Solo Mobile
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Solo Mobile | |
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| Type | Wireless Fighter Brand |
| Founded | Summer 2005 |
| Headquarters | Canada |
| Key people | Bell Mobility |
| Industry | Wireless Services |
| Products | Monthly and prepaid cellular service |
| Website | www.solomobile.ca |
Solo Mobile is a brand owned and operated by Bell Mobility in order to compete with Fido. It's original purpose was to attract the population between 14-21. Solo is best known for its texting options available on monthly plans, which provide up to 2,500 texts/month more than any other Canadian carrier for the same price.
All prices and times are in Canadian Dollar and Eastern Time respectively.
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[edit] History
In the summer of 2005, Bell Mobility launched a cell phone provider offering prepaid services to teens 14-21. This company was named Solo Mobile. It caught on in The Christmas season that year when it introduced one of the first monthly plans with no contracts. The original plan offered:
- 100 local daytime minutes
- Unlimited evenings/weekends 8 PM-7 AM
- Unlimited "Just Because" local calls from 4-4:30 PM
- Caller ID, call waiting, 3-way calling, call forwarding
- Unlimited North American texting
- Unlimited 1xRTT mobile browser
Optional features included:
- 50 minutes for $5, 100 minutes for $10
- Voicemail for $3
- Unlimited incoming calls for $7
- $1/day 3 AM-2:59 AM 10-4 walkie-talkie service or $15/month
This was priced at $30/month, with no system access or 911-fees. New subscribers who signed up in The Christmas season of 2005 received $10 off/month for a year, making it $20/month. The only phone available was The Sanyo 2300, a basic yet rugged and intuitive handset available in silver, black, pink, and blue.
[edit] Introduction of agreements
Solo Mobile changed targets to Fido on Friday August 11, 2006 by removing features such as caller ID and unlimited Internet, and introduced contracts. Terms included 30-day, 1-, 2-, and 3-years. Benefits are similar to that of any provider; bonus minutes/features, promotions, discounted handset pricing, etc. Cancellations require a termination fee of $20 multiplied by the number of months remaining in the agreement, to a maximum of $300 and a minimum of $100.
[edit] Customer service
Solo Mobile's customer service is run by Bell Mobility. Although the layout and structure is the same, it is much more casual and "trendy". To access customer service one dials #SOLO from their Solo handset or 1-877-999-SOLO from any phone.
Solo Mobile introduced 4INFO (formerly UDoIt) in September 2006. 4INFO allows you to manage your account via text messaging. Features include account balance, usage information, and features management. Texts sent to 4INFO are free in Canada.
Solo introduced eCare a month later, an online account manager (similar to Bell's eCare) which includes allows a customer to view their account balance, pay their bills, edit features, change their handset, and change their rate plan.
[edit] Handset prices & plans
Originally, Solo Mobile had exclusive handsets provided by Sanyo. These included the Sanyo 2300 and 3100. Both phones were capable of SMS, Internet, calls, and walkie-talkie (a.k.a. 10-4 or push to talk), something Solo advertised as "the best way to keep in touch". As of 2008, Solo currently offers the Sanyo S1, a basic "Candybar" style phone, for clients wishing to use 10-4.
In 2007, Solo launched two Windows based Email and Internet phones, the HTC 5800 and the Motorola Q.
As of 2008 most phones are taken from the Bell Mobility lineup. Aside from the S1, the handsets include the LG Rumor, LG Chocolate, Samsung m300, Samsung m500, and Samsung M510. Although taken from Bell, they are priced quite a bit less than their Bell counterparts when contract discounts are applied, but remain generally the same without a contract.
Solo Mobile offers monthly and prepaid plans. Monthly plans strongly reflect those of Fido, along with per-second billing. Prepaid plans start as a base 40cents during the day and 5cent evenings and weekends from 7pm until 8am and include caller ID and voicemail.
[edit] External links
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