Tesco Mobile phone service launch

Oracle

foggy_lad wrote: »

you would think as it says so all over their site but i have upgraded few times and never had to top-up to get the registration credit!

think them saying it on the site covers them for introducing it in the future but think it would be a mistake now with so much competition unless the networks start a cartel to regulate their prices:rolleyes:

That's great news, just finished getting my upgrade credit for this year! Looking forward to getting another €120 free call credit next year! Lovely jubbly!

free credit should mean just that! not dependant on a top-up or mimimmum spend etc:D

I couldn't agree more!

muboop1

voyager wrote: »

More (any) competition is always a healthy thing to introduce to any market.

voyager :cool:

and carphone warehouse are bringing in their own network to... 5 companies have to hopefully push prices down?

Mimikyu

This post has been deleted.

AlmightyCushion

muboop1 wrote: »

and carphone warehouse are bringing in their own network to... 5 companies have to hopefully push prices down?

Mvno or are they actually building their own network?

flodis79

AlmightyCushion wrote: »

Mvno or are they actually building their own network?

I guess they will first open their UK operations:

Meanwhile, Carphone Warehouse has teamed up with Vodafone to launch its own mobile phone service in Britain. The independent retailer has signed a wholesale deal for its new service, Talkmobile, which will be a mobile virtual network operator. Customers will have the chance to sign up for nine-month contracts with prices starting at STG12 per month. This is the latest in a line of deals for Vodafone, having already inked deals with TomTom and supermarket group Asda. The mobile network has said the strategy is part of its bid to increase its wholesale market share.

http://www.electricnews.net/article/141483.html

BuffyBot

MVNO I'd imagine as the two they have (outside the one mentioned below) Mobile World and Fresh are both MVNO's

failsafe

Does anyone know what way their Touch bundles work? Is it like the Meteor/Vodafone offers whereby you top up, get the offer, but also have the credit to spend on whatever you wish? It looks to me like you "buy" them like you would a text bundle. In which case they are far less competitive than the meteor/vodafone "top up and get..." offers.

slegs

Yes you need to buy the bundle but there is not minimum topup requirement to be able to use so in theory you only have to topup by the amount to purchase the bundle (11.99Eur for 30days)

http://www.tescomobile.ie/FreeCallsAndTexts.aspx

failsafe

slegs wrote: »

Yes you need to buy the bundle but there is not minimum topup requirement to be able to use so in theory you only have to topup by the amount to purchase the bundle (11.99Eur for 30days)

http://www.tescomobile.ie/FreeCallsAndTexts.aspx

But can you then use that €11.99 for other calls and texts or does it disappear?

slegs

It disappears because you have bought the bundle

failsafe

Well then they can't call it free texts and calls! That's like VF or O2 calling their text bundles free texts!

flodis79

failsafe wrote: »

Well then they can't call it free texts and calls! That's like VF or O2 calling their text bundles free texts!

There aint no such thing...

I think the 11.99 package is good value, even if you lose the money and cant use it on other stuff, you still get free calls anytime, free texts anytime and free pic messages any time! With Meteor it's just free calls on weekends, and with o2 it's 1c per min and again only weekends plus either daytime or night time.

slegs

There is a fundamental difference as it is time bound and not volume bound (which has an exact cost per minute and text when divided out). It is sold in the form of a bundle but you are buying a block of time within which you can make free calls and texts.

failsafe

But you're not getting "free text and calls". If you pay 11.99 and send 500 texts in a month, you're only paying 2.5c per text, but it's still not free. Whereas with Vodafone, O2 or Meteor, if you top up by €20, you also happen to get free 'anytime text or weekend calls and texts', 'any network weekend texts', or 'text and friend for free' (respectively) for the following 30 days (or calendar month with O2, afaik)

Do you get the difference in my mind on this one?

voyager

hi guys, just hoping to keep this topic alive and on the main page until its sused out, i was wondering has anyone signed up to Tesco mobile and if so what are their thoughts at this time .

voyager :cool:

Oracle

failsafe wrote: »

But you're not getting "free text and calls". If you pay 11.99 and send 500 texts in a month, you're only paying 2.5c per text, but it's still not free. Whereas with Vodafone, O2 or Meteor, if you top up by €20, you also happen to get free 'anytime text or weekend calls and texts', 'any network weekend texts', or 'text and friend for free' (respectively) for the following 30 days (or calendar month with O2, afaik)

Do you get the difference in my mind on this one?

Yes, that's true Failsafe, I hadn't thought about it like that. The distinction is an important one. The free calls and/or texts offered by the other networks are a time limited bonus you receive for topping up by a minimum amount, usually €20. The other networks bonus offers are usually restricted to calls and/or texts on their own network. But even if you don't use the bonus, your top up is still available for other calls and texts.

Whereas the "free calls and texts" offered by Tesco are time limited pre-paid bundles, paid for in advance whether used or not. Additionally only calls and texts within the Tesco network are free. As far as I know, all the pre-paid bundles offered by the other networks allow cross-network calling and texting. So this hybrid "free calls and texts bundle" doesn't seem like a good deal at all.

Sam Vimes

Oracle wrote: »

Additionally only calls and texts within the Tesco network are free. As far as I know, all the pre-paid bundles offered by the other networks allow cross-network calling and texting. So this hybrid "free calls and texts bundle" doesn't seem like a good deal at all.

nope. most of the equivalent free text/call bundles offered by the other networks are within network only. i think the only one that is cross network is o2's free weekend text deal

Random

Commander Vimes wrote: »

nope. most of the equivalent free text/call bundles offered by the other networks are within network only. i think the only one that is cross network is o2's free weekend text deal

Don't Meteor have free calls to any network all weekend on certain billpay? And then free calls to any network on Saturdays with others?

But yah .. things are mostly focussed on net.

godskitchen

The word bundle is being over used.

Oracle

Virtually all pre-paid bundles on all the networks are cross-network, and not restricted to their own network, for example:

Meteor 5c Text Add-on

Vodafone Text Add-on

O2 Text Bundles

3 Ireland Text Bundles (1 bundle Talk for Free is own-network)

It's the 30 day bonus of free or reduced rate calls and/or texts for topping up available on Meteor, Vodafone and O2 that's usually restricted to own-network.

slegs

Tesco Mobile has a Talk and Text bundle also (real volume based bundle) which is cross network. The In Touch bundle (and I agree that bundle is probably the wrong term for this as is the term free) is a time based offering which is very much new to the prepaid market. Its attraction is that if you can get your family or a group of friends (unlimited) to sign up you can all call and text each other unlimited for a fixed amount every 30 days. This is definitely a unique and attractive offer imho. Signing up on your own to this offer doesnt really get you much until Tesco Mobile has a customer base of note. Note they also have attractive flat rates compared to the other prepaid offers if you do not wish to sign up to bundles.

failsafe

Oracle's distinction is the point I trying to make, that Tesco are using words in the wrong context for the Irish Mobile market:

Bundle: As per the examples from Oracle above. I can send texts (cross-network) and pay a per sms rate, or I can "buy in bulk" at a discounted rate.

Bonus: I top up by €20, and along with my balance increasing by €20, I also get a bonus. This bonus is considered "free." It is/was generally on-net, but with o2's freedom offer is cross-net. These bonuses are limited by time (and fair use). In general they are 30 days from day of top up, but with O2 they are each calendar month.

Tesco: Their in-touch is priced like a bundle (i.e. it is paid for by deducting your credit balance) but provides usage like a bonus (i.e. it is time based, all you can eat, on-net). And they call it a free bonus!

So much for their postioning of clarity :P

slegs

Agreed that the "in touch" is not comparable to other offers and they should not use the term free or bundle but it is a bit like comparing apples and oranges. A time based fixed fee for unlimited onnet calls and texts is different and probably appealing to families and groups who want to control their spending

Oracle

In my opinion, the most effective and easy way Tesco could have made an impact and win customers would be to significantly cut call and texting rates. For example, 10c per min. calls and 5c text messages, all the time, to all networks. That would have presented a challenge to all their competitors, including Meteor.

voyager

hi Oracle. i totally agree with you , such a measure would in one swoop have thrown down the gauntlet to all other operators and indeed got consumers on the move, however i think o2 would have put paid to such a move very quickly as its on the o2 network that Tesco (a competitor in a way ) is running its network.

voyager :cool:

failsafe

True, it does make you wonder how much clout 02 have over tesco and their pricing structure. I was almost sure they would undercut meteor on the flat rate (if even by a cent!)

Zascar

Guys does anyone know if you will be able port / switch to Tesco Mobile and keep your existing 086/087 number?

I just want a flat anytime call rate, who else does this?

BuffyBot

Yes you can port numbers.

mkennedy

Lads couple of questions:

How much are the sim-packs.

What are the gprs settings for tesco.

Any way of checking data usage via text etc.

Can you buy as many intouch and data bundles as you want at a time- in other words to last you longer than 10 days etc.

How much are calls TO tesco from voda, O2 and meteor.

Thanks.

MrJoeSoap

mkennedy wrote: »

How much are the sim-packs.

€9.99

What are the gprs settings for tesco.

What do you mean?

Any way of checking data usage via text etc.

You'll get a text when you are near your limit afaik.

Can you buy as many intouch and data bundles as you want at a time- in other words to last you longer than 10 days etc.

I know you can definitely get more than one Talk and Text Bundle at a time, I'd imagine that if you got an In Touch bundle while you already had one it would start straight away, so I guess the answer to that is no.

You can get a 30 day In touch bundle though, and a one week data bundle.

How much are calls TO tesco from voda, O2 and meteor.

20cent per minute, charged for the entire first minute, then per second.

Thanks.

No problem.