Helio company profile
Most popular Helio cell phone specials Part two of the Ocean 2 review focuses on Web browsing and the phone's nifty integrated notifications system. And there's even a live IM session! Episode 2 of GadgetDog with Noah for February 9, 2009: Hands-on with the Virgin Mobile Helio Ocean 2, Woz Dances with Stars, Grammys Wrap-Up, Netbooks No More, and iHarmonix earbuds reviewed. Helionauts rejoice! At long last it's the Ocean 2. Launching on Feb 12 for $149, the Virgin Mobile Ocean 2 brings back the dual-sliding Ocean with a few twists. Noah has a hands-on preview for you, starting with the unboxing. Unlocked episode 1 with Noah from PhoneDog.com. Apple unveils the iPhone SDK and announces iFund. Unlimited plans take center stage with Sprint and Helio leading the way. Hands-on with the Helio Mysto and Palm Centro for Sprint. Noah takes us to Napa CA along with the new thin Samsung Fin device. Being called the thinnest flip phone in America right now, the Samsung Fin is full of features.
Part 2 of Noahs review of the Ocean. Here he looks at the software capabilities of this popular phone, including its music and internet capabilities.
It was widely thought the day would come at some point, but it looks as if Virgin Mobile is shuttering the Helio brand name. Not only is the Pantech Ocean 2 no longer available on the website (oddly enough, it leaves the ancient Ocean as the only QWERTY device available), but the "Helio" moniker is gone from the devices, being replaced by the actual brand names. According to the screenshots of the phones (which we all know aren't... Looks like the end is near for Helio and all you Helionauts, I'm sad to say. Ryan Block - the Editor in Chief of Engadget Ryan Block - just reported that Helio store managers are being notified that Virgin will be shuttering the doors on some, or possibly all, of Helio's retail outlets across the country as part of their takeover of the copmany. Furthermore it looks like Virgin will simply absorb all that is Helio, doing away with... At long last some news on the forthcoming sequel to Helio's flagship device: The Ocean 2, aka OZ2. The notable changes seem to be on the inside, as OZ2 rocks the same dual slider form factor as the original and looks to be more or less the same size, if a little more rounded and futuristic looking. Honestly, it's hard to tell from the sole photo that hit the Web over on Engadget Mobile.What's easier to get a read on are Ocean 2's... Could everyone's favorite MVNO be looking to merge with a less cool but bigger and badder MVNO? Could be.
Multiple media outlets have been reporting that Helio (everyone's fave, if you ask me) and Virgin Mobile USA (actually bigger and badder than Helio) are in talks to join forces. Details are a little bit sketchy right now, but one scenario desribed by The Washington Post has Helio's parent company SK Telecom buying out Virgin... Helio's been knocked around in the news a bit lately, but a source tells me they're doing alright and planning some big things for later in the year. Despite having been cut off by former parent company Earthlink earlier this year after costing them $111.3 million in net losses for 2007 (they're now the domain of SK Telecom), Helio actually outpaces the industry in many key financial categories. They added over 180,000... Yesterday Helio announced a limited-time offer $99/month Unlimited plan that gives you all the voice, messing, and handset-based data (read: no laptop tethering) you can stand for just under one hundred bucks a month. Today Sprint - Helio's network provider - chimed in with their own offer: Unlimited "Everything" for $119.99/mo, with laptop tethering available as a $30/mo add-on. (Note that the offer is currently only available in... Pros: Great device Great plans Cons: poor customer service poor choice of customer insurance, The Signal sucks as well. Summary: I had my Helio Ocean for a little over a year and was very happy. It wasn't until I lost my phone that I started having problems. Helio uses "The Signal" for their cell phone insurance. The Signal gives customers 2 claims to use per 12 months....I set up a claim once for my phone's water damage in which they sent me a defective phone. When calling helio they told me I needed to call the signal. so I set up a claim. They send another phone...months later I end up misplacing the phone and when I go to make a claim, it's denied because of my two previous claims. Who would have thought that the claim I put in for the defective phone THEY sent me would be counted against me!? This pissed me off and I decided to cancel my service...there was no reason why now that I'd genuinely loss the phone that The Signal or Helio couldn't work with me. My only options were to upgrade my phone at $150 or to purchase a new Ocean at $260....what is the point of insurance if it does nothing for me!? An hour after canceling my service, I received a phone call that someone had found my phone. I call Helio to see if they can stop the cancellation on the service. TWO different reps told me that the cancellation fee of $175 would be waived. A few days later I check my account to see how much I owe....$111 which is correct for the $99 unlimited plan I have. Two days later when I go to pay the bill, my account says $440 or something to that effect. When I call to find out the breakdown of my bill they couldn't even give me the breakdown saying they can't view what's in the next billing cycle. I'm also told that the 175 is probably on the account....what kind of sense does that make if days after I canceled it wasn't added to the bill, but then a week later it is!?!? The customer should not have to see information that should be handled behind the scenes. Helio's customer service has done nothing but piss me off in the past 2 weeks. I was fine the first year because everything I needed to handle could be handled by me. I can't wait for the day where I am financially okay to cancel this service and go to another provider...there's no way I'm stayin in another 2 year plan with them...no way. If I hadn't found they phone, I would have left the service canceled. I will raise HELL if I call back in 2 days and they tell me that $175 fee cannot be waived. Helio is not in the business of trying to keep their customers. Pros: Excellent reception. Cool devices. Good rates. Cons: Ocean sometimes freezes. Not enough device choices. Sometimes get texts from random people, when I text to ask who it is they say they didn't text me which is weird (happened about 4 times). No local number - I'm from Peoria and my number comes up as Rock Island. Summary: The only problem I had with this phone that I had to call customer service about was it was supposed to be activated already when I recieved it in the mail and it was not. The woman I spoke to was very helpful and we got it activated in no time. I went on a road trip to Boston this summer and I remember having reception the entire way. We even went up to New Hampshire into the middle of nowhere and the only two people with reception were me and another person who had Helio. Others had Sprint and AT&T. For unlimited EVERYTHING (but mins) they have a great deal going on. I just wish they'd get some more devices! 2 out of 2 people found this review helpful Pros: I travel for a living and I have not been to a place where I didn't get service. Great customer service. Battery life is good. Devices have tons of features. Plans are not expensive for what you get. Cons: NEW PHONES!!!! where are they? My contract is over and still no new phones? Summary: I signed up with Helio when they first started, I purchased the Hero and it was a great phone. Then the Ocean came out, had to have it. It has been a great phone, no problems at all, it does everything I could ask for in a phone (device, sorry Helio). But its time for something new or I am switching carriers. I want to wait for Ocean 2 but I don't think its worth the wait. Helio announced Ocean 2 early 2008, and they keep pushing it back. Whats the deal? Other than that, I would recommend it to anyone. 0 out of 1 people found this review helpful Pros: None. Cons: Phone never connects to internet. Slow, slow, slow. Had to have the company reset my phone, and lost all pictures and apps. Summary: Same complaints as all the others. Customer service sucks, but they do smile, which adds insult to injury when I have a problem. Paying my bill over the phone takes a MINIMUM of 9 minutes and 20 seconds. I live in West Palm Beach Florida, and the only place near my house that sells Helio is over 50 miles away. I didn't know this when I moved here from Illinois this year. There is no actual building I can go to for help with my phone, and trying to understand them over the phone is useless. 1 out of 2 people found this review helpful Cons: If the only solution for your device is a factory reset, you lost all apps or games that you bought more than 90 days before! Summary: When the Internet froze on my Helio, the device required a factory reset. While they encourage you to backup your contacts and photos, nothing can be done regarding apps and games. If you buy a bunch of them, you lose them all. Stupid policy. 1 out of 2 people found this review helpful All Helio user reviewsThat's a tough one, because most people can get used to anything, but if you have fat fingers you might want to try something from HTC I have a question, I have noticed that the space bar on the qwerty keypad of the Helio Ocean is small but for the people who have the phone, does it bother you? I have noticed that the space bar on the qwerty keypad is small, does it bother you? I recently bought the Ocean and the owners manual sucks on this phone.. just basic info on it. I bought the Motorola S9 bluetooth stereo Headset. I paired it and that went fine. It seems to work good as long as you work the phone, but i can't get the headset to access the phone to make a call. My other problem I have is using the headset listening to music the phone displays the volume about 25% up, and you can... Yea well I did get helio service and got a couple of phones. I got the ocean great phone. I also got the Fin... very nice flip phone. Customer service has been great for me, never more than 5 minutes on the phone. Don't always get a good knowledgeable answer from them either.I got the fin for my Dad, and the owner manual says it supports up to a 4 gig sd card. We buy one and it does not read it. We call... You can now get Helio without anydeposit requirements as part of a new promotion to give potential Helio Membersa chance to jump on Helio that might be building up their credit file orrepairing it. Now you can jump on to Helio without any deposit as long as youhave a major credit card or a debit account linked to a bank. Here is how itworks, you purchase the device and plan using the link below. http://www.heliobuy.com/h... Once your order is... Helio's service is getting better as they improve the customer service experience. To shore up issues in their credit check system where deposits have been very high, there is a new system that waives your deposit amount. You can check it out using the following link: http://www.heliobuy.com/h... This might be a good time to go with Helio because the deposit amount is waived as part of a special limited time offer. You can find out more by going to the following link: http://www.heliobuy.com/h... I have had two helio phones. The cell phones itself are good. but if you contact to the customer service, you will be pissed off. their customer service and plan are the worst ever. They charged my phone twices. I argued them with this for a couple of day and a couple of people. They did not fix it. If anyone consider to buy helio, I recommend to buy other carrier. They have better service and... I just downloaded the app to my Ocean an it's friggen awesome! Watch video here -> http://www.helio.com/#vid...
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