Mobile phone help, please

Puddylove

Hi
I have an Orange (now EE) contract called iPhone 41 for 24 months which ends April.
This month (typical) I used:
115 minutes
302 texts
36Mb
And paid £48

I want to negotiate the cheapest possible monthly contract while keeping my iPhone 4S - and would like to avoid Vodafone, as poor signal.

I've tried to look at comparisons but am confused; do I need to have a new phone?
Thanks in advance (sorry I am so useless )

pepdavies

Do you need a contract? A giffgaff goodybag would cover your usage for maximum £10 a month. I would suggest Ovivo but they use Voda's signal

grumbler

You don't need a new phone. Just get your iPhone unlocked by Orange and you can use it on any network. Orange will charge you £20ish and will drag their feet for ages, so do this ASAP.

For your usage Ovivo would be the best, but they use Vodafone signal.

Check giggfaff (O2) £7.50 'goodybag' 200+Unltd+250Mb

Puddylove

Thanks.
I'd rather have a contract as I don't have a house phone so it's the main way that distant aged relatives can call me.

The giffgaff thing is 'Pay as you go'?

grumbler

Yes, it's PAYG with bundles that you can buy if you wish. IIRC auto-topup is available too. So, I don't see what advantages a contract can have.

For a contract see chitter chatter (EE) £6 for 250+500+500 that is even cheaper than giffgaff.

Now you can see that if your contract is £41 p.m., your iPhone actually cost you at least (£41-£6)*24=£840 (+20 for unlocking) - much more than a not locked sim-free one from Apple.

macman

Puddylove wrote: »

Thanks.
I'd rather have a contract as I don't have a house phone so it's the main way that distant aged relatives can call me.

The giffgaff thing is 'Pay as you go'?

As above. Why does that require a contract? Even if you run out of credit (which is easily avoided using an auto top up facility), they can still call you.

Puddylove

grumbler wrote: »

Yes, it's PAYG with bundles that you can buy if you wish. IIRC auto-topup is available too. So, I don't see what advantages a contract can have.

For a contract see chitter chatter (EE) £6 for 250+500+500 that is even cheaper than giffgaff.

Now you can see that if your contract is £41 p.m., your iPhone actually cost you at least (£41-£6)*24=£840 (+20 for unlocking) - much more than a not locked sim-free one from Apple.

If I opted for one of the chitter chatter contracts, would that mean I wouldn't have to ask Orange to unlock the iPhone, or have I misunderstood the EE merger?

And yes, I can see that my iPhone contract has been expensive, but I'm not very au fait with technology/contracts etc.

Herongull

What about Three 3 2 1 PAYG (3p per minute, 2p per text and 1p per mb)?
For 115 minutes, 302 texts, 36Mb, this would cost £9.85.

Everything being equal, PAYG is much better than being on contract.
With PAYG you can leave any time rather than being tied into 12 months to 2 years.
With PAYG there is no risk and low stress. If you phone is lost or stolen, thieves can run up £thousands before you manage to report it. If PAYG, the credit runs out and the thieves can only make a few £ worth of calls.
If you take your phone abroad and you forget to turn off data roaming and it starts downloading stuff, with contract phones your bill will be £hundreds to £thousands depending on where in the world you are but with PAYG it is a few £ before the credit runs out.

Trust me, you don't want all the stress of a contract phone.

grumbler

Puddylove wrote: »

If I opted for one of the chitter chatter contracts, would that mean I wouldn't have to ask Orange to unlock the iPhone, or have I misunderstood the EE merger?

I don't think that Orange phone woks on T-mobile, but regardless it's worth unlocking it while you are with Orange as only they can do this.