Best Sim-only Deals guide Discussion

japitts

redndead wrote: »

One of the overlooked aspects of SIM only (as I learnt after switching from EE to Plusnet) is that some of the cheaper piggybacking services DO NOT offer the full range of services.


I make regular long distance trips and used to use Trafficmaster (1740 or similar) to check out delays if something came up on the news.


Plusnet can't offer that service.


A guide to cheap service restrictions such as this would be useful.

In the case of the EE piggybackers (so 1p, Virgin, PlusNet, Asda), the more common restrictions are:


- No 4G calling, which in turn means no access to 4G800 coverage. This can reduce in-building and rural coverage.
- No WiFi calling. Ok, so you'll have apps that can make calls on WiFi but this is not the same thing.
- Restricted data speeds, so an EE phone & Virgin phone in the same locations can and will get different speeds.
- PlusNet, as you point out, doesn't support short dials and test shortcodes.


You pays your money and takes your choice...

thrifty_pete

japitts wrote: »

- Restricted data speeds, so an EE phone & Virgin phone in the same locations can and will get different speeds.

Are you sure this is the case? A technical solution would be possible, to throttle the MVNO connections, would seem more hassle that it is worth for the telco. Has anyone donw any tests to prove this is the case? As MVNOs help competition in the mobile market, presumably it would be anti-competitive if telcos penalised the MVNOs?

[Deleted User]

thrifty_pete wrote: »

Are you sure this is the case? A technical solution would be possible, to throttle the MVNO connections, would seem more hassle that it is worth for the telco. Has anyone donw any tests to prove this is the case? As MVNOs help competition in the mobile market, presumably it would be anti-competitive if telcos penalised the MVNOs?

They're not actually throttling people though, EE have their super speeds which are only available to their customers. It's just one of the value added features of using a main carrier, otherwise everyone would use Plusnet.

It's not anti competitive to offer a more complete service (especially if you're charging more for it). Quite the opposite in fact.

thrifty_pete

Colin_Maybe wrote: »

They're not actually throttling people though, EE have their super speeds which are only available to their customers. It's just one of the value added features of using a main carrier, otherwise everyone would use Plusnet.

Is any info about this 'super speed' available on their website? A speed beyond 4G?

Colin_Maybe wrote: »

It's not anti competitive to offer a more complete service (especially if you're charging more for it). Quite the opposite in fact.

I meant from a market regulation perspective. Ofcom might tell the telcos, MNOs in the jargon to offer wholesale access to the network to aid competition, in the same way OpenReach has to allow other ISPs access. So my point was if a MNO was throttling the traffic from MVNO customers this would be like saying "my broadband is faster on BT than Plusnet because they give their customers priority".
Each mobile company has a slightly different business model and target market. Plus net are SIM only so plenty of people aren't interested.
In my experience many MVNOs are impossible to distinguish from the host network in terms of performance.

[Deleted User]

thrifty_pete wrote: »

Is any info about this 'super speed' available on their website? A speed beyond 4G?

Yes, just look on EE's website.

I meant from a market regulation perspective. Ofcom might tell the telcos, MNOs in the jargon to offer wholesale access to the network to aid competition, in the same way OpenReach has to allow other ISPs access. So my point was if a MNO was throttling the traffic from MVNO customers this would be like saying "my broadband is faster on BT than Plusnet because they give their customers priority".
Each mobile company has a slightly different business model and target market.

It's got nothing to do with priority, the MNO will sell a service to the MVNO with agreed caps on speed. BT already do this with EE & Plusnet as their BB limits are lower than the equivalent BT ones.

Plus net are SIM only so plenty of people aren't interested.

Plusnet actually do sell phones although they don't advertise it. You have to have been with them for at least 6 months and you can then contact them, no idea if they're competitive mind.

In my experience many MVNOs are impossible to distinguish from the host network in terms of performance.

You've never used Giffgaff then

sazzywoo1

Hi - I've just come out of a long contract with EE, moved to GiffGaff but finding the restrictions on phone calls when not on wifi etc very frustrating, eldest child is with PlusNet but frequently goes over her 2GB data (should be £5 but costs me £7.50) and I now want youngest child to have an active phone (only has a 99p SIM). Currently paying £12.50 per month but keen to find best deal for us. Any advice gratefully received, thank you.

Dewpoint

Hi - can someone please offer some advice.

Is it possible to put a standard smartphone SIM (whether micro, nano or whatever) into a Mifi dongle (unlocked), assuming of course that the (unlocked) smartphone SIM has a DATA allowance as well as a call/texts allowance.
thanks

Stardust26

If you're a Sky TV customer you can get up to 5 mobile sims with unlimited calls and texts. They usually start at £6 a month with 1GB of data, but when I ordered one for my mum, I asked if they could do a deal as I was an existing customer, and they gave me 2GB of data, unlimited calls and texts for £4.50 a month, and that was on top of an extra data deal they were offering!
p.s. The sims don't have to be for family or someone at the same address on your account. (My mum doesn't live with me). Sky are usually pretty good at giving discounts or deals if you ask.

andy2017

None of the current SIM-only deals are enough to make me switch. Will we see better deals next week on Black Friday? Or possibly in advance of Black Friday itself?

Matiatus

If someone is thinking about SMARTY they are giving 10£ amazon voucher now. Gonna give it a shot..

The offer:

Get a £10 Amazon Voucher
to spend on the things you really want, every time you refer a friend to SMARTY.