Intermodal
Established Member
Evening all,
I was wondering if anyone actually purchases this? A number of operators are reasonable and provide a free wifi service on board (which I believe in 2017 should be the standard - the same for hotels, buses, and coffee shops). However, a number of operators continue to charge outrageous rates for their wifi service, some not even providing a sensible range of choices - for example a minimum of a 24 hour purchase! My train journey lasts at most three hours, unless I am literally going the length of the country - and while it should certainly be free, if you are going to charge, at least provide an hourly option like CrossCountry!
There are other issues as well, such as the fact that coverage is spotty on a majority of lines, and this is not always clear to the consumer. I think if one pays for wifi, they should expect it to work for the entire duration of their journey. If it is free, this is much more forgivable. I am well aware that there are coverage issues that are outside of the TOCs control - but I don't care - I think it is entirely appropriate to expect it to work the whole time if I paid for it.
Some operators even pick and choose what websites you can access - Virgin Trains WC for example will not allow you to access any streaming websites. Admittedly, this is more reasonable than the rest of my gripes. Then we have the ridiculousness of Virgin Trains EC providing wifi for free to customers who book via their website, instead of valuing all customers who use their services - and spitting in the faces of those who buy more expensive anytime or off-peak tickets on the day. I am not trying to pick on Virgin - it is simply that most of my experience is on the ECML and WCML.
If you use internet on the train with any regularity, like myself, surely it is going to save you money to simply incorporate this into your phone contract with a tethering option, or to buy a 3G dongle/router. If you do not use it regularly, then why would you feel the need to pay out money to avoid being without internet for mere hours? It seems to me like there is no market for this product anymore - but please prove me wrong!
Andrew
I was wondering if anyone actually purchases this? A number of operators are reasonable and provide a free wifi service on board (which I believe in 2017 should be the standard - the same for hotels, buses, and coffee shops). However, a number of operators continue to charge outrageous rates for their wifi service, some not even providing a sensible range of choices - for example a minimum of a 24 hour purchase! My train journey lasts at most three hours, unless I am literally going the length of the country - and while it should certainly be free, if you are going to charge, at least provide an hourly option like CrossCountry!
There are other issues as well, such as the fact that coverage is spotty on a majority of lines, and this is not always clear to the consumer. I think if one pays for wifi, they should expect it to work for the entire duration of their journey. If it is free, this is much more forgivable. I am well aware that there are coverage issues that are outside of the TOCs control - but I don't care - I think it is entirely appropriate to expect it to work the whole time if I paid for it.
Some operators even pick and choose what websites you can access - Virgin Trains WC for example will not allow you to access any streaming websites. Admittedly, this is more reasonable than the rest of my gripes. Then we have the ridiculousness of Virgin Trains EC providing wifi for free to customers who book via their website, instead of valuing all customers who use their services - and spitting in the faces of those who buy more expensive anytime or off-peak tickets on the day. I am not trying to pick on Virgin - it is simply that most of my experience is on the ECML and WCML.
If you use internet on the train with any regularity, like myself, surely it is going to save you money to simply incorporate this into your phone contract with a tethering option, or to buy a 3G dongle/router. If you do not use it regularly, then why would you feel the need to pay out money to avoid being without internet for mere hours? It seems to me like there is no market for this product anymore - but please prove me wrong!
Andrew