Mobile Phones

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neil
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Re: Mobile Phones

Post by neil » Wed Aug 17, 2016 11:01 am

I'm also on O2 and am pretty happy with them. Now on a SIM only tariff and bought my phone separately as there doesn't seem to be any saving in getting the phone included. When I renewed the contract for another year they gave me 6 months free so I'm currently paying £0 a month!
One of the best features on O2 is their TuGo app - you can call and text through the app or your web browser which saves a fortune if you're abroad - just pop in a local SIM (with plenty of data) and using the app you just pay your usual UK rates. Saved me a fortune when I was in Australia for a couple of months last year.
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mwmackenzie
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Re: Mobile Phones

Post by mwmackenzie » Wed Aug 17, 2016 11:07 am

neil wrote:I'm also on O2 and am pretty happy with them. Now on a SIM only tariff and bought my phone separately as there doesn't seem to be any saving in getting the phone included. When I renewed the contract for another year they gave me 6 months free so I'm currently paying £0 a month!
One of the best features on O2 is their TuGo app - you can call and text through the app or your web browser which saves a fortune if you're abroad - just pop in a local SIM (with plenty of data) and using the app you just pay your usual UK rates. Saved me a fortune when I was in Australia for a couple of months last year.
This is the big plus for me with 3, calls from abroad cost the same as the UK :thumbsup I've been with 3 for about 6 years now and can't fault them.. before i was with Vodafone and O2 but the 3 deals were better so I moved, no regrets bar the tethering data cap which is much higher now on new contracts, i only have 2Gb tethering but unlimited everything else :thumbsup
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BigD
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Re: Mobile Phones

Post by BigD » Wed Aug 17, 2016 12:35 pm

mwmackenzie wrote:
neil wrote:I'm also on O2 and am pretty happy with them. Now on a SIM only tariff and bought my phone separately as there doesn't seem to be any saving in getting the phone included. When I renewed the contract for another year they gave me 6 months free so I'm currently paying £0 a month!
One of the best features on O2 is their TuGo app - you can call and text through the app or your web browser which saves a fortune if you're abroad - just pop in a local SIM (with plenty of data) and using the app you just pay your usual UK rates. Saved me a fortune when I was in Australia for a couple of months last year.
This is the big plus for me with 3, calls from abroad cost the same as the UK :thumbsup I've been with 3 for about 6 years now and can't fault them.. before i was with Vodafone and O2 but the 3 deals were better so I moved, no regrets bar the tethering data cap which is much higher now on new contracts, i only have 2Gb tethering but unlimited everything else :thumbsup
One thing I encountered with three recently was the £49 monthly data roaming limit. And if you want to go over it all the data is much more expensive. I used most of my limit in a feel at home destination which didn't cost anywhere near £49 (I had a 12Gb add on at £20) but this still seems to have taken me near the limit so then when I was in Belgium (a non feel at home destination) if I wanted data it would cost a lot more......

Just something to be aware of.....

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Re: Mobile Phones

Post by Dominic » Wed Aug 17, 2016 12:49 pm

Thanks - looks like I'll give o2 a go then :thumbsup
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Re: Mobile Phones

Post by pete » Wed Aug 17, 2016 1:57 pm

DDtB wrote:I had horrendous problems with Vodafone and vowed I'll never give them a penny again.

Their porting process wasn't working and yet they were still putting customers into it. Net result was over a month with no working phone and was lied to repeatedly. Ended up contacting an employee via linked in to get it sorted who told me I'd have been stuck in an infinite loop if I hadn't. Utter farce of a company.

The signal is good though.

With O2 now. No complaints.
I had a similar experience with Vodafone too. With Giffgaff now and the rest f the family on iD. It's cheap as chips...
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Corranga
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Re: Mobile Phones

Post by Corranga » Wed Aug 17, 2016 2:50 pm

For those talking about or considering the Moto G, take a look at the Vodafone Smart Ultra 6. It's bigger than the Moto G, similar spec, 2GB RAM the same as the highest spec Moto G (which is the only one you want really..) and can be unlocked. Cheaper too.

My wife has had one for maybe a year so far and still loves it, only downside - as with most budget phones, is the camera isn't fantastic and it has no gyroscope (so no AR in Pokemon Go!)

Personally, I have a Sony Xperia Z3 Compact and love it. It's small, pocketable and powerful - It's also more than 18 months old, so perhaps not the best suggestion - maybe a z5 compact.. ;)

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Re: Mobile Phones

Post by BiggestNizzy » Wed Aug 17, 2016 8:21 pm

I like my Windows phone.
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Re: Mobile Phones

Post by rossybee » Wed Aug 17, 2016 10:56 pm

BiggestNizzy wrote:I like my Windows phone.
As do I, but it crashes too much now.

Nokia Lumia 925.

Wotcha got, Niz?
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Re: Mobile Phones

Post by BiggestNizzy » Wed Aug 17, 2016 11:39 pm

rossybee wrote:
BiggestNizzy wrote:I like my Windows phone.
As do I, but it crashes too much now.

Nokia Lumia 925.

Wotcha got, Niz?
Lumia 930, other than a lack of apps I have had no problem at all. Not as many apps mind you not that there is any I wish I had.
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rossybee
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Re: Mobile Phones

Post by rossybee » Thu Aug 18, 2016 7:19 am

Mine is coming up for 2yrs old and the battery gets hot then cuts out, Whatsapp seems to be the biggest killer.

I'm fancying this Moto G4 everyone is raving about...
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graeme
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Re: Mobile Phones

Post by graeme » Thu Aug 18, 2016 8:40 am

I bought a moto G as a temporary replacement for a £600 LG which got dropped and smashed not long into the contract. I was paying £35/month for 2 years for a phone that was broken. I realised the MotoG was £130 sim-free and did everything the LG did. I decided that was my last contract phone, and somebody would have to launch something utterly game-changing to tempt me back to premium phones. Tech has moved on to the point where a £130 is all you need for fast web, chat, apps, games etc. Moto G ain't perfect if you're used to top end stuff, but it's 95% as good, for 30% of the price .

When looking at cost of sim-free handsets outright, do consider the used value. An iPhone used is usually worth something, whereas a Moto G will be totally worthless the moment you buy it. A recycling website will give you literally £2 for it. ebay maybe £20. I just give mine away. But, an iPhone S6 at £450 new is probably still worth £250 on mazuma etc. So, depending how long you plan to keep your phone, it's not just about the purchase price, but purchase minus resale. Maybe the Moto G will start to look less attractive.

Also, they still don't offer wireless charging even on the Gen 4, which I'd really hoped they would by now.
And the camera isn't the best. It's not like it's bad, it's just not as good as an iPhone.

To end on another good thing, the Motorola version of Android is pretty much stock Android. There are very few customisations, which means updates are quick to arrive, and everything works well and isn't too bloated.

If you're in the market, at least consider Wileyfox handsets too, as the spec is huge for the price. I've read mixed reviews on reliability though. Probably still worth a punt.
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IanD
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Re: Mobile Phones

Post by IanD » Thu Aug 18, 2016 9:44 am

graeme wrote:But, an iPhone S6 at £450 new is probably still worth £250 on mazuma etc. So, depending how long you plan to keep your phone, it's not just about the purchase price, but purchase minus resale. Maybe the Moto G will start to look less attractive
Work pub talk was about this recently. A couple of guys buy latest phone outright, keep for around 1 year and sell on while it is still in vogue hence good price, large initial upfront cost to buy the 1st one but it works out cheapest overall on monthly cost - caveat was you need to be someone who keeps phone in good condition so it can be sold as 'like new'
I hadn't considered that option, tend to buy on contract waiting for a good deal (used to get great cashback deals which no longer seem to exist) then keep it for a number of years transferring to cheaper SIM deals Need to replace my iPhone 5 very soon
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Re: Mobile Phones

Post by Fluoxetine » Thu Aug 18, 2016 11:30 am

Late to the party, but a Moto G4 alternative to consider is the Honor 5C - From Huawei's budget arm, aimed at the Asian /Indian market, but still loads of bang for your buck, with NFC for contact-less payment etc (with the Moto G4 lacks), and an alloy caseback.

http://www.hihonor.com/uk/products/mobi ... s/honor5c/

I picked one up for my dad a few weeks back for £130 ish, and he loves it. Quite impressed myself, but my old iPhone 5 (not even an S) still does everything I need it to and fits in the armrest dock of my car.

Agree with avoiding a handset contract these days - A £130 phone can ape most of what one x4-5 the price can do, and a £15 pcm SIM only contract covers all my voice & data needs. (I'm with Three, as Feel Three At Home suits my current lifestyle down to a tee).

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Re: Mobile Phones

Post by campbell » Thu Aug 18, 2016 11:53 am

If the battery performance of my 20 month old 5S were better, I'd be keeping it and dropping to PAYG with 3 as well.

But it's not lasting the day on busy ones, so it's an SE for Xmas I think :-)
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DDtB
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Re: Mobile Phones

Post by DDtB » Thu Aug 18, 2016 11:54 am

IanD wrote:
graeme wrote:But, an iPhone S6 at £450 new is probably still worth £250 on mazuma etc. So, depending how long you plan to keep your phone, it's not just about the purchase price, but purchase minus resale. Maybe the Moto G will start to look less attractive
Work pub talk was about this recently. A couple of guys buy latest phone outright, keep for around 1 year and sell on while it is still in vogue hence good price, large initial upfront cost to buy the 1st one but it works out cheapest overall on monthly cost - caveat was you need to be someone who keeps phone in good condition so it can be sold as 'like new'
I hadn't considered that option, tend to buy on contract waiting for a good deal (used to get great cashback deals which no longer seem to exist) then keep it for a number of years transferring to cheaper SIM deals Need to replace my iPhone 5 very soon
When we were bored at work one day, we pulled together a spreadsheet covering all the options. Iphone vs Nexus Android, sim free vs contract etc.

Net result was that it's about the same price to buy sim-free as it is on contract but it's easier to change handset whenever you want.

Also worked out that if you kept your phone for two years, then the cost of ownership of the iphone was cheaper than the android, despite being more expensive initially, as it retains far higher % value at the end.

We also saw that you could buy a new nexus every year for the same overall cost as an iphone every 2 years if you so desired.

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