Ken's Tech Tips

Top 10 ways to cut your mobile phone bill & save money

Ken — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 12:29:23 +0000

For most of us, our mobile phone plays a vital role in our life. It is our gateway to the rest of the world – it allows us to reach any of our friends and colleagues around the clock, to access news, music and social media on the move and acts as a personal organiser/alarm clock/calculator/mirror. Yet Britons are wasting millions of pounds every year on their phones when they could easily cut hundreds of pounds off their phone bill, and not lose any functionality or service, with a few minutes work.

photo: Goddard Photo and Video Blog

As an example of why it pays to shop around: consider that the cheapest 18-month iPhone 3GS contract comes to £719 (plus extra call charges); alternative smartphones can often come to a fraction of the price. Or consider how most people happily pay 10p to send a text message: about 10 times more than what NASA pays to receive images from the Hubble Space Telescope.

In this guide, we round up 10 very easy ways to cut down on your phone bill.

1. Switch to a SIM only contract

If you have come to the end of your initial contract period, you could typically £180/year just by calling them up and asking to switch to their “SIM Only contract”. Check out the list of SIM only tariffs on your network (3, O2, Orange, T-Mobile, Vodafone) – find one with the right allowance of minutes and texts for you; switch and count up the cost savings. For extra kudos, you can switch to a SIM only contract on a different network. This involves extra work (i.e. unlocking your handset and obtaining a PAC code) but the cost savings could easily be worth it.

2. Downgrade/Upgrade your existing contract

If you are still within your initial contract period, have a look at downgrading or upgrading your current mobile contract. If you regularly exceed your airtime allowance, you may find it cheaper to upgrade to a higher plan with more minutes. If you usually don’t use up your allowance, switch down a plan. Most networks will happily allow you to upgrade plan; O2, Orange and Vodafone allow you to downgrade your plan if you’ve held your contract for 9 months.

3. Get freebies on your Pay As You Go network

photo: Goddard Photo and Video Blog

Many people still aren’t aware of the many freebies they can receive on Pay As You Go tariffs, including free texts, free calls or free internet access. If you’re not receiving any freebies, all you have to do is send a text or make a quick phone call to opt in to receiving them. These freebies can often shave off a large proportion of your mobile bill.

4. Switch your PAYG plan

There are now a huge wealth of PAYG tariffs out there, many of whom are offering free SIM cards with calls at a flat rate of 5p/minute and texts from 4p each. These tariffs are massively cheaper than the big name networks – however you’ll need to have an unlocked mobile phone and you’ll need to obtain a PAC code to switch. See our guide highlighting some of the best value PAYG plans on the market and how to decide which is right for you.

5. International calling

Make an international call from a standard mobile tariff (PAYG or contract) and you could be charged a rip-off rate of £1.50/minute. You would be much with a free SIM card from a mobile network which specialises in international calling which charge 4p/minute and upwards. You don’t need to use this SIM card for everyday calling: you could simply switch SIM cards before making an international call (providing your phone is unlocked of course). Amongst the big names to check out are LycaMobile, LebaraMobile and Vectone Mobile. They’re offering free SIM cards over at our guide.

6. Going abroad

The costs of going on holiday can easily add up: so could your mobile phone bill when you are abroad. Every so often we hear nightmare stories of people who run up charges of thousands of pounds. Our “10 things to know before using your phone abroad” guide aims to stop you from accidentally running up a huge bill.

7. Get a free SIM card for Skype and Windows Live Messenger

photo: Paulo Brandão

3 are offering free 3Pay SIM cards with Skype and Windows Live Messenger access. You do not need to top up in order to receive access to Skype and WLM. This can be a great alternative to calling or texting.

8. Recycle your old mobile phone

If you’ve an old phone lying around, you can get cash for recycling it or selling it on eBay. For newer phones you could get hundreds of pounds. Many companies will also accept damaged phones. Our guide points out some of the things to look out for when you recycle your phone.

9. Find out which network your friends are on

Using the OFCOM’s National Numbering Scheme database, you can find out which network your friends are probably on. This will allow you to determine the cheapest way to call them.

10. Finally, keep your existing phone

New phones are coming out every single day: do you really need to get a new one? You can switch network and tariff without changing your phone – although many operators don’t advertise this fact. By keeping your existing phone you are helping to reduce waste in the environment and you can save huge amounts of money by taking advantage of SIM only contracts and free PAYG SIM cards.

Free Pay As You Go SIM Cards – Listed, Reviewed and Compared

Ken — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 13:42:24 +0000

Ken’s Tech Tips looks at free Pay As You Go SIM cards from 15 different mobile operators.

If you’re looking to switch mobile network, you don’t need to buy a new SIM card. In this guide, we’ve got a comprehensive list of free SIM card offers from 15 different mobile operators. These include the big name networks, low-cost mobile operators and specialist networks for international calling. Several of the SIM card include free credit once you’ve activated them.

Remember that your mobile phone must be unlocked for you to switch network. If you wish to keep your phone number, you will need to request a PAC code from your current network and provide this to your new network.

Network	Information	Get SIM Card
	The 3Pay tariff offers a free allowance including 600 texts, 150MB internet, free 3-to-3 calls and voicemail when you top up £10. You can also use Windows Live Messenger and Skype without topping up.	Order SIM card » Free (£2 free credit on first £10 top up)
	O2 offer a range of freebies when you top up on their Pay As You Go tariffs. Choose from tariffs including free texts and internet, free calls and texts or unlimited O2-to-O2 calls.	Order SIM card » Up to 4 free SIM cards
	Orange have a range of “animal” tariffs offering freebies such as texts, Facebook access, minutes or free music. Orange customers can also take advantage of Orange Wednesdays which offers 2for1 cinema tickets and Pizza Express on Wednesdays.	Order SIM card » Free (£5 free credit on first £10 top up)
	T-Mobile are currently offering free texts for a month with their SIM cards.	Order SIM card » Free
	Calls cost 20p/minute and texts cost 10p on Vodafone’s Simplicity tariff. Deals are available for international calls and calls within your family.	Order SIM card » Free
	ASDA Mobile offers a flat rate of 8p/minute, 4p/text and 20p/MB for data. We think ASDA is great value for light phone users.	Order SIM card » 50p
	Giffgaff is a “people-powered mobile network”. It is offering a flat rate of 8p/minute, 4p/text and free data until the 25th May. See full pricing information.	Order SIM card » Free
	Ikea Family Mobile offers a flat rate of 9p/minute and 6p/text. They allow you to choose your own “golden number”. Use the voucher code FMS2 for £3 free credit (lasts 30 days). Offer expires 31/05/10.	Order SIM card » Free (requires top-up)
	Lebara Mobile offers international calls from 4p/minute and international texts from 10p. Domestic calls and texts cost 10p/min and 10p/text.	Order SIM card » Free
	LycaMobile offers calls to Europe from 2p/min, international calls from 4p/minute. Domestic calls and texts cost 5p/min and 9p/text. See full tariff information.	Order SIM card » Free
	Talkmobile (from the Carphone Warehouse) charges a flat rate of 20p/minute and 10p/text. See full tariff information.	Order SIM card » Free (requires £5 top up)
	Tesco Mobile charges 20p/minute and 10p/text. They run a “triple your credit” promotion and offer discounted calls to 5 nominated numbers.	Order SIM card » Free
	Tesco Mobile Lite charges 8p/minute and 4p/text. See full tariff information.	Order SIM card » Free
	Vectone Mobile provide international calls from 1p/min at weekends and 3p/min during the week. National calls and texts cost a flat rate of 5p/minute and 5p/text.	Order SIM card » Free
	Virgin Mobile offers free texts when you top up and internet access for 30p/day. See full tariff information.	Order SIM card » Free (up to £30 free credit)

If you spot any free SIM card offers which are missing, please drop me a comment below.

Tesco Mobile Pay As You Go: Triple Credit, Reviewed & Compared

Ken — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 14:31:41 +0000

Supermarket Tesco have recently been heavily promoting their Pay As You Go mobile phone service in stores and in the media. A large part of the advertising is their claim to “triple your credit”. In this article, Ken’s Tech Tips looks beyond the hype to review Tesco’s PAYG tariff and compares it to other PAYG tariffs on the market.

How much does it cost?

photo: LoopZilla

Calls and texts have a flat rate on Tesco Mobile of 20p/minute and 10p/text regardless of the time of day or the network which you are calling. Whilst we applaud Tesco for having a simple and understandable pricing system, Tesco is far from the cheapest in the market for call costs. For example, other low-cost mobile operators such as Giffgaff and Asda Mobile charge just 8p/minute and 4p/text.

Tesco do allow you to nominate 5 of your “favourite numbers” for whom you will receive half price calls and texts. For these 5 numbers, you’ll pay 10p/minute and 5p/text but this is still pricier than Giffgaff and Asda.

If you want to browse the internet, you can buy an unlimited 7 day internet browsing pass for £2 on Tesco. Once you sign up, Tesco will automatically deduct £2 from your balance every Friday. Again: this isn’t the cheapest deal on the market. Tariffs such as 3Pay and O2 Text and Web provide totally free internet access when you top up.

What is “Triple your Credit”?

photo: Gene Hunt

A large part of Tesco’s marketing campaign is that they will triple your credit when you top up. The advertising says that if you top up by £10, Tesco will give you £20 of free credit leaving you with £30 credit to spend. However, a closer look reveals that your extra credit only lasts for one month and any unused extra credit after that month disappears. However, your free credit is used preferentially for your calls and texts.

A £10 top-up will give you 50 minutes, 100 texts or a combination of the two. The £20 “extra credit” from Tescos will give you 100 minutes, 200 texts or some combination of the two which lasts for a maximum of one month. Even if you manage to use up the whole of your free allowance (150 minutes for your £10 top up), the effective cost per minute is still 7p/minute which is barely cheaper than Asda Mobile or Giffgaff.

As “Triple your Credit” is really a free monthly allowance with a top-up, it’s analogous to what 3 are providing on 3Pay or O2 on their PAYG tariffs such as Text and Web and Text and Call. 3Pay provides 600 texts, 150MB internet, free 3-to-3 calls and free voicemail for a £10 top up – something which may prove to be more attractive to some people. Alternatively, Text and Call provides 100 free minutes and 100 free texts for a £15 top up.

Which network does Tesco Mobile run on?

photo: Jeff Kubina

Tesco Mobile is a virtual network which operates on the O2 network.

How can I check coverage in my area?

Tesco Mobile runs on the O2 network. Therefore you should use the O2 coverage checker to determine whether you can receive Tesco Mobile in your area.

What’s the verdict?

We really like how Tesco have opted for a simple price plan with their PAYG tariff. However, the cost of calls and texts are roughly 3 times as much as on cheaper networks such as Asda Mobile and Giffgaff. Furthermore, we feel that other networks such as 3 and O2 offer much more attractive free allowances than Tesco’s “Triple your Credit” offer.

How do I sign up?

Tesco Mobile are selling SIM cards in Tesco stores for 99p. Alternatively, sign up for a free SIM card through their website.

Can I switch from my current mobile provider?

Yes. If you’ve got an unlocked phone, you can insert a Tesco SIM card straight into it.

To transfer your number, you need to call up your current network and ask for a PAC code (see the guide on switching networks). Give your PAC code to Tesco Mobile (call them on 0845 301 4455) and your number should be transferred in two working days.

Will my existing phone work with my new network, contract or SIM card?

Ken — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 18:46:01 +0000

One questions that my readers regularly ask me whether it is possible to use your existing mobile phone on a different network, a different contract or tariff or to insert a SIM card from a different network. The short answer is yes: practically every phone sold in the UK and every mobile operator follows the same GSM specifications which means they can talk to each another. However, there are some few buts – your phone can’t be locked and you’ll need to set it up for the new network. In this post, I will detail some things to check and some things you may have to do in order to ensure your phone is compatible with your new network/tariff.

1. Is your phone locked?

photo: flickrohit

If you are switching operator (for example from O2 to Vodafone), the main reason why you might not be able to use your new SIM card in your existing phone is that your phone is locked. Operators often lock their phones because they subsidise the cost of them and it would be bad business if you could buy a subsidised phone from them and then immediately take it to another network.

There are several tell-tale signs of a locked phone: The mobile phone box packaging has your operators logo on it; your phone itself is branded with the operator logo or perhaps the operators logo appears upon startup. The only way to know for sure is to grab a free SIM card from a different network and see whether it works in your phone.

See our previous post for information on locked handsets, how to unlock your handset and how to obtain an unlocked handset.

2. Is your phone/SIM 3G?

If you have a 3G phone and a 3G SIM card, fantastic! If you either:

use a 3G SIM card in a 2G phone
use a 2G SIM card in a 3G phone

you will be able to do this, however you will be limited to 2G speeds (a slow internet/data connection). All major networks now give out 3G SIM cards.I’d recommend against using an old 2G SIM card in a new 3G phone and it is straightforward to ask your network for a new 3G SIM which will allow you to access the faster 3G network.

photo: johnthescone

If you are joining the 3 network, you must have a 3G phone. This is not because 3’s SIM card doesn’t work in a 2G phone – it will for a certain amount of time. 3 will disable the SIM cards of any customers who use them in 2G phones. The reason for this is because 3 only own a 3G network – their 2G network is provided from Orange. Presumably 3 have to pay Orange a fair bit for this 2G traffic and hence it makes it unprofitable for them.

3. Carrier Settings

So you’ve inserted your new SIM card into your phone and the operators name comes up on the home screen. Congratulations! Calling on your new network should automatically be set up. However the following things may not be set up automatically:

Sending texts
Receiving or sending picture messages
Web Browsing
Data settings for Java applications

Sometimes the network will automatically send you these settings in a text message the first time you use the SIM card. Accept these settings when prompted as to whether to save them and use them.

photo: Bryce Bradford

If you don’t receive settings or you want to download the settings again at a later date, you can request your network to send them to you. Use the following pages to receive them (select your new network):

4. Software & Advanced Features

Bear in mind that when you provide your own phone (i.e. you didn’t buy it from that network), the firmware (the software) on the phone will not be the operator’s firmware. This doesn’t impact upon your ability to call, text or browse the internet but it may mean you will be missing menu items specific to the new network (usually you don’t need them though).

You may also lose certain features of your phone if the network doesn’t support those features. For example, iPhone users will lose “Visual Voicemail” unless they switch to a network and tariff with support for “Visual Voicemail”.

Exclusive: O2 loophole – Get the iPhone on a cheaper, 12-month contract

Ken — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 21:59:34 +0000

O2 updated their range of iPhone tariffs today as reported before here and here. In doing so, they’ve introduced a new loophole which means that you can potentially save money by making individual orders for an iPhone and another for an airtime tariff. You can save up to £70 using this method, get an extra SIM card with 12 months of free internet (worth £120) and you’ll benefit from having a shorter 12 month contract too.

How does it work?

This new loophole has been introduced by O2’s new “Simplicity for iPhone” tariffs.

The “Simplicity for iPhone” tariffs provide customers with the exact same airtime allowance as the standard iPhone tariffs (i.e. the same number of minutes, unlimited texts, unlimited internet and visual voicemail) but it doesn’t provide an iPhone. For this reason, the “Simplicity for iPhone” tariffs are aimed at existing iPhone customers and are cheaper by roughly £15/month to £20/month.

However, this does not stop new iPhone customers from signing up to “Simplicity for iPhone”. The only thing is, you’ll have to source your own iPhone. And you can do that from O2 itself! By purchasing an iPhone on PAYG and then a “Simplicity for iPhone” contract, it is often sometimes be cheaper than buying the official contract.

Will it work for me and how much will I save?

As a general rule, you will save money using this loophole if you are ordering an iPhone 3G or you are choosing a tariff with 300 minutes or less. From my experience, most people fit into either of these two categories. To find out exactly how much you’d save using this loophole, enter the number of airtime minutes you require per month:

For more information on how this calculator and loophole works, see the information at the bottom of the article.

What are the other benefits and disadvantages?

photo: Flowery *L*u*z*a*

Advantages:

You save money! (sometimes, use the calculator to find out)
You’ll have a spare PAYG SIM card which comes with your PAYG iPhone. This SIM card includes 12 months of free web & wi-fi (worth £120). You could pass this onto a friend/family or use it in an old phone.
You are only tied into a 12 month contract. This means you would be free to upgrade your iPhone or switch to a different network in 12 months as opposed to 18 months or 24 months.

Disadvantages:

You will need to make a large payment upfront for the iPhone.
It will cost £15 to unlock your iPhone if you choose to switch network later. This is because you have purchased it on Pay As You Go.

Do I need to unlock my iPhone to use this loophole?

No. As you have purchased your iPhone from O2, your iPhone will be locked to the O2 network. There won’t be a problem putting a O2 Simplicity SIM into an O2 Pay As You Go iPhone.

Is this the cheapest way to get an iPhone? How does this compare to the other networks?

We have updated our iPhone price comparison website which will now report the price of the iPhone on O2 Simplicity. You can use it to compare the cost of an iPhone on O2, O2 Simplicity, Orange, Tesco Mobile and Vodafone.

How do I get it?

If you would like to use this loophole:

Buy an iPhone on Pay As You Go
Order Simplicity for iPhone

Did it work for you?

We’d love to hear your experiences – drop us a comment below if this loophole worked for you.

How exactly does the loophole work? (the maths)

As an example, consider the 18 month tariffs. The following table shows the number of minutes you get on different standard O2 iPhone tariffs. We also show the monthly cost of the equivalent Simplicity tariff. In each case, the Simplicity tariff is £20/month cheaper and provides the same amount of airtime. Over the course of your 18 month contract, this leads to a total saving of £360.

Monthly Cost (18 month Standard Tariff)	Monthly Cost (12 month Simplicity Tariff)	Minutes
£30	-	100
£35	£15	300
£40	£20	600
£45	£25	900
£50	£30	1200
£65	£45	Unlimited

However, we must also consider the cost of the iPhone itself. You will pay more for the iPhone upfront using this loophole (you need to buy it on PAYG) so that will erode away at the cost saving. In order to make a cost saving overall, the price difference for the iPhone must be less than £360.

O2’s “Simplicity for iPhone” tariffs now from £15/month; unlimited texts

Ken — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 12:41:37 +0000

photo: Jeff Kubina

Yesterday we were the first to bring you news of the updates to O2’s iPhone tariff and the incorporation of “unlimited” texts onto their iPhone tariffs. O2 have today announced a much larger range of “Simplicity for iPhone” tariffs which are all available online. This includes a £15/month tariff which is the cheapest iPhone tariff to date.

Simplicity for iPhone is a SIM-only tariff for your iPhone. SIM only tariffs are contracts which only provide you with airtime and do not provide you with a free phone. They offer good savings (about £180/year) to people who already have their own iPhone and have completed the original contract length. This would include customers who bought an iPhone 3G at launch who would have completed their contract in January.

What tariffs are available?

You can now choose from 5 different “Simplicity for iPhone” tariffs which all including “unlimited” texts. Each tariff is available on either a 1-month rolling contract or a 12 month contract. There is a £5/month discount for the 12 month contract.

Minutes	Texts	Web & Wi-fi	Monthly Cost (1-month contract)	Monthly Cost (12 month contract)
300	Unlimited	Unlimited	£20	£15
600	Unlimited	Unlimited	£25	£20
900	Unlimited	Unlimited	£30	£25
1200	Unlimited	Unlimited	£35	£30
Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited	£50	£45

All of the tariffs include visual voicemail.

We think that the £15/month iPhone tariff (300 minutes, unlimited texts, unlimited web and wi-fi, visual voicemail) on 12 months is a real highlight – certainly the cheapest iPhone tariff on the market.

Which tariff should I choose?

photo: Jeff Kubina

The right tariff for you would depend on how many minutes you regularly use. Once you’ve used your inclusive airtime, it will cost 20p/minute to make a phone call so costs can quickly add up. Make 400 minutes of phone calls on a 300-minute tariff for example and you would end up paying £40 that month (£20 for the base tariff plus £20 for calls). It is often better to choose a tariff with more minutes than you require than to exceed your airtime allowance regularly.

Another important decision is whether to go with the 1 month rolling contract or the 12 month contract. The 12-month contract has a £5/month discount. The disadvantage of the 12-month contract is that your contract will finish in March 2011.A new fourth-generation iPhone is expected this June so you’ll be stuck with the outdated iPhone for at least 9 months. If you’re unlikely to want to upgrade to the new iPhone straight away, there are some good savings with the 12-month contract.

How much money will I save by switching to “Simplicity for iPhone”?

Typically, about £15/month or £180 per year providing you are happy to sign the 12-month contract. For example, you might currently be on the old £35/month iPhone tariff (600 minutes, 500 texts, unlimited internet). By switching to the £20/month “Simplicity for iPhone” tariff (12 month contract), you’ll get 600 minutes, unlimited texts and unlimited internet! A saving of £180/year as well as extra texts.

How does Simplicity for iPhone work?

When you purchase “Simplicity for iPhone” online, O2 will send you a new Simplicity SIM card. You need to insert this new SIM card into your iPhone. You can also ask O2 Customer Services to transfer your existing phone number onto your new SIM card. Remember to cancel your existing iPhone contract – otherwise you will keep paying for it.

Who can get Simplicity for iPhone?

photo: Jeff Kubina

As these tariffs are now available on the O2 website, it looks like anybody can get “Simplicity for iPhone”. This includes customers who bought an iPhone on Pay As You Go or who originally purchased their iPhone on a different network (providing it is unlocked). If you have come to the end of your original iPhone contract, you should switch to a SIM-only iPhone tariff as soon as possible.

Can I tether on “Simplicity for iPhone”?

Yes. You can purchase 3GB of data for £10 per month. This is available when you purchase the tariff online.

Where can I get Simplicity for iPhone?

Previously you had to call O2 Retentions to get the Simplicity for iPhone tariff as it was a secret tariff only available to people who wanted to leave. They are now available online which makes it a lot easier to get them:

What are the alternatives?

We would say that 300 minutes, unlimited texts and unlimited internet for £15/month is pretty hard to beat. That said, if you’re looking for more minutes or you experience reception/reliability issues with O2, it’s worth shopping around. Vodafone also offer two SIM-only tariffs aimed at the iPhone. You can also check out our guide to SIM only tariffs for the smartphone.

How about the standard Simplicity?

Unfortunately, it’s not possible to get the unlimited internet bolt-on with the standard Simplicity tariffs any more. I strongly recommend against signing up for a standard Simplicity tariff as you will spend a lot of money on data charges. Be sure to select “Simplicity for iPhone”.

What if I don’t have an iPhone yet?

It is often cheaper to purchase an iPhone on PAYG and then use a Simplicity SIM card with it. See our guide to this loophole and find out whether it’ll work for you.

O2 to introduce unlimited texts on iPhone tariffs

Ken — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 13:44:19 +0000

I’ve received some information that suggests O2 will be making an update to their tariffs tomorrow. The key change is that their iPhone tariffs will now come with unlimited texts. There are some other changes too in terms of airtime allowance and the cost of the iPhone itself. We’ll update our iPhone price comparison webpage as soon as these tariffs go live and official.

What has changed?

The main change is that O2 are introducing unlimited texts on their iPhone tariffs. This is probably in response to Vodafone who launched their iPhone tariffs with unlimited texts last month. There are a few changes in the airtime allowance and cost of the iPhone too. To compensate for the increase in number of texts, O2 have either reduced the number of minutes or increased the price of the iPhone on most of the tariffs.

All tariffs:

Now with unlimited texts

£45/month 24-month contract

The cost of the iPhone 3G S 32GB drops from £99 to £89

£30/month 18-month contract

The tariff now includes 100 minutes instead of 75 minutes
The cost of the iPhone 3G 8GB increases from £99 to £149
The cost of the iPhone 3G S 16GB increases from £189 to £249
The cost of the iPhone 3G S 32GB increases from £279 to £299

£35/month 18-month contract

The tariff now includes 300 minutes instead of 600 minutes
The cost of the iPhone 3G 8GB drops from £99 to £59
The cost of the iPhone 3G S 16GB drops from £189 to £149
The cost of the iPhone 3G S 32GB drops from £279 to £249

photo: Jeff Kubina

£45/month 18-month contract

The tariff now includes 900 minutes instead of 1200 minutes
The cost of the iPhone 3G 8GB remains free
The cost of the iPhone 3G S 16GB drops from £89 to £59
The cost of the iPhone 3G S 32GB drops from £179 to £149

We’re not sure whether the £75/month tariffs will still be available.

The new tariff listing

The new tariff listing looks a bit like:

	24 Month		18 Month
Monthly fee	£35	£45	£30	£35	£45
Voice minutes	600	1200	100	300	900
Text messages	Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited
Data	Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited
Wi-Fi	Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited
iPhone 3G 8GB	FREE	FREE	£149	£59	FREE
iPhone 3GS 16GB	£89	FREE	£249	£149	£59
iPhone 3GS 32GB	£179	£89	£299	£249	£149

photo: Gonzalo Baeza Hernández

A word of warning…

Please note that these tariffs have not gone live yet and O2 might decide to make changes before implementing the changes. Keep an eye on Ken’s Tech Tips for information about tariff changes. Our iPhone price comparison page and tool will be updated as soon as the tariffs go live.

Also be aware that many analysts expect a new iPhone to be released in June. This might make it a bad time to get an iPhone – you’ll be stuck with old technology for at least 18 months.

If you’ve come to the end of your iPhone 3G contract, I recommend switching to Simplicity for iPhone and waiting until the new iPhone is released before signing a new 18 or 24 month contract.

Downgrading or upgrading your mobile contract during your contract period

Ken — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 21:05:31 +0000

If you’re currently stuck in a 18-month contract or a 24-month contract which gives you too little airtime or too much airtime, you might be able to take advantage of a special clause in your operator’s terms and conditions to change your contract and airtime allowance, even if you are currently in the middle of a contract. Most networks will allow you to upgrade your contract at any time to get more inclusive airtime; O2, Orange and Vodafone also allow you to downgrade to a cheaper contract after 9 months.

photo: Lordcolus

Why might I want to do this?

If you regularly exceed your airtime allowance and have to pay for extra calls/texts, you may find it cheaper to upgrade to a more expensive contract which comes with more airtime. 3, O2, Orange and Vodafone would allow you to upgrade to a more expensive contract.
If you find yourself not using the full airtime allowance, you will save money by moving down to a cheaper price plan. O2, Orange and Vodafone allow you to do this after the first 9 months of your contract.
The network may launch a new tariff (of the same or higher price) which is more attractive to you. 3 would allow you to switch to this new tariff (although you can’t move to a Mix & Match plans).

Sometimes it is possible to find loopholes: for example you could sign up for an expensive contract to get a free/cheaper phone and then downgrade your contract after 9 months to something cheaper. This would be cheaper than signing up for the cheaper contract to start off with.

photo: jesse.millan

Does upgrading or downgrading extend my contract length?

No. This is not a new contract – simply a change of your old contract. Your contract will expire at the same time that it was originally set to end. As this is not a new contract, you will not recieve a phone when you upgrade or downgrade your contract – the only thing that changes is your airtime allowance.

What if I have come to the end of my mobile contract?

See our guide to SIM only tariffs or SIM-only tariffs for smartphones. Typically you will save about £180/yr. by switching to one of these plans. However, they are only available to people who are not locked into a contract.

What does your network allow you to do?

In the following section, we discuss whether your network allows you to upgrade or downgrade your contract. As usual, please treat this as a guide – the terms and conditions that apply to your contract may be slightly different and you should read it carefully before asking to upgrade/downgrade.

3 (Three)

3 allow customers to move to an equally expensive or a more expensive contract at any time. 3 does not allow you to switch to a cheaper tariff:

Call us on 333 free from your 3 mobile and we’ll tell you about the options available to you.

If you decide you want to change your price plan, we’ll need to know at least 24 hours before your bill date to make sure the change takes place from your next bill. For example, if your bills are dated the 4^th of each month, we’ll need to know about your request by the 2^nd. Any later than that, and the change won’t take place until the following month.

O2 allows you to either upgrade to a more expensive contract at any time or even to downgrade your contract after 9 months. You can change contract no more than once a month and if you are downgrading, you can only move down to the next lowest price tariff.

Point 5.16 from the O2 Pay Monthly Terms and Conditions (January 2009) reads:

If you are a Consumer Customer who has selected a tariff with a Minimum Period, you may not move to a tariff which offers a lower rate monthly subscription for the first 9 months of your Minimum Period. After 9 months, you may only move down one tariff, per month, to the next lower priced tariff unless you pay us the difference between the monthly subscription on your original tariff and the lower rate tariff we agree that you may move to. Where you have notified us you wish to move to the next lower tariff, unless we advise otherwise, your new tariff will commence at the start of your next billing cycle.

Orange

Like O2, Orange also allows customers on the Animal plans to switch to a more expensive contract at any time and to downgrade after 9 months. You can change contract up to once a month.

From the Orange Animal Pay Monthly Terms and Conditions (April 2009):

Switching service plan – You may switch to another SIM only service plan after your first billing date. Only one change per month. If you do wish to switch you must give us not less than 10 days notice before your billing date. Changes will take effect from your next bill date. You must complete 3 months on your SIM only service plan before you may migrate to a pay monthly service plan.

T-Mobile

If you are on a T-Mobile contract with a flexible booster (contracts since February 2010), you are able to change this once a month. This would not change the amount you pay but would change the free allowances you receive.

For everybody else, unfortunately T-Mobile do not allow customers to change price plans. Point 2.7 in their terms and conditions (May 2009) state:

2.7. We don’t have to allow You to change Price Plan.

However, there is a good chance they would allow you to upgrade your contract if you call them – after all, you’re giving them more money…

Vodafone

Vodafone allow you to upgrade your contract at any time. Point 4 of their terms and conditions reads:

4. You may change your price plan to one with a higher monthly line rental charge at any time. You cannot do this more than once a month. If you change your price plan any unused minutes, texts or data included in your price plan will be lost.

According to a post on the Vodafone forum, you can downgrade your contract after 9 months in £5 monthly steps. However:

Your Plan, iPhone Price Plans and a few very old price plans cannot be downgraded for the length of your contract.

Alternatives to O2’s “Unlimited Web and Wi-Fi Bolt On” on iPhone Pay As You Go

Ken — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 12:38:31 +0000

When you purchase an iPhone from O2 on Pay As You Go, you’ll get 12 months of “Unlimited Web and Wi-Fi Bolt On” included. This gives you “unlimited” access to the internet over 3G and BT Openzone hotspots. After the 12 months, O2 will automatically charge you £10 per month to keep the bolt-on active. As the iPhone is data-hungry, most people won’t want to lose their web/internet connection. However there are other ways to keep your internet connection active – many of which are better value.

Come to the end of your iPhone contract?

Note that this guide is for people who have had the iPhone on Pay As You Go for 12 months and are considering the alternatives to “Unlimited Web and Wi-Fi Bolt On”. If you are on iPhone Contract (Pay Monthly), see our article on your options at the end of your contract and O2’s secret £20/mo. Simplicity iPhone tariff.

Ok, I’m on iPhone PAYG. What are my options?

At a glance, the options are:

Keep the “Unlimited Web and Wi-Fi Bolt On” which costs £10/month
Switch to a 1-month SIM only contract with “unlimited” internet from £15/month
Switch down to the “Unlimited Web Bolt On” which costs £7.50/month
Switch to O2’s Text and Web tariff which gives free texts and internet for free when you top up £10/month
Switch to a different PAYG tariff - internet from free

We’ll discuss each of these options in turn.

Option 1: Keeping the “Unlimited Web and Wi-Fi Bolt On”

photo: William Hook

One thing to notice about the “Unlimited Web and Wi-Fi Bolt On” is that it is a psuedo-contract. It has all the hallmarks of a contract – you pay a given amount every month (£10/month) to get a set airtime allowance (“unlimited” web and wi-fi). It takes the money directly from your account (PAYG balance in this case) until you cancel it.

However, as a contract it offers pretty poor value for money. Firstly, the fair usage allowance is 200MB/month on the “Unlimited” web and wi-fi bolt on. For just a small amount more, it is often possible to find a SIM-only tariff offering a much larger data allowance as well as free texts and minutes.

O2 customers can opt out of this bolt on by texting WWWOFF to 21300 or calling 2425 from their O2 mobile.

Fair usage: 200MB per month

Option 2: Switch to a 1-month SIM only contract with “unlimited” internet

For £15/month (an extra £5/month over the O2 Bolt-on), it is possible to get a SIM only contract which comes with free minutes and texts as well as a more generous data allowance. This would seem to be much better value than the PAYG proposition with the bolt-on where you would still have to pay for calls & texts.

The idea of SIM-only tariffs could be alien to those coming from PAYG. Essentially they are contracts which only provide airtime allowance. They usually have 1-month rolling contracts so, like on PAYG, you aren’t tied in to any one provider and it’s dead easy to switch to someone else at a later date. See our guide on SIM-only tariffs for smartphones for more information.

photo: edans

The cheapest SIM-only tariff with “unlimited” internet is 3’s £15/month SIM-only tariff. For £15/month, you’ll get 300 minutes, unlimited texts and 1GB of internet. That’s an extra 800MB of internet allowance and 300 minutes of phone calls and all of your texts now included. Three also allow you to use Skype and Windows Live Messenger over their network.

Note that you will need to unlock your iPhone before you can use it on a different network. This is a one-off charge of £15 and you should recoup the costs fairly easily.

If you’re looking to stay on O2, they will offer you 800 minutes, 1600 texts and unlimited internet for £20/month.

Fair usage: 1GB per month (on Three)

Option 3: Switch down to O2’s “Unlimited Web Bolt On”

If you want to keep O2 Pay As You Go and your existing bolt on, you can save £2.50 per month by downgrading to the “Unlimited Web Bolt On”. It’s £7.50/month and you’ll still get 200MB of internet but you won’t get BT Openzone wi-fi hotspot access.

Fair usage: 200MB per month

Option 4: Switch to O2’s Text and Web tariff which gives free texts and internet for free when you top up

O2 have a Pay As You Go “Text and Web” tariff which offers 300 free texts and 500MB of free internet when you top up £10/month. Unlike when you use the bolt-on, you keep your £10 top-up so you can use it to spend on calls.

photo: Jeff Kubina

You can also top up £15 for 600 free texts and 500MB of free internet; top up £30 for 12,000 texts and 500MB of free internet. Your free allowance lasts for one month.

Fair usage: 500MB per month

Option 5: Switch to a different PAYG tariff

There are a wealth of PAYG deals out on the market which you can access if you’ve unlocked your iPhone. Some networks will give you free internet with a top ups from just £5. See our guide to free mobile internet on Pay As You Go.

Fair usage: It depends.

Conclusions

The “Unlimited Web and Wi-Fi Bolt On” is a bad value proposition. It’s a psuedo-contract and it’s not even a good contract at that. Many customers will find it much better value to switch to a SIM-only contract which offers a much larger data allowance as well as free minutes and texts. SIM-only tariffs often cost just £5/month extra and offer a lot more. We recommend 3’s £15/month SIM-only tariff. For light phone users, it is also a no brainer to switch to Text and Web. Unlike with the bolt-on, the internet allowance is free so you’ll keep the £10 top up for phone calls.

T-Mobile launching Pulse Mini – a £100 Android PAYG smartphone

Ken — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 18:10:02 +0000

In October, we brought you news of T-Mobile’s Pulse Android smartphone – a Pay As You Go Android Smartphone for £176. Huawei (the company which manufactures the T-Mobile Pulse) has just announced at Mobile World Congress that it is to launch a minified version of the phone: the ‘T-Mobile Pulse Mini’ which will retail for £99.99 on Pay As You Go.

What do we know?

The Pulse Mini runs Android 2.1, the latest version of the Android operating system.
The phone will support HSPDA (high speed 3G data connection) and wi-fi.
The screen has been minified to 2.8inches so you might need to use a stylus (included) to use the interface.
The phone will have a 3.2 megapixel camera
The phone probably won’t have GPS support so ‘Google Maps with Navigation’ might not work

Electricpig has a photo gallery of the phone from MWC.

How is this significant?

It’s an extremely cheap Android smartphone available on PAYG. Smartphones are still relatively new to PAYG and most of them currently cost the same as a laptop. The Android-based HTC Hero is available on 3 Pay As You Go but costs £370 upfront. The iPhone 3G S costs £440 (although this comes with 12 months of data). Combine this with the fact that you need a decent PAYG tariff with internet access and it quickly becomes unattractive and expensive to use a smartphone on PAYG.

As the first sub-£100 Android smartphone, I think the Pulse Mini could expand the appeal of smartphones to Pay As You Go customers. Combine this with T-Mobile’s “Free Texts and Internet Reward” offer on PAYG (free texts and 40MB/day internet for a £10 monthly top up), I think this could bring smartphones, mobile internet and applications to a much larger audience.

Looking ahead, it’s a sign that smartphones are become much more mainstream and that prices are falling. I expect that Android phones will start to come down in price over the next 12-18 months and perhaps we could even see an iPhone price cut given the competition from Android handsets.

When will T-Mobile Pulse Mini be available?

The phone should be available on T-Mobile Pay As You Go in April.