Vodafone Qatar : Deadline pushed to 1 Sep

Hi price of time,

Some customers are being effected by this issue. We are aware of the problem and are working to have it resolved. If you have been charged you will be refunded if you send me your number so I can check it out. Sorry for the inconvience. Have you contacted the call centre on 111 to say this or was Qatarliving your first point to complain / raise the issue? Please send me your number and I will check it out?

Thanks

Andy

Vodafone are money eater they said u can use facebook,orkut etc for free when u will use application or watch video in facebook u will be charged this was not written in the alert messsage we should take action on this

5 sms msgs for balance checking?? crazy vodafone, how much time it takes to delete those msgs everytime u check the balance, eeeksss vodafone...

Hi sanjeevakaunakar,

The reason you are getting 5 sms when you check your balance is because you are receiving your Free 300mb balance, your Free 2010 mins balance, Freedom balance and Freedom free mins balance. You also get RED free mins and amounts because you used RED cards. There is an issue with recharges at the moment but if you have called 111 to let them know you are having an issue you should receive a balance today. Using RED cards on a Freedom account will cause an issue when your RED balance falls below 0.40 QR. You will have to call the call centre to have this fixed.

Thanks

Andy

they could not automatically charge my credit card and hence i could not use my phone for over two days after which i went to a vodafone store and had the plan changed to the regular scratch card. Now when i query for acct balance i get close to 5 sms of which 2 msg's show different amounts..vodfone..nonononono...i gone get my qtel number very soon..

Vodafone is best..specially the customer care service.. inshaalla they wil achieve 99% in qatar.. lets hope for the best...

Well generaly speaking..Qtel is ok..but since the arival of vodafone,they are in trouble..worried about the competition,wel its my own judgement that if ICT provides a good platform 2 vodafone,they'l surely defeat Qtel n all my good wishes r 4 vodafone.

Believe me v'hv aplied 4 landline n internet since 2 months,stil not got any appointment. Its realy bad,neway im stil hopeful 2 get adsl..do pray .

they r giving offers like 2010 mins only to survive here, without these offers and their crap network, they would be nowhere.

all these offers r just to make customers.

Dear Sir/Madam,

Second day - same location, Bank Street, No Service 07/12/2009 ( 9.32am). What is wrong?

Had Missed a couple of calls - and was not able to make any calls for hours the other day.

Have to agree that the Vodafone bars miraculously appeared around 2.15 pm. Don't want be in the same situation again.

Sincerely,

Dear Si/Madam,

I am experiencing a NO Service in Bank Street ( the whole day) (Dec 6th, 2009 12.59pm). This is the fourth time this has happened to me. Two months back in Al Sadd - twice. One time in Industrial area.

I did follow the procedure to remove the SIM card and put it in the other. The expected wait time to resolve this issue - is 48 hours. 48 hours is ludicrous. What should I do if I have to make an emergency phone call?

Sincerely,

Dear Customer,

Thanks for writing to our Customer Care team. We apologize for the inconvenience caused to you.

Your network issue has been raised and it is under investigation.

Your request reference number

You can also follow the below troubleshooting steps:

1-switch the phone off and on

2-change the network mode to 2G (Select: GSM)

3-Operator selection: Manual (Select: QAT 02)

We appreciate your patience and understanding.

For any further inquiry please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Yours,

Customer Care Team

Phone: 800 7111

E-mail Address: [email protected]

with vodafone you are never clear what is really rules

I bay 550 QR Flexi and I get around 800 balance .I did not finish my balance but i found out that I lost balance around 440 QR and they took from my account new 550 QR I call and they told me that if I don't spend my balance during 2 month they will delete what ever you still had on balance and windrow again amount mention in your application

I don't think that its right and if I new it that I will never bay Vodafone , also there representatives doesn't told me that when i was baying .If I new it that at list I will purchase 110 QR coz I now how much monthly I spend for telephone

Did anyone knows where we can complain ???

I have one vodafone sim but.....................

I have a smartphone with mobile internet working in Saudi for 5 years; the mobile internet even worked in the UAE;

Coming to Qatar, I brought this with me and bought the only available SIM –QTel;

Suddenly, there’s no way to connect, no wap messenger, etc. – unit not supported;

Im a field worker; Would I have to buy a Blackberry to have mobile connection?

At last, when I bought this Voda SIM, within a day, I was connected!

For a year I suffered and was a slave to QTel;

Is it true? …the worst companies are government owned…

i had several isues with my line, and some were solved but not all, post your complaint on vodafone wall at facebook its the best way to solve your problem

I ordered a Vodafone SIM online on 13 Sep 2009. The order # is 49096. I received the sim card by ARAMEX on 15 Sep by Airway bill # 6605108683. I inserted the SIM card in my mobile.

It did not work. It gave message 'SIM ERROR. CONTACT SERVICE PROVIDER'.

I called Vodaphone support number 8007111 on 15 Sep. and informed them about the problem. I was assured that it would be solved within 48 hours and technical services will call me on my other mobile number. I also sent a mail to them but I did not get any reply. Today I called again on 8007111 and I am surprised to hear that there is no complain recorded on my vodafone number so they have again assured that within 48 hours the problem will be solved.

This is my FIRST IMPRESSION about Vodafone and their services in Doha......!

What about you?

on renewal of my plan they took away all my balance which has one extra month till expiry,its 1000QR worth of calls and they just took it, i called customer care like 4 times but they just did nothing!!!! one more month and i will through the sim card in the nearest trash :)

on renewal of my plan they took away all my balance which has one extra month till expiry,its 1000QR worth of calls and they just took it, i called customer care like 4 times but they just did nothing!!!! one more month and i will through the sim card in the nearest trash :)

i did the biggest mistake when i purchased a vodafone number, i thought it is a special numb but now i HATE this number because of the F***** stupid costumer service staff members (6 of them so far including 2 "managers"). they are wayyyyyyyyyyy to far from being allowed to get in verbal contact with any human being.

nice

Haha... Qtel itself is far from being called an OK provider. i used to live in UAE and Kuwait for 10 years now. the amount of ignorance at the call center in Qtel is massive. i feel like talking to a potato bag when i am asking some technical questions to these people. the coverage is not that WOW ... 3g drops everywhere "tried on multiple handsets".

qtel modem maxes to 120 download speed. in Kuwait u could easily get to 600KB and even more in some areas upto 900 and 950! believe it or not. in UAE its likewise. download limit is 30 GB after which u r jailed to 50 speed till month end which is bearable.

Lets not talk about the silly blackberry 10 free MBs "this is hellarious hahahahahahahah" in Kuwait its 10 GB and UAe is unlimited for the same prices.

on the other hand i have never seen an internet service as bad as qtel on both mobile and residence level. congestions ... page errors... COMA...!

its really funny how this company is dominating the scene. now with Vodafone " another funny story.. no prepaid :P" hope to get a better job done by both.

Cheers!

Seriously people, Qtel is the biggest rip off in the telecommunication history.

I too cannot believe that you are falling for its act now, where the hell have they been before ? Why start offering good service now when you have a competitor.

Qtel has been here as long as I can remember, and they have an OK coverage, not the best I've seen, Vodafone is on the right track, they will get better, just give them some time.

I have already moved to Vodafone, I refuse to give my money to Qtel if I can help it. I look at Vodafone as the savior, if it weren't for them you would still be paying up your %ss and complaining. You should thank Vodafone for Qtel's prices and service now.

Qtel is really a rotten company that took advantage and milked us of every damn penny when they could. I don't and won't support them ever.

Now just to wait and see if there's a company coming that will offer Internet and Telephony services, so I can fire Qtel for good.

vodofone s network is worst

I am using Vodafone in India & is giving better service than Airtel,Idea & BSNL

1-Qtel is a thief that has been ripping us off for god knows how long.

2-Qtel started polishing their tar face ever since they knew vodafone is coming and i dont beleive some people are falling for it, maybe their memory dosnt go farther than yesterday.

3-Qtel is throwing a lot of stones in Vodafones path through "regulatory bodies" and is forcing ridiculous pricing schemes on Vodafone. Afterall, dont forget, Qtel is a governmet agency.

4-Yes, Vodafone is leasing out the infrastructure from Qtel for a ridiculous price also that has been forced on it.

5- Vodafone has been forced into acquiring locations for it's telecommunication towers. i was there on the initial negotiations with Ericson where Vodafone was trying to acquire & build the towers. Just reflect on how hard it is for Vodafone to do that in a country that is working full force against it. You see how they are stirring the issue or radiation and diesel sound?!! (what the hell is emitting diesel smell and sound) whereas Qtel had its towers up for so long but nobody seems to notice or complain.

6- Qtel is a rotten company of lazy people who care less about the customer and customer service and were even rude enough to declare their "values" that they later stopped it due to the mockery of people.

Not to sound so against Qtel, i really hope Voda fone pulls it through so that it creates a fair competition where me and you will benefit in this ever increasingly expensive country.

Let there be a competitor so that let there not be a monopolist!

Since the introduction of VF, Qtel is much more better in terms of service and approach up to a certain extent!

Well, it seems many are anticipating with the coming of Vodafone. Unfortunately, not this year. For all people, please try to recognize Qtel's effort to improve their services. I hope they continue to do so. I am quite impressed with the current services and promotion they are having. For the mean time. Go Qtel! Go!

Why is it too early to tell who is better?

Because competition hasn't started yet. That's the most obvious reason. We can only judge when Voda is running full speed. I agree it's a big mistake Voda created so much hype while they have not gotten backend ready.. for whatever reason, bottom line is they are not ready for the hype yet. Big big marketing mistake.

QTel on the other hand has improved because of competition but they are still far behind in a real telecommunication sense in many ways. Again, time will tell. The strength they have is the deep knowledge of how Qatar works and strong ambition to change for the better, for the country and the consumer. The biggest weakness is the mass amount of complacent mindset it harbours within its manpower, slow in adopting proper business practices, commercial culture and mindset. QTel can win this war anytime if its staffs change in their thinking, and start adopting a more business strategic mindset. They have some real heavyweights in there but are not fully utilised and exploited (fortunately for Voda I guess). Or maybe one day it will.

Opportunity are for both to grab if...

Voda - sort out their backend, plan its marketing activities more realistically and align to it before starts the public campaigning. Understand this unique Qatar market which they still have a long way to go - key success factor.

QTel - very simple. Sort out its people - key success factor. Weed out complacent underperformers and empowers the new breed of commercial executives with drive before they get bored and influenced into complacency state. Train the old people for change. With these guys plus the Qatari management knowledge, it will fly higher than anyone can imagine.

So let's judge only when the competition really starts. For now, unless you decided you want to live alone and cut yourself out from civilization, I think it's safer to use QTel : ).

We are waiting Vodafone to implement all their services in Doha, then only iphone will established in Qatar. Waiting for their service immediately.

Yeah! Qtel prices are high compared to the UK Vodafone prices...but so also the rents in Qatar are higher....and petrol/gas is cheaper.

So go live in the UK...why come here?

Well said Speed, Vodafone rocks! LOL!

"There's nothing we can do to change the past, if it teaches  you a lesson profit from it then, forget it."

free credits to 1st 1000 customers for just QR.70/- which was basically sim card fees.

Now they are offering to all Qataris (IPO shareholders) QR. 1,000/- free credit just for Qrs. 350/- which includes International calls at the rate of Qr. 2.5/per minute anywhere in the world.

Above that they are offering Special numbers at a speial price for Shareholders (you can select or match with your vehicle number plate/ date of birth/ other numbers such as home or office phone numbers or even Qtel etc..)

I am sure Vodafone will rock :-)

Come on Vodafone thats what i say, Qtel prices are high compared to the UK Vodafone service, so anything will be better than Qtel

Not saying she is pulling the strings, but her stake (name wise) might be enough to ensure smooth sailing.

Don't you think?

I got Vodafone mobile special number same as my car number plate ;-)

lol, no, it doesn't 'belong' to her! Vodafone Qatar is part owned by the foundation set up by her. Doesn't mean she's pulling the strings.

They are up and running.

Isn't Vodafone belonging to H.H. Sheikha Moza? So, this should be a big enough 'wasta' to get up and running.

Annganda, yes I have noticed the packages from QTEL. I also thought they were preparing for competition, smart move.

I will not change to Vodafone even if they will be cheaper. QTEL is not bad at all and if I look at DU in the UAE, and the miserable service it has produced, I would wait for at least one year before even considering to switch.

NEVER EVER...

Buy the Vodafone Blackberry Storm....

I have one...... a complete disaster!!!

Every network is not 100% at launch. I am sure in a couple of years the two networks will be on par.

ujasmathew

I think Qatar is 10 years back in telecommunication

I guess it's really difficult for Vodafone to operate in Qatar if they will not get the support it requires from QTEL and ICT. At the end of the day, it will be US being the users who will benefit from this competion between QTEL and Vodafone. Did you guys noticed, because of the arrival of Vodafone in Qatar, QTEL has started developing new packages for the consumenrs including expats which is now cheaper compared to their prices three years ago? Think about that guys...

To start a new business is not so easy!!!

Moreover for a telecom company it needs minimum 5/4 years to establish their towers, showrooms, services etc.

I think vodafone is trying their best to make their service frequently. Hope they will able to make it as soon as possible!!!!

East or West VODAFONE is the BEST

JUST WAIT & WATCH.

AFTER THE PROPER LAUNCH... HARDLY ANY1 WILL USE Q-TEL SERVICE.

Thanks dear !

Hi rash 80,

Please refer to this link, someone already asked that question previously,,...

http://www.qatarliving.com/answers/living-in-qatar/where-is-vodafone-office

can any one tell me where is Vodafone office located?

Hey guys I'm sure that VF wil cover with coverage soon. cos they have to compete with qTEL its a big deal so they are working hard I heard

I love that bright side! :-)

Vodafone is just starting..

Qtel is been here for long time..

It is unfair to compare Vodafone to Qtel..

In Qatar, it is like, Chicken V.S. Egg.

let just wait, maybe Vodafone can fix all of this..

(on the bright side, we hope Qtel prices will also go down. hehehe)

team applei.ph < www.applei.ph >

For your iphone needs! :P

Have you tried this?

http://mojamon.mybrute.com

call customer care at 8007111

Iam amazed by the above stories, QTEL is far better than Vodafone in Qatar. What most people did is compare the services of Vodafone outside Qatar to QTEL in Qatar. Its like comparing apples to oranges. They are both round but do taste differently. Having said that, QTEL is emerging to be a World Player in this sector.

You pay for what you get for. The services of QTEL are very good. I dont think i will ever go to Vodafone.

May Allah bless the Management of QTEL.

am one of the 1st 1000customer. I really impress and feel boastful when i got my sim at villagio and the signal there really like i was using my qtel sim. from there i started calling some of my friends about my lucky charm sim card but as i went home the signal went on weakening til i reach my home....NO SIGNAL... i didnt use it for 4days i called 9111 to report it and they told me they are fixing the problem....Now its my 3rd week and the signal seems improving, wherever i go like in the pearl, airport road, all places around doha and even in al wakra the signall is improving...hopefully vodafone will put thier flag on sept.....

the realisation stuck him like a thunderclap!

“Grinding routine and bureaucracy have caused undue delay in the implementation of several vital decisions especially with the middle level management in the Qtel."

More from today's GT here:

http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=284510&version=1&template_id=36&parent_id=16

"Deaths in the Bible. God - 2,270,365

not including the victims of Noah's flood, Sodom and Gomorrah, or the

many plagues, famines, fiery serpents, etc because no specific numbers

were given. Satan - 10."

thanks for the info...god bless

You CANNOT claim/redeem anything from Vodafone now. Its all closed longback.

Wait till August till they launch commercially, nothing before that.

DOES ANYONE HERE KNOWS WHERE IS THE EXACT LOCATION OF VODAFONE OFFICE?? I NEED TO CLAIM/REDEEM MY FREE SIM... THANKS...

art_029 - what the heck are you on about!?!?!?

I imagine that the Qatar Foundation and vodaphone probably thought they would just share capacity with Qtel, re brand the service open some shops and bingo job done.

I expect the problem is two fold.

1. A Qatari charity should not be involved in something this complicated

2. Qtel have so woefully under invested in their infrastructure that there was no spare capacity to lease to Vodaphone. Hence we now see all these towers going up.

Basically one big fuck up

I heard they are sharing QTEL's infrustructure!!! How can competitors befriend??!??!!! Sharing is Caring - Hello Barney!

Sorry I got to make this call. Am sticking to Qtel.

Autism existed way before wireless emission was popular, their might be a lead if strongly exposed, but its not a strong link.

A full time mom

Hey guys cut voda some slack, the bulk of the delay has been due to factors beyond their control, hence the deadline extension.

I cant imagine that setting up a new network in Qatar can be easy.

I think once these guys are fully up and running it will be to the benefit of consumers. If we can get the new Iphone and a better cell phone service than at present it can only be a good thing.

I hope Voda adopt a similar business model to the UK where we get a handset as part of a 12 / 18mth contract and dont have to worry about buying a sim free handset etc.

Cheaper international calls wouldnt go a miss either...

Hopefully with all the complaints from 1000+ residents about the location of their mobile base stations...radiation emission, diesel & noise emmission coupled with the fact that most masts are located within falling distance of residential property will hopefully mean that they don't get their licence at all.

There is an anti-Vodafone mast campaign going on.....people power...come on!!!

Has anybody noticed this enormous autism campaign going on in Doha? Why for such a small population? There is a strong link between radiation emission autism...!!!

Vodaphone Qatar is a partnership between them and the Qatar Foundation. Let's not forget the Qatar foundation is a charity set up to fund universities and schooling.

Not to run a mobile license.

This is a typical Qatar farce. What I would like to know is how on earth ICTQatar can hold their heads up when the entire bidding process was rigged from the start.

It is simply shameful, WHY set up a supposed independent regulator then rig a bidding process so a CHARITY wins a license.

What is their point, when they are so corrupt to do that how are they going to protect the consumer ?

ictQATAR satisfied with Vodafone's Progress on Network Development in Qatar. ictQatar revises Vodafone's license terms and target dates...

Why not stick with QTEL, most of us have more than one mobile line. Qtel is heavy duty and I am very satisfied with their services.

it wont happen before the end of 2009

check out the Vodafone Forum and see some of the "1st 1000" complain about the lack of network coverage!

http://www.qatarvodafone.com/forums/

vodafone had a failed launch in qatar to begin with, too much hype and too little ground work, its actually unexpected that how such a reputed company is poor in planning and execution.

hope that they launch some good offers whenever they launch not because we will change to voda but because Qtel will surely try to matchup and at the end we as customers would benefit. I see voda as a company which would help Qtel customers to extract better offers from Qtel, nothing more.

98% coverage?... By Sept 2009!!!

I wonder if they can manage 1,000 by Sept 2009!

Q-Tel has solid infrastructure (ATMs, QTel Counters, employees, Complaints section) advantage.....things that will take years for Vodafone to set up....

Voda hasnt even have erected enough masts yet....forget about the rest....

less said about Vodafone the better.

I'm not blaming anyone..just stating the facts which ictQatar had to acknowledge...

lol blame it on others...its easy! And it was not natural, it was manipulation by Vodafone.

ictQatar should have taken a tough stance instead it did the opposite.

To be fair; most of the delays have been out of the control of Vodafone such as:

1. Delay in the IPO

2. Sharing Agreements with QTEL

3. Permits from the Govt. to erect both fixed and mobile masts.

It was natural for ictQatar to revise the license terms.

vodafone did only 1 good thing....it improved Qtel further...

vodafone is going down everyday, even laws need to be manipulated to accommodate their failure at launch itself.

To be honest, I did forsee this, I knew 1st March would never happen, and to be honest, I don't think 1st September will either.

I applied to be in the 1st 1000, but they denied me, probably because I live in Nuajia, which is probably too far away to get a signal.. Lol..

I must say, I'm quite impressed with Qtel, all these new shops are looking pretty good, and their customer service replied to my email the other day quite quickly.

I think everyone just got too excited at the news of a second mobile provider, you can never get your hopes up for anything in Qatar.

told u... no one listen..

algadomain...you cannot get it now, unless someone of the first 1000 sells u his/her sim card. They are not giving any more sim cards.

but i would advice stick to qtel or u will have a useless phone with vodafone sim card in it.

You can register for news updates on their webstie www.vodafone.com.qa

They are not taking new subscribers at the moment. Expect it will be around July/August, if not later.

This is not a cooment though, but could someone inform me on how to register with vodafone or get there service. Thanks

What a surprise.

I agree with web_admin, coverage is crap as it is with vodafone. I am also one of the 1st 1000 and Vodafone is useless as it is now. Driving around Doha I lose coverage all the time and When I have connection it is difficult to get through. No one has been able to get through to me. Of course no GPRS/3G is available yet either with Vodafone.

Coverage of Vodafone is far from being anywhere close to be called "ok"....but they know how to manipulate laws where they operate!!!

I'm part of the 1st 1000 and at the moment, doubtful about how Vodafone is going to accomplish coverage in Qatar by September. I can't even get signals in Hyatt, RAA, Matar Qadeem, e-Ring Road and almost any place I go to.

Better stick with Qtel till the end of the year and see what happens next year. The only come-on people would use Vodafone would be Vodafone bringing in the iPhone (at a good price). Otherwise, it's not yet ready to launch at all.