We could well be victims of modern technology when it comes to operating pocket WiFi device while on travel abroad.
According to consumer complaints received against such devices, many of the cases - 29 in total last year - were allegedly related to technical hitches that put the device out of service.
Rental service for pocket WiFi device is an emerging growing market popular with holiday travelers in need of mobile data access but wary of high roaming bill that may await them when return home.
As the compact wireless modem pre-installed with a local SIM and a battery is generally on rental at a flat daily rate which may vary depending on the suppliers and the destinations, it effectively sets the ceiling on roaming charges.
The pocket device has also the advantage of multi-operation - by a number of device with WiFi connectivity that includes smartphones, tablets and laptops, and also by the users sharing the connection.
Consumer dissatisfaction was largely about poor internet connection and transmission speed in uploads and downloads, and in the absence of technical assistance from their Hong Kong service providers, they were literally "stranded" abroad without the use of mobile data communications.
In one case, the complainant was enticed by the website of a company that advertised rental pocket WiFi device that allowed unlimited internet access and connection for use by 5 mobile communications devices. She duly paid a 7-day rental of a total of $420 and a deposit of $1,000.
In the first 3 days of her trip to Indonesia, the device was operating normal but then things took a turn for the worse when, on the night of the fourth day, internet browsing was suddenly down and inaccessible.
Immediately she called the Hong Kong company for help and was told to simply switch off and re-start the WiFi device again. But what she could get was a webpage in Indonesian language; it transpired that she had already used up her data limit and that additional payment would be required for continued usage.
The company contended that mobile WiFi service was subject to Fair Usage Policy restrictions applicable in the destination abroad and once the data usage limit was exceeded, the connection speed would be greatly reduced. But the complainant insisted that the company had originally advertised unlimited usage.
Upon conciliation of the Consumer Council, the company while maintaining that the complainant had exceeded her data usage limit, agreed to a partial rental refund of 3 days in the sum of $180.
In another case, the complainant took out a rental service for pocket WiFi device, at a 5-day rental of $1,120 and a deposit of $1,000, for a trip to Canada. But no sooner had she arrived in Toronto, she found she was unable to work the device.
Through email, she got in touch with the Hong Kong supplier which advised her to restart the device again. After several attempts to no avail, she called the company direct but the advice that came back from a staff was the same - restart again. Since it was a Saturday, the company's technical support staff could not be contacted.
On return to Hong Kong, she took the WiFi device back to the company which said it would take a month to find out the cause of the breakdown and until then refund of the deposit could not be processed immediately.
Upon the Council's conciliation, the company confirmed the WiFi device had indeed experienced connection problem during the period in question, and undertook to arrange full refund of all payments.
In yet another case, in Melbourne, Australia, the complainant found the speed of the WiFi device which he rented in Hong Kong, was exceedingly slow. He emailed the company and was advised to try different locations. Repeatedly he followed the instructions but was disappointed to see no improvement. He demanded his money back.
The company however declined to provide refund for reasons: its T&C clearly stated that it could not guarantee the performance of other network carriers would meet with the expectations of customers, and its records showed that the WiFi device, during the rental period, had successfully made connection with the local network carriers there - up to 3.5 MB data usage.
Consumers are advised to pay particular heed to such issues as: data usage limit, Fair Usage Policy, upload and download speeds, network coverage, technical support and assistance, etc.
In the event the service provider is suspected of making false claims such as "unlimited data usage", consumers can contact the Council, the Customs and Excise Department or the Communications Authority to file a complaint.
The Consumer Council reserves all its right (including copyright) in respect of CHOICE magazine and Onlin CHOICE (https://echoice.consumer.org.hk/).