Re firmware, I think that over-the-air updates could make a big difference, at least for users. It's a real pain having to connect up the E71 via usb and then it takes ages, plus you run the risk of spending hours reinstalling everything if you don't back up and restore correctly. Whether networks will sort out how promptly they make them available I'm not sure, although what you say about Iphone and Android phones is interesting.

Will take your advice and see what 3 come up with. Fingers crossed for something really good!

I also had the E71 on 3 as soon as it came out. It was a funny story cos I'd bought it 3 days before SIM-free at a cost of £300. Called 3 to leave and they asked why. I told them it was because they didn't offer the E71. They said, yes we do but we haven't updated the website yet. I then sold my SIM-free E71 and upgraded.

As for firmware upgades – all the networks are slow doing this. It's as if the aftercare cost isn't worth it. I think with iPhone/Android, customers are going to demand speedy firmware upgrades more and more.

Any suggestions on what phone I should get next then?!

I joined the network in 2003 (I think that's around when they launched in the UK) and have been a mostly satisfied customer ever since. I'm currently using an E71, which I've had ever since it launched on the network. I liked that 3 had the E71 relatively soon after it launched. I use a relatively inexpensive package with an unlimited data add-on which cater to its strengths, i.e. push email, skype, msn are all easy to use and the free skype and msn via 3G is a big plus.

Where I feel 3 sometimes let themselves down is in areas like offering firmware upgrades in a timely fashion. I had to debrand and change my product code back and forth to get to my current firmware, which was a hassle.

The other problem I'm facing is that I'm now eligible for an upgrade, but there isn't really a phone available which appeals to me. I don't know if 3 have any plans to offer it, but I'd really like to see something like the Nokia N900 offered on Three. Currently, my only options are to take it on Vodafone at minimum £35/month for 24 months or buy it SIM free for in the region of £500 (!). Neither option really appeals to me.

I'm not sure whether 3 are simply too small to consider paying for and distributing a brand new model like the n900 (although they did it with the E71, which no-one had really seen before I got it on 3), but I think it would be the kind of phone that appeals to their customers.

Anyway, just my random Wednesday afternoon rantings, but I'd be interested to hear your thoughts.

The key to 3's success, and to my continued patronage is their ability to offer the right product at the right price, backed up by a *decent network*: many other Telcos offer the right product but seem to be clueless at what price to offer it at and I get the impression that many of them are struggling with serving data on legacy networks. Whether 3's current plan will continue I don't know, but it seems to work for me.

As regards prior reputation, this is an ongoing problem. I remember a conversation at a 3G expo between a Telco who'd recently rebranded and a journalist, who “remembered them as 1-2-none”: I'm not sure how the conversation went after that but it can't have helped. I feel that 3's “problem” comes from the fact that they were pushing a leading-edge technology at a time when most other operators were still only thinking about the Mobile Internet: kudos to them for doing that, but being an early adopter can be fraught with problems. I wish 3 every success in the future, and if they can continue to offer the same “user experience” then I'll stay with them and I'm sure I'll be joined by many others.