PLDT Weroam Q n A with its Brand Manager

// March 6th, 2006

The blogosphere is just so effective that PLDT WeRoam’s product manager, Edmund Pike, found my query without me calling any of their hotlines or emailing their customer support e-add, if any. Quite commendable customer service feat, I must say. Or is it just sheer coincidence?

Mr. Pike provided the following answer to my e-mailed queries (right after he left a comment on my PLDT WeRoam post) regarding their PLDT WeRoam service:

Can it be applied to even the oldest laptop model? Mine is a hand-me down Acer.

Yes, as long as there is a PCMCIA slot (rectangular slot beside your notebook PC) and your operating system is Windows 98 and above.

Honestly, can PLDT WeRoam cover even the remotest of islands in the Philippines? What’s the worst speed can I expect?

We cover 99% of all SMART base stations. So 99% of the time, if you have a SMART signal.

I’ve seen the application forms and none seems to be for an individual. Is it only for corporations?

We will upload individual application forms in our website this week. We also have WeRoam prepaid variants available in PC stores (Villman, Silicon Valley etc.). with this arrangement, there is no need for application forms.          

In simple terms, what’s the difference between PLDT WeRoam Direct and PLDT WeRoam Mobile?

WeRoam direct is like having a TV and antennae outside your house. You can connect to the Internet using an outdoor unit antennae at greater speeds but you cannot be mobile unless you want to mount and dismount it every single time.

Also, what’s the difference between the Direct with Internet suscription and Direct VPN Subscription.

VPN merely connects to a private corporate LAN. It is preferred by corporations who would like give e-mail and specific software application access to their employees.

How about the customer support?

Customers may call 177 for any technical customer support queries

Please explain the one-time fee and the MRC.
 

            Post-paid
            P 2,000 monthly charge

            P 2,500 one time charge

            P 5,000 mobile data card deposit

            Pre-paid

            No one time charges you just pay :

           P 7,500 for the purchase of a mobile data card

            P 1,700 month for the WeRoam service

The worst speed expectation question was not answered. You can’t blame the guy. That’s really a toughie — a product brand manager revealing the downside of their product?

Also, how about blogging about PLDT WeRoam’s service to get quicker customer service response?

Now, what about the other roaming services out there? What’s WeRoam’s best competitor? How does it fare? Anyone knows the downsides of PLDT WeRoam? Product manager of other services, yooohooo…