Cheapest iPhone discussion

phnormal_2

Went for a 3gs today with phones for you got it for £57 upfront £35 a month on o2 600 mins unlimited texts and data.
Cant use orange where I live and cant afford o2's tarriffs out today.
Probably mad but what the hell. Never had an iphone before so the wait is over.

Max_1066

O2 have just added the handset prices to their site:-

http://shop.o2.co.uk/new-iphone/tariffs.html

Phoned O2 to discuss an upgrade and they weren't aware the prices were even on their website lol. They did say that its unlikely they will be offering any better deals than those shown due to "anticipated demand".

chriz1000

TommyPB wrote: »

Right, I’m not sure if I’m missing something here but isn’t this MoneySavingExpert.com? A lot of people are talking about cheap 18 month contracts on Vodafone and O2 but isn’t this just a con. Surely you are much better off buying the phone and getting a SIM only deal? Everyone knows iPhones are by no means good value anyway, but if you are set on having one but are wary of the cost, you can save a lot of money by avoiding these all-inclusive expensive contracts from the big providers. For example, you can buy the new iPhone 4 16GB for £499 and find fairly cheap SIM only deals online. Assuming the SIM only deals on O2 don’t change in the next few weeks, it should cost £15 a month on a 12 month contract for 300 mins, unlimited texts and unlimited internet & wi-fi.
Yes, the initial outlay is pretty huge, but once the next new model comes out or your contract ends most people would sell the phone and make back most of the initial cost. Think of it more as an investment. By selling it in a year’s time for around £350 (which is a conservative estimate), it would mean the effective cost to you is just £149. (Some networks are asking for £149 for the phone with a £30, 18 month contract! This is how crazy it is!)
So, on a 12-monthly basis, this is £12.50 per month. Add on the £15 SIM only contract, and you’re paying just £27.50 a month for a brand new iPhone 4 with a decent contract and, best of all, you’re only locked in for 12 months.
Also, if you increase this to 24 months (upgrading your 12 month contract and perhaps saving a little money there), your overall effective monthly cost could be as low as £22 a month!
I hope I’m not missing something…

Actually I don't believe buying the phone outright is the cheapest option.

See this spreadsheet I made (PDF Format) http://dl.dropbox.com/u/674427/iphone4_Costings.pdf

As you can see the cheapest way to get your hands on a new iphone is to take on an 18 month contract with 100 mins, total cost £749.

However the most savvy way of getting the iphone is to take on 600 min contract, after 9 months drop down a tier then another tier after 10 months. which will give you loads more mins for the first 10 months and cost you a total of £754.

Buying the iphone 4 for £499 and going onto simplicity 15 will cost you £769 over the course of 18 months.

Heres the original speadsheet if anyone wants to check my formulas are correct:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/674427/iphone4.xls

Max_1066

chriz1000 - thanks for the spreadsheet EXCELLENT :beer:

However, the main difference is that the SIMPLICITY tariff is only 12 months so you're not locked in for too long. As mentioned above you then have the option to sell your existing iPhone 4 and go for the iPhone 5, a new tariff or whatever is available this time next year.

There's not a great deal in it and it really depends whether you have £499/£599 available to buy it outright or not.

chriz1000

That's very true, if you wanted to switch phones after 12 months the scenario changes.
I've assumed that o2 would allow you to do an early buyout again and based it on the same costings and added to the comparison sheets in my post above. There's a good chance o2 won't do this next year, so please don't base your decision on this factor, its just an example of what could happen.

Max is right, if you want to change your phone after 12 months there isn't a lot in it, as you will be in a similar situation next June/July. Ether way you will be able to sell you're iPhone for a fair bit to put towards your next phone or contract.

rugbytackle28

I am now gutted....yesterday i agreed to a 24 month contract with Orange on a 3gs 16gb i get a 15% loyalty discount so the £45 tariff works out at £38.25...

Today it appears i could get a iphone 4 16gb for the same 38.25 per month but with a fee of £29 for the handset

Do i send the other one back when it arrives tomorrow and get the iphone 4 and more importantly will they let me do that, it does say in my contract have 14 days to return the phone for whatever reason!??

HELP!!!

j19

Don't bother with either 300minute O2 contracts - it is cheaper to the go the Simplicity route, and you're out of contract after 12 months: https://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=0ApfeHZ96DqZMdGIwd0lfV2sxRHlwWWV4NW4zYUVaVVE&hl=en_GB#gid=0

Max_1066

rugbytackle ... I'd send the 3GS back when it arrives .... :j

slenderkitten

phnormal wrote: »

Went for a 3gs today with phones for you got it for £57 upfront £35 a month on o2 600 mins unlimited texts and data.
Cant use orange where I live and cant afford o2's tarriffs out today.
Probably mad but what the hell. Never had an iphone before so the wait is over.

you must be MAAAD go for the iphone 4 and pay the extra £69 etc

Max_1066

What about having a SIM only contract with Vodafone for 12 months at £20/month (600 mins, 3000 text, unlimited wi-fi, 1GB internet) then getting £100 cashback via Quidco ??