racoma.com.phJ. Angelo Racoma on technology, economics, writing, problogging, and getting things done

I got an invitation to attend the launch party of this yet-undisclosed (as of that time) telco, but I wasn’t able to attend. Turns out it was ü Mobile, and they had launched an innovative (relatively) mobile service, which lets users get free credits for receiving advertisements.

The service seems to be exclusive, though, as they are targeting the 15- to 35-year old demographic. That’s understood, given the need to target advertisements. And perhaps we can assume that if you’re over 35, you probably don’t have the patience to read ads; or perhaps you have enough disposable income that you would prefer to pay for services rather than get freebies.

And so I got a call the other day from ü Mobile telling me they are sending over a SIM card. I got the SIM this morning, and excitedly plugged it into my Nokia 1112. After several attempts to make calls and send SMS, I gave up. I had a hunch that the service only worked over 3G networks, which i confirmed after calling customer service.

It’s a bit disappointing, since the ü Mobile network supposedly ran over Smart’s network. So ideally it should work both on the UMTS and GSM networks. I did have a spare 3G-enabled phone I could use the SIM on, but it was locked to Smart. Even if ü Mobile were a Smart brand, I still couldn’t use it because of the locks (while other Smart brands like Talk n Text and Addict Mobile can be used on Smart-locked phones).

Easiest option for now would be to plug the SIM into my E51 (review to follow), but then being my main mobile (for use with both business and personal calls and text, IM’ing and VoIP) I would rather not.

Or, I could have my LG KU250 unlocked, but it would void warranty. Or perhaps I could acquire another (unlocked) 3G-enabled mobile, but this would be a truly unnecessary expense.

My ü Mobile SIM would have to wait, then. Ah, the lost advertising opportunities.