Very bad signal in Sydenham?!

[Ria]

We are quite new residents of Sydenham and wonder if you also have a problem with the phone signal. It seems to be extremely poor, almost impossible to use mobile phone when in the house. I'm with o2 and never had a problem before...
Thanks for any feedback!

[Search East]

O2 does seem to have a black spot in Sydenham. I live on Champion Rd and have a weak and sporadic O2 signal, which can often just drop out completely for a while.

My only solution was using the O2 smart phone app called TU Go, which connects via wifi instead.

[Hissing Syd]

Yes, same here. I'm with EE, who frequently tell me, 'Good news - you've kept well within your minutes this month!'

To which I reply, 'I'm not surprised - I only ever have enough time to shout, "Can you call the landline?!" before I lose reception...' Seems crazy for zone 3, but there you are.

[Bunty]

Am on Newlands park, we have issues with O2 and vodafone. Both rubbish!

[alywin]

I don't think I tend to use the phone much in the house (it's my work phone), so can't be sure, but I think the Vodafone signal is okay around here, unless it's cut out when I'm right in the middle of the building.

T-Mobile mobile broadband, on the other hand, is another matter: very poor. And come to think of it, on the couple of times I've tried using PAYG BT WiFi with or without FON I've pretty much only been able to get reception on the front side of the house. That's in a single-walled Victorian property, with a lot of others around.

[parker]

My O2 signal is horrendous in Sydenham, they won't let me cancel my contract for not being able to use the services at my home address so I'm in the process of taking O2 to the Ombudsman...

[Syd_Stone]

Happy to report that 3 has actually very good reception in Sydenham. Had it for nearly four years and it' been much better than Virgin previously (which is I guess part of EE now). In the evenings I've taken to using 3 to stream radio content (it's 4G in Sydenham now) over my yo-yoing wi-fi (supplied by BT; interesting word, 'infinity').

[Rachael]

If it's particularly bad in certain areas, would it be worth taking it up with Ofcom? Meanwhile, my o2 signal is absolutely fine on Mayow Road (just for information, not to gloat!).

[parker]

Rachael, you can try taking it to the Ombudsman, but if you want to cancel you must go through the complaints department at O2 first... IF they fail to resolve the problem and you cannot come to an agreement within 8 weeks then you can pass it over with a letter deadlock from O2 so the Ombudsman can try and resolve it for you. It will cost O2 circa £200 by you doing so whether the Ombudsman say O2's stance is correct or not... You can't lose on it apart from receiving a substandard mobile service. That said, O2 are b*****ds and you'll have a fight on your hands.

[Rachael]

Hi, Parker. I was referring to the bad signal rather than contract problems. I was wondering if Ofcom have any responsibility for making sure we had enough masts. It seems they don't. They do have advice, though, on checks you should make before you sign up with a particular provider. We take mobile coverage for granted in London. It seems unfair that it's caveat emptor if you sign up with a provider but can't receive a decent signal.

Ofcom do have some advice on the website about how you can improve coverage in your home with various gizmos. These might help while people are trying to get out of their contracts.

[Annie.]

I'm in kent now, and for the first time ever I am having trouble with Vodaphone, I haven't been able to ring a number since Wednesday, yet I can send txt? Odd!
I wonder if I will get a discount on my bill? I doubt it.

[alywin]

This is the trouble. You commit to a phone/broadband company (both in my case) because their signal is good, then you have to relocate somewhere and suddenly you can't get a decent signal. That's why I'm hoping to remain off-contract until I know where I'm going to be living next.

[Annie.]

Think I might go pay as you go next time, my two year contract ends in Nov

[Suzee]

Think I might go pay as you go next time, my two year contract ends in Nov

You can get sim only deals if you don't need a new phone... with monthly call/text/data allowances.... with a rolling monthly contract.
Giffgaff are good for this but I must admit the signal at my home on Sydenham is quite poor (they use the O2 network)

Sue]

[Annie.]

Thanks Sue, I'm not fussed about the type of phone really, this one I have will do for many years, I don't even understand all it offers! Only that if I put data "on" I end up paying a lot more!

[Sydenham peasant]

I was talking to a friend who lives in the Beulah hill area. Apparently the mast there in stalled something a couple of months ago and their signal has been nearly non-existant... local people have started a petition and the people who control the mast have promised to do something. Could Sydenham signal problems be related? I am on 3 and the quality seems to have dropped badly lately...and sometimes I get a "scrambled" effect.

[alywin]

There *are* indeed masts which don't pull their own weight, so to speak. Back when I was living in Anerley, there was one mast which regularly caused problems, and I always used to assume that it was at fault when my signal was lousy. And yes, if one mast drops out all the other ones nearby have to take the strain: some time recently a Sydenham mast was out and I think my mobile broadband was actually trying to connect to a mast in Bromley!

[Manwithaview1]

The Dulwich Estates which own swathes of land around Sydenham Hill do not allow any masts on their properties.

[Leese]

When I lived on Bishopsthorpe my mobile signal (3) was absolutely shocking - I was lucky if I got one bar and it was impossible to make/receive calls inside the flat. I called 3 in frustration after a few months of this and they supplied me with something called a Home Signal Box, with which my mobile signal went through my broadband and voila, instantly 5 bars. It didn't cost me anything and was a doddle to set up. I think you probably need to have unlimited broadband for it to be cost effective but it certainly saved my bacon. I'd imagine most mobile providers offer the same sort of thing if you know to ask?

Interesting about the Dulwich land, I didn't realise that. I always assumed it was something to do with the CP transmitter messing up the phone signal but that makes a lot more sense.

[owlwise]

Masts are a health hazard and I would not encourage them near to where I live.