Go with a contract or buy direct?

Tim76

Hi all,

I'm looking at getting an iPhone 6. After doing the sums it turns out that buying the phone direct from Apple and getting a sim only rolling contract is working out as roughly the same as getting the phone on a 24 month contract with a carrier.

Calls, data & texts plan being the same also.

Can anyone advise on the advantages of going with either option? I'm leaning towards the direct from Apple route but i'm a bit concerned that my current rolling contract deal with Three might change down the line. I'm currently getting 350min of calls & texts and all you can eat data for €20 a month for sim only.

Cushie Butterfield

Buying direct from Apple gives you the freedom of being able to switch provider with ease (30 days notice max) & not being tied to them for the length of your contract.

It's also nice to be able to sell your device should a newer one be released without having to worry about it being locked to a network - a good way to recoup some of the cost of a newer model.

It's also handy to be able to buy a local sim if your travelling or if your work situation changes & you have to relocate.

If you can afford to buy direct do it.

baby and crumble

Tim76 wrote: »

Hi all,

I'm looking at getting an iPhone 6. After doing the sums it turns out that buying the phone direct from Apple and getting a sim only rolling contract is working out as roughly the same as getting the phone on a 24 month contract with a carrier.

Calls, data & texts plan being the same also.

Can anyone advise on the advantages of going with either option? I'm leaning towards the direct from Apple route but i'm a bit concerned that my current rolling contract deal with Three might change down the line. I'm currently getting 350min of calls & texts and all you can eat data for €20 a month for sim only.

I got my 4s from Apple and tbh I'd never buy on a plan again. It was a great experience and it allows you to shop around constantly and make sure you're getting the best deal. I'm on 3 PAYG and I spend €20 a month and get pretty much unlimited everything. I've definitely saved money over the life of my phone doing it this way.

Creamy Goodness

It comes down to this

Can you afford to drop the €800 now or prefer to spend it out over 18/24 months.

Both have their own pros and cons.

dmcg90

Often buying off contract is cheaper than buying on contract. You've got more freedom, can upgrade more often and get a higher resale value.

At the end of the day, if you can affort it. Do it. If you can't, go contract.

Dudda

I bought a 4S direct from Apple too and saved more long term by being able to switch contract when a better offer came out with only 30 days notice required.

Then later when I wanted to upgrade I could easily sell (although I gave it to a friend for free) who was on a different network.

My upgrade was bought unlocked and my next will probably be unlocked too. I can't see myself ever going back to a long contract but you do have to be able to pay the large amount upfront which definitely doesn't suit everyone.

Dades

Make sure you look at the contract-free SIM only plans and ensure there is one that will cater for all your requirements at a cheaper monthly - e.g. calls/texts/data/4G etc.

There are loads of quite cheap ones out there but unless you really examine your requirements you can't really say if they'll be enough for you.

Tim76

Thanks for the responses guys.

I can afford to pay up front so I think that's the option I will take. I can't see any real advantage with going the 24 month contract.

Plus I save a massive €15.84!

Heisenberg1

Tim76 wrote: »

Thanks for the responses guys.

I can afford to pay up front so I think that's the option I will take. I can't see any real advantage with going the 24 month contract.

Plus I save a massive €15.84!

Good decision I would recommend Meteor's unlimited, unlimited and 15gb a month for €35 pm comes with 4G too.

soundsham

Heisenberg1 wrote: »

Good decision I would recommend Meteor's unlimited, unlimited and 15gb a month for €35 pm comes with 4G too.

Id recommend emobile sim only plan same as above but 5gb €24

dantastic

Just like to add my own experience here. I too buy my phones right from Apple and have been doing so for a while. One thing to consider is warranty and repairs. Just head over to the talk to [insert any network here] and read about all the horror stories about the repair firms they use.

My iPhone 5 had a known power button fault. One call to Apple and a brand new replacement phone was on its merry way - super simple.
My iPhone 5s had a screen problem, also had the phone replaced.

When things go wrong, Apple are 100 times easier to deal with than any of the providers.

I will never buy a phone on a plan ever again.

Creamy Goodness

soundsham wrote: »

Id recommend emobile sim only plan same as above but 5gb €24

Only problem with that is if you're on 4g you can easily slice through 5gb.

digitaldr

dantastic wrote: »

Just head over to the talk to [insert any network here] and read about all the horror stories about the repair firms they use.

Have to agree - networks have customer disservice departments to deal with warranty repairs!

JoeA3

dantastic wrote: »

Just like to add my own experience here. I too buy my phones right from Apple and have been doing so for a while. One thing to consider is warranty and repairs. Just head over to the talk to [insert any network here] and read about all the horror stories about the repair firms they use.

My iPhone 5 had a known power button fault. One call to Apple and a brand new replacement phone was on its merry way - super simple.
My iPhone 5s had a screen problem, also had the phone replaced.

When things go wrong, Apple are 100 times easier to deal with than any of the providers.

I will never buy a phone on a plan ever again.

You can deal with Apple directly for warranty issues irrespective of whether you bought on contract or directly from them. I've always called Apple directly, no issues.

F34

dantastic wrote: »

Just like to add my own experience here. I too buy my phones right from Apple and have been doing so for a while. One thing to consider is warranty and repairs. Just head over to the talk to [insert any network here] and read about all the horror stories about the repair firms they use.

My iPhone 5 had a known power button fault. One call to Apple and a brand new replacement phone was on its merry way - super simple.
My iPhone 5s had a screen problem, also had the phone replaced.

When things go wrong, Apple are 100 times easier to deal with than any of the providers.

I will never buy a phone on a plan ever again.

A lot of the problems people have with iPhones through the network operators is that they insist on bringing the phones back to the network stores for repairs rather than Apple, despite Apple having probably the best after sales service of any mobile manufacturers imo.

I've never gone back to the operators for iPhone repair and tbh never will.

Mimikyu

This post has been deleted.

Heisenberg1

dantastic wrote: »

Just like to add my own experience here. I too buy my phones right from Apple and have been doing so for a while. One thing to consider is warranty and repairs. Just head over to the talk to [insert any network here] and read about all the horror stories about the repair firms they use.

My iPhone 5 had a known power button fault. One call to Apple and a brand new replacement phone was on its merry way - super simple.
My iPhone 5s had a screen problem, also had the phone replaced.

When things go wrong, Apple are 100 times easier to deal with than any of the providers.

I will never buy a phone on a plan ever again.

This I know too well I'm in process of going through the small claims court with Meteor with the wife's iPhone 5 it was only a week outside the 12 month warranty. She will never go contract again after this. My advice to people who have similar problems is don't give up and don't let them away with it know your consumer rights.

dmcg90

I've never had a problem claiming over one year with Apple on iDevices and macs, see:

https://www.apple.com/ie/legal/statutory-warranty/

Dades

Have had several contracted phones replaced by Apple, no probs.

Not enough people know to avoid approaching the networks with their hardware problems.

Creamy Goodness

Captain Morgan wrote: »

If you don't go over 5GB on 3G and your usage stays the same you won't go over 5GB on 4G. You'd just benefit from faster speeds.

Not necessarily, streaming video is dependant on how much bandwidth you have, more you have, the higher the quality, the more data you use. You could easily think you're still using the same just getting it quicker whilst in fact blowing through your cap quicker than you think. I know most streaming sites let you limit this but you have to log into their web app and limit it there.

When I was on 3G I used on average 3-4 gb a month. Now that I'm on 4G I'm 8-10 gb a month. My usage habits haven't changed.

Heisenberg1

Dades wrote: »

Have had several contracted phones replaced by Apple, no probs.

Not enough people know to avoid approaching the networks with their hardware problems.

How so? I contacted Apple directly first and they pointed me in the network direction.

whiterebel

Heisenberg1 wrote: »

How so? I contacted Apple directly first and they pointed me in the network direction.

Very unusual unless its DOA. Apple much prefer to deal with it directly, as none of the carriers use an authorised repair centre.

Cushie Butterfield

Cushie Butterfield wrote: »

Buying direct from Apple gives you the freedom of being able to switch provider with ease (30 days notice max) & not being tied to them for the length of your contract.

I was very surprised (in a good way) to be told by emobile that they will unlock the iPhone 6 once you are 6 months into the 24 month contract or spend 200 euro on bills which ever comes first.

digitaldr

I'm not sure that you could sell your unlocked phone because AFAIK it would still be emobile's property until your contract was finished. Even if you could you'd still be on a plan that was way more expensive than going SIM free. At least you could use it with a different SIM if abroad.

Jimmy Bottles

Buying on contract is almost certainly going to be cheaper than buying off contract.

For instance, if you buy a 64GB iPhone 6 from e-Mobile on their tariff which gives you unlimited calls, texts and 5Gig of 4G data per month.

Off Contract
Cost of phone: €800
e-Mobile Bill Pay: €24 x 24 = €€576
Total = €€1,376

With Contract
Cost of phone: €300
e-Mobile Bill Pay: (€24 x 6) + (€39 x 18) = €846
Total = €1,146

That's a €230 saving. Am I missing something here that makes Off contract more attractive or which closes the cost gap ?

Michael8000

Jimmy Bottles wrote: »

Buying on contract is almost certainly going to be cheaper than buying off contract.

For instance, if you buy a 64GB iPhone 6 from e-Mobile on their tariff which gives you unlimited calls, texts and 5Gig of 4G data per month.

Off Contract
Cost of phone: €800
e-Mobile Bill Pay: €24 x 24 = €€576
Total = €€1,376

With Contract
Cost of phone: €300
e-Mobile Bill Pay: (€24 x 6) + (€39 x 18) = €846
Total = €1,146

That's a €230 saving. Am I missing something here that makes Off contract more attractive or which closes the cost gap ?

Where did you get the pricing for the iphone 64gb on e-mobile?

I can't seem to find the pricing anywhere on their site.

Thanks.

digitaldr

digitaldr wrote: »

I'm not sure that you could sell your unlocked phone because AFAIK it would still be emobile's property until your contract was finished. Even if you could you'd still be on a plan that was way more expensive than going SIM free. At least you could use it with a different SIM if abroad.

What they don't know won't hurt them. Its not something I would plan on doing after 6 months but you never know after say 18 months when the newer iPhone comes out. The contract might be more expensive but you paid very little up front for the phone.

Jimmy Bottles wrote: »

Buying on contract is almost certainly going to be cheaper than buying off contract.

For instance, if you buy a 64GB iPhone 6 from e-Mobile on their tariff which gives you unlimited calls, texts and 5Gig of 4G data per month.

Off Contract
Cost of phone: €800
e-Mobile Bill Pay: €24 x 24 = €€576
Total = €€1,376

With Contract
Cost of phone: €300
e-Mobile Bill Pay: (€24 x 6) + (€39 x 18) = €846
Total = €1,146

That's a €230 saving. Am I missing something here that makes Off contract more attractive or which closes the cost gap ?

Your sums are spot on, I went with the emobile contract except a 16gig phone. I think that emobile contract is the cheapest way to get an iPhone 6, discounting buying upfront and using prepay sims with crap data plans and/or very low numbers of free calls.

Michael8000 wrote: »

Where did you get the pricing for the iphone 64gb on e-mobile?

I can't seem to find the pricing anywhere on their site.

Thanks.

That's the price they give if you ring them.

Jimmy Bottles

Michael8000 wrote: »

Where did you get the pricing for the iphone 64gb on e-mobile?

I can't seem to find the pricing anywhere on their site.

Thanks.

I'm just going with €300 on the basis that a 16GB iPhone 6+ is €300. Presume the 64GB iPhone 6 will be the same price. Even if its €400 (which it won't be) it would still be cheaper.

Jimmy Bottles

Jimmy Bottles wrote: »

I'm just going with €300 on the basis that a 16GB iPhone 6+ is €300. Presume the 64GB iPhone 6 will be the same price. Even if its €400 (which it won't be) it would still be cheaper.

You are right, its 300 for the iPhone 6 64gig. I asked when I was ordering my phone last week.

Michael8000

I've been doing the numbers myself across all the carriers based on a iPhone 6 64 GB, a 24 month contract and on my needs.

It may be of help to some of you guys.

Carrier Call minutes Texts Data Price per month Cost of phone Cost of contract Overall cost
O2 500 500 1 GB 39.73 319.99 953.52 1273.51
Meteor 400 400 2 GB 39 349 936 1285
Three 350 100 Unlimited 40.66 329 975.84 1304.84
Vodafone 100 Unlimited 1 GB 35 349.99 840 1189.99
E-Mobile Unlimited Unlimited 5 GB 35.25* 300 846 1146



*With an Eircom bundle, €54 without

Michael8000

Michael8000 wrote: »

I've been doing the numbers myself across all the carriers based on a iPhone 6 64 GB, a 24 month contract and on my needs.

It may be of help to some of you guys.

Carrier Call minutes Texts Data Price per month Cost of phone Cost of contract Overall cost
O2 500 500 1 GB 39.73 319.99 953.52 1273.51
Meteor 400 400 2 GB 39 349 936 1285
Three 350 100 Unlimited 40.66 329 975.84 1304.84
Vodafone 100 Unlimited 1 GB 35 349.99 840 1189.99
E-Mobile Unlimited Unlimited 5 GB 35.25 300 846 1146

Vodafone's plan is pathetic :eek:.