One of the first things that Girish Babu Killari did after buying a high-end mobile handset was to subscribe to a 3G data plan. An avid gamer, he thought that the high speed Internet and fast downloads that 3G (third generation mobile technologies) offered would enable him to play all his favourite online games on his handset. But that was not to be.

“I was promised the moon before I subscribed to the plan. But now, leave alone games, I can’t even browse the Internet with ease on my mobile,” grouses the Bangalore-based software professional.

While the 3G plan cost him Rs 750 for 2 gigabyte (gb) data usage with the promised connection speed of up to 21 megabytes per second (mbps), Killari says that in reality, the speed is sometimes as slow as 20 kbps. “It takes ages for a simple website to download,” says Killari.

Delhi-based Srikanth Gupta also subscribed to a 3G data plan recently, and he has his own set of problems. “Before I subscribed to 3G, my calls never got disconnected and I could even browse the Internet with ease,” he says. Now, he has got so used to the “dark spots” on his route from Tilak Nagar in West Delhi and Noida to the east of the city that he can almost predict where the Internet will not work or he will not be able to make or receive calls on his phone. “The data speed is very fast in some places and the voice clarity has also improved, but the experience is not the same throughout,” says Gupta.

3G is supposed to allow cellphones to send and receive data at great speeds, leading to faster mobile Internet, mobile TV, video calling and other applications. However, while consumers are being treated to an advertisement blitz on the power of 3G, experts say that as of now, 3G’s performance, irrespective of the telecom service provider, has been patchy at best.

In some circles and locations, the 3G speed is excellent, says Tarun P.K., chief editor of TelecomTalk.info, a website that tracks developments in the sector. “With speeds of up to 8-9 mbps, end users are enjoying it to the hilt,” he says. However, if you happen to be in an area or a town where 3G coverage is yet to be optimal, you will be hard put to get those super fast downloads you have been promised.

It was way back in 2008 that 3G was launched in India by the government-owned Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) in Delhi and the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) in Mumbai a little later. Private companies entered the field almost two years later after paying hefty sums for the 3G spectrum licences.

According to current industry estimates, more than 12 million subscribers have opted for 3G (India’s total mobile base is a mammoth 840 million subscribers, of which more than 540 million are urban users). And with more and more people opting for 3G-compatible handsets, the demand for 3G services will only grow.

Experts say that one reason for the uneven coverage of 3G right now is that wireless networks take some time to stabilise. “Users often do not realise that several factors impact the signal, such as distance from the base station, the kind of physical barriers the signal faces, user devices, and also the quality of the network,” says Mahesh Uppal, a telecom expert.

Most consumer activists are of the view, however, that companies may have been a little too hurried with their 3G roll out. “I think they gave us a half-baked product. They should have offered their 3G services only when they were fully ready,” says M.S. Kamath, secretary general, Consumer Guidance Society of India (CGSI), an organisation that recently asked the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) to look into the problems faced by subscribers to 3G services.

'Ideally, telecom companies that have not been able to offer the services they promised should compensate their 3G customers by extending their plan or by some other means,' says Anil Prakash, president of the Telecom User Group of India, (Tugi), Delhi.

But industry experts say that consumer groups like CGSI and Tugi are perhaps being a little too harsh on telecom operators. “I believe that both the operators and the consumer groups exaggerate their cases,” says Uppal. He goes on to add that when it comes to 3G, there is not an “obvious conflict of interest” between the service providers and the consumers. “Both stand to benefit if the service is widely available and the quality is good,” he says.

Companies, on their part, take the stand that since 3G is relatively new, it will take time for consumers to understand the concept. “3G being a new phenomenon in the Indian market, it needs proper education and an awareness to drive,” says Himanshu Kapania, managing director, Idea Cellular. Kapania reveals that Idea has set up over 450 Experience Zones across major markets to allow consumers to sample the variety of products, handsets, and devices that make up the 3G experience.

Prakash says that consumers should be aware of the current limitations of 3G before opting to subscribe to it. “Many companies are yet to fully roll out their 3G services across the country. Those who travel a lot may not find 3G wherever they go, resulting in disappointment,” he says.

Indeed, people should check the 3G coverage area in their cities and towns. In fact, TRAI has written to all the operators to clearly mention the cities and towns where their services are available.

Uppal feels that 3G consumers won’t have to wait too long to be satisfied with the service. “The telecom companies have paid huge sums, that too in advance, to acquire spectrum and they would obviously want everything to be in place at the earliest. In my opinion, we will see the 3G infrastructure functioning properly in a matter of months,” he says.

Existing 3G consumers and legions of would-be subscribers would certainly hope for that.