So, I moved apartments two months ago and signed up for this really great deal at BlackSIM, an internet provider belonging to the 1&1-Drillisch group and all that. I figured since Drillisch is pretty good as a service provider, BlackSIM couldn’t possibly suck… right?
But no, it sucks. Totally. This has been the worst headache ever over the past two months, and I switched today. If you’re located in Germany and looking for an internet service provider, don’t choose BlackSIM… Instead, go for 1&1. They’re much better.
This post is sort of like a review in the sense that I’ll rant excessively about my miserable and at times even dubious interactions with BlackSIM. If this helps you with not buying from them, then I am more than happy.
Chapter 1: Fuck BlackSIM
So, for starters, I signed up for this interesting new deal to receive a 100Mbit/s internet connection for the low price of 10 bucks a month, for the first six months… and then I’d have to pay 30 bucks a month from then onwards. It’s a steal, especially given what the competition has you pay.
I signed up, got led through the process, and everything went well. They sent me a router and I essentially had to plug it in and make an appointment with the tech guy to activate my line.
This is where the nightmare began.
First Appointment – November 23rd: My appointment was from 8 AM until noon. A technician is to stop by my home and activate the line. Since they had to enter the apartment (keep this in mind for now), I needed to stay at home during that time. Fair enough. But then we had a bit past noon and nobody showed up. I called in and they said that the tech guy couldn’t find me at my place… which is a lie. He never rang the ball.
So, I complained. This shit can get billed to me after all. They assured me they wouldn’t bill me since five other customers also complained about this same issue.
Second Appointment – December 4th: My appointment was another four-hour window, just like before, and this time around my girlfriend and I were waiting for the technician. We had other plans but since we had to wait for the tech guy, we couldn’t leave the house. Again, nobody stopped by. They cancelled on me at the very end. Apparently, they were sick.
So, I complained that this was the second time and that the “customer wasn’t available” notification was very misleading. They assured me, again, that they were sorry and that this wouldn’t get billed to me.
Third Appointment – December 13th: From 8 AM until 2 PM, I’m supposed to wait at home. I waited in the cold and rain for the tech guy to show up since they didn’t ring the bell. Nobody came. I called in, and they told me to wait until 5 PM. I waited. Nothing.
But then I got confirmation that apparently the line was activated. How? Apparently, they don’t have to enter the apartment and can do it out of the comfort of their car, outside, and just activate it without anything.
So, I spent three days waiting for a tech guy who never needed me to wait for him… even though they told me to wait at home. Naturally, I was pissed about this but hey my internet works, right?.
Well, nope… It still won’t work. I called the support hotline and they told me there’s apparently a technical problem and they’ll have to send another tech guy.
Fourth Appointment – December 15th: I am waiting for the tech guy to come because this time for sure, he has to enter my home. 8 AM until Noon. Again, nobody shows up. I call. They tell me to wait until 2 PM. I wait. Nothing. I call. They tell me to wait until 5 PM. I wait. Nothing. I call. They told me it got cancelled ten minutes before 5 PM.
So, not only did the tech guy have me wait a whole day over nothing… and not only did I miss out on a lot of classes… but he cancelled ten minutes before the five-hour-past-deadline-mark??? Shameless.
Fifth Appointment – December 20th: I wait for the tech guy to arrive between 8 AM and 2 PM. I’m tired. I barely slept. I still wake up and wait. And wait. And wait. Nothing. I call. I’m told the usual to wait until 5 PM. I wait. Nothing happens. Nobody comes. I call again.
The Support person then told me that they apologised and that the tech guy was still supposed to arrive. I’m told they’ll forward this issue to their superiors and that their superiors will call me back. They hang up.
I’m sad. I’m tired. I’m frustrated.
I call again and want to inquire about a potential temporary solution via SIM card and Wifi-Stick. I explain the situation. This new support person also tells me to wait for the superior to call me, the very next day.
The Very Next Day – December 21st: I call the support hotline again because I don’t trust them to actually do anything. I inquired about the status of this “forwarding to superiors business” and they told me that nothing was forwarded and that the superiors have nothing to do with the work of those lowly peasants.
I’m furious.
Essentially, they lied to me twice on Wednesday and they wanna get away with that?
Anyhow, I asked them about how to terminate our contract and they told me I’m supposed to write an e-mail, detailing what happened and my reason for the termination, while also providing my data and stuff. So, I did that today.
Today – December 22nd: I get a call from a BlackSIM employee who wants to figure out the next appointment (Number 6) for the elusive tech guy. I tell him that I’m terminating the contract. He suddenly tells me I can’t terminate my contract. I told him that I very much am entitled based on their contractual breach clause in the contract that if they cannot provide me with the service I’m paying for, I can terminate the contract. He stops.
He then tries to persuade me not to terminate the contract, assuring me that the next tech appointment will definitely work.
So, I tell him: No.
A really angry and deep “no” comes out of my face-hole (the big one) and I utter to him that I do not trust a single word that comes out of this company’s employees’ mouths. They lied to me, twice, in a recorded call, and they wasted my time… what a shitshow.
Literally, any other ISP would have had a quicker solution or would have at least provided a temporary solution. I talked to other people in my house and they had that experience.
And now this employee who called me to convince me not to quit starts whining about how he did his job incorrectly and how he will get into trouble because he couldn’t convince me or something. He’s trying to emotionally manipulate an angry customer. It’s the “if you break up, I’ll unalive myself”, essentially.
Good riddance.
Chapter 2: Hail to 1&1!
I called 1&1. They’re another German ISP and my parents had really great experiences with them, so I had high hopes. Literally, anything would be a better experience than what I went through these past few months.
And well, I was immediately greeted by an eager and incredibly friendly lady who tried to sell me a 100MBit/s-line for a good price but I really don’t have the funds for that much internet. Yes, I intend to stream at some point once everything is set up but I’m not in a position financially to overpay that much.
So, I had that cancelled. I called again and this new lady essentially offered me a 50MBit/s-line at a much more reasonable rate. I was happy and looking forward to it. All good.
A lot happened then with this second lady getting some of my data wrong which was probably due to the connection, for the most part, but we fixed most of the data in another call late at night yesterday (around 10 PM until 11 PM). No biggie. I don’t have internet anyway to watch a show or be productive, so might as well spend time in a call with a lovely tech guy.
There were some issues with the system but no biggie. The overall wait times were a lot shorter here compared to BlackSIM. The overall tone of the employees was much friendlier, too. I was happy to wait.
Their waiting music was a genuine banger, too, btw! Like, damn… I’d listen to that privately if I could, lol.
Either way, today, I cancelled the original order for the 50 Mbit/s line because it had a lot of my data wrong. I had to do it. There was no saving that one. Then I ordered the same product again, this time with a “Sofort-Start-Option” (essentially a router that has a stick and a SIM card with a temporary 50 GB of data to use until the rest is set up correctly).
The best part about this is btw that I originally signed up for this deal that essentially would have cost me 15 bucks a month for the first year, and 45 bucks a month in the second year. Well, screw that deal. It’s nothing compared to what I’ll now have to pay: For a whole year, I only pay 5 bucks a month for the router. The internet is free. Technically, this is only for 10 months but the 11th and 12th month of 2024 will be given to me as credits of sorts? Essentially, the next time, I have to pay something, they’ll use those 70-odd bucks for that payment, so the whole year is free for me.
And then in the second year, it’s normal prices but I was already aware of that.
It’s just that they essentially sold me this deal… and it sounded great, so I said I’d take it… and then they added more to it and it sounded unbelievable… so I said I’d take it… and then they threw this cinema deal that is completely free as well into the mix as an additional goodie with lots of free movies in a library that I can watch at any time, for free, which sounds great, so I’m taking the deal… but they didn’t listen and threw in another two free months that I’ll receive as money instead.
Like, I’ve seen a meme once about a guy wanting to close the deal and just adding more and more free goodies into the mix even though they didn’t have to.
Either way, I can’t find the meme, so just take my word for it.
I got a great deal. And then it got greater. Tomorrow my router will come. I’m excited.
Chapter 3: BlackSIM and the Gift that keeps on Giving
Addendum. Uh… did I do that right? Essentially, it’s nearly 9 PM here and I’m adding this section after the fact. This whole chapter 3 not being there thing was a joke of sorts but now there’s actually a chapter 3 and uh… yeah…
So, I requested the termination of my contract at BlackSIM and they accepted it… but they said it’s getting terminated in 2025.
Thus, I called them and we discussed a bunch of things.
For starters, I am unable to terminate the contract right now because the deadline for that is over already. They started counting down to the deadline when I received my router… but I thought that the countdown starts when it’s “activated” or at least when I have to pay up.
Well, as it turns out, dodgy companies have dodgy rules. The contract I signed didn’t say when the countdown (14-days) starts but it definitely sounded like it starts once the line is activated. It’s not just explicitly stated like that. Either way, my bad.
This one’s on me. I’m sitting here and now facing the consequences of my… *daduuuuuuum* own actions. Very dramatic.
Or am I?
So, I essentially talked to them on the phone again, stating that I am not comfortable with a dodgy company like them who will lie and cheat their way to victory like I previously mentioned. I was lied to on the phone. My time was wasted a total of five times.
Essentially, I told them that without a service being provided by them, I should have the so-called “Sonderkündigungsrecht”. And I do have that… but according to them, I only am eligible for this “special right of termination” if there have been five appointments that weren’t honoured by the tech guy… which is the case… but for whatever reason they can’t count.
So, new appointment: December 28th, 8 AM until 2 PM. I originally planned to take the train early to visit my parents on that day but I guess I’ll have to instead spend my time twisting my thumbs until 2 PM and I’ll only arrive at my parents’ place around 7 or 8 PM on that day. Woohoo.
This is what’s gonna happen:
If the tech guy comes and fixes the problem, I’m stuck with the dodgy company that makes me uncomfortable, that wasted my time five times now, and who lied to me and tried to manipulate me.
But if the tech guy doesn’t come and hence doesn’t fix the problem, I’ll be able to terminate our contract and thus be done with them forever. I’ll then be able to stick to the good company, 1&1.
That said, I need to terminate the current contract I have with 1&1 within 14 days. The appointment for the tech guy is in six days. This means that I’ve got a week that I can wait for the tech guy to not come… and then I can terminate the old contract and be happy… and free. But if the tech guy does end up showing up, I won’t be able to terminate the old contract… this would mean that I have eight days to terminate this new contract to not have to pay for two contracts at the same time.
If I terminate the contract now and then sign up on the 28th once it doesn’t work out, I’ll possibly lose the great deal I got. So, while this sounds complex, I’ll probably just hold my feet still for the time being and hope for the worst… by which I mean that the tech guy doesn’t show up after all.
So wish me bad luck. Wish me the worst kind of luck and pray that the tech guy doesn’t show up and that six hours of my life are wasted. That way, I can finally get done with BlackSIM.
But if it doesn’t work out, at least I’ll be at a dodgy company with good internet. So uh… there’s an upside either way.
Chapter 4: Stranger Danger
So, I talked about the second lady who got a lot of my data wrong… and well… I had to report her.
It’s not really about the data being wrong btw… it’s about something else.
Essentially, during our phone call, she noticed that we live sorta close by… and that we’re close in age… and that we both study at university (she asked)… and then she later texted me privately and then called me. I took the call thinking it was 1&1-related. As it turns out, she was the flirty kind and wanted to go for a bite sometime.
So, I let her know that her having my number through work and her doing this was a bit creepy and unprofessional… and that I’d love to go for dinner if it wasn’t for the fact that I’m taken. At least that was the nicest way for me to say “not interested” without saying it.
She apologized. The call ended. I blocked her number.
This is creepy. I reported this. It probably gets dealt with. It’s very stalker-ish and unprofessional but it doesn’t reflect on the company… because the company was amazing for all of the time that I spent in phone calls with several employees… excluding that one.
Anyhow, that’s a thing. It happened once. That aside, if something like this happens to ya with any sort of company, report it. It’s a breach of data and stuff.
Chapter 5: The End
First up, you may or may not have noticed that Chapter 3 is missing. That’s mostly because I figured it’d be nice to end on Chapter 5. Also, this proves as a “ha! gotcha! You didn’t pay attention!” moment… or it may just prompt a certain someone who’s eager to point out typos and mistakes to message me again so that I could tell them “I appreciate you. Happy Holidays”.
It’s a bad gimmick. Let’s ignore it. I’ll leave it in because I found it funny at first and it still makes me feel a bit goofy, so… (Edit: There’s a Chapter 3 now! Wowsers!)
I’ll have internet starting tomorrow. I’m unsure if I’ll stream using the 50GB temporary solution since streaming uses up a ton… so probably not? But like, we’ll see. For the time being I’m just glad I can study at home without relying on the university’s library (given that this place is closed starting tomorrow) and that I can write some blog posts, too, while I’m at it.
I’ll write another shorter post in a bit with a TLDR of sorts about streams and other content but for now, I’m just glad to finally get away from that BlackSIM shitshow and to look at a feasible and great contract like this.
(Edit: I’ll post an update regarding Chapter 3 once I have an update… in six days.)
Cheers!
This post was originally written by Dan Dicere from Indiecator.
If you see this article anywhere other than Indiecator.org then this article has been scraped. Please let me know about this via E-Mail.
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