Contract expiring, want an Iphone. Where to get?

Krassotti

Hey all,

I currently own a Nokia 6700 Classic.

I bought this through buymobilephones.net. 11 months for free on a 18 month contract (T-Mobile Combi 30 plan at £29.36 monthly).

The contract expires in December and I really want to get an IPhone.

I've never really haggled with mobile phone companies before.

How am I likely to get the best deal? Should I call T-Mobile and see if they will make me an offer on an IPhone or should I just buy one through one of the cash back sites such as Quidco.

Thanks for the help!

jayme1

you cant haggle for better value for iphone deals as the companies know that for you who dont want to pay the full price, someone elase will.

I would go:
iphone 4 16GB - £499 - direct unlocked from apple
giffgaff - 250mins, unlimited texts and unlimited web £10 a month

this works out £679 for 18 months

I doubt you can find cheeper, I dont really know about cashback sites but you can use one or two on apples site, so that will bring the total cost down even more.

Krassotti

Never heard of giffgaff before, bit of a noob really.

EDIT: Just read that they are on o2. Is their 3G reliable? I am in Cambridge and London every now and then.

Is it possible to move my T-Mobile number to this?

I also saw this on their website:

*giffgaff is offering Free Mobile Internet until the 28th of February 2011.

Does that mean I will have to pay more come March 2011 to get internet?

jayme1

yes you can move your number, you ask for a PAC from tmobile before you cancel your contract, then you ring up giffgaff and tell them the PAC and the transfer takes 2 days.

the free internet means that you dont have to buy the 'goodie' to get the free data, but after that date to have 'unlimited' data you have to buy the goodie bag that also comes with the mins and texts

about transfering your number to giffgaff

O2 coverage maps

Krassotti

thanks for your help!

one more question.... when it says unlimited txt.. is that only to other giffgaff users and i have to pay to txt friends on tmobile, orange etc!?!?

also... are they going to send me a micro sim or regular sim when i sign up? I'll need a micro sim for the iphone?

jayme1

no they are cross network afaik the 'unlimited' is 3000 or 5000, either way that is a lot.

yes a regular sim will be sent but it is pretty easy to cut it down to micro sim size, this and this are typical guides

also have just read that the £10 250min deal is ending 31/12/2010 after you will have to get the £15 where you get 300mins
so the total cost over 18 months is £764

if that is too expensive then there are other sim only deals such as three mobile (£10 one is pretty good) and o2 (but is expensive compared to 3 or giffgaff)

Krassotti

What about going for the Tesco Mobile Deal?

it's £320 for the phone and then £20 for 12 months. Then once that is up I can switch to a 3 or GiffGaff SIM for £10/month?

Is that possible?

head2head83

Only problem with Tesco (and it's a pretty big one!) is the data cap. 500MB and £4 PER MB you go over...very very costly if you don't keep an eye on your data usage!

Krassotti

It's got 1GB data, at least according to their website

bigger problem seems to be that it's out of stock everywhere :mad:

Do you know what it costs to have the phone unlocked after the 12 month contract so that I can stick any SIM into it?

Hagar1

its a 1gb FUP on Tesco.

I dont know any network that gives more than that an Iphone contract. (T-Mobile maybe)

£349 for Phone
£240 for Line Rental
£589 for 12 Months.

Best deal hands down if 250 minutes is enough for you.

Hagar1

I think Tesco will unlock it for you after 12 months anyway.


Best bet is to contact your local Tesco Phone Shop, stock is pretty good at the moment AFAIK.