Best Mobile Phone Package for Ringing / Texting Down South

count66

Hi all,

I was wondering if anybody could advise me who gives the best mobile deal up North for keeping in contact with people down South?

Thanks,

Count66

aquascrotum

Options I know of -

Couple of lads in work are PAYG on 3 and are able to use Skype / Viber for voip calls and instant messaging (instead of texts), assuming the people your talking to in RoI are on a smartphone. They also use skype account credit to dial RoI landlines for pennies. You can also use the Cabbage app on smartphones to text Irish mobiles for free, if you have a webtext account with an Irish mobile network.

I'm on a 3 tariff for £20 a month with a decent handset and can do all that too, think the lads in work generally spend £10-15 a month but had to buy handsets up front.

The GF is on one of these monthly no-ties contracts with O2 - when she picked it she could select one of a number of bolt-ons as long as she tops up a tenner a month, and as far as I know thats given her a couple of hundred minutes to Irish landlines built in. She also uses Cabbage.

I know that there are no networks who will allow you to use any SMS allowance in a contract on international texts, so its a case of working out who your calling/texting, what tech they have, and picking the option that suits.

owenc

I don't know about down south. But the best phone network is 02 uk without a doubt. It has the best signal and you can virtually get it everywhere, the only place yet were i haven't got it is garvagh and outside derry, i'm out in the country and i can 6 bars without fail. They have brilliant customer service anytime something has gone wrong they have fixed the problem right away. They have the best phones to at good prices. Its really cheap too i put in £15 per month and for that i get unlimited texts, calls and internet, something no other network will EVER give you. They give you back 10% of your top ups aswell per 3 months you can use that to get money off a new phone to. I don't think its a good idea to join 3 they have **** service and you canny get their signal anywhere except belfast. I swear go with 02 they are the best! http://shop.o2.co.uk/tariffs/Pay_and_Go

count66

Thanks mate

aquascrotum wrote: »

Options I know of -

Couple of lads in work are PAYG on 3 and are able to use Skype / Viber for voip calls and instant messaging (instead of texts), assuming the people your talking to in RoI are on a smartphone. They also use skype account credit to dial RoI landlines for pennies. You can also use the Cabbage app on smartphones to text Irish mobiles for free, if you have a webtext account with an Irish mobile network.

I'm on a 3 tariff for £20 a month with a decent handset and can do all that too, think the lads in work generally spend £10-15 a month but had to buy handsets up front.

The GF is on one of these monthly no-ties contracts with O2 - when she picked it she could select one of a number of bolt-ons as long as she tops up a tenner a month, and as far as I know thats given her a couple of hundred minutes to Irish landlines built in. She also uses Cabbage.

I know that there are no networks who will allow you to use any SMS allowance in a contract on international texts, so its a case of working out who your calling/texting, what tech they have, and picking the option that suits.

count66

Thanks mate

owenc wrote: »

I don't know about down south. But the best phone network is 02 uk without a doubt. It has the best signal and you can virtually get it everywhere, the only place yet were i haven't got it is garvagh and outside derry, i'm out in the country and i can 6 bars without fail. They have brilliant customer service anytime something has gone wrong they have fixed the problem right away. They have the best phones to at good prices. Its really cheap too i put in £15 per month and for that i get unlimited texts, calls and internet, something no other network will EVER give you. They give you back 10% of your top ups aswell per 3 months you can use that to get money off a new phone to. I don't think its a good idea to join 3 they have **** service and you canny get their signal anywhere except belfast. I swear go with 02 they are the best! http://shop.o2.co.uk/tariffs/Pay_and_Go

owenc

count66 wrote: »

Thanks mate

NB

6679

Sorry to hijack this thread but I need your help.

I need your help trying to decide on these two deals.
This one works out as 538 over 24 months but it seems too good to be true. Also is 3 signal that good in Northern Ireland?
http://www.affordablemobiles.co.uk/contract-mobile-phones/3/texter_500/samsung/galaxy_s_ii/24597021.html

Works out at 504 over the two years but I dont get as many minutes/texts or data but I know the O2 signal in Northern Ireland is good.
http://shop.o2.co.uk/mobile_phone/pay_monthly/24_months/100MB/Samsung/Galaxy_S_II_White

Can anyone comment? I will be pretty much spending most of my time in Belfast but I do travel down across the border a fair bit but I do have southern mobile so I can use that.

pow wow

From experience 3 is fine around the city but can be patchy out in more rural areas. O2 coverage is v. good in the majority of places. The deal seems a good one if you can get it on 3, maybe you could try a free SIM from them first to see how the coverage is if you're concerned about it.

I'll move these couple of posts over to the megathread once all the phone savvy folks have replied

owenc

6679 wrote: »

Sorry to hijack this thread but I need your help.

I need your help trying to decide on these two deals.
This one works out as 538 over 24 months but it seems too good to be true. Also is 3 signal that good in Northern Ireland?
http://www.affordablemobiles.co.uk/contract-mobile-phones/3/texter_500/samsung/galaxy_s_ii/24597021.html

Works out at 504 over the two years but I dont get as many minutes/texts or data but I know the O2 signal in Northern Ireland is good.
http://shop.o2.co.uk/mobile_phone/pay_monthly/24_months/100MB/Samsung/Galaxy_S_II_White

Can anyone comment? I will be pretty much spending most of my time in Belfast but I do travel down across the border a fair bit but I do have southern mobile so I can use that.

I would not get a 3 mobile, their signal is woeful absolutely woeful, i don't think you can even pick up 3 here at all its that bad. Why do you not just get a pay and go phone from o2, its far cheaper if you put in £15 per month you get unlimited calls and texts to anyone on o2, and if you want internet you can take £7.50 out of that £15 and get unlimited internet too.

aquascrotum

owenc wrote: »

I would not get a 3 mobile, their signal is woeful absolutely woeful, i don't think you can even pick up 3 here at all its that bad. Why do you not just get a pay and go phone from o2, its far cheaper if you put in £15 per month you get unlimited calls and texts to anyone on o2, and if you want internet you can take £7.50 out of that £15 and get unlimited internet too.

There might be holes in the 3 network out round Coleraine - but this post is in the Belfast City forum, and I have never experienced any shortage of 3 signal here (nor across most of NI for that matter and I travel and use the phone a lot for work).

owenc

The difference is o2 is more reliable and has far better service, out here in the country i can get six bars i bet yeh 3 is something like 2 bars even in the town. O2 has better deals too. If you are travelling about or don't live in belfast the 3 network is not a very good idea.