The first time I got my iPhone 4s, I was quite happy with the data plan speeds (Smart). I was reaching up to a maximum of 4.6MBPS on certain areas (like Makati, at work). Recently, the past week has been slow as hell. I thought it was due to me capping the speeds because of my MB consumption.

This started around a week ago. I continuously did troubleshooting, restarted the device and even read up on possible causes on the web. Speedtests indicate that now I get only about 0.03 MBPS on the average. That’s like a dial-up speed on a supposedly 4G network. Sheesh!

My iPhone plan allowed me 1.5 Gig per month consumption when using cellular data. The iPhone can track your consumption (Settings > General > Usage > Cellular Usage). My phone clocked in at only 280MB of usage for the first 30 days. So I called up Smart Customer Support for assistance. The agent told me that there was no network interruption or problem. I told him that it could be that the system cannot cope up with the demand. For me, that was the only logical explanation once I tried to eliminate the other possibilities. The agent then replied that he’d get back to me in 24 hours after escalating my concern with their IT guys. I asked if I already capped my 1GB consumption. He said “unlikely”.

Fast forward 4 days, still no response.

This is really frustrating. Especially for a customer’s perspective. I’m paying P2,000 per month just to have the convenience of having unlimited data – to be able to check email anytime, browse my social networks, search the web, use the GPS and do all the fun things that a Smartphone user can – upload photos, share anything, keep in touch with family and friends.

But if the network cannot handle the sheer volume of users after spending top dollar to market the iPhone, then this may be a success story that can easily backfire for Smart.

I just posted my problems at their Smart Facebook page and hopefully I get an answer soon.

So, calling the attention of the top honchos of Smart; here’s an unsolicited advice – please look into this problem and find solutions ASAP. I know I’m not the only one having this problem, some officemates and friends with the similar Smart iPhone plan have also experienced it.

Please fix this soon. Otherwise, you’ll be facing the ire of Unli-Data subscribers all over the country.

Thanks!

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