less tasty deals with the networks now to keep them happy. They also won't have to juggle their deals so much to outdo Phones4U.
Not everyone has happy stories about how they traded with Phones4U but I have had some pretty good deals and picked up the latest phones from them in the past.
I hope it's not the beginning of the end for High Street mobile phone shops, I guess we shall have to wait and see.
I am in Ipswich and a lot of phone shops like this have or are starting to close down as you have said. I used CPW to get my deals mostly but my sister used Phones4U and was happy with their service over stores like EE, Orange or O2 as they gave her the runaround or charged slightly higher for the same deal as other stores.