Mobile broadband from Three is disposable broadband from Three
Think that the mobile telecoms industry in the UK is making progress towards being more environmentally sound?
Then think again.
It turns out that it is cheaper to throw away my 3G USB modem from Three and start again than to carry on topping it up.
Before I joined The Guardian I used to do a lot of my freelance work from various 'nomad offices' and cafes around London, and so I needed mobile broadband. Last year I bought a package from Three that offered me 12 gig of data or 12 months of usage, whichever expired first.
The 12 months expires this week, and so I need to start topping it up. Over the course of the year I've used about 9 gig of data, and a gig costs £10. However, a top-up has a maximum shelf life of 30 days, and so in order to maintain continuous connectivity throughout the next year I am looking at a minimum of 12 top-ups, or £120.
Or I could simply start again by picking up another '12G or 12 months' pack for £79.99 - complete with new modem.
That is a win for me, as it represents a saving of 33%, but not for the environment, which gets to see a perfectly good bit of consumer electronics discarded because the supplier has made it uneconomical for me to continue using it.
I guess that is why Three appear to have no corporate responsibility, ethical or environmental policy outlined as one of the big changes and 'fresh thinking' they claim to be bringing to the mobile industry.
I was about to say that it's going to be bad for the environment if it's cheaper to "throw it away". Imaging hundreds or thousands of users throwing away their used modem. The company should at least inform the public of a recycling facility nearby. But they should make it cheaper to top it up to encourage re-usage.
I have a contract with 3 and by comparison that looks like insane pricing.
Once my new 2 year contract kicks in come January, I'll be getting *15gb* of data allowance for £15 per month and a free 7.6mb modem like the one above (from which I can usually get about 2.5mb often 3.5mb depending on what it's doing like streaming the iPlayer and which they gave me early during my current contract).
15G a month is a lot, but £15 a month adds up to £180 a year. It isn't my main internet connection, so I only use it when I'm about in my nomad offices for email, blogging - I've only used 9G during the year. I suppose if I had more data allowance, I might use more bandwidth intensive services, but at the moment I couldn't justify the cost of a contract.