MSE News: Orange dashes hopes of iPhone price war

Dave_DO

I notice a few existing Orange customers rushing there orders in now ready for 10 November... but cost wise, surely the most effective way of getting the 3gs is through cash back?

If retentions aren't offering any deals, then it's going to be ordered through mobiles.co.uk for me...and as I want to keep my number, I'll probably switch to O2.

Please someone tell me if I am missing something?

jamesbrownontheroad

Incidentally, has anyone on O2 had any experience of contacting the network for a PAC code to switch to Orange? Will O2 make any effort to keep my custom (12 months + on a monthly non-iPhone contract) if I tell them I'm switching to Orange for the iPhone?

Jamey_2

Hey, I don't know if you guys will find this interesting but I know it would affect my bills personally so maybe it might for the rest of you too.

Everyone seems to be talking about how Orange's iPhone price plans are identical to O2 but there are two key (albeit related) differences that I haven't really seen mentioned in many places online so far:

1) On O2 sending an MMS message (picture or video) uses four texts from your bundled allowance instead of being instantly chargeable but on Orange they bill you 25p per message straight away for every MMS message sent, regardless of whether you have anything remaining in the allowance for that month.

2) Similar to above, but on O2 roaming SMS message sent from abroad also use up four texts from your bundle (not from every country, but certainly the popular places like EU, USA, etc) whereas yet again Orange see fit to charge you for every message, even if you've still got loads of bundled messages left.

I realise these two things maybe aren't iPhone-specific and are perhaps more general differences between the two networks but in light of the current Orange/iPhone media coverage and the amount of people out there who might be comparing between the two (and deciding which network to go for) I thought this information might be of interest.

I've called Orange just now to confirm this and I'm on O2 so I already know how their side works having done both things mentioned above successfully.

drskm

lindsaygalaxy wrote: »

i just spoke to orange as I want the iphone but contract isnt up yet, and they said for the iphone they are changing their rules slightly and you can pay off your contract and upgrade without having to get a new contract.

I wasnt so Lucky. I am not due an upgrade till Mach 10, quoted the above information to the cc advisor who disagreed and said a clear and straight NO.
So you cant have an early upgrade to have the orange iphone even if you are willing to pay the difference!
How frustrating.

jamesbrownontheroad

jamesbrownontheroad wrote: »

Incidentally, has anyone on O2 had any experience of contacting the network for a PAC code to switch to Orange? Will O2 make any effort to keep my custom (12 months + on a monthly non-iPhone contract) if I tell them I'm switching to Orange for the iPhone?

I can answer my own question. On asking O2 retentions staff, they reminded me of Orange's cap on wireless data. No carrots. They are confident their tariffs are better value.

gjchester

lindsaygalaxy wrote: »

i just spoke to orange as I want the iphone but contract isnt up yet, and they said for the iphone they are changing their rules slightly and you can pay off your contract and upgrade without having to get a new contract.

Not sure how you can say thats changing the rules. You *always* been able to buy out your contract, it just the no of months x price per month. It's usually called a termination fee.

Given you need to be on a "special" iphone tarrif you'll be signed up to a new 18 or 24 month contract as part of the order, so hence I'm not quite sure how this is any different to any other upgrade if your in your minimum contracted term.

Dignified_Blunderer

drskm wrote: »

I wasnt so Lucky. I am not due an upgrade till Mach 10, quoted the above information to the cc advisor who disagreed and said a clear and straight NO.
So you cant have an early upgrade to have the orange iphone even if you are willing to pay the difference!
How frustrating.

That is definitly annoying - I am in a simillar boat myself I think- my contract expires in March. Do they still allow you to upgrade a couple of months early and have the months added on to the end of your new iphone contract?

eljmayes

jamesbrownontheroad wrote: »

I can answer my own question. On asking O2 retentions staff, they reminded me of Orange's cap on wireless data. No carrots. They are confident their tariffs are better value.

If they enforce it like O2 do then frankly I don't know what they are crowing about!

Haffiana

Interesting reading, this thread. I just do not understand why anyone would go for the Orange iPhone tariff given that 750MB cap on data.

If you are already tied in to Orange, then OK. But if you have a choice? Why on earth would anyone choose Orange over O2? I would hate to have to worry about my internet usage all the time; in fact I would even pay extra to the mobile provider that does NOT have a cap on internet use. Happily O2 do not cost more; it is the same price.

The iPhone is above all an internet device, and a superb one at that. More possibilities for it are developed every day in the form of Apps, and many of them need internet access. Who knows what the next 12 months will bring for the iPhone, and who knows what their internet needs will be in 12 months? It is a complete no brainer to tie yourself in with a company such as Orange that does not allow you to use that device to its fullest potential.

eljmayes

Haffiana wrote: »

Interesting reading, this thread. I just do not understand why anyone would go for the Orange iPhone tariff given that 750MB cap on data.

If you are already tied in to Orange, then OK. But if you have a choice? Why on earth would anyone choose Orange over O2? I would hate to have to worry about my internet usage all the time; in fact I would even pay extra to the mobile provider that does NOT have a cap on internet use. Happily O2 do not cost more; it is the same price.

The iPhone is above all an internet device, and a superb one at that. More possibilities for it are developed every day in the form of Apps, and many of them need internet access. Who knows what the next 12 months will bring for the iPhone, and who knows what their internet needs will be in 12 months? It is a complete no brainer to tie yourself in with a company such as Orange that does not allow you to use that device to its fullest potential.

The cap is an advisory limit (if you go over you will get warned)- and so unless you are downloading GBs a month (exactly the same as O2 policy) you maybe restricted in the future. My mate had an Iphone on O2 when they first lauched and was warned only when he used 3GB in a month, and has never been warned since.

This is a very clever piece of spin by O2- on either network if you use 3GBs plus of data in a month you will be warned so please keep that in mind.