Everyday services

If Content Lock has been applied to a phone, it recognises 18-rated sites or services and stops them being accessed . More info on content lock.

There are many variables which can affect the mobile data speeds you will experience on our 3G network - such as the type of phone you have, the number of people browsing on our network at that given time, and how far away you are from the nearest network mast.  

We continually look at our customers’ data needs to ensure we’re able to provide a great network experience for everyone - including data downloaders with the latest smartphones and data services such as video streaming, social networking, browsing, emailing, and music downloading.

T-Mobile customers can now benefit from access to signal and coverage from both the Orange and T-Mobile networks. Thanks to the ‘big 3G switch on’ last year, we now offer the UK’s widest 3G coverage.

How can I find out what speed I can get?

3rd party apps are available to download from your smartphone’s app store enabling you to perform a speed test at your given location. Remember, there are many variables which can affect the mobile data speeds you will experience on our 3G network - such as the type of phone you have, the number of people browsing on our network at that given time, and how far away you are from the nearest network mast. So speeds may vary.

If you use mobile broadband, you can also test your current mobile broadband speed.

How can I find out if I will have coverage?

You can check and compare the coverage in up to three locations using our coverage checker. 

Yes you can. Twitter can be accessed in several ways:

- You can go to m.twitter.com on your phone's browser
- You can access Twitter using a widget that updates automatically on your phone. Currently the only supported phone is the MDA Compact V - more coming soon
- You can install a Twitter application on your phone. Find out more on the Twitter downloads page

These methods use your internet connection, so for the best value make sure you have an Internet or Mobile Broadband booster on your account.

You can also send and receive Twitter updates by SMS

Receiving
To receive a picture message, you must send one first. Send a picture message to yourself or a friend who's received a picture message before. You should get a 'Welcome' picture message from us shortly afterwards which means you're all set up.

Some phones without cameras can still send and receive picture messages. If you have this type of phone, activate your picture messaging by sending a picture or wallpaper that's stored on your phone.

Sending
Follow these steps if you've tried sending a picture message and:

• you haven't received a 'Welcome' picture message back from us
• the message you tried to send stayed in your outbox
• you got a message on your screen telling you the settings are incorrect

Step 1 Get us to text you the right picture messaging settings.

Step 2 Once you've got the settings, turn your phone off then on again.

Step 3 Try sending a picture message again.

Still not working? Here's what else may be causing the problem.

See if you can make calls
If you can't call, then you won't be able to send picture messages.

If you're a pay as you go customer this may be happening because you don't have enough credit. Even though sending a picture message only costs 20p, pay as you go customers need at least 40p credit and U-Fix and Mix It customers need at least 28p credit to send a picture message. Topping up should fix the problem.

The picture message may be too big
There is a size limit on picture messages. Most phones automatically resize pictures so they're small enough to send. However, with certain phones you may need to go into your picture messaging settings and select a smaller resolution.

Sending a picture to an email address is a handy option when you aren't sure if someone has a phone that shows pictures, or if they don't have a mobile at all. Here's how you do it.

Step 1 Create your picture message as normal.

Step 2 When you go to send, your phone may give you a choice to send as a 'picture message' (or 'multimedia message') or as an 'email'. Don't choose to send as an email. Always send as a picture message or multimedia message.

Step 3 Type in an email address and press send.

Tip: It's even easier to send if you've already stored your contact's email address with their phone number.

If your friend replies to your email message, you'll receive it as a message on your mobile.

Find out more about Picture messaging

If you'd like to print out pictures from messages to display on your wall, or if you want to save them in an online album to show your friends and family, you'll first need to copy them to your computer.

To save your pictures to a computer and keep the full quality:

• take the memory card out of your phone and put it in your computer's card reader
• use the data cable and software that came with your phone to copy them over
• transfer them via Bluetooth or infrared (if your computer can do this)

Tip: You can buy a card reader to fit your memory card from most mobile phone and computer stores.

You can also send pictures to an email address. However, because your phone resizes picture messages when it sends them, the quality won't be as good. Sometimes it's better to have a smaller picture though - like when you want to it in an online album.

Got a text message that says you've been sent a picture message? To view the message, visit www.t-mobile.co.uk/pmcollect and enter your mobile number and the password from the text. The picture will only be available for 14 days so make sure you save it to a computer if you want to keep it.