Smartphone basics?

Emuchops

I would like a smartphone. I'm thinking of the Nokia Lumia 635 which is only £69 on Amazon http://www.amazon.co.uk/Vodafone-Nokia-Lumia-Handset-Green/dp/B00MRS0H9C/ref=sr_1_13?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1421041379&sr=1-13&keywords=nokia+lumia.
I want to be PAYG. I already have a basic mobile but there are some gaps in my knowledge.

1-Do I just transfer the SIM from my basic phone to the new one?
2-Will the PAYG credit transfer too?
3-I'm guessing the Smartphone work off the house ISP (BT-unlimited)...stupid question maybe but can someone confirm this?
4-Current SIM is with GIffGaff but Vodaphone has better coverage here (very rural, no 4g). If I want to swap to Vodaphone is it just a matter of getting a Vodaphone PAYG sim once I've used up the Giff Gaff credit?
5-On the blurb for the phone it says that I can 'Use as much UK data as you like for 30 days when you buy a £20, £30 or £40 Freedom Freebee for the first time. It’s the ideal way to help you find your feet'. I don't understand what that means. Doesn't the house ISP cover that ?
Many thanks,
Dawn

AndyPK

Your assumptions are basically correct.

If you have wifi at home the phone can use it but that's of no help when your away from home which is where a data package is useful.
It will still make calls but to use the internet and apps will need data when your away from home.

Terry98

You will not be able to use your GIffGaff sim in the Nokia 636 because it will be locked to the Vodaphone network.

Depending on how much credit you have got left with GiffGaff it might be best to use it on the old phone and then top up your new phone.

You can buy unlocked phones to be used on any network but they are
usually more expensive.

Emuchops

Thanks Both. So does the 'data package' come from Vodaphone? This is the bit where my confusion levels really rise. Where do I get a data package from? That £20-£40 cost on the Amazon blurb sounds expensive to me (I have no idea how long it would last though)and there's the PAYG phone charges too (although £10 lasts me over a year). Is it generally better value to buy the phone and get a contract to cover phonecalls and data ?

Terry98

When you get a smartphone you have think of three things you will use
Calls,Texts and Data.

You don't have to use data because, as you say, most of it can come free from your home wifi. So the first thing you should do when you get the phone is to connect it to your wifi and stop it using data from outside until you know how to control it.

You only have to pay the £69 and then you can get the phone set up before topping up the sim . Don't forget, though, you will be tied to Vodafone but you can get PAYG top ups much cheaper than the ones quoted.

JJ_Egan

You can turn Data off on the phone and only use WiFi at home or out and about for free WiFi . Turn data on when you really need it .
Be aware that smartphones download updates/ data all the time .

Emuchops

Thanks JJ and Terry. I wanted to use it for things like apps-looking for best deals when out shopping, or fitness apps-that sort of thing, as well as photos and calls (very few).
Terry-where is the best place to get cheaper PAYG deals? And are we including data use in the term PAYG? I'm only familiar with PAYG referring to calls/texts.
Is it possible to turn data off on all phones? I don't like the sound of it racking up a bill without me even being aware of it.
I'm only looking at this phone as I know someone who has it and it gets good reviews and it's cheap (and I have a £50 Amazon voucher!), but happy to look at others (I've heard good things about the Motorola Moto G too)

JJ_Egan

Giffgaff PAYG and many others include data .
Giffgaff 20p per day up to 20MB use more than 20 MB and its then 20p per MB .
https://giffgaff.com/index/pricing
Settings Mobile Data OFF on most phones .

Terry98

I have the Moto G... it's a great android phone and easy to unlock. The Nokia is also very good but it uses a different system (Windows) and is harder to unlock.

Apart the phone the other main thing is the signal.You say Vodafone has a good signal but do you know anybody else with a smartphone who uses other networks in your area?

Who is your broadband supplier? If you were with Talktalk you could get a phone and as much data,calls and texts as you need for about £7 a month but there are other deals around for about the same price depending on the network you use.

There are many horror stories about data use so you need to know how it works before you use your sim in a smartphone. As JJ says turn off Data first then connect the phone to Wifi and then ensure all updates are via wifi .

Emuchops

Thanks Terry-lots to think about there.

zagubov

I've got the Moto G and it's very good, and could be unlocked via ebay. I'm a light user so I got PAYG on Three's 3-2-1 deal.
I don't like the idea of contracts, even if I needed to use the phone more regularly; delightmobile has a £10 monthly sim-only deal similar to giffgaffs but with 2Gb of data rather than just 1.

If you can't use up the remaining credit on your SIM before switching to your new service, you can sell the credit at a loss online or give it to charity. I had some credit once I couldn't use up so I texted it to Macmillan Cancer support by texting MOBI99 £(amount of credit) to 70070.