Using your smartphone abroad can normally be fairly expensive with costs of up to £10/MB when using your smartphone abroad. From the 1st of July 2012, O2 are introducing a new roaming package for Pay Monthly and Pay As You Go customers who are holidaying in the EU. The ‘O2 Travel’ package allows you to use your smartphone abroad for £1.99/day which gives you up to 25MB of data. You’ll also be able to use your inclusive minutes for making and receiving calls with a connection fee of 50p per call.

What is the ‘O2 Travel’ package?

O2 Travel is a roaming package which will be available to all O2 customers (including Pay Monthly, Pay As You Go & Business customers) from 1st July 2012. When visiting another EU country, call charges will be as follows:

This should deliver some significant savings to O2 customers who currently need to pay 35p/minute to make calls, 11p/minute to receive calls and £3.07/MB for data in Europe. With the typical smartphone user consuming around 10MB of data each day, ‘O2 Travel’ provides a generous 25MB data allowance which should be sufficient for most users and finally makes it affordable to use your smartphone in Europe. There are no changes to the cost of calls, texts or data when outside of the EU.

‘O2 Travel’ follows in the footsteps of Vodafone’s Passport plan. Vodafone Passport (see our review) allows Vodafone customers who are visiting the EU, Australia or New Zealand to use their inclusive minutes when abroad with a 75p connection charge per call. Visitors to Europe will also benefit from the Vodafone ‘Data Traveller’ plan which also offers 25MB of data for £2/day.

What does 25MB data actually mean?

The average smartphone user consumes around 10MB of data every day but it can vary substantially depending on your usage patterns. As a rough estimate, 25MB approximately corresponds to:

Source of estimates: O2 [1, 2]. Our testing found a Skype mobile voice call consumes around 0.55MB/minute (70kbps). Skype video call uses 4MB/minute (500kbps). Online radio calculation assumes 128kbps bitrate. Average size of app is 6.1MB (based on top 20 free Android apps).

Please bear in mind that your data usage may differ from normal when on holiday. For example, you may find that it is lower than normal as you are no longer picking up and reading work e-mail. Alternatively, you may find that data consumption increases if you are regularly sharing photos with friends at home or uploading them to Facebook. Whilst a 25MB daily download allowance should be sufficient for web browsing, e-mail and instant messaging, it is unlikely to go very far if you are downloading music or watching YouTube videos.

See our full guide to download limits for more information about the meaning of megabytes and for details on how to measure your data consumption.

How much do other mobile operators currently charge for using your smartphone abroad?

The cost of using your smartphone abroad will vary significantly depending on whether you’re visiting a country inside the EU or a country outside of the EU (where charges tend to be much higher). The cost also varies by mobile operator and their local roaming arrangements. We recommend referring to your mobile operator’s website for a full up-to-date price guide:

• O2
• Orange
• Three
• T-Mobile
• Vodafone

Before leaving the UK, we also recommend checking out our best practice guide for using your phone abroad. Despite the recent price reductions for using your smartphone abroad, it may still be cheaper to buy a SIM card locally in your destination country especially if you’re there for more than a week.

Will other mobile operators also be reducing their roaming prices?

The new price caps will only apply when travelling to other EU countries.

As of 1st July 2012, the European Union is imposing caps on the cost of data when abroad in the EU. These caps will place a limit on how much mobile operators are allowed to charge us for using our smartphones abroad within the EU. The maximum price caps are to be set as follows:

• €0.29/minute (23p/minute) to make an outgoing call
• €0.08/minute (6p/minute) to receive a call
• €0.09 (7p/minute) to send a text message
• €0.70/MB (56p/MB) when using your smartphone abroad

It’s great news for holidaymakers and it’s widely expected that other mobile operators will follow in O2′s footsteps in the coming months by announcing lower prices for using your smartphone in the EU.

* All prices are excluding VAT and exchange rates between the euro and sterling may fluctuate.

What can I find out more about using my smartphone abroad?

We’ve got a complete guide to using your mobile phone abroad and the data roaming tariffs that are available to cut your costs.

Where can I find out more about the ‘O2 Travel’ plan?

You can find about more about ‘O2 Travel’ on O2′s website or their official press release.

Related posts:

1. Using your mobile abroad in Europe: What roaming will cost you
2. Data Roaming: Bundles for Using Your Smartphone Abroad, Avoid Huge Charges
3. EU to cut cost of roaming mobile phone texts & data

The Samsung Galaxy S II has been the bestselling Android-based smartphone over the previous year. Often compared to the Apple iPhone 4S, over 30 million of the devices have been sold worldwide leading the successor, the new Samsung Galaxy S III (S3), to be one of the most hotly-anticipated handsets of the year.

The Galaxy S3 was announced at an event in London earlier this month. It features a brand new design and form factor with HyperGlaze casing, a 4.8-inch organic LED display and the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich operating system. According to Samsung, the key innovation within the Galaxy S3 is in its range of smart features that can predict and understand your intentions. This ranges from “Smart Stay” technology that keeps the phone display on when you’re looking at it to the Siri-like “S Voice” application that allows you to interact with your phone through voice and natural language. Other enhancements also include Near Field Communication (NFC) technology and the ability to watch videos in a floating window whilst using other applications (“Pop-Out Video”).

How much will the Galaxy S3 cost on contract?

First off the mark announcing their tariffs is O2 who have announced their full line-up of Galaxy S3 tariffs. The flagship On & On tariff will offer unlimited calls and texts plus 1GB of data each month for £100 upfront plus £36/month. Alternatively, it’s possible to get the handset for free if you pay £46/month – however this works out costing an additional £140 over the 24 months of the contract.

A cheaper alternative for light users would be O2′s 200 minutes plan. For £250 upfront plus £21.50/month, you’ll get a new Galaxy S3 with 200 minutes, unlimited texts and 500MB data. The total cost of ownership over 24 months is £766 – substantially less than a comparable iPhone 4S tariff. Full details on O2′s tariffs can be found on their website.

'S Voice' on the Galaxy S3 works in the same way as Siri on the iPhone 4S.

Three have announced that the Galaxy S3 will be available for free on their flagship ‘The One Plan’ tariff for £34/month (see our review of ‘The One Plan’). You’ll get 2000 minutes, 5000 Three-to-Three minutes, 5000 texts and all-you-can-eat data with free tethering (mobile broadband). They are yet to announce any details of their other tariffs (‘Essential Internet’ and ‘Ultimate Internet’). Three currently have a holding page available where you can pre-order the phone.

Orange and T-Mobile have confirmed that they will be stocking the Galaxy S3. However, they are yet to announce their price plans.

Vodafone are yet to announce their tariff line-up but have confirmed they will be stocking both the 16GB and 32GB versions of the phone. The 32GB version of the Galaxy S3 is exclusive to Vodafone until the end of June. However, customers on other networks can simply opt for the 16GB version and then insert a micro-SD card of up to 64GB. A 16GB micro-SD card is available from as little as £7 making it much more economical to opt for the 16GB version plus micro-SD card than to purchase the version with 32GB of built-in storage. You can register for more information about the Galaxy S3 on Vodafone at their website.

As soon as the mobile networks have announced full details of their tariffs, we’ll update this page with a full table and a price comparison calculator.

How about SIM-free deals and SIM Only tariffs for the Galaxy S III?

As usual, the Galaxy S3 will be available to buy as a SIM-free and unlocked device. This will allow you to insert a SIM card from the mobile operator of your choice with SIM Only smartphone tariffs often providing great value from as little as £10/month. The price of the SIM-free version of the Galaxy S III is still yet to be confirmed at many retailers but Amazon.co.uk and Carphone Warehouse have it available for just under £500. The SIM-free version of the Galaxy S III will be available to purchase from the 30th May.

Note that the Galaxy S III takes a micro-SIM card. You should ask your mobile network operator for a micro-SIM sized card as full sized SIM cards will not work within the device.

The Samsung Galaxy S3 is available in ‘Marble White’ and ‘Pebble Blue’. Both phones use ‘HyperGlaze’ technology in the casing.

When will the Galaxy S III be available?

The Samsung Galaxy S III will be available in the UK on Pay Monthly contract, Pay As You Go and SIM-free from the 30th May.

Where can I find out more about the Samsung Galaxy S III?

You can find out more about the Galaxy S III on Samsung’s official website or through my guest post on the giffgaff blog.

Related posts:

1. Compare Samsung Galaxy S II Mobile Tariffs: Price Comparison Calculator
2. Pay As You Go VS Pay Monthly Contracts: Mobile Phone Tariffs Compared
3. HTC ChaCha VS Samsung Galaxy Pro: Android Alternatives Compared to BlackBerry

How long should my phone last between recharges?

Modern smartphones are designed to last for at least a day on a single charge under moderate usage. Typically you’ll need to recharge your phone every night and it shouldn’t be a worry if you find yourself needing to do this.

However, if your smartphone struggles to make it through the day and requires a mid-day power boost, we recommend investigating to see whether a misbehaving applications is causing problems. The power saving tips in this article will help to diagnose issues with your smartphone’s battery life and ways to improve it.

How can I extend the battery life of my phone?

Most phones come with a range of features that allow you to conserve power and ensure your phone can last longer between recharges. The exact features vary depending on your phone, but there are some common tips and features:

• Check for misbehaving applications. If you’re on Android, check for a misbehaving application using our guide to resolving poor battery life on Android.
  
• Use wi-fi at home if it’s available. It’s a simple law of physics that says that the your phone will consume more power when transmitting information further. Modern smartphones can be continuously transmitting and receiving data and this can eat up battery quickly. If you’ve got good wi-fi coverage at home, enabling wi-fi on your smartphone can substantially improve battery life particularly if 3G coverage is poor where you live.
  
• Turn off wi-fi if you’re not using it. If you’ve got wi-fi turned on but you’re not connected to a network, your phone will continuously search for wi-fi networks in the background. Even once you’ve left home or work and no wi-fi coverage is available, your phone will still be searching for wi-fi networks in the background. This can eat up a lot of energy so it’s worth turning wi-fi off when you leave the home!
• Turn off 3G/WCDMA if it’s not needed or reception would improve. The more bars you have, the longer the battery on your phone will last. This is because the weaker your phone signal is, the more power must be used by the phone to maintain the connection with the network. If 3G coverage is poor where you live, one possible way of extending your battery life is to disable 3G. As a 2G/GPRS tower will often give a better signal, this will improve battery life. Look for an option to disable 3G/disable WCDMA or for a “GSM only” option.
• Switch off data overnight. Even when you go to sleep, your phone will continue to work in the background by synchronising your e-mails, feeds, instant messages and more. Not only can these notifications interrupt your sleep throughout the night, they can also reduce battery life. Disabling 3G data and wi-fi connectivity overnight will reduce battery drain to near-zero and allow your phone to enter remain in a low-power state for 8 hours a night.
• Turn down the brightness on your screen. The screen is one of the most power hungry features of a modern phone. By reducing the brightness of your phone’s display or using the “automatic brightness” feature, battery life can be extended.
• Turn off GPS. GPS can be a real power hog especially when you’re using your phone indoors. When you disable GPS on your phone, your phone can still use network location to determine its location (it triangulates the signal it receives from different masts). Whilst this might not be accurate enough for turn-by-turn GPS navigation, it should suffice for most tasks.
• Lock screen. When you’ve finished using your phone, get in the habit of locking it. Once the phone is locked, the screen will turn off and the phone enters a low power mode (unless you’ve got wakelocks). One key factor which can significantly affect battery life is how long it takes for your phone to reach the “sleep” state.
• Turn off the vibration feature. It takes quite a lot of energy to vibrate a phone. If you’ve got a touchscreen keyboard which vibrates every time you tap a key, this can drain battery life. Look for an option to disable “haptic feedback” in your phone’s menus.
• Reduce sync frequency. Many smartphones have the capability of automatically synchronising things such as your e-mail, Facebook friends list and profile pictures, etc. Reducing the frequency with which your phone synchronises will reduce the amount of data downloaded and hence the amount of battery consumed.
• Switch network. The better the signal you receive from your mobile network, the longer your phone will last on a single charge. See our guide on how to choose the network with the best reception and use tools such as OFCOM Sitefinder to find the location of nearby masts. You can also obtain some free Pay As You Go SIM cards to test coverage quality on the major networks.

Should I wait for the battery to fully discharge before charging it?

No. You should avoid allowing the battery to fully discharge. Although the lithium-ion batteries in most smartphones can only be charged a certain number of times, a partial recharge will only count as a partial cycle (charging from 50% to 100% counts as half of a charge cycle). It makes no difference to the battery whether you charge it fully in one go or lots of times in small amounts.

Is it possible to over-charge my battery?

No. The charger should automatically cut out once the phone is fully charged. There should be no problem in leaving the phone plugged into the mains even when it is fully charged (most people do this with their laptops all the time). However, there may be energy wastage associated with leaving your phone plugged in.

Are third party/replacement batteries safe to use?

We strongly recommend against purchasing batteries unless they are from a trusted brand and source. Ideally you should purchase replacement batteries from the original equipment manufacturer – your mobile phone maker. It can be incredibly dangerous to use cheap or counterfeit batteries: these batteries often claim a higher capacity than they really have and could lack the necessary safety circuits.

Where can I learn more about mobile phone batteries?

There is a fantastic site called Battery University which really does explain everything anyone could ever want to know about batteries. Mobile phones normally use lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries – your battery should have a label identifying the type of battery. Key guides include:

• The chemistry of lithium-ion batteries (technical!)
• How to charge lithium-ion batteries
• How to charge and when to recharge
• How to recycle batteries
• Dos and Don’ts: Table of best practice for batteries

Related posts:

1. How to resolve poor battery life & battery issues on Android
2. Mobile Phones at Music Festivals: The Essential Guide
3. HTC Desire HD Android Smartphone: Reviewed and Compared to HTC Desire

"Everything Everywhere" is the joint venture between Orange and T-Mobile.

Since Orange and T-Mobile merged to form “Everything Everywhere” in 2010, the two networks have been working to gradually consolidate and to merge their mobile networks. The latest phase of this has seen the launch of “Smart Signal Sharing” whereby Orange and T-Mobile handsets will now automatically connect to the stronger of the two networks. Having launched quietly over the past few weeks, “Smart Signal Sharing” should lead to better coverage and improved battery life for both Orange and T-Mobile customers. However, teething issues have included the loss of internet connectivity for consumers whilst roaming.

What is “Smart Signal Sharing”?

“Smart Signal Sharing” is the new network sharing arrangement between Orange and T-Mobile (both brands of the company “Everything Everywhere”). Now available throughout most of the UK (excluding South West England), handsets on both Orange and T-Mobile will automatically check to see which network offers better coverage and will automatically switch to that network. The roaming is seamless and 3G-capable so should happen totally transparently – the only thing you’ll notice is that the network name displayed on your handset will change more often.

The benefits to end users should include greater coverage, the potential of improved download speeds and the potential of improved battery life (signal strength is a major factor in determining in your handset’s battery life)

How does this differ from Orange and T-Mobile’s roaming agreement in the past?

Orange and T-Mobile merged on the 1st July 2010 to form “Everything Everywhere”. Part of the business plan of the newly-merged company was to gradually combine the two networks together.

To this extent, Orange and T-Mobile originally made their second-generation 2G mobile networks available to each other from October 2010. T-Mobile customers who lost signal on their phone would roam on to Orange’s 2G network and Orange customers who lost signal on their phone would roam on to T-Mobile’s 2G network. This roaming arrangement was “non-seamless”: rather than your handset automatically selecting the network that gave the best signal, your handset would only connect to the roaming network in the event that no coverage was available from your home network. Furthermore, the roaming arrangement was limited to 2G meaning that download speeds were limited to 80kbit/s. It was also not possible to switch between the two networks mid-call.

From October 2011 onwards, the two networks were re-configured to support 3G roaming. This was great news for smartphone owners: in the event that no coverage was available from your home network, HSPA+ download speeds of up to 21Mbit/s would also be available on the roaming network. However, this was still a non-seamless process: rather than your handset automatically picking the strongest signal, it would only fall back onto the other network in the event that coverage was lost.

The new “Smart Signal Sharing” arrangement that launched in early 2012 means that both networks are now sharing their 3G networks fully with download speeds of up to 21Mbit/s available to customers of both networks. Rather than the old “non-seamless” roaming whereby preference is given to your own home network, handsets will now automatically pick the stronger of the two networks. This means that from now on, the “Orange T-Mobile” message will become a more familiar sight to Orange customers as will the “T-Mobile Orange” message for T-Mobile customers.

How can I tell which network my phone is connected to?

If your phone is currently roaming on an Orange or T-Mobile mast, your phone will display the name of both networks:

• Orange customers roaming on T-Mobile will see the network name “Orange T-Mobile”
• T-Mobile customers roaming on Orange will see the network name “T-Mobile Orange”

When connected to a “home” mast, your phone will simply display the name of your network as before.

Have there been any teething issues with the new “Smart Signal Sharing”?

Yes. Since the launch of “Smart Signal Sharing”, we have heard various reports from readers who have been unable to access the internet on their phone whilst roaming. We have been able to reproduce this issue with a T-Mobile handset roaming on Orange 3G – whilst an icon for HSPA+ connectivity was shown on the handset, it was not possible to access the internet from it. We hope that these issues will be resolved over the coming weeks.

Are there any additional charges associated with roaming on an Orange/T-Mobile mast?

No. There are no additional charges associated with the new roaming arrangement. Regardless of whether you’re connected to an Orange mast or a T-Mobile mast, your calls and texts will cost the same as before and will come out of the same airtime allowances. There are only additional charges for roaming when you go abroad.

Will a call between Orange and T-Mobile still be charged as a cross-network call?

A call between Orange customers and T-Mobile customers will still be billed as a cross-network call.

My phone is displaying warnings about “Data Roaming”. What does it mean?

Data roaming is free within the UK but can cost up to £8/MB outside of the UK.

Many smartphones are set up to display a warning when you use data/internet over a roaming connection. This is a useful feature because traditionally you only roam whilst abroad and using the internet abroad could cost up to £8/MB (see our guide to what MBs means in terms of web pages, emails, etc).

Typically I advise users to disable “data roaming” on their phones. This prevents you from running up a large bill from using your smartphone abroad – however the side-effect of this setting on some older handsets is that it may also disable data roaming within the UK across the Orange and T-Mobile networks (this data roaming has no additional charges). The workaround to this issue would be to enable “data roaming” – however great care must be taken to turn it off before you leave the UK in order to avoid additional download charges.

How can I check Orange coverage or T-Mobile coverage where I live?

You should use the Orange coverage checker and the T-Mobile coverage checker.

Where can I find out more about “Smart Signal Sharing”?

You can find out more about “Smart Signal Sharing” on the Orange website or the T-Mobile website.

Related posts:

1. Orange and T-Mobile begin 3G network sharing
2. Orange and T-Mobile customers: Register now for enhanced reception on merged network
3. Orange’s UMA offers enhanced reception at home for BlackBerry phones

Three‘s top-of-the-range flagship tariff, “The One Plan”, is best known for its generous allowance of minutes, texts and all-you-can-eat data with a free mobile broadband service through tethering. Starting from £25/month, the “One Plan” comes with 2000 cross-network minutes, 5000 Three-to-Three minutes, 5000 texts, and all-you-can-eat data with no download limits. The plan is available with a brand new smartphone when you commit for 24-months or if you already own your own handset and are looking more flexibility, as a rolling 30 day SIM Only contract instead.

With the second birthday of “The One Plan” fast approaching and with the popularity of the plan spawning offerings from rivals such as T-Mobile’s “The Full Monty” and O2′s “On and On”, we take a fresh look at The One Plan and look at how it compares to Three’s other offerings as well as rival offerings. We’ll also look at the range of devices available on “The One Plan”, what you can expect from “The One Plan” and how you can keep your existing phone number when switching to “The One Plan”.

What is “The One Plan” from Three?

“The One Plan” is Three’s flagship mobile phone tariff. It is essentially being marketed as a tariff where you can pay a flat monthly fee and stop worry about any additional charges: to that extent the tariff typically comes with a free handset as well as a very generous airtime allowance.

The inclusive monthly allowance on “The One Plan” is:

• 2,000 cross-network minutes
• 5,000 additional Three-to-Three minutes
• 5,000 texts
• All-you-can-eat internet with no download limits
• Tethering & wi-fi hotspot (free mobile broadband for your laptop, tablet, Kindle, iPod, etc.)
• Free voicemail

As internet on “The One Plan” is truly unlimited and does not come with download limits or fair usage policies, it is possible to use the full featureset of your smartphone and download apps to your heart’s content without having to worrying about additional data charges. Furthermore, as Three allow tethering on “The One Plan”, it becomes possible to use your mobile phone as a portable hub through which your unlimited downloads are shared with other devices such as a laptop, tablet, e-book reader or iPod Touch.

In terms of calls and texts, it is worth noting that “The One Plan” is not a truly unlimited tariff. You’re limited to 2,000 cross-network minutes and 5,000 texts per month (plus an additional 5,000 Three-to-Three minutes). Whilst this part of the plan is not truly unlimited, it still equates to making 67 minutes of outgoing calls and sending 167 text messages every day. As this is likely to be substantially more than most people require, we say that calls and texts are “essentially unlimited” for most practical purposes.

How much does “The One Plan” cost?

The One Plan is available in two formats:

• 24-month Pay Monthly Contract (starting from £30/month with inclusive phone). This tariff is designed for customers who would like a new smartphone and would be happy to commit for 24 months. You’ll get a brand new smartphone – typically for free through a small charge can apply for some handsets. Popular combinations include the 16GB iPhone 4S for £34/month plus £49 upfront though some smartphones are available for free from just £30/month. The full selection of phones available with “The One Plan” can be found on the Three website.
• 30-day SIM-only contract (£25/month). This tariff is designed for consumers who would like a bit of additional flexibility and who already own a smartphone they’d like to keep (e.g. iPhone, Android, Samsung Galaxy, etc.). Providing that your current smartphone was either purchased on Three or has been unlocked for use on Three, it is possible to switch to “The One Plan” simply by slotting the provided SIM card into your phone. You can keep your existing number using a PAC Code. 30 days notice is required to leave “The One Plan”.

Which handsets are available with The One Plan?

A large range of devices are available on The One Plan. Popular options include:

• Apple iPhone 4 (8GB) with no download limits - £30/month on The One Plan (£49 upfront charge)
• Apple iPhone 4S (16GB) with no download limits - £34/month on The One Plan (£49 upfront charge)
• Apple iPhone 4S (32GB) with no download limits - £36/month on The One Plan (£159 upfront charge)
• Apple iPhone 3G S (8GB) with no download limits - £35/month on The One Plan (free handset)
• HTC One X with no download limits - £34/month on The One Plan (£29 upfront charge)
• Samsung Galaxy S II with no download limits - £29/month on The One Plan (£29 upfront charge)
• Nokia Lumia 800 with no download limits - £36/month on The One Plan
• Blackberry Bold 9900 with no download limits - £41/month on The One Plan
• SIM Card with no download limits - £25/month on The One Plan

The full list of available handsets can be found on the Three website.

Is the 24-month Pay Monthly or the 30-day SIM-only version of this tariff more suitable for me?

It really depends on the flexibility that you desire from your handset and whether you’d like a new smartphone. There can be some exceptionally cheap devices available on the 24-month version of “The One Plan” – for example the Samsung Galaxy S II is available at £31/month plus £39 upfront. Over 24 months, this works out as being £183 more expensive than the vanilla £25/month SIM-only tariff, yet a brand new Galaxy S II can retail for around £400. For this reason, if you are happy to commit for 24 months we suggest it could be highly beneficial to upgrade your phone at the same time.

A full list of available devices can be found on the Three website.

Is there a micro-SIM version of “The One Plan” available?

Yes. If you opt for the 30-day SIM Only version of “The One Plan”, you’ll need to ensure that you receive a SIM card of the correct size for your device. The vast majority of smartphones accept a full-sized SIM card whereas the Apple iPhone (iPhone 4 & iPhone 4S), HTC One and Nokia Lumia devices require a micro-SIM card. If you are unsure about whether your smartphone accepts a full-sized SIM card (also known as “Mini SIM”) or a micro-SIM sized card, please check your manual. Regardless of the physical size of the SIM card required by your device, there are no differences in price or inclusive allowances.

How does “The One Plan” compare to rival offerings such as T-Mobile’s “The Full Monty” and O2′s “On and On”?

The popularity of “The One Plan” amongst consumers in the UK over the last 21 months has led rivals companies T-Mobile and O2 to launch their own competitors to the tariff. T-Mobile’s offering is called “The Full Monty” whereas O2′s offering is called “On and On”. Three’s offerings tend to be the cheapest of the 3 rival offerings. Notably, O2 does not include unlimited data on their “On and On” tariff – instead there is a monthly download allowance of 1GB per month (or 2GB per month with an additional charge).

* The approximate market share of T-Mobile is 19% whereas the approximate market share of Three is 7%. On the face of it, this would make unlimited calls to T-Mobile numbers a much better proposition than unlimited calls to Three numbers. However, the high number of inclusive minutes on both plans means this is unlikely to make very much difference in the real-world.

For a detailed comparison of Three and T-Mobile’s respective offerings, we’ve got a detailed comparison of ‘The Full Monty’ VS ‘The One Plan’.

You can find out more about “The Full Monty” on the T-Mobile website and more about “On and On” on the O2 website.

How does The One Plan compare to Three’s other tariff offerings?

As well as “The One Plan”, Three also offers a range of other Pay Monthly tariffs including “Essential Internet” and “Ultimate Internet” tariffs. We’ve got a detailed review and comparison of these tariffs. “Essential Internet” tariffs come with a 250MB monthly download allowance whereas “Ultimate Internet” tariffs come with all-you-can-eat data. However, neither the “Essential Internet” tariffs nor the “Ultimate Internet” tariffs support tethering – one of the primary benefits of “The One Plan”. Tethering is only permitted on “The One Plan”.

More information on “Essential Internet” and “Ultimate Internet” can be found on the Three website.

Can I tether on “The One Plan”?

Yes. “The One Plan” comes with all-you-can-eat data and free tethering. This means you can share your high-speed 3G data connection with other devices such as a laptop, tablet (including wi-fi only iPad tablets), an iPod Touch, e-book reader or games console. Using this feature, all of your electronic devices can make use of “The One Plan” to access online content whilst you’re on the move – all they need to do is to be able to connect to a wi-fi hotspot produced by your smartphone.

In order to use this feature, you’ll need a phone which supports the mobile wi-fi hotspot feature. Most modern smartphones including the Apple iPhone and most Android devices now support wi-fi hotspot. For details of how to get it up and running, we’ve got a detailed guide on tethering.

Can I really use “The One Plan” as an alternative to a mobile broadband service?

Yes – in fact this is one of the primary benefits of “The One Plan”. We think that with all-you-can-eat data and free tethering, “The One Plan” is a great alternative to mobile broadband – using your smartphone as a mobile wi-fi hub will allow you to connect another 5 wi-fi enabled devices to the mobile internet too. We’ve got an in-depth guide to using “The One Plan” as a mobile broadband replacement.

Is it possible to get “The One Plan” on an 18 month contract?

No. Unfortunately it is not possible to get “The One Plan” on an 18-month contract. Three do not offer any contracts of 18 months duration. You must either opt for the 24 month version of “The One Plan” which comes with an inclusive smartphone or the 30-day SIM-only version of the plan.

Does “all-you-can-eat data” have a fair usage policy?

According to Three, there is no fair usage limit for all-you-can-eat data – nor have we received any reports of customers finding hidden download limits with all-you-can-eat data.

What type of download speeds can I expect on “The One Plan”?

Three offers a HSPA+ service across 80% of the UK meaning you can obtain download speeds of up to 21Mbit/s with a compatible smartphone (in reality most customers will receive around 4Mbit/s on HSPA+). If your smartphone is not HSPA+ compatible, you will receive download speeds of up to 7.2Mbit/s using older HSDPA technology.

What’s the coverage like on Three?

You should use the coverage checker on the Three website to ensure you can receive a signal from Three where you live.

How has “The One Plan” changed since its launch?

The One Plan originally launched in July 2010. All-you-can-eat data and free tethering was added for all One Plan customers in December 2010. The most recent update to The One Plan (May 2011) saw the SIM-only version of “The One Plan” changing from a 12-month contract to a rolling 30-day contract.

I’m switching to The One Plan. Can I keep my existing phone number?

Yes. You’ll need to ask your existing mobile network for a PAC Code. Provide this to Three and they’ll handle the transfer of your phone number. It should take no more than 24 hours to transfer a phone number. Our PAC Code Finder tool will take you through the entire process of switching networks step-by-step.

Where can I get this deal?

The One Plan is available as a SIM-only contract (30-day rolling contract) or standard 24 month Pay Monthly contract through the Three website.

Related posts:

1. Giffgaff Review & Comparison to Pay As You Go Mobile Networks
2. Three’s ‘The One Plan’ is UK’s best value Apple iPhone 4S deal
3. Three offering “refreshed” iPhones from £20/month; £25/month with all-you-can-eat data on The One Plan

Android smartphones such as the Galaxy S II and HTC One X can sometimes have a bad reputation for battery life. Although both devices are designed to last for an entire day on a single charge, the battery life of the devices can often be compromised by misbehaving applications on the device. The “wakelocks” applied by these applications can cause the battery on the device to drain incredibly quickly, even when it is not in use.

In this article, we build upon the power saving advice and battery saving tips that we have previously provided by providing some additional battery saving tips for Android smartphone owners. We look at how to diagnose when a badly written application is adversely impacting upon your phone’s battery life and how to restore your smartphone back to day-long battery life.

Using Android’s Battery Usage Monitor

In most cases, the causes of poor battery life on Android are misbehaving applications rather than any specific hardware or battery problems. In this way, a 5-minute review of which applications are running on your device can sometimes improve battery life quite substantially. Thankfully, Android provides some built-in features for diagnosing power consumption and managing battery life.

If you own a smartphone running Android 2.3 Gingerbread or Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, Android features a built in battery usage monitor application. This can be accessed through the “Settings > About Phone > Battery Usage” menu item on Gingerbread or the “Settings > Battery” menu item in Ice Cream Sandwich. The Battery Usage Monitor (pictured below) shows a graph of battery drain as well as a breakdown of which applications have caused battery drain.

The “Battery Usage Monitor” application on Android 2.3 Gingerbread (left) and Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich (right).

The most useful way to use this feature is to tap on the graph at the top of the battery drain graph. This will show an enlarged graph of battery drain (shown below) and how the battery drain corresponds to other factors such as when the phone is awake, when wi-fi is enabled, when the display is turned on and when the phone is charging.

Two examples of what the battery drain graph could look like.

The diagrams above provide an example of what the battery drain graph on your device could look like.

In the example on the left, 60% of our battery drained in 8.5 hours. This means we could expect 14 hours of usage (approximately half a day) before the battery runs out to zero. We note from the bar graphs that the phone remained in the “Awake” state for the majority of the 8.5 hours of the graph, despite the fact the phone was barely in use at the time (the “Screen on” bar is dark for the majority of the time).This is indicative of a misbehaving application: if there is substantially more blue in the “Awake” bar graph than in the “Screen on” bar graph, you most likely have a misbehaving application installed on your device.

After removing these misbehaving applications, our battery drain graph now looks as it does on the right. In this diagram, only 15% of our battery drained in 5.5 hours. This means we could expect 36 hours of usage before the battery runs out to zero.

By removing the misbehaving applications that caused our phone to perpetually remain in the “Awake” state, we have almost tripled the battery life of our device. From lasting just half a day on a single charge before our clean up, our newly “cleaned up” device now lasts for a day and a half on a single charge.

CPU Spy & How Android manages power consumption

As an operating system, Android is incredibly smart in the way that it manages power consumption. Android can dynamically change your smartphone’s processor clock speed depending on how the phone is currently being used. When Android chooses a higher clock speed, it mean that your phone will complete its tasks much faster – however it’ll also mean that more power consumption on the device is increased (battery life is reduced). Lower clock speeds mean that tasks take longer to complete, but power consumption is lower and battery life is extended.

In order to achieve an appropriate trade-off between performance and battery life, Android will automatically choose the most appropriate clock speed for what you want to do. For example, Android could choose to run at a high clock speed when you’re watching video, but a lower clock speed could be chosen when you’re reading e-mails.

When your phone is not actively in use (i.e. its display is off), Android should automatically enter a state called “Deep Sleep”. This is a mode of ultra-low power consumption whereby your phone will continue to listen out for phone calls and new messages but will essentially be “off” otherwise.

The key to ensuring good battery life is to ensure that Android can properly choose the correct clock speed and that your phone will enter the “Deep Sleep” state when not in use. Misbehaving applications can affect the ability of Android to choose the correct clock speed and this is what leads to poor battery life.

The free CPU Spy application from Google Play (pictured below) allows you to see how much time your phone spends in each of these different states. If your phone spends very little time in the “Deep Sleep” state, this is indicative of a misbehaving application.

Finding misbehaving applications using BetterBatteryStats

If your battery problems have only begun recently after installing a new application, it could be fairly obvious as to which application is the culprit. Uninstalling this application may fix your problems instantly. Otherwise, the best way to find misbehaving applications is to use an application called BetterBatteryStats. BetterBatteryStats costs £1.74 from Google Play or is alternatively available as a free download to members of the XDA Developers forum.

Once you’ve installed the BetterBatteryStats application, select the “Partial Wakelocks” menu item. This will present a list of applications on your device that have caused your phone to remain in the “Awake” state. The “wakelock” time is how long that application has prevented your phone from entering the “Deep Sleep” state for. Misbehaving applications will typically stand out fairly clearly here: they will have an incredibly long wakelock time on the order of hours. These are the misbehaving applications that are stopping your phone from entering the “Deep Sleep” state. Uninstalling or removing them will improve your battery life substantially.

On our demo device, an misbehaving application called “com.sec.spp.push.Samsung Push Service” was preventing our device from entering the “Deep Sleep” state. Uninstalling this application tripled the battery life of our device from 14 hours to 36 hours.

There aren’t any misbehaving applications on my system. What else could be the cause of poor battery life?

Please see our general article to extending your phone’s battery life. You can improve the battery life of your phone through various methods such as reducing the brightness of the display and reducing how often your applications synchronise with the web.

Related posts:

1. Improving your Smartphone Battery Life: Power Saving Tips and Tricks
2. HTC Desire HD Android Smartphone: Reviewed and Compared to HTC Desire
3. Free Google Sat-Nav application now available on Android phones in the UK

HTC’s new flagship device, the HTC One X, launched on all five of the UK’s mobile operators this week (on Three, O2, Orange, T-Mobile and Vodafone). Featuring a 4.7-inch high definition display, a 1.5GHz quad-core processor, 32GB of internal memory, an 8 megapixel camera and the latest version of Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, the HTC One X is arguably the most powerful smartphone available to date and is likely to become one of the bestselling handsets of 2012.

In this article, we look at the cheapest and best value HTC One X tariffs across the UK. Our top pick is O2′s £27/month tariff which comes with 300 minutes, unlimited texts, 500MB internet and a brand new HTC One X with an upfront cost of just £80.

Which tariffs are recommended?

Aside from O2′s £27/month tariff, our top picks include:

• Best value for typical users: £27/month plus £80 upfront for 300 minutes, unlimited texts and 500MB data on O2. The “average” consumer in the UK uses around 250 minutes, 250 texts and 250MB of data each month. If you’re a typical user, O2′s £27/month offering provides the best value by far. There’s an upfront cost of £80 on O2′s tariff and you’ll get a 300 minutes, unlimited texts and a healthy download allowance of 500MB internet.
• Cheapest tariff for light users: £21.50/month plus £105 upfront for 200 minutes, unlimited texts and 250MB data on O2. If you make less than 250 minutes of outgoing calls each month and have a wi-fi network at home, you can save substantially with O2′s £21.50/month tariff. You’ll get a monthly allowance of 200 minutes, unlimited texts and 250MB data. There’s an upfront cost of £105 for the phone with this tariff.
• Best for heavy users: £36/month for 1000 minutes, 5000 texts and unlimited “all-you-can-eat” data on Three. If you spend a long time chatting on the phone, Three are currently offering the HTC One X for free on their £36/month Ultimate Internet 1000 tariff. You’ll get 1000 minutes, 5000 texts and all-you-can-eat data with no download limits.
• Best for downloading and heavy internet usage: £38/month for 2000 minutes, 5000 texts, unlimited “all-you-can-eat” data and inclusive tethering with Three. If you’re a heavy internet user, Three are currently offering the HTC One X for free with their £38/month ‘The One Plan’ tariff. You’ll get all-you-can-eat data with no download limits allowing you to make the most out of the HTC One X’s multimedia features plus an inclusive tethering service that provides you with access to a mobile broadband service on all of your wi-fi enabled devices.

Which is the cheapest HTC One X tariff for me?

To find the most appropriate and best tariff for you, please enter your typical mobile phone usage into our price comparison calculator:

Launch the HTC One X price comparison tool

Where can I see full information about available HTC One X tariffs?

Please select a mobile network to view their HTC One X tariffs:

• 3 (Three)
• O2
• Orange
• T-Mobile
• Vodafone

The full specifications of the HTC One X are available on the HTC website. An in-depth review of the HTC One X can be found at Engadget and Slashgear.

I’m switching network. Can I keep my existing phone number?

Yes. You’ll need to ask your existing network for a PAC Code. This PAC Code should be provided to your new mobile network provider once you’ve received your new phone: they’ll handle the transfer of your phone number for you within 24 hours of your request. Our PAC Code Finder tool can help you to obtain a PAC Code.

What do download limits such as 500MB or 1GB actually mean?

We’ve got an in-depth guide to download limits and what terms such as 500MB actually mean. The typical HTC One X smartphone user will consume around 250MB of data but this could be considerably higher if you stream music, videos or online radio.

Related posts:

1. UK’s Cheapest Samsung Galaxy S3 Tariffs: Contracts Compared
2. Three’s launch UK’s cheapest Apple iPhone tariffs yet, provide free memory upgrade
3. O2 offering UK’s cheapest HTC Desire S: free from £13.50/month with internet

O2 have this week launched a new Pay Monthly tariff: the “On and On” tariff. With unlimited calls, unlimited texts and a 1GB data allowance, the new tariff puts O2 in direct competition to Three’s “The One Plan” and T-Mobile’s “The Full Monty”.

The “On and On” tariff is available as a 12 month SIM-only package for £26/month if you’re happy to keep your current phone or is available as a 24 month contract from £36/month if you’d like a brand new smartphone. Customers are also given the option to upgrade to a 2GB data allowance for an additional £5/month (or an additional £2/month on the SIM-only package).

What does O2′s “On and On” tariff include?

O2′s new “On and On” tariff is being marketed as a “buy it and forget about it” tariff. To that regard, you’ll get unlimited calls and unlimited texts so you never need to worry about out-of-bundle charges for spending too long on the phone.

You’ll also get a healthy 1GB data allowance – enough for about 3,000 rich webpages, 200 MP3 files, 2 hours of video or 160 new application downloads. Tethering and mobile wi-fi hotspot is also included so you can share your 3G connection with a laptop, tablet or iPod Touch.

Tethering is included with "On and On".

The “On and On” tariff includes:

• Unlimited calls to landlines and mobile phones
• Unlimited texts
• 1GB internet (upgradable to 2GB with the additional charge of either £2/month on SIM Only or £5/month on Pay Monthly)
• Tethering & wi-fi hotspot (mobile broadband for your laptop, tablet, iPod Touch, etc.)

There are no automatic charges once you use up your internet allowance – instead you’ll need to upgrade to the 2GB package to continue using the internet over 3G for the rest of the month.

How much does O2′s “On and On” package cost?

“On and On” costs £26/month without a new handset or starts from £36/month with a brand new handset. The exact cost depends on the handset that you choose. Handsets being offered on the plan include:

A full list of handsets available on the ‘On and On’ tariff can be found on the O2 website.

What can I do with 1GB of data? Should I upgrade to the 2GB data package?

The average smartphone user consumes around 250MB of data a month (0.25GB). 1GB of data should normally be sufficient providing that you do not regularly download or stream multimedia content (e.g. music and video such as Spotify, iPlayer and YouTube). We’ve got a full guide to download limits and what they mean in reality but 1GB and 2GB approximately correspond to the following:

Source of estimates: O2 [1, 2]. Our testing found a Skype mobile voice call consumes around 0.55MB/minute (70kbps). Skype video call uses 4MB/minute (500kbps). Online radio calculation assumes 128kbps bitrate. Average size of app is 6.1MB (based on top 20 free Android apps).

As there is no possibility of out-of-bundle data charges, we would recommend opting for the 1GB data package to begin with and only adding an additional 1GB if you find that you need it. For a larger download allowance (particularly useful for consuming multimedia and tethering), Three’s “The One Plan” and T-Mobile’s “The Full Monty” are both similar plans but include unlimited internet and no download limits.

Are there any out-of-bundle charges for using too much data?

No. According to O2, your 3G internet connectivity will automatically be disabled once you reach your 1GB limit. This means that you won’t automatically be charged extra (other O2 tariffs will charge an additional £1/day once you use up your inclusive download allowance). It is possible to add an additional 1GB of data for £5/month (or an additional £2/month if you’re on the SIM-only version of the tariff).

How does O2′s “On and On” tariff compare to Three’s “The One Plan” and T-Mobile’s “The Full Monty”?

O2′s “On and On” tariff is being marketed as a high-end tariff that frees you from the worry of out-of-bundle charges. This puts it directly in competition with Three’s “The One Plan” and T-Mobile’s “The Full Monty”. The three tariffs compare to each other as follows:

* The approximate market share of T-Mobile is 19% whereas the approximate market share of Three is 7%. On the face of it, this would make unlimited calls to T-Mobile numbers a much better proposition than unlimited calls to Three numbers. However, the high number of inclusive minutes on both plans means this is unlikely to make very much difference.

For a detailed comparison of Three and T-Mobile’s respective offerings, we’ve got a detailed comparison of ‘The Full Monty’ VS ‘The One Plan’.

How does “On and On” compare to O2′s standard Pay Monthly offerings?

A 12-month version of the tariff is available for people who want to keep their current mobile phone.

As well as the “On and On” tariff, O2 also offers a range of standard Pay Monthly tariffs which start at £10.50/month for 50 minutes and 250 texts. If you typically use 600 minutes or less in a given month, you may find that O2′s standard tariffs provide better value: for example £27/month will buy you 300 minutes, unlimited texts and 500MB data. We’ve got a full review of O2′s Pay Monthly tariffs and O2′s data plans.

Are there any fair usage allowances with “On and On”?

O2 do not have any specific fair usage allowances – through their terms of use document is worth a read. The only specific restrictions on your usage that are listed are that usage of the service is limited to “private and personal purposes”. O2 also reserve the right to disconnect your service if they believe you are using it in “such a way that we reasonably believe adversely impacts the service to other O2 customers.”

Is tethering permitted with O2′s “On and On” tariff?

Yes. According to O2: “Also included is a gigabyte (GB) of data to use however they like, including tethering and streaming, without having to worry about extra data charges once it’s been used.”

Being able to tether with the “On and On” tariff means that you can share your phone’s 3G data connection with other devices including a laptop/tablet, an iPod Touch, e-book reader or games console. You’ll need a smartphone which supports the mobile wi-fi hotspot feature in order to use this feature: it’ll create a wi-fi hotspot over which your 3G connection will be shared. We’ve got a detailed guide on tethering and how to connect your other electronic devices to the web on-the-go through wi-fi hotspot.

Note that because “On and On” comes with a download limit of 1GB, you should be careful when tethering – it’s possible to go through your data allowance very quickly using a laptop. Three’s “The One Plan” and T-Mobile’s “The Full Monty” are both similar plans offering unlimited data and will likely provide much better value to people who tether on a regular basis.

What is O2 coverage like where I live?

You should use the O2 online coverage checker to ensure you can receive a service from O2 where you live.

I’m switching to O2. Can I keep my existing phone number?

Yes. You’ll need to ask your existing network for a PAC code and then to provide this to O2. The entire process of transferring your phone number should take no more than 24 hours. Our PAC Code Finder tool provides a step-by-step guide to transferring your mobile number to O2.

I’m currently an O2 customer. Can I switch to “On and On”?

O2 customers who have finished the minimum term of their current contract can switch to the “On and On” tariff through the O2 website. If you’re currently in the middle of the minimum term of your contract, it may still be possible to upgrade as O2 customers allow some customers to upgrade their contract part way through. Please consult O2 customer services on 202 as to whether this is possible as it will depend on the date of your contract and the terms and conditions that were in place when your contract was signed.

Where can I find out more about O2′s “On and On” packages?

You can find out more about O2′s “On and On” tariff on the O2 website. A full list of O2 tariffs and available handsets is also available.

Related posts:

1. Three’s £10/month SIM-only tariff offers 100 minutes, 3000 texts and 1GB internet
2. Tesco offers UK’s best value Galaxy S II – 750 minutes, 5000 texts, 500MB internet for £25/month
3. T-Mobile launches “Full Monty” tariff with unlimited calls, texts, internet & free tethering

With just a few months remaining until the Olympics, the UK is currently gearing up to welcome over half a million visitors to the UK for a 19-day festival of sport. Taking place in the British capital from the 25th July to the 12th August, London 2012 is set to see competitors from 216 countries battling it out in 38 different sports ranging from Archery to Wrestling.

As we look forward to welcoming visitors from around the world into London for the games, Ken’s Tech Tips looks at how visitors to the UK can use their mobile phones to stay in touch during their visit. We discuss how you can check whether your mobile phone works in the UK and how you can obtain a local SIM card for use during your visit to the UK.

Will my cellphone/mobile phone work on the UK mobile networks?

Generally your cellphone/mobile phone should work in the UK providing it uses GSM mobile technology and providing it supports the relevant frequency bands used by the UK mobile phone networks (carriers).

If your local network has a roaming agreement with a UK mobile network, it should automatically roam onto a UK network when you arrive in the UK providing that your mobile phone supports either GSM (900MHz), GSM (1800 MHz) or WCDMA (2100MHz). Most commercially available mobile phones are now quad-band world phones and should support these technologies.

The following mobile technologies and frequencies are used by UK mobile networks:

• 3 (Three): WCDMA 2100 (Three do not provide a GSM/2G service!)
• Orange: GSM 1800, WCDMA 2100
• O2: GSM 900, GSM 1800 (some limited coverage), WCDMA 2100
• T-Mobile: GSM 1800, WCDMA 2100
• Vodafone: GSM 900, GSM 1800 (some limited coverage), WCDMA 2100
• Other mobile networks that are not listed here are virtual network operators. Check our full guide to MVNOs to find out which network provides coverage for that MVNO.

Customers of CDMA networks will be unable to use their mobile phone in the UK as CDMA technology is incompatible with the GSM technology used in the UK. CDMA networks include China Telecom, Sprint Nextel (USA), Virgin Mobile (USA) and Verizon Wireless (USA). You should check with your local mobile operator for details of their roaming agreements in the UK.

Will a UK SIM card be compatible with my mobile phone?

Yes, if your mobile phone is compatible with the technologies used in the UK and as long as your phone isn’t carrier-locked, you should be able to use a UK SIM card in your phone.

Note that unless your phone has already been unlocked, you must always unlock your phone before using it directly on a UK mobile network. UK networks are treated separately for the purposes of network locking – for example a phone locked to Orange France would not work on Orange UK and a phone locked to T-Mobile Germany would not work on T-Mobile UK. It is not necessary to unlock your phone if you are roaming with your home carrier, but you’ll need to pay much higher roaming rates.

How much does it cost to use my smartphone on a UK mobile network (carrier)?

You should expect to pay no more than £10 ($16 USD, €12 EUR) for a SIM card with 30 days of inclusive internet access. This will typically give you an allowance of 500MB internet as well as some money for calls and texts. For a great value all-inclusive package with no download limits, we recommend giffgaff’s offer of 250 minutes, unlimited texts and unlimited internet for £10/month on Pay As You Go (see our full review of giffgaff).

We’ve provided a complete guide to the Pay As You Go data packages on UK networks and how to activate them. You’ll also need to configure the Access Point Network (APN) settings on your phone before you can access the internet on your phone.

What will my mobile phone number be in the UK?

If you pick up a SIM card from a UK mobile network, you will be assigned a 11-digit phone number in the format 07xxx xxx xxx. This is the phone number that you should provide to other people calling you from within the UK.

When providing your phone number to somebody outside the UK, you should give your international phone number. This can be obtained by dropping the 0 and replacing it with a +44: for example 07123 456 789 would become +44 7123 456 789.

How do I make international calls from a UK mobile number?

International direct dial (IDD) is enabled on all UK mobile networks. You can make an international call by entering + on your phone keypad (hold down the 0 button until it appears) followed by the country code you wish to dial and then the local phone number. If you cannot enter + on your cellphone, it is possible to use two zeros instead.

Before making an international call, you should check the cost of with your mobile network operator as it could be up to £1.50/minute. Specialist SIM cards are available from operators such as LycaMobile, Lebara Mobile and O2 for making low-cost international calls – for making calls back home these SIM cards could provide a significant saving. For full details of these SIM card offerings, see our guide to free Pay As You Go SIM cards.

Where can I obtain a UK SIM card from?

The most convenient way of obtaining a UK SIM card is to order one to be sent to a UK address. Popular Pay As You Go providers include giffgaff, O2, T-Mobile and Vodafone. All four companies provide free SIM cards through their website. See our full list of Pay As You Go providers in the UK for more information. As an alternative, you could pick one up from a mobile phone retail store when you arrive in the UK, though there may sometimes be a small charge depending on where you obtain it from.

Do I need to present any ID to obtain a SIM card in the UK?

No. The UK has very few restrictions on obtaining a SIM card. It is not necessary to provide any form of identification or any proof of address when obtaining a mobile phone SIM card.

It is possible to obtain a SIM card by asking for one in a mobile phone shop or registering for a free SIM card online.

Are there any useful resources or phone numbers I should know?

Hopefully your trip to the UK should pass without incident. In the event of an emergency, the phone number for the UK emergency services is 999 (there is a single number for all of the emergency services including the police, fire service and ambulance). If you dial the standardised EU emergency number, 112, your call should also reach the 999 emergency services operator.

As usual when travelling, it is also recommended that you make a note of useful phone numbers for your hotel, airline, credit card company, travel insurance company, etc.

The following websites can be of use when getting around the UK and between Olympic venues:

• Transport for London – Public transport information around London including for the London Underground, bus routes and the Docklands Light Railway. A route planner is also available. London public transport tickets should be purchased at a station and cannot be purchased online.
• National Rail Enquiries – UK National Rail Enquiries – useful if you’re venturing outside London. Contains information about train routes in the UK including timetables, live departure boards and a route planner. It is possible to purchase train tickets in advance and to reserve seats through the National Rail Enquiries website to save money.
• Congestion Charge – If you are driving a vehicle into Central London, you may need to pay the Congestion Charge through this website.

Finally, the London 2012 website also contains lots of useful information about the Games such as the background, schedule and latest news.

We look forward to welcoming you to London later this year!

Related posts:

1. Using your smartphone in England, United Kingdom – A guide for visitors
2. Using your non-UK cellphone/mobile phone in the UK
3. Data Roaming: Bundles for Using Your Smartphone Abroad, Avoid Huge Charges

Three have recently revamped their Pay Monthly line-up to introduce a new “Ultimate Internet” range of tariffs featuring all you can eat data. This joins with “The One Plan” and their “All in One” Pay As You Go plans, both of which already included all-you-can-eat data. All-you-can-eat data packages differ from most mobile phone tariffs in that they do not have a download limits. Instead, internet usage is unrestricted and unlimited so it’s possible to make full use of your smartphone without worrying about additional hidden costs.

In this article, we investigate Three’s “all you can eat” plans. We look at whether “all you can eat” plans are really unlimited and whether they are throttled. We also investigate the download speeds you can expect and explore the range of all-you-can-eat data plans which are available on the market.

Do all-you-can-eat data plans come with a download limit or fair usage policy?

No. Three’s “all you can eat” data plans do not have a download limit or a fair usage policy.

Most other networks offer tariffs with a download limit of 500MB or 750MB as standard. Whilst most people won’t exceed these download limits, there is the possibility of incurring additional charges for exceeding your download allowance. As there is no fair usage policy on all-you-can-eat data, there are no chances to incur additional data charges when using your phone within the UK.

What download speeds can I expect with “all you can eat” internet?

Three have rolled out HSPA+ technology to 80% of their UK network meaning that you can receive download speeds of up to 21Mbit/s with a HSPA+ compatible handset. Note that 21Mbit/s is an “up to” speed – most users will receive a download speed nearer to 4Mbit/s. Although high-end smartphones such as the Samsung Galaxy S II and the Apple iPhone 4S support HSPA+ technology, many older or low-spec phones do not provide include HSPA+ support. If your phone does not support HSPA+, you’ll receive download speeds of up to 7.2Mbit/s (with an average download speed around 1.5Mbit/s).

Three are promising to launch dual-carrier HSPA+ (DC-HSPA+) during the year with download speeds of up to 42Mbit/s on compatible handsets.

Do Three throttle or use traffic shaping on their “all you can eat” plans?

No. Three say that they do not throttle (or reduce speeds for) users on an “all you can eat” data plan. You should be able to use as much data as you want and you’ll continue to receive the maximum possible download speed.

How does “all you can eat” internet differ from “unlimited” internet offerings from other networks?

It’s important to note that all-you-can-eat is simply a marketing term for unlimited data from Three. Other networks have recently begun to offer unlimited internet offerings too – notably Giffgaff’s Goodybags and T-Mobile’s ‘The Full Monty’ tariffs. We’ve got a full review of Giffgaff as well as a review of The Full Monty.

Which phones are available with “all you can eat” data?

Key phones which are available on “all you can eat” data plans include the Apple iPhone 4S, the Samsung Galaxy S II and the HTC Wildfire S.

	Apple iPhone 4S	Samsung Galaxy S II	HTC Wildfire S
Maximum Download Speed:	Up to 14.4Mbit/s (HSPA+)	Up to 21Mbit/s (HSPA+)	Up to 7.2Mbit/s (HSDPA)
Supports Tethering?	Yes, with The One Plan	Yes, with The One Plan	Yes, with The One Plan
The One Plan:	£34/month £49 upfront	£36/month No upfront cost	£30/month No upfront cost
Ultimate Internet:	From £30/month £149 upfront	From £28/month No upfront cost	From £18/month £69 upfront
Pay As You Go:	£500	£430	£130

A full list of available handsets can be found on the Three website.

Do I need a smartphone to use “all you can eat” data?

Smartphones such as the iPhone 4S and the Samsung Galaxy S II will allow you to make the most out of all-you-can-eat data.

No, you do not need to own a smartphone to use an all-you-can-eat plan. Whilst all-you-can-eat internet can be used with a feature phone, you’d be unlikely to make full use of the possibilities associated with an all-you-can-eat internet tariff. You’ll still be able to make full use of the included calls and texts however.

The key restriction on being able to use your phone on Three is that it must support 3G: since the start of 2011 Three has been a 3G-only network. Phones which lack 3G connectivity will not work on Three.

Can I tether with “all you can eat” data?

Yes, but only on The One Plan. It is not possible to tether on Three’s “Ultimate Internet” or “All In One” packages on Pay As You Go.

Tethering means sharing your smartphone’s 3G data connection with your other devices (for example a tablet, laptop, iPod Touch, Kindle e-book reader or a games console). It’s hugely attractive as you can connect up to 5 devices simultaneously through your 3G connection. It also replaces your mobile broadband contract and allows you to get any of your devices online whenever you want. We’ve got an in-depth guide to tethering and how to tether from your phone.

Are there any mobile broadband tariffs available with “all you can eat” data?

No. Three do not currently offer all-you-can-eat internet on their mobile broadband tariffs. For mobile broadband tariffs, the largest data allowance currently available is 15GB/month. This 15GB plan starts from £21/month on an 18 month contract. As an alternative, we recommend opting for a new smartphone on The One Plan. Three have a range of smartphones available on The One Plan which starting at £25/month with inclusive tethering. The inclusion of tethering allows you to use your mobile phone as a mobile broadband hub and to share your “all you can eat” internet with all of your other devices. We think it’s a great alternative to mobile broadband and you’ll also get a monthly allowance of 2000 minutes, 5000 texts and all-you-can-eat data too.

It is not possible to tether on “Ultimate Internet” or on Three’s Pay As You Go tariffs.

Can I use “all you can eat” data abroad or within the EU?

Nope. It’s only for use within the UK. Whilst abroad, you’ll still have to pay Three’s standard roaming rates:

• £1.28/MB within the EU
• £3/MB in Australia, Cyprus North, India, Israel, Japan, Philippines, Taiwan, Turkey, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands (USA), USA, Hong Kong and South Africa
• £10/MB in Thailand, Canada, Croatia. Kenya, Malaysia, Oman and South Korea
• £6/MB for the rest of the world

To avoid large roaming charges on holiday, you should follow our best practice guide for using your phone abroad and disable data roaming. If you must access the internet when abroad, we recommend purchasing a data roaming bundle or buying a local SIM card. Alternatively, you can use wi-fi hotspots when abroad without any charges from Three.

I’m switching to Three. Can I keep my existing phone number?

Yes. You’ll need to ask your existing mobile network for a PAC Code. This should be provided to Three once your new phone has arrived. Three Customer Services will then handle the process of transferring your phone number. It can take up to 24 hours for your phone number to move over, though you’ll continue to receive service on your old network during that time. Our PAC Code Finder tool will take you through the entire process of transferring your phone number to Three.

Where can I get a mobile phone with “all you can eat” data?

The Three website has full details of their pricing plans. For an “all you can eat” plan, you should opt for:

• The One Plan – All-you-can-eat internet with tethering, 2000 minutes, 5000 Three-to-Three minutes & 5000 texts
• Ultimate Internet – All-you-can-eat internet excluding tethering. Between 100-1000 minutes & 5000 texts
• SIM Only – All-you-can-eat internet with tethering, 2000 minutes, 5000 Three-to-Three minutes & 5000 texts
• Pay As You Go – All-you-can-eat internet from £15/month with 300 minutes & 3000 texts

Related posts:

1. Vodafone’s “Data Test Drive” offers unlimited internet for 3 months
2. O2′s “On and On” offers unlimited minutes, unlimited texts, 1GB data from £26/month
3. How unlimited is your “unlimited mobile internet”?