WiFi Calling Issues

[Frustrator101]

A year and a half ago I renewed my contract with Fido to take advantage of WiFi calling as I was living in an area without any cellular coverage. I chose the LG G6 from Fido and was dismayed that the network refused my device for this feature. I spent countless hours with numerous reps and technicians as well as multiple trips to a location where I could have access to cell service to try and fix something that should have worked out of the box. With one last attempt I was connected with a technician who solved the problem. I wish I had paid more attention. As best as I can recall the tech had me enter the developer mode on my phone and subsequently read out or change the value of one of the settings.

Fast forward to now and after one replacement screen, one replacement back cover and a blown battery, the phone is done. No complaints as I work in the trades and am a little rough with my phones. Also I have moved to an area that is advertised as having extensive cell coverage by Fido although in reality locations with a signal are few and far between so I still rely on WiFi calling. Whilst in town recently I purchased a Moto G7 Play from Costco only to find out that Fido doesn't support this device for a service that I have already paid for and am still paying for. In the past few days I have again spent countless hours on online chats and phone calls with numerous different reps and technicians to try and get Wifi calling activated on my device. Some have towed the company line and flat out told me it can't be done. Others have tried to add my IMEI and change various network settings and are as perplexed as the technicians a year and a half ago why it won't work. I have been lied to about technical issues that aren't true under the assumption that I have no technical knowledge and nor has any tech been able to explain what my original problem with the G6 was and what was executed to fix the original problem.

Last night I spoke with a manager and her only solution was to buy out my phone which after 1 1/2 years still has a balance greater than what the phone would have cost unlocked from an independent retailer back when I first received it. Then I would have to buy another higher end phone from Fido that 'supports' this feature. Including my time as a pay-as-you-go customer I have been with Fido for 17 years. I turned my wife on to Fido and together we have over 30 years with Fido and have roughly spent $15,000.00 in that time. This has now escalated to a case and I am anticipating what the outcome will be.

What do I want from Fido?

To have reasonable access to a service that I have and still am paying for.

To have consistent policies and not to be lied to as well as to be given proper technical explanations for issues claimed by the support team.

[Cawtau]

Hello Frustrator101,

  Welcome to the community!

  Sorry to hear you're having issues with Wifi-calling. I understand your frustration as you were able to use the service before. However, Fido has been rather consistent with their stance the matter. They have always maintained that you need a supported device in order to use the service.

  I understand they were able to fiddle with your LG G6 to get Wifi-calling to work. However, that device is a supported device. You can view the supported devices here. Unfortunately, the Moto G7 Play is not currently a supported device. They tried and were unable to get the feature to work with that phone. Apparently, there are technical issues with Wifi-calling for that device on the networks. I'm not sure if you're going to be able to get a satisfactory technical explanation if the technicians, themselves, weren't able to figure out what was the issue.

Hope this helps 😀

Cheers

[KAPABLE-K]

Actually The Moto G7 Play is listed as WiFi calling capable on the website here.

But as noted they do not support WiFi calling on non-Fido Android devices.

[KAPABLE-K]

Hello @Frustrator101,

Welcome to the community!

While Fido allows compatible non-Fido devices to use features like VoLTE, WiFi calling is one feature they do not support. I've seen users with compatible non-Fido devices that were able to use both VoLTE and WiFi calling features but those users had Samsung phones.

 It is stated in the WiFi calling section on the website, taken from here.  

"Your compatible device must have been purchased from Fido. If you have a non-Fido iPhone and no conflicting services, Wi-Fi Calling may work, but we can’t ensure that the feature will work properly on your device.

If you have a non-Fido Android device (e.g., you did not buy your device from Fido), Wi-Fi Calling will not work."

[Frustrator101]

Thank you for your reply.

If the policy is consistent then why have half of the Fido techs and reps whom I have dealt with in the past 72 hours tried to get my phone to be eligible for Wifi calling through manually adding my IMEI and 'fiddling' with the network settings. If the employees aren't enforcing the policy then it is inconsistent to the consumer.

Also calling the only good tech support that I received for my brand new Fido LG G6 'fiddling' is a little disrespectful to said tech. In retrospect I have a feeling that I know what happened. My guess is that I accidentally ended up with a generic G6 rather than one that had been loaded with the Fido specified firmware. Just like the people who convert their non-Fido Samsung's into Fido phones, the tech likely walked me through a reset and Fido specific firmware update.

Can someone tell me what 'not supported' means. We can all agree it's not a hardware issue. I'm guessing that when Fido orders it's phones from Motorola they specify what they want in the firmware and they have chosen to disable this function. I would still like to know what the protocol is for communication between device and provider and why it is so difficult to get a device recognized for WiFi calling. Is 'not supported' inadequate firmware on my device or is the gate closed at the Fido end?

Lastly the coverage map for Cortes Island BC is false advertising. I understand discrepancies due to terrain, location of conflicting telecommunication infrastructure, etc., but this does not apply here. Locally it's a running joke and half of the island's residence have to drive to one of several locations to get a signal. I rely on WiFi calling to be able to communicate. To lock this feature to my phone is akin to selling me a locked phone albeit in reverse. The effect is the same however. As the CRTC has had to step in for the fair treatment of consumers in the past, they will hopefully put an end to this practice as well.

[Cawtau]

Hello again,

---

@Frustrator101 wrote:...calling the only good tech support that I received for my brand new Fido LG G6 'fiddling' is a little disrespectful to said tech...

---

  I apologise for my poor choice of the term fiddle. It wasn't meant in any negative way. However, it's even more as disrespectful to all of the other technicians who have tried to help you solve your issue. Your implication is that they're just not as good as the other technician simply because they couldn't solve your problem. You assume that the same efforts and expertise were not applied with your new phone. Maybe they tried everything the first technician did. However, the difference being the LG G6 was a supported device and the Moto G7 currently is not.

  The supported devices are likely those which have been tested and known to work reliably with the service on the networks. So far, it appears as though the service does not work with the Moto G7 so it can't be considered supported. They even tried to get it work with your device but were unsuccessful. No, we can't all agree it's not a hardware issue. Until they can sort out the exact problem, no variable should be excluded.

Cheers

[Frustrator101]

Fair enough, my apologies for insinuating that the other support that I received was not good. However I am assuming that you were not on the other end of any of my interactions with reps and tech support and I will maintain that some of the tech support that I have received was severely lacking.

Secondly I am tired of Fido employees treating their craft like some sort of dark art. I am not a car mechanic but if I bring my vehicle in for repair I can get as detailed information as I want on what the technical issue is and what steps are being taken to remedy the problem. That doesn't insure that the mechanic has diagnosed the issue correctly but at least I am not being left in the dark.

There is a difference between something not working reliably and being cut off at the gate. If in fact it is a hardware issue, then what might it be? Surely the engineers in the IT department at Rogers or Fido know exactly why this particular device will not work or is unreliable, afterall this device works on other networks. If they don't have any idea then the company needs to hire some new engineers.

Once again, 'not supported' is not a technical explanation. In another thread a Fido moderator plainly stated that it is a business decision. Just like dealing with my car mechanic or the company that I lease my vehicle from I spend and have spent enough money that I deserve honest answers from the people who understand this issue.

Although I'm sure that many find useful information here, to a certain extent this forum is not doing Fido any favours. In my research on this topic here I am either coming across posts of equally disgruntled consumers, posted statements that don't reflect kindly on Fido's business practices, or shills working to get Fido discounts. 

I am not a **bleep** and these are not the dark arts. Someone please explain what the technical reason behind 'not supported' is. I can accept that this device will not work for Wifi calling on the Fido network but I need to know the honest answer why that is.

[FidoAnthonyZ]

Hello @Frustrator101,

At the moment, you can find the necessary info about Wi-Fi calling, and VoLTE in the library section. Any new addition to the list of compatible devices or updates will be included on those pages.

To reply to your original request, we unfortunately cannot add the IMEI if the phone is not a Fido phone as it's not in our database of devices.