Absolutely tragic…don’t they know it’s within cultural norms to switch phones every 2 years?
2.7M Brits still use a 3G only handset
31–40 of 136 posts
Re: 2.7M Brits still use a 3G only handset
#32Has 4G/5G improved? When I lived in the UK (Midlands until 2019) it was entirely unreliable. I'd wager 75% of my connection was on 3G as soon as I was more than 3Km from a town's high street. I can say with confidence that the shift from 4G/LTE to 5G where I live now in British Columbia (Canada) mountains is not fun. It's significantly less reliable. I understand that its 10x faster, but I'd much prefer reliable over…
4G has been rock solid for me since 2010 (I dont use 5G due to battery reasons) - in Sweden/Switzerland
Re: 2.7M Brits still use a 3G only handset
#33End-user device is one thing, but much worrying is if any critical system still using only 3G.
Critical systems are using or will fallback to 2G, which will stay with us forever. The bandwidth is not required there anyway.
IIUC, 2G and 3G both require a fairly sizable block of spectrum to operate. If you have three carriers all operating minimum width 2G service, it adds up. 5G has some sort of coexistance story with 4G so in the future when LTE is being killed, they can let it live a bit and only waste spectrum as its used.
Re: 2.7M Brits still use a 3G only handset
#34Earlier quoted context omitted.
> the second any interaction with a public institution mandates some kind of technology, without providing an alternative, I would assume a basic free option would have to be provided to legal resident of such country This is a strange assumption given it has zero historical basis and is, by and large, a modern invention.
Depends on how you define 'technology'. When the government needs you to fill out a form, you can go to their office and they provide the printed form and a pen. Paper and printing are human inventions, therefor I would consider them 'technology' for purposes of this debate. That said, I know it's a bit of a leap from paper to internet access. In my country at least, I can say confidently that there is a law mandatin…
> you can go to their office and they provide the printed form and a pen
Getting to a government office was historically a barrier. It still is in much of the world.
> there is a law mandating free access to government services
To be clear, I think this is a good thing. I just don't think it's reasonable to assume it to be true.
Re: 2.7M Brits still use a 3G only handset
#35Has 4G/5G improved? When I lived in the UK (Midlands until 2019) it was entirely unreliable. I'd wager 75% of my connection was on 3G as soon as I was more than 3Km from a town's high street. I can say with confidence that the shift from 4G/LTE to 5G where I live now in British Columbia (Canada) mountains is not fun. It's significantly less reliable. I understand that its 10x faster, but I'd much prefer reliable over…
Was your carrier Three/EE? They were terrible.
I found in the UK most carriers 3G was horrid, and 4G actually worked. Vodafone best, second was Three, then O2. Circ early 2020s.
Re: 2.7M Brits still use a 3G only handset
#36> Furthermore, the study also reveals 21% of those with a 3G handset aren’t willing to upgrade, and will simply continue to use their phone without internet connectivity. Seems reasonable. Is this supposed to be a bad thing?
Some devices are very hard or expensive to replace. EV: car infotainment systems.
Re: 2.7M Brits still use a 3G only handset
#37Earlier quoted context omitted.
You do not have to interact with the government or the central bank via these new technologies, the same way you do not have to interact with them via email or phone, since you always have the free option to do your business in person. Although obviously it is a much less convenient way to do so, but convenience isn't a right, and having more money is mostly about living more comfortably and conveniently (past the po…
In Belgium, most (big) banks are downscaling physical servicepoints so much it sometimes is almost impossible for people to choose to do business in person. In think in 10 years you will have almost no real bank tellers anymore. That's no problem for most of the people, but I don't think that the right thing to do in the broader sense. There are lots of (technology) illiterate people that needs some kind of physical…
I agree that it would suck for tech non-savvy people, but at the same time the literacy of general population with any technology naturally improves as time passes. Of course, while there is still a big enough chunk of people that do need a require (or just prefer) a particular way of communicating, it should be generally available at a good-enough level of convenience. The key is of course to only start scaling it back at the appropriate time, at which there is so few people that they can be considered outliers (and I mean actual, statistical outliers, not 'whoever the government doesn't consider important enough').
But all of this is of course just like my opinion man. Just a very interesting topic to think about.
Re: 2.7M Brits still use a 3G only handset
#38Earlier quoted context omitted.
Depends on how you define 'technology'. When the government needs you to fill out a form, you can go to their office and they provide the printed form and a pen. Paper and printing are human inventions, therefor I would consider them 'technology' for purposes of this debate. That said, I know it's a bit of a leap from paper to internet access. In my country at least, I can say confidently that there is a law mandatin…
> you can go to their office and they provide the printed form and a pen Getting to a government office was historically a barrier. It still is in much of the world. > there is a law mandating free access to government services To be clear, I think this is a good thing. I just don't think it's reasonable to assume it to be true.
> Getting to a government office was historically a barrier.
That is a very good point, and something I did not include in my logic. Thanks for pointing that out.
Re: 2.7M Brits still use a 3G only handset
#39Earlier quoted context omitted.
You do not have to interact with the government or the central bank via these new technologies, the same way you do not have to interact with them via email or phone, since you always have the free option to do your business in person. Although obviously it is a much less convenient way to do so, but convenience isn't a right, and having more money is mostly about living more comfortably and conveniently (past the po…
In Belgium, most (big) banks are downscaling physical servicepoints so much it sometimes is almost impossible for people to choose to do business in person. In think in 10 years you will have almost no real bank tellers anymore. That's no problem for most of the people, but I don't think that the right thing to do in the broader sense. There are lots of (technology) illiterate people that needs some kind of physical…
In Belgium, I've noticed a general "de-servicing" across industries.
- Bank offices (and ATMs) disappearing. - Post offices disappearing. - Customer service disappearing (phone especially) in lieu of the always useless "check our frequently asked questions / forums" - Cashiers disappearing in lieu of self checkout.
I'm sure it's not just Belgium. The problem appears to be that there's no big enough incentive to service the long-tail (P90) once most day-to-day stuff can be done by yourself, usually digital. Service as collateral damage of efficiency.
Should we ask the government to ensure that any company providing critical services (banking, telecommunications, distributing food) offers a minimum level of service? Because without outside incentive I only see us going further down this road.
Re: 2.7M Brits still use a 3G only handset
#40Earlier quoted context omitted.
You do not have to interact with the government or the central bank via these new technologies, the same way you do not have to interact with them via email or phone, since you always have the free option to do your business in person. Although obviously it is a much less convenient way to do so, but convenience isn't a right, and having more money is mostly about living more comfortably and conveniently (past the po…
In Belgium, most (big) banks are downscaling physical servicepoints so much it sometimes is almost impossible for people to choose to do business in person. In think in 10 years you will have almost no real bank tellers anymore. That's no problem for most of the people, but I don't think that the right thing to do in the broader sense. There are lots of (technology) illiterate people that needs some kind of physical…
Having a physical presence is a competitive advantage. It's the reason some people stick with Chase or their local credit union in lieu of someone else who is online-only with a higher interest rate. Perhaps in a while most banks will decide it's just not worth the expense anymore, but I don't think it's a foregone conclusion.