Orange Retention Deal Or Virgin Unlimitacular?

Dr_B_2

After sending back an upgrade and deciding to leave, Orange have improved their retention offer to me, However I'm still in a dilemma over the amount of mobile data. I'm a customer of Virgin Media for my Digital Media Services and I've learned I can get a good deal from them that includes unlimited data.
Here are the deals.

Orange;
Free Galaxy S3
Unlimited calls, unlimited texts, Unlimited e-mails, 1.5Gb Data.
3Gb BT Openzone (I assume this is what is now called BT-Wifi, as it doesn't include BT-FON Openzone)
1 Free Swappable.
Plus insurance at £6 pcm
Total = £30 pcm (i.e £23.50 pcm without insurance)

Virgin Mobile
Galaxy S3 £19
Unlimited calls, Texts and Data
Insurance included (Mandatory I think).
Total = £36 pcm if I remain a Virgin Media customer, £41 pcm if I leave Virgin Media at any point. (i.e £28 pcm/£33 pcm without insurance).

My experience is, that with a Smartphone like the S3 that makes it easy to watch TV etc and that makes doing a lot of fancy things a pleasure, I could potentially use a lot of data. While I have the 3Gb BT-Wi-fi, BT-Wi-fi isn't available everywhere. I've never used anything like that, so I'm not sure how useful it is in general compared to mobile data - especially if you're outside in the street.

I note that Virgin Media are releasing a similar TV-On-The-Go service to Sky GO that I would certainly use a lot. I assume that this will require a 3G connection, as I believe Sky GO does. This will swallow up Orange's entire 1.5Gb data allowance very quickly.

Moreover, I worry that being locked into a contract on Orange for two years with limited data might eventually become restrictive, even if it isn't at the moment. It's a reasonable assumption to make that mobile data will become more useful over time with improvements in technology and services. Some people say that 1.5Gb is a lot at the moment, but then 100Mb used to be a lot in the days of WAP and not that long ago the prospect of a 1Mb broadband connection would have seemed like overkill to many people.

What would you do? Stick with Orange's limited data and 3GB BT Openzone, or go with Virgin Media's unlimited data for £6 more a month (or £11 more a month if I ever leave Virgin Media)?

How useful is BT openzone on Orange anyway? (And remember that it doesn't include BT-FON).

Is the user experience of Virgin identical to Orange/T-Mobile or do they cap speeds for high data users, similar to Virgin Media? Is there any difference in reception for any reason? It seems like a daft question, but my mother did seem to have worse reception than me in my flat, btu that could have been due to her ancient phone.

robbies_gal

i find the wifi hotspots crap pn orange maybe its just me but i cant seem to connect and when i do its not for long

dont know about watching tv as i dont do that on my phone


was atually looking at the virgin deal earlier myself seems good but do they have a fair use policy on unlimited as others do

Dr_B_2

gabbyevs wrote: »

i find the wifi hotspots crap pn orange maybe its just me but i cant seem to connect and when i do its not for long

dont know about watching tv as i dont do that on my phone


was atually looking at the virgin deal earlier myself seems good but do they have a fair use policy on unlimited as others do

The Virgin Chat helper says they're truly unlimited in the sense that there are no MB caps. However Virgin Media call their service truly unlimited, but they cap speeds instead of total data - however if you think about it the two are ultimately the same. I don't know if Virgin Mobile do this.

I also don't know how they route data from the mast and whether they get the same speeds as Orange as a result.

robbies_gal

yeah good question coz they piggyback off it dont they

Dr_B_2

They get 14 Mbps up, according to the Virgin Mobile shop I went to, so I guess that means HSPA+.

To be honest I'm not all that fussed, as long as the speed is reasonable. I wonder why some people get so agitated about blazingly fast data rates on a phone anyway. I'd rather have 3Mbps unlimited than 14Mbps with a tiny allowance. Lord knows what Orange will do when their much heralded LTE comes out.

samwich1979

I have been told by Virgin this evening that as long as you take out the contract while you have a Virgin Media account if you cancel then the contract will carry on as it is and you dont get charged the extra.

I checked this specifically because my husband is on Virgin and i have just taken a contract with them but we are leaving Virgin Media in 3 weeks.

I was assured it would not put my bill up.

Dr_B_2

Thanks for that. Good to know because I HATE the Tivo!

23six

Author, can you link me to any of those deals or are they not available online?

I would say Orange has better value.

Free phone, and cheaper. Total saving of £163 vs Virgin

robbies_gal

when i asked virgin yesterday for some leeway on the price or package they wouldnt budge so depends on wot u want but orange looks better overall

Dr_B_2

23six wrote: »

Author, can you link me to any of those deals or are they not available online?

I would say Orange has better value.

Free phone, and cheaper. Total saving of £163 vs Virgin

It appears it's only available to customers of Virgin Media. Orange might be cheaper if you aren't a customer.

I've had no problems with Orange, considering the criticisms of their customer service. I paid a lot and was a customer for a long time, so it might be that they went out of their way to treat me well. Nevertheless, based on my experience I'd recommend them. I doubt I'd be leaving if it weren't for the Virgin Mobile deal for VM customers.