To clarify, this is a review of WIND Mobile services, not a specific store location. I have both a cell phone and a laptop data plan with WIND.
Pros:
- fantastic pricing - my unlimited cell phone plan cost $25/mo. another $10/mo. allows me unlimited calls to the US as well. no restrictions. my wifi also costs $25/mo. and is technically unlimited (but with some restrictions, more below).
- good reception
- good roaming - i've used my phone in the US and haven't had any problem. roaming charges are reasonable.
- fast data speed - i use the service for my laptop. initially very fast. downloads clocked in at 500 kbps. faster in my experience than rogers cable.
- convenient hardware - for the data plan i had to buy a WIND wifi card (a portable hotspot device smaller than an iPod that does not have to be plugged into my laptop and can sit on a shelf or tucked in my bag). in terms of getting wireless internet connected and working i can't really think of any setup that would be more convenient. the device cost $120 which is not cheap but is reasonable considering the performance and the low cost of the monthly service.
Cons:
- poor inventory in stores - the data stick i originally wanted to buy was out of stock in every toronto area store for at least three weeks.
- terrible customer service - my phone mysteriously got disconnected from their network resulting in about 2 hrs. of infuriating interactions (or lack thereof) with customer service. the online chat wasn't working. emails are answered "in a couple of days". operators don't seem to be able to answer any but the most basic questions. basically, don't expect any customer service at all.
- the bandwidth limitations. after exceeding their "fair usage" limit of 5GB (pretty easy if you download any large files) they slow down the connection speed. this is stated in their terms and no surprise. but while their terms say the bandwidth will be limited to 512kbps, the reality is more like 60kbps. BIG difference.
Despite those limitations my final verdict is that they still offer a better value than their competitors and for now I'm a pretty satisfied customer.