Recommendation re. UK pay as you go please

therecklessone

Right, after the fourth straight month of a huge bill from O2 for calls/texts/gprs use while roaming in the UK, I've decided to pick up a pay as you go SIM from one of the UK operators, for use when I'm over there.

My current phone was purchased SIM-free, so using any of the operators shouldn't be a problem. Can anyone recommend a pay as you go deal? I need something that allows plenty of text messages above all else.

Ta in advance.

smashey

I have a couple of spare O2 UK genie sim cards. £10.00 per month gets you 100 anytime/network/landline minutes and 100 text messages. This increrases if you decide to go with £20.00 a month. As it is the season of goodwill, if you pm me your address I will mail one to you if you are interested.

netwhizkid

I was in the UK (London) during the summer and I picked up an Orange Pay-As-You-Go Sim card for £5 and topped it up with £15 and it did me for a good amount of local phoning around and a few calls back to Ireland using the UK Telestunt access number.

I enquired here like yourself and got a good response on this thread. I keep it activated by using it in my unlocked old Nokia 3410 phone and it roams here and I send a text to my own meteor phone and that keeps it active should I have to visit the UK or Northern Ireland in the Future.

muffinhead

Well if you have any friends or relatives in the UK there are plenty of free simcard offers available, if you want to get one sent to their address:

O2
Orange
T-Mobile
Virgin - this one has now expired but reappears often.

T-Mobile have a tariff called 'Everybody' offering 20p/min calls anytime to any network / UK landline and also GPRS is capped at £1 per day. Although calls to Ireland from the UK are charged at 70p/min and texts at 20p. More info here.

nazoil

Get a meteor PAYG card and sign up for new UK roaming rates

Voice calls 20c/min + 29 c connection charge when you select T-Mobil
Instal AFT on your phone and send texts from your O2 number for around 3 c / kb to any irish or international number.

Receiving texts on your O2 Ireland phone is free

More info here

byrnefm

I have an Orange PAYG SIM for when I travel there - I chose them as their call rates to Ireland are 20p/min (anytime). UK calls are (to landlines) 35p peak, 10p off-peak and texts 12p to UK, 20p elsewhere. The UK texts are a bit dear, really but since the other rates are pretty good (esp. to Ireland), I went with them. I've been using the SIM for 1.5 years so far and the only complaint I have is that the calls to Ireland tend to have a bit of echo on my side, though the other side doesn't hear it.

BuffyBot

I currently use Virgin Mobile and find their rates to be pretty ok

lawhec

From the top of my head...

* Orange - flat rate £0.20 per minute, £0.20 per text
* Virgin (use T-Mobile network) - flat rate £0.15 per minute, £0.20 per text
* T-Mobile - flat rate £0.70 per minute :eek:, £0.20 per text
* Vodafone - Can't access their website to check
* O2 - flat rate £1.50 per minute :eek::eek::eek:, £0.20 per text. However if you get the International Caller Bolt On which costs a one-off £4.99 (taken from the balance), the costs go down to £0.05 per minute for landlines, £0.25 per minute for Irish mobiles and £0.10 per text.

muffinhead

Northern Correspondent wrote:

* Vodafone - Can't access their website to check

I thought you got all the rates from the top of your head !