Best contract mobile phone for student?

Trying2Save_3

My daughter has a phone on PAYG but she thinks it would be better to change to contract when she goes back to Uni. In your opinion which is the best deal?

skimshandy

I would say it depends what she uses the phone for and how often she uses it. When I went to University, I was on a contract plan where I only paid for the calls and texts I made. I was spending about £10/month but I didn't get a new phone. As I made more calls/texts I changed my plan to suit. Look at how much she sees herself spending on the phone per month. If it's £20+, a contract may be best. If it's under that, stick with what you've got.

thefirs

Skimshandy's advice look fine. There are a lot of (cashback) contract offers around that can cut the monthly cost of a contract down to zero, provided the user is disciplined enough to stay within the bundled minutes. If he/she stops watching or caring about useage, then the cost can escalate dramatically, as it's well-nigh impossible to keep track of which network you're calling, and X-net charges of 35p/minute are common when the bundle is expended. Sometimes the discipline of a cash credit limit can create a better sense of budget.

Students might want to look at Orange's student offers (you'll need an NUS number to see the full range) which add 1000s of texts per month to the bundles, and certain other benefits.

loopy_lass

take a look at p&g online at O2, for £10 per month you can choose 100 xnet mins anytime and i think 50 test, or 300 text per month....

try https://www.o2.co.uk

then the online tariff of sim only....

hth loops

cheepsk8

If she isn't bothered about having a good phone, she could go to o2 and get a samsung d500 on contract for £19/month with 500 texts and 50 mins, or 100 mins and 25 texts. She would have to pay £19.99 for the phone as it is on a cheap contract. That means a yearly total of £247.99. The phone can be sold on ebay for £170, which means a total of £77.99 for the year. She could also do something similar on orange(with a more expensive contract). All depends on the number of mins she uses per month.