3 Mobile F102

I feel that I,am being ripped off as my bill is more than double it was with O2 with less monthly charge than 3, spoke to customer services in India gave up cant wait for my contract to terminate. ,

I was going mad, I hate spending money and not really getting anything out of it and my mobile was costing a fortune to run, I won't get a contract phone because I don't want a huge bill at the end of every month.I received a free 3 sim with £10 credit on it from a freebie site,I thought maybe I could save myself some money.

I went into town to look for PAYG deals, there are a good few mobile phone shops including phones 4 U, car phone warehouse and the Orange store, but there was a new one I hadn't seen before , the 3 store.I'd never have contemplated getting a 3 phone ,mainly because I am a bit of a technophobe, Blimey it took me three years to work out how to get music on my mp3 player !

...anyway I decided to have a nosey and see what they had on offer.

There was a wide array of phones to choose from, most of them on contracts,and for quite a reasonable amount, but, I had my mind set on a PAYG so I asked the assistant to recommend one.Certainly she said and directed me to the side where there five phones ranging in price from £19.99 to £99.99 . ..I picked the £29.99 phone.Its called a ZTE F102 .I asked exactly what do I get for my money, it seems like such a small amount surely there's a catch somewhere.

The Makers Claim ..this is taken from the 3 website.

The Phone is a Slimline 3G handset. 2 mega pixel camera. BluetoothTM. Support free calls with built-in SkypeTM and Messenger.

The ZTE 102 is all about affordability. You can make free Skype-to-Skype calls and chat for free with Windows Live Messenger. And it's easy to flick between applications with the switcher key.

It comes with a 2 mega pixel camera and has an impressive battery life - so you can use all the 3G features for longer.Comes with 3 Suite CD to download to your computer for easy transfer of files.

I was a bit weary of purchasing without first getting some much needed information so I asked my questions ,Q: It says free Skype to Skype calls but how do I download Skype onto the phone? A: Its already added to the phones applications, the same goes for the windows messenger.Q: how much does it cost ? A: Its absolutely free.Q: Are you certain I'm sure I heard somewhere that they were going to start charging for Skype? A: We would not sell this phone in the 3 shop on the 3 network if it wasn't free, we have no information that Skype will start charging.

The Phone details

Silver or Black in colour, its a very basic looking phone but with a few added extras, you have the screen which in my opinion is just the right size,below the screen there are three buttons,on the left hand side, a small button with two screens etched onto it ,it functions as a quick start to your open applications.Then you have a larger central button, which you use to navigate through your applications and phone settings, I've got quite long fingernails and have to be careful making sure that I am directing it to the right application or phone number , so the button could be a bit bigger .....or I need to cut my nails .

The right hand side button you use for cancelling.you have your usual call red and green receiver answer and end signs.

Then there are two smaller buttons , which if you didn't look hard for you wouldn't even notice them.These are the gateway to a wonderland.On the right hand side it takes you to your favourite pages these include , Welcome ,Yahoo,Skype,Google, Messenger,Bebo,Facebook , Youtube ,Myspace,Twitter. BBC,Sky,Travel guides ,Wikipedia, e-bay ,3 on demand,3 music store and the my 3 site, just navigate to the application you want click on it and away you go.simple , even for a technophobe like me.It even helps you to set up a new account for Skype giving you step by step instructions.

The smaller button on the right hand side takes you to a place called Planet 3 which in turn takes you to My3, this tells you everything that is new what's hot and whats not on the three network, it also gives you a direct link to 3 where you can check your balance and Internet allowance , or top up all for free.

The My3 site lets you manage your account either from your mobile phone or over the Internet, If you register a credit or debit card you can top up from as little as £5.00 but be warned if you add this it can take up to a week before your initial card can be used.As I found out after registering my details.

Phone specs ...taken from 3 site *

Standby:150 Hours

Talk Time:300 Minutes

Video Call Time: Minutes

Memory:

Memory Slot:MicroSD

Phone Memory:128 MB

Card Max. Size: GB

Size / Weight:

Depth:12.7 mm

Height:106.1 mm

Width:47 mm

Weight:80 g

Connectivity:

Bluetooth:Yes

Cable:Yes

Messaging:

IM:Yes

Applications:

ebay:-

Google Mail:-

Google Maps:-

Google Search:-

MobilCast:-

MobileMail:-

Orb:-

Skype:Yes

SlingBox:-

Windows Live Messenger:Yes

Yahoo! Go:-

Yahoo! Messenger:-

Yahoo! :-

Features:

FM Radio:-

GPS:-

Java:Yes

Loudspeaker:Yes

Music Player:Yes

Video Calls:-

Video Player:Yes

Voice Dial:-

WAP Browser:Yes

Network:

3G:Yes

Band:Quad

Turbo:-

Operating System:

Flex version:

Software version:

Sound Formats:

AAC:-

AMR:-

AU:-

M4A:Yes

MP3 ringtones:-

MP3:Yes

OggVorbis:-

RealAudio:-

WAV:Yes

WMV:Yes

WHAT YOU GET FOR YOUR MONEY

A £5.00 top up gives you 25 free texts and free 3 to 3 calls for 90 days

£10 top up via the My3 site doubles your texts to a whopping 600,and it keeps going up the more you top up , if you decide to top up by £25.00 you receive unlimited free texts.

You also get a mobile Internet allowance 150 MB for each top up.150 MB gives you enough to check your facebook page 100 times a day or Tweet 1,600 times everyday for 90 days, if you use your allowance they will let you know, then you have the option of topping up your credit again or buying an Internet add on. The add ons start at just £5.00.

Ease of Use

Well I am really happy with all of the functions on this phone.I have to say that personally this is the first piece of technology I own that doesn't scare me.It's so simple to use, I have even managed to transfer my mp3 files onto my mobile with the usb lead and 3 suite provided, so it really can't be bad.The Skype to skype calling is a brilliant feature,being able to talk for as long as you want calls no longer costing a penny ...I must be dreaming .

The Msn messenger is also free and doesn't eat into your Internet allowance at all. The built in camera is great, its resolution is brilliant considering how cheap this phone is. and it has a video camera as well which you can either use to make video calls or just videos to upload onto your social networking site.( That's what I did ) so simple all you have to do is use the usb lead and transfer the files from your phone to your computer.I'm sure there's another way to do it !, but hey give me a chance I'm just getting used to this technology .

Summary

I would highly recommend this phone to anyone who wants the technology ,but isn't willing or able to pay the price of a smart phone.Basically I can sum it up in seven small words.If I can do it Anyone can .

This review is also on Ciao under my username tara91***

Summary: If I can manage this technology ANYONE can !

I think this phone is a load of rubbish, I had a very good phone which broke and then you sent me this rubbish phone which I wouldnt give to a 5 Year Old. I will not be renewing my contract with you. It said to me you have to rate so put 1 for ever single one but I would like to keep it as 0.