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What Smartphone to Buy on What Network

Comparing mobile phone tariffs and phones

Price of iPhone 4 & HTC Desire HD in UK Compared

HTC Desire HD (w/ 16GB Sandisk Memory Card) £482.31
iPhone 4 16GB £499.00

Sources: Handtec, Apple UK Online Store

Both phones are new and unlocked. Prices are including VAT and shipping (which is usually free). As of 15/10/2010.

Comparison of SIM Only Tariffs in the UK

Vodafone 30 day £25.00
Three one-sim (12 month contract!) £25.00
Three SIM only £10.00
Giffgaff Goodybag 20 £20.00
Giffgaff Goodybag 30 £30.00

Giffgaff is “pay as you go” but if you pay in a certain amount of money each month you can opt to get a bolt-on they call “goody-bags”, which in turn offer you the features outlined in more detail a bit further down in this article. Simples :)

SIM only Features Comparison

Vodafone
SIM Only		 Three
One-Plan		 Three
SIM Only		 Giffgaff
GB30
900 cross-network minutes 2000 cross-network minutes 100 cross-network minutes Unlimited cross-network minutes
No voda-2-voda 5000 three-2-three minutes 2000 three-2-three minutes Unlimited gg-2-gg minutes
Unlimited texts 5000 texts 3000 texts Unlimited texts
500MB Internet use (1GB if iPhone SIM) 1GB Internet use 1GB Internet use Unlimited Internet use
Rolling monthly contract 12 Months contract Rolling monthly contract Top-up more than £30 a month to get bundle. There is no rolling contract.

Sources: Giffgaff, Vodafone, Three

Since Giffgaff doesn’t have a comparable £25 tariff, I have opted to show the bigger one as it has more value for money. The cheaper £20 tariff only offers 600 cross-network minutes but also has unlimited everything else.

The reason for comparing £25 monthly contracts is because it offers relalistic internet usage included in the tariff. Most lower tariffs don’t include anything or too little for smartphone usage.

None of the tariffs permit tethering your phone to your computer, to allow it to use the connection and Internet useage included! Apart from Giffgaff, air time expires at the end of the month. Giffgaff’s credit does not, although your SIM may be locked after not being used for 6 months.

Next -> SIM-only Tariffs and Phone Costs Compared

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This entry was posted on Friday, October 15th, 2010 at 18:31 and is filed under Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

  • Ben Baker

    This is a great summary of the two operating systems, its the same conclusion i came to myself, i will add that not all android systems are the same it depends on which phone you have, i myself have the new Samsung Galaxy S and the android system can be a little buggy at times.

    Ben Baker (B_Baker_Media)

  • Ben Baker

    This is a great summary of the two operating systems, its the same conclusion i came to myself, i will add that not all android systems are the same it depends on which phone you have, i myself have the new Samsung Galaxy S and the android system can be a little buggy at times.

    Ben Baker (B_Baker_Media)

  • Simonh

    I am looking at exactly these two phones and which network and plan to go with, so this review has been extremely useful. I had more or less come to the same conclusion on preferred smartphone, and am now highly aware of the benefits of Giff Gaff. It occurs to me that if you purchase their ‘Goody Bags’, then your service can be essentially the same as a long-term pay-monthly contract, however you are only committed to this for one month instead of 12, 18 or 24!! Think my decisions are made… Thanks for the post :)

  • Simonh

    I am looking at exactly these two phones and which network and plan to go with, so this review has been extremely useful. I had more or less come to the same conclusion on preferred smartphone, and am now highly aware of the benefits of Giff Gaff. It occurs to me that if you purchase their ‘Goody Bags’, then your service can be essentially the same as a long-term pay-monthly contract, however you are only committed to this for one month instead of 12, 18 or 24!! Think my decisions are made… Thanks for the post :)

  • http://www.axelsegebrecht.com/ Axel Segebrecht

    Thanks for the feedback guys. Happy to see you found my review useful :D

    @Ben: At least Android is evolving whereas iOS feels like its stuck and gets more buggy with every version! My old 3G still in use but dare I run the latest iOS on it :-/ The 3GS I use everyday is a right pain… .

  • http://www.axelsegebrecht.com/ Axel Segebrecht

    Thanks for the feedback guys. Happy to see you found my review useful :D

    @Ben: At least Android is evolving whereas iOS feels like its stuck and gets more buggy with every version! My old 3G still in use but dare I run the latest iOS on it :-/ The 3GS I use everyday is a right pain… .