The Most Annoying Thing About Bell's TurboHub: Data Usage Notifications
In my last post, Update on Bell TurboHub, I commented that when my monthly download limit was reached, Bell stopped transmitting data and displayed a Data Usage Notification (DUN) warning message, which instructed me to click a Self Serve link to proceed. The trouble was, the link did nothing. So I was forced to call technical support each time I got a DUN message. This is very annoying.
It's actually more annoying than I first let on. A DUN message will appear not only when I reach 100% of my limit, but also when I reach 90% of my limit. I have a 15 GB monthly data limit, so when I reach the 90% threshold, I still have 1.5 GB of data remaining. But Bell blocks me. And since the Self Serve link didn't work, I always had to call them. And since these DUN messages come out at 90% and 100% of my limit, I usually had to call twice a month. Every month since February. Sometimes more than twice a month. One memorably frustrating afternoon, I had to call 3 times to have my account unblocked even though I was only at the 90% limit. I kid you not -- 3 times in one afternoon.
Each call to Bell's technical support goes the same way. Each call takes about 15 minutes. To Bell's credit, I'm not usually on hold for more than a couple of minutes. The first tier support tech takes my information, I describe the problem, they apologize for the inconvenience, they check and unblock my account, have me reset my TurboHub, and then explain that they have added a feature to my account so that I will never have to call back again.
Yeah, right.
Since I've been getting these DUNs since at least February, and the techs always promise it'll never happen again, I've taken to ranting at these poor techs for 5 minutes each time it does happen again. Once I even spoke with a supervisor. Same deal. Empty promises, albeit perhaps unintentional.
When these DUNs come up, my internet access is interrupted. I've often working from home, so my paid productivity is interrupted from 15 minutes. Sometimes I'm just messing around on the 'net for personal reasons. It doesn't really matter what I'm doing; my service shouldn't be interrupted... especially when I still have 1.5 GB of data left!
Now, I can understand why Bell implemented these DUN messages. I've heard many stories of people getting a TurboHub and then downloading dozens of movies from Netflix or wherever, blowing past their data limit, and running up an internet tab in the 100s of dollars. Then they complain to Bell that they didn't know about the overage charges (despite it being mentioned in their user agreements), so Bell plays nice and eats a sizable portion of the bill. And although Bell has deep pockets, after a while, reversing these charges has to start cutting into profits. No business wants that (profit is neither a bad word nor a bad thing). So they post these DUN warnings to make it painfully obvious to even the most oblivious of users that, hey, you're about to have to pay $10 per GB (less than 1 cent per MB) because you've gone over your limit.
But why, after so many months, have they not properly implemented the Self Serve link, so users like me can just click-to-accept-the-charges rather than having call-to-accept-the-charges. Why is Bell wasting my time and its employees' time with these mundane calls? I figure it's because Bell doesn't really care, just like they don't care that they offer discounts on new cell phones to new subscribers but stick existing subscribers with the full cost of replacement phones (aside: which is why I moved from Bell to virginmobile.ca a few years ago).
This past Civic Holiday Monday (Aug 5), I got another DUN message warning me that I had reached the 90% limit. Another point in Bell's favour is that its tech support seems to be available 24/7/365. I called. I ranted. The tech unblocked my account and also mentioned that they had fixed the Self Serve link. I clicked on the link. I was gob-smacked. It actually did something. While the tech was checking my account, presumably adding a feature so that I would never get another DUN message, I browsed the Self Serve site. Lots of information, but nowhere did I find any way to click-to-accept-the-charges and unblock my account. So I would still have to call tech support. I mentioned this to the tech. He suggested that maybe it needed another fix. He opened a ticket and gave me the reference number. He said someone would call.
Yeah, right.
But two days later, someone did call. They left a message on my voice mail, asking me if the problem was fixed. I laughed. The problem was with their web site, and they were asking me if it was fixed. Probably not, if they didn't fix it. Although, since I still have 5 days left on my monthly data limit, I expect to be getting another DUN any day now. So I guess I'll find out if they've fixed up their web site.
Meanwhile, after Monday's call to tech support, I was once again wondering why I put up with these twice-monthly interruptions. If Bell offered a higher data limit for the TurboHub, I'd get it. But 15 GB per month is the max, and after that (and a couple of calls to tech support to remove the bogus blockades), $10 per GB. So I cyber-walked over to rogers.ca to see what their latest RocketHub offerings were,
since I know Rogers covers my area as well.
The RocketHub offerings were interesting.
If I sign a 2-year contract, I can get an LTE-errific RocketHub for $100 (as opposed to my current HSPA+ TurboHub - yes, I could get an LTE TurboHub from Bell -- for $100). Peak (theoretical) download speeds of 100 Mbps, although 12-40 Mbps more likely. Smokin'. But the RocketHub rate plans is where really it got interesting. 20 GB for $90, assuming I don't want the phone plan add-on (which I don't). With Bell, it's 15 GB for $105, and at $10 per extra GB, 20 GB would set me back $155. Even at just 15 GB, the savings with Rogers would allow me to recoup the $100 cost of the RocketHub in 7 months. Very interesting. Very interesting indeed.
Why am I still with Bell? Dunno. With the Rogers Cup on the TV right now, I'm thinking Rogers has served and the ball is in Bell's court. Will they return serve? Dunno. I may not wait to find out. Instead, I may wander into a Rogers Store this weekend and see if I can trial a RocketHub.
-Chris
It's actually more annoying than I first let on. A DUN message will appear not only when I reach 100% of my limit, but also when I reach 90% of my limit. I have a 15 GB monthly data limit, so when I reach the 90% threshold, I still have 1.5 GB of data remaining. But Bell blocks me. And since the Self Serve link didn't work, I always had to call them. And since these DUN messages come out at 90% and 100% of my limit, I usually had to call twice a month. Every month since February. Sometimes more than twice a month. One memorably frustrating afternoon, I had to call 3 times to have my account unblocked even though I was only at the 90% limit. I kid you not -- 3 times in one afternoon.
Each call to Bell's technical support goes the same way. Each call takes about 15 minutes. To Bell's credit, I'm not usually on hold for more than a couple of minutes. The first tier support tech takes my information, I describe the problem, they apologize for the inconvenience, they check and unblock my account, have me reset my TurboHub, and then explain that they have added a feature to my account so that I will never have to call back again.
Yeah, right.
Since I've been getting these DUNs since at least February, and the techs always promise it'll never happen again, I've taken to ranting at these poor techs for 5 minutes each time it does happen again. Once I even spoke with a supervisor. Same deal. Empty promises, albeit perhaps unintentional.
When these DUNs come up, my internet access is interrupted. I've often working from home, so my paid productivity is interrupted from 15 minutes. Sometimes I'm just messing around on the 'net for personal reasons. It doesn't really matter what I'm doing; my service shouldn't be interrupted... especially when I still have 1.5 GB of data left!
Now, I can understand why Bell implemented these DUN messages. I've heard many stories of people getting a TurboHub and then downloading dozens of movies from Netflix or wherever, blowing past their data limit, and running up an internet tab in the 100s of dollars. Then they complain to Bell that they didn't know about the overage charges (despite it being mentioned in their user agreements), so Bell plays nice and eats a sizable portion of the bill. And although Bell has deep pockets, after a while, reversing these charges has to start cutting into profits. No business wants that (profit is neither a bad word nor a bad thing). So they post these DUN warnings to make it painfully obvious to even the most oblivious of users that, hey, you're about to have to pay $10 per GB (less than 1 cent per MB) because you've gone over your limit.
But why, after so many months, have they not properly implemented the Self Serve link, so users like me can just click-to-accept-the-charges rather than having call-to-accept-the-charges. Why is Bell wasting my time and its employees' time with these mundane calls? I figure it's because Bell doesn't really care, just like they don't care that they offer discounts on new cell phones to new subscribers but stick existing subscribers with the full cost of replacement phones (aside: which is why I moved from Bell to virginmobile.ca a few years ago).
This past Civic Holiday Monday (Aug 5), I got another DUN message warning me that I had reached the 90% limit. Another point in Bell's favour is that its tech support seems to be available 24/7/365. I called. I ranted. The tech unblocked my account and also mentioned that they had fixed the Self Serve link. I clicked on the link. I was gob-smacked. It actually did something. While the tech was checking my account, presumably adding a feature so that I would never get another DUN message, I browsed the Self Serve site. Lots of information, but nowhere did I find any way to click-to-accept-the-charges and unblock my account. So I would still have to call tech support. I mentioned this to the tech. He suggested that maybe it needed another fix. He opened a ticket and gave me the reference number. He said someone would call.
Yeah, right.
But two days later, someone did call. They left a message on my voice mail, asking me if the problem was fixed. I laughed. The problem was with their web site, and they were asking me if it was fixed. Probably not, if they didn't fix it. Although, since I still have 5 days left on my monthly data limit, I expect to be getting another DUN any day now. So I guess I'll find out if they've fixed up their web site.
Meanwhile, after Monday's call to tech support, I was once again wondering why I put up with these twice-monthly interruptions. If Bell offered a higher data limit for the TurboHub, I'd get it. But 15 GB per month is the max, and after that (and a couple of calls to tech support to remove the bogus blockades), $10 per GB. So I cyber-walked over to rogers.ca to see what their latest RocketHub offerings were,
since I know Rogers covers my area as well.
The RocketHub offerings were interesting.
If I sign a 2-year contract, I can get an LTE-errific RocketHub for $100 (as opposed to my current HSPA+ TurboHub - yes, I could get an LTE TurboHub from Bell -- for $100). Peak (theoretical) download speeds of 100 Mbps, although 12-40 Mbps more likely. Smokin'. But the RocketHub rate plans is where really it got interesting. 20 GB for $90, assuming I don't want the phone plan add-on (which I don't). With Bell, it's 15 GB for $105, and at $10 per extra GB, 20 GB would set me back $155. Even at just 15 GB, the savings with Rogers would allow me to recoup the $100 cost of the RocketHub in 7 months. Very interesting. Very interesting indeed.
Why am I still with Bell? Dunno. With the Rogers Cup on the TV right now, I'm thinking Rogers has served and the ball is in Bell's court. Will they return serve? Dunno. I may not wait to find out. Instead, I may wander into a Rogers Store this weekend and see if I can trial a RocketHub.
-Chris
posted by Chris Spencer at 10:40 pm
9 comments
9 Comments:
I live in the Kinburn area. I have been using the Bell Turbo Hub for two years for personal use. I am starting a home business in September so need to get the best possible internet connection available. Will need to use Skype. I am currently trying a 30 day trial with Xplorer Net Satellite service and I don't think this is going to do the job. Skype is not very good and You Tube videos freezing. I would really appreciate some updated advice on best options for internet in the Kinburn area. It appears from your posting that Rogers Hub may be an option. Have you tried it and if so, what is your opinion?
I haven't tried the Rogers Rocket Hub yet. I was going to, but then I saw that Storm (www.storm.ca) is once again offering wireless internet service to Ottawa residents. (I had heard a rumour that Storm had a non-comp agreement with Xplornet, which has expired). I was with Storm about 5 years ago, and the service was excellent, so I'm seeing if I can get service from them again. If that falls through, I will give Rogers a try. --Chris
I just contaced Storm and I'm too far. I live near Manotick (Rideau Rd. between Spratt and Limebank) and am now also considering the Rogers Hub due to the 20 gig allowance. Have DSL, but 6km from central office and it has been down for the last week...trying to get bell out to fix. Grrr...I'm on the edge of everything. I get LTE from rogers in my driveway but not inside the house. House has tin siding...so will probably have to look into a micro cell to get any of the cell hubs to work well. Xplornet is my last resort.
I did contact Storm as well, but after their site survey, they indicated I would need more height (i.e. tower) in order to get a good signal. So Storm's out for me.
I also did try a Rogers RocketHub, with inconsistent results, so I returned it and went back to my Bell TurboHub.
I'll post my RocketHub story soon.
I'm currently with Rogers LTE hub. I got the package up to 20 gigs and they are giving me 30% discount permanently. Its not bad for the price, especially with the discount. I just wish I could go higher than the 20 gigs. Note, I have been going to Rogers customer service every few months requesting unlimited download for a month and they will give it to me. So basically all month long I'm downloading movies, games, tv shows.
Hello Chris,
Thanks for all of the information you post. I have a turbohub problem, and I'm wondering if you have heard of anyone else having the same problem. My hub is registering about 30 GB per month of data, but I am sure that I am using less than 10. I don't think anyone else is in range to steal data. Any ideas?
Thanks,
Fred
@Fred: My first suggestion is to ensure no one is stealing data by ensuring you have security setup on your TurboHub.
Next, check your wifi-enabled devices, like game consoles and smartphones. Smartphones usually update apps automatically, and game consoles may do the same. If you login to the TurboHub through its web interface, you can see what device are connected to it.
Once all that's checked, consider installing a net monitor like Networx on your PC(s), to actually monitor what's being downloaded.
If you're downloading NetFlix or watching a lot of YouTube, that will take up a LOT of bandwidth, especially in HD. Software updates, especially games, can be another killer.
Hope this helps.
-Chris
I'm currently using some isp called Rogers LTE hub . But i am unable to get data that i want . Do you have any suggestion? so please help me . Thanks for your post .
Diseño web asturias
I've been using the Bell "Turbo Hub" for over half a year now and it's nothing but a headache. Don't get me wrong, it's wicked fast for our rural location compared to all the expensive satellite options but the data usage limit should be a toggle. Even worse, in the Netgear MVBR1210V we have there's a bug so when it hits the data cap we get no warning and must factory reset the thing just to see the data usage message! Factory resetting a device once a month is a pain, especially when running a business.
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