30 day contract sim only deals comparison...

DRose1

Hi,

I thought it would be worthwhile posting a comparative thread to help people (myself included) choose what the best deal is for a 30 day sim only contract.

I am currently using 02 (I was on bill pay for years, but recently went back to prepay after my contract ended) and while I find the network itself good, the prices are ridiculous imo. So I am looking to go on a 30 day sim only contract and keep my iPhone 2g. I dont want to commit to a new 12/18/24 month contract.

The following is info directly from its websites:

02 - http://www.o2online.ie/o2/shop/sim-only/
Vodafone - http://www.vodafone.ie/df/simonly/
Three - http://www.three.ie/contractstore/shop/flow/PricePlan.aspx?handsetProductId=641
eMobile - http://www.emobile.ie/phonesplansmore/plans/postpay/detailsCallTextBrowse/?gid=47
Meteor - https://phones.meteor.ie/bp/choose_a_plan

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My budget would be in the €30 - €40 per month range. With that in mind, the best deals from the above networks seems to be:

02 - Simplicity plan at €30 per month. 150 free minutes and 100 free texts. Free 02 talk and text. No data. For €9.99 per month extra, you could get 700mb of data.

Vodafone - Simply 400 plan. €40 per month. 200 free minutes & 200 free texts. Free Vodafone talk and text. No data. For €9.99 extra per month, you can get 1gb of data.

Three - Classic flex plan at €35 per month. 500 flexi units (1 unit = 2 texts or one voice minute). Unlimited free 3 to 3 calls. One free add on - 7 choices with the best one for me being free 500mb of data per month.

eMobile - Select 300 plan at €39 per month for eircom customer or €44 if you are not. 300 minutes and 300 texts. 2gb of data.

Meteor - Bill pay smart lite. €40 per month (if bought online). 400 minutes and 400 texts. 2gb of data. Free meteor to meteor texts.

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Obviously if you are looking for the best deal on paper, you can immediately rule out Vodafone and O2. My issues with Meteor and eMobile is their 2g network (voice and texts). I have heard a lot of bad stories about it and I couldnt be bothered going down that road again.

So it looks like its down to Three for me. The deal on paper looks good. I think the 500mb of data would be plenty considering I would only be using it for checking emails and web browsing (having a data add on is important to me). The flexiunits should cover my text and voice units.

So that leaves the network itself. Would I be right in saying that I would be using Vodafones 2g network when 3g is not available? If that is the case, how does Vodafones network compare to 02? I was with Vodafone years ago and I can remember it being slightly worse than 02 - Is that still the case? I am living in Drogheda for what its worth.

Any advice/comments would be appreciated.

podge018

why not go for the Classic Flex Max for €30 - 350 flexi units, but unlimited data and a freebie add on of 150 off-peak minutes or texts, whichever suits you better.

I'm switching from O2 to that tomorrow..

DRose1

Didnt notice that one. Thanks for the heads up.

Let me know how you get on with it.

DRose1

podge018 wrote: »

why not go for the Classic Flex Max for €30 - 350 flexi units, but unlimited data and a freebie add on of 150 off-peak minutes or texts, whichever suits you better.

I'm switching from O2 to that tomorrow..

How are you making the switch? i.e Are you going into a shop or doing it online?

I ask because that looks like the deal for me, but I am wondering how I port over my number to three.... Can I do it as part of the online process?

Do you know if they still use Vodafone as their 2g network? Considering I have the iPhone 2g, I would have no use for the 3g network... I rang their customer service and they didnt see too sure about whether the sim card would work with my iPhone 2g...

podge018

Ring Three and they'll take your details over the phone. Then they'll send you a new SIM in the post with a temporary 083 number while your other one is being ported or something. He said it's very simple and the instructions will be in the letter.

For the SIM only option it says: "3G handset required. It is your responsibility to ensure the SIM is compatible with the handset intended for use."

I don't know why this is the case, but mine is anyway, so it doesn't bother me.

DRose1

Thanks podge,

I posted a thread in the Three forum and hopefully I will get a response from an official rep there.

Kensington

It's part of the terms and conditions that you need a 3G handset. Whether Three enforce this or not, I don't know. I imagine they would though, as if you don't have a 3G handset, you will be permanently roaming on Vodafone's network and this costs Three money.

Another thing, Vodafone only have GPRS, no EDGE and Three's roaming agreement with Vodafone only covers 2G, not 3G. So if you did have a non-3G handset with Three, you'd only have GPRS for data.

GPRS is slow.
Very slow.
Painfully slow.

DRose1

Kensington wrote: »

It's part of the terms and conditions that you need a 3G handset. Whether Three enforce this or not, I don't know. I imagine they would though, as if you don't have a 3G handset, you will be permanently roaming on Vodafone's network and this costs Three money.

Another thing, Vodafone only have GPRS, no EDGE and Three's roaming agreement with Vodafone only covers 2G, not 3G. So if you did have a non-3G handset with Three, you'd only have GPRS for data.

GPRS is slow.
Very slow.
Painfully slow.

Yea I am getting similar responses in the Three forum:

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056205475

Looks like Three is off my list then...

So as for my other options. Has the Meteor network improved much in recent years or is it still really poor compared to 02 and Vodafone? (I am living in Drogheda)

Does Meteor offer Edge support?

Thanks again for the advice.

theteal

DRose1 wrote: »

(I am living in Drogheda)

Does Meteor offer Edge support?

Thanks again for the advice.

you'll get 3G/HSDPA signal throughout Drogheda. For the rare occasions you don't, Edge is there

Kensington

Meteor offer EDGE support everywhere bar the Western seaboard, where they too roam on Vodafone.

I recently switched back to Meteor, they appear to have filled in quite a lot of coverage gaps since I was last with them over a year ago. Was down in the boglands of Offaly over the weekend and had full coverage, a year ago I'd have struggled to even keep basic network reception in some of the main towns around that area.

Not sure what it's like in Drogheda, best bet is to stick your address into the ComReg site viewer [here] and it will show you the base stations of all the operators in your area.
Find your local Meteor one, click on it and it will tell you what technology it supports. Some of the newer sites are 3G only which is no good to you, but if there's a GSM enabled site close to your house, you should be good to go.

DRose1

Kensington wrote: »

Meteor offer EDGE support everywhere bar the Western seaboard, where they too roam on Vodafone.

I recently switched back to Meteor, they appear to have filled in quite a lot of coverage gaps since I was last with them over a year ago. Was down in the boglands of Offaly over the weekend and had full coverage, a year ago I'd have struggled to even keep basic network reception in some of the main towns around that area.

Not sure what it's like in Drogheda, best bet is to stick your address into the ComReg site viewer [here] and it will show you the base stations of all the operators in your area.
Find your local Meteor one, click on it and it will tell you what technology it supports. Some of the newer sites are 3G only which is no good to you, but if there's a GSM enabled site close to your house, you should be good to go.

Thanks for that link.

Looks there is no 3g coverage in my area regardless of the network I would go on.

I think I might just stay with 02. The prices are terrible but at least I know they support Edge and for the most part the service is ok.

ingen

DRose1 wrote: »

Thanks for that link.

Looks there is no 3g coverage in my area regardless of the network I would go on.

I think I might just stay with 02. The prices are terrible but at least I know they support Edge and for the most part the service is ok.

get a few prepay sims and try them out, to see what the signal actually is like, sometimes coverage maps online are not always accurate.