Hi guys. I'm a bit lost. Sorry if I ramble, but I just want to make sure I cover everything. Thanks for reading.
I took out a new contract with O2 for 24 months, unlimited calls/texts and 5GB data. It's a Nokia Lumia 925. The 5GB of data was the main attraction for me in buying the phone, and is what takes up the majority of my tariff cost, but it's currently unusable.
The phone arrived on Monday and I've only been able to get a 2G connection, whereas for the previous four years I've been with O2 I was always able to get a 3G connection in this area with zero issues.
O2 emailed me the settings required to activate WAP/MMS on my phone. I entered them and have double-checked and triple-checked. Still only 2G. I asked Support if there were any issues they knew of and there aren't. They checked my street and I should be getting perfect 3G. They emailed the settings again. I entered them again and reset the phone. Still no luck. A factory reset was suggested, and then to enter the settings a third time. Still no luck.
This is where it gets slightly complicated... 
...I phoned Support last night and after going through everything again, and ruling everything out, we spoke about my old handset (iPhone 3) and old sim card, and recent problems that I was also having with only getting a 2G connection on those over the last few weeks. Now, I thought that this was because the old phone was just deteriorating in general (very short battery, random crashing etc.). But the guy on Support suspected that this may have been a 'very rare' case of me having an overall account issue. We also established I was having these issues throughout Edinburgh and not just in one area.
So he suggested I be disconnected from the network overnight. Then, in the morning, after I had been reconnected, hopefully everything would be fine and I'd get a 3G signal no problem. So I went the night with no coverage. In the morning, the O2 network/coverage returned... but still only 2G.
As a side note, I then got a bill emailed through from O2 for £144, which I phoned to ask about. Basically, because I got disconnected and reconnected to the network, this was sent to me in error and I shouldn't worry as they're currently sorting it. It seems my airtime plan also got cancelled as a result and that needed to be fixed.
So, then I raised the original issue again of having only 2G and not 3G. This time, the settings were sent directly to my phone so I didn't need to do anything other than activate them. I activated these settings in Access Point and... still only 2G.
I'm not really sure what to do next. If the problems persist, I'd really like to just get out of the contract and give the phone back but I'm worried this may not be possible and I'll be stuck paying for 5GB of data each month that I can't use. It would also be a shame as I've been with O2 for years with zero problems and I'd like to solve this rather than just cancel. I'm not really sure what to ask Support next... Disconnecting/reconnecting me to the network seemed to be the last resort.
Hopefully it doesn't sound like I'm complaining. I'm not. Support have been very helpful etc. I just don't know what to do now, other than trying to return the phone, cancel the contract etc. Would I be able to just go in-store with the phone, parts and packaging and get this sorted, do you think? It's just quite difficult to reach an O2 store due to working commitments.
Basically if anyone has any insight/ideas what to do next, I'd really appreciate it. Sorry for the long post. Thanks.
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Hi guys. Okay, I'm just back from my instore appointment with an O2 Guru. Here's the promised update...
I arrived at the shopping centre where the O2 store is and noticed I suddenly had a 4G connection. So, maybe it was just an issue in my area. I decided just to go and check instore anyway.
He looked through the phone settings etc. and all was fine. He then checked the coverage map and reiterarted what has been said by O2 support over the phone... that I should be having absolutely no troubles getting a 3G connection in my street. He showed me the map and I have something like four masts nearby with no issues. We then put a new sim in the phone. I was still getting the 4G connection, and I had a quick test of playing videos on YouTube and it was great. All seemed well. I was getting the 4G connection for most of the way back home until all of a sudden, about half a mile from my home... nothing. Back to 2G. Still on 2G. The masts on the map were surrounding my area and close by.
So, back to square one as far as I can tell. 
With so many people from O2 telling me everything is fine and that I absolutely should be getting the 3G connection, I can't help but think that now I need to act quickly for my 7 days returns period. I can't think of anything else to do.
Any ideas?
And as a last resort, returning the phone and cancelling the contract within the seven day period... the details for this seem fairly sketchy here on the website as far as I can see. All I know is I have a returns label to print off. Besides the phone, packaging etc. is there anything else I need to include in the package? A written explanation of why I'm returning the phone? Do I need to notify anyone online/over the phone of the return? Does the package need to arrive at its destination by the end of the seven days (I think I'm on day four; the phone arrived on Monday)? I can't just take everything into an O2 store and return it there?
Sorry for all the questions. Like everyone else, I'm just really busy and would love to get this sorted soon somehow. It just seems if I'm being told the phone should be working, and it isn't, it isn't fit for purpose as the 3G connection is essential for me.
Thanks again for your patience and help.
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What options do you have in the newtwork settings ? you may have it set to 4g only try auto or similar eg one that allows 2g 3g and 4g
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Hi guys. Thanks, as always, for the quick responses. Been with O2 for a long time and luckily never needed support until now, but this is a great forum.
The phone is set to get whatever the best connection available is.
If the problem is solvable then I am determined to not get into any sort of messy returns dispute or anything like that. Sounds silly maybe, but I feel quite loyal to O2. 
It does sound like a mast issue. As I near my house, maybe it swaps me over from a good mast to a problem mast. Does that sound likely? Is there any way I could report the suspected problem? Not that I would expect it to be fixed instantly, but maybe O2 just aren't aware.
Thanks again.
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There is an app called "My Network" that you can use to report service issues.
Or, just phone CS every 5 mins
Or, just phone CS every 5 mins
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try manual 3g you may be on a fringe 4g area
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@MI5 wrote:
There is an app called "My Network" that you can use to report service issues.
Or, just phone CS every 5 mins
http://www.o2.co.uk/apps/my-network unfortunatly not on a windows phone yet
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@adamtemp64 wrote:
@MI5 wrote:
There is an app called "My Network" that you can use to report service issues.
Or, just phone CS every 5 minshttp://www.o2.co.uk/apps/my-network unfortunatly not on a windows phone yet
Whoops, sorry - Looks like your phoning CS every 5 mins. They'll contact the network team when they've had enough calls
