"Smart" phone will not do what my former phone did

[JanaB]

My former phone with Telus (an LG slide phone) did not have a data plan.  I was able to send images and emails without additional fees.  (The emails were sent as a composed text message with an email address instead of a phone number.)  This was wonderfully convenient.

When that contract expired, I was encouraged to get a new phone even though I was happy with my old one.  So I "upgraded" to an htc one.  I was not informed at the Telus store that this phone would NOT be able to send images or emails without a data plan (something about utilizing different towers or something).

I have a very tight budget and will not subscribe to a data plan on top of my voice plan.  Would it be reasonable for me to ask them to include some type of data at no charge?  Has anyone else experienced this?

[Jonathan · Accepted solution]

Well that's unfortunate, because the rep was not only misinformed, but he didn't explain everything. Gotta love those corporate/dealer store folks.

1. Your phone is a high-end Android smartphone that accesses the HSPA+ network for voice/texts and LTE networks for data, but can throttle down to HSPA+ if LTE isn't available. Your old phone was more than likely CDMA, which used a different network for sending picture messages.

2. In order to send picture messages, data needs to be enabled on your device by going to Settings > Mobile Network ON. This is how it works every other HSPA phone on any carrier in Canada and is simply how it works; this is unchangeable. However, you don't actually need a data plan to access these services if your plan includes Unlimited text/picture/video messages. Any data you use to send pictures over the network will not be charged to you.

3. Emails are a different story. It requires internet access, but the difference is your phone can access WiFi - so you can log in at home, Tim Hortons, McDonalds, airports, malls, etc. and utilize that for internet access, which is always great.

4. I'm kind of curious as to which plan you have? The HTC One requires a minimum $50 monthly spend to get the subsidy pricing on it.

[JanaB]

Jonathan,

Thank you so much for the information.  You are VERY helpful!

I logged into my Telus account (Voice 40 - Unltd MSG $40/month) and removed the Data Services Block (which they had blocked at the store because I did not have a data plan).  Restarted my phone and changed the Mobile data connection in Settings to ON.  Sent an image which was received without a problem.  Now I will watch to see if there are any new charges on my next bill!  My plan is supposed to have unlimited messaging; we will see.

Should I turn off the Mobile data connection when not sending images?  I do not have a good understanding of this and I don't want any unwanted data charges.  Trying to stay within a very tight phone budget!

Thank you again (from the tomato capital of Canada) for your reply.  You certainly know your "stuff"!

JanaB

[m_ols]

Hi JanaB, I'd recommend turning off data when it's not in use. Your best bet is to try to avoid using picture messaging all together (if you do not want a data plan) because your phone will automatically connect to internet to check for updates to apps which may use a fair bit of data.

[NFtoBC]

You may find yourself paying "pay per use data" rates of $5 for the first 5 MB and $0.25 per MB thereafter, depending how you sent the message (phone number or email address). It may be worth having a small $10 - 15 data plan if you wish to use this function of the phone to avoid getting caught with other simultaneous downloads while your phone is in data mode.