SIM-only, no data, for only occasional use is so hard to find

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  • Herongull
    Herongull Posts: 1,356 Forumite
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    I think Three PAYG requires a smartphone - at least 3G whereas AFAIK O2 doesn't have that requirement.

    There is also 1p mobile, where calls texts and data each cost only 1p!
    https://www.1pmobile.com

    But 1p mobile requires a topup every every 120 days, so that would out £30 a year so too much for your friend but may be useful others.

    Another one that some people might find useful is Whitecalling
    https://www.whitecalling.com. It is not nearly as cheap as 1pmobile: text 6p and calls either 4p or 7p depending on whether landline or mobile BUT it has FREE voicemail and FREE calls and texts within network, so might suit families or friends who want to keep in touch and just use their phone for other calls occasionally. I don't think you have top it up at certain intervals, just make a couple of chargeable calls or texts every couple of months.
  • its_all_over
    its_all_over Posts: 183 Forumite
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    Mister_G wrote: »
    Thank you for getting the situation with O2 Classic PAYG clarified.

    Hopefully O2 will update their website, because it's completely wrong at the moment with regard to the top-ups.

    https://www.o2.co.uk/help/pay-as-you-go/classic-pay-as-you-go

    I also contacted o2 months ago and they confirmed as above, the representative from the complaints department said they would be sending feedback to get to the website fixed but it seems things move very slowly at whoever controls the o2 website.
  • macman
    macman Posts: 53,098 Forumite
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    edited 6 August 2018 at 9:00PM
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    One further point about Three. It will only work with a 3G handset, not 2G. So if your friend has an old Nokia or similar, it's a non-starter. All modern phones and smartphones are 4G or 3G.
    Since you say no data is required, I'm guessing he may well be using an old pre-3G handset.
    Re o2, what is the relevance of public wi-fi hotspots if your friend is not going to be using any data? He won't be able to use them for calls or texts.
    No free lunch, and no free laptop ;)
  • pmduk
    pmduk Posts: 10,655 Forumite
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    Herongull wrote: »
    I think Three PAYG requires a smartphone - at least 3G

    To clarify, Three does require a 3g phone, but not necessarily a smartphone. The vast majority of phone sold within the last 5 years will probably be 3g-compatible.
  • Paddy_Landau
    Paddy_Landau Posts: 38 Forumite
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    macman wrote: »
    Since you say no data is required, I'm guessing he may well be using an old pre-3G handset. … what is the relevance of public wi-fi hotspots…
    No data because he needs to save costs. He has a decent phone that a relative gave him as a gift, so he can use WiFi.
    A candle loses nothing by lighting another candle. (Anon.)
  • macman
    macman Posts: 53,098 Forumite
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    Right: so he does in fact have a 3G handset?
    No free lunch, and no free laptop ;)
  • Paddy_Landau
    Paddy_Landau Posts: 38 Forumite
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    macman wrote: »
    Right: so he does in fact have a 3G handset?
    Fairly modern, compatible with 3G and 4G.
    A candle loses nothing by lighting another candle. (Anon.)
  • Chordeiles
    Chordeiles Posts: 164 Forumite
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    edited 20 August 2018 at 8:51AM
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    For occasional use giffgaff works very well indeed. Probably for more than occasional use too. I used to do a £10 top-up every 4 or 5 months, I'll admit that most outgoing calls were to my wife who was on giffgaff too, hence calls free within three months (I think) of last top-up.
    As my data use has crept up I got a contract with a reseller of EE, but I still keep a giffgaff SIM in slot 2 of a dual-SIM 'phone as there are a few places I go (including where I live !) where EE coverage isn't good. With use this infrequent I have to keep an eye open for emails from giffgaff telling me I'll lose my number (and credit) if I don't use it soon !
    But one significant drawback of giffgaff is that it throws away your answerphone greeting (replaces it with the default) if you didn't let the answerphone grab a call for a few months !
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