Long term contracts on phones (3yrs)
Discussion
Thoughts on these? As phones get more pricey they are having to run contracts over longer periods. I'm thinking of the Fold 3 but i am sure others will follow.
Buying outright and on a contract is little different in terms of overall cost and I've had my last phone for about 4-5 years but , I don't know, thoughts?
Buying outright and on a contract is little different in terms of overall cost and I've had my last phone for about 4-5 years but , I don't know, thoughts?
I remember when it was one year, it took a while to get used to skipping a phone out when they moved to 2 year contracts, but that coincided with a slow-down in big tech advancements as well.
Over three years I would run a cost comparison between a sim-only contract and buying the phone out-right using something like Klarna. You can go on Samsung's website and setup a pay-monthly over 3 years for example. That way you have much more flexibility to change networks and over when you get your next phone too.
The other thing is if you're going to run a phone for three years it's going to be quite out of date at the end of that, there's a reasonable argument there for an older phone that you replace more often because it'll cost you less. Eg my S20+ was a brand new insurance replacement and a smidge under £400, I'm working on the basis of £200 a year for the phone, which is the equivalent of keeping a £1000 flagship for 5 years.
Over three years I would run a cost comparison between a sim-only contract and buying the phone out-right using something like Klarna. You can go on Samsung's website and setup a pay-monthly over 3 years for example. That way you have much more flexibility to change networks and over when you get your next phone too.
The other thing is if you're going to run a phone for three years it's going to be quite out of date at the end of that, there's a reasonable argument there for an older phone that you replace more often because it'll cost you less. Eg my S20+ was a brand new insurance replacement and a smidge under £400, I'm working on the basis of £200 a year for the phone, which is the equivalent of keeping a £1000 flagship for 5 years.
Frimley111R said:
As phones get more pricey
They're really not.£250 gets you a really good phone these days.
Yes, you can spend six times that if you want to but why bother? Maybe a little extra to get a better camera if you fancy, but £250 goes a very long way these days.
I don't really get the fold. It's a massive brick of a mobile to carry about (even bigger when you factor in the power pack you'll inevitably end up carrying around) and its one big selling point is pretty pointless for most of its use as a mobile; it isn't convenient. Too big for a mobile, too small for a tablet/laptop replacement at home.
It must have been 15 years ago I cracked the manufacturing method for a tricky part of the machine that "grows" oleds and I remember the customer proudly pulling out and unraveling a screen from his pocket.
As politely as possible I asked him what the intended use was, what problem did it solve, and he didn't really have an answer.
It is cool tech however, and I can see why people will pay for it.
Please realize that I've only posted this rambling due to boredom as I wait in for a delivery, and is just an excuse to show off my engineering/manufacturing prowess.
Oh, and you'll hate me for this: the fold will never be as cool as the Motorola RAZR, and you knows it.
k right off.My first phone was a Nokia 3210. In those days the battery was goosed after a year or so, and tech was moving so fast that there were desirable upgrade alternatives after 12-18 months. A 12 month contract where you paid for the phone as part of the monthlies made sense, partly because I couldn't really afford the outlay of a whole phone.
These days a £400 phone with a £10 a month plan offers everything I need. There would be no real increase in utility for me in going for a £1000 phone, although I appreciate others may see the benefit. The crucial differences between now and the Nokia days are that I can afford to pay £400 outright, so I don't need to finance it, and the phone will last 3 years or more. The battery won't be shagged in 12 months, and the technology isn't changing at all anymore, not really. Not in a way that will make a difference to how I will use it.
Paying outright vs paying in the monthly boils down to a comparison between paying the retail mark-up now, vs whatever handset discount the provider is able to get, plus financing cost, plus profit.
If I couldn't afford to buy outright, I wouldn't rule out a 3 year contract, but I'd end up spending quite a bit on a bullet-proof case to protect the phone until I'd paid for it. But I wouldn't be looking at a £1,000 mega-phone, regardless of what I was doing.
These days a £400 phone with a £10 a month plan offers everything I need. There would be no real increase in utility for me in going for a £1000 phone, although I appreciate others may see the benefit. The crucial differences between now and the Nokia days are that I can afford to pay £400 outright, so I don't need to finance it, and the phone will last 3 years or more. The battery won't be shagged in 12 months, and the technology isn't changing at all anymore, not really. Not in a way that will make a difference to how I will use it.
Paying outright vs paying in the monthly boils down to a comparison between paying the retail mark-up now, vs whatever handset discount the provider is able to get, plus financing cost, plus profit.
If I couldn't afford to buy outright, I wouldn't rule out a 3 year contract, but I'd end up spending quite a bit on a bullet-proof case to protect the phone until I'd paid for it. But I wouldn't be looking at a £1,000 mega-phone, regardless of what I was doing.
I very rarely find a phone + contract works out good value vs buy phone outright + sim only.
I've currently got a Pixel 5, Three don't currently sell that so lets say the Pixel 4A for example:
Three want £34 p/m for their unlimited data etc + £29 up front which works out at £1,032 over 24 months
Google want £349 for the phone outright (they offer 0%), Three want £20 p/m for unlimited sim only (6 months at 50% off), if you didn't get the 6 months 50% off the total would be £829, £769 with the 6 months 50%
So by doing it as sim only + phone your saving £203 or £263 with the 6 months 50% off.
Years ago people used to do contracts to spread the cost, but Apple, Google etc tend to do 0% these days.
I've currently got a Pixel 5, Three don't currently sell that so lets say the Pixel 4A for example:
Three want £34 p/m for their unlimited data etc + £29 up front which works out at £1,032 over 24 months
Google want £349 for the phone outright (they offer 0%), Three want £20 p/m for unlimited sim only (6 months at 50% off), if you didn't get the 6 months 50% off the total would be £829, £769 with the 6 months 50%
So by doing it as sim only + phone your saving £203 or £263 with the 6 months 50% off.
Years ago people used to do contracts to spread the cost, but Apple, Google etc tend to do 0% these days.
camel_landy said:
Buy the phone and then go SIM only. It's cheaper and offers greater flexibility.
M
It does offer greater flexibility, but it isn't always that much cheaper.M
Example:
I currently have an iPhone 11, which cost £599 Sim free from Apple. The phone will last two years, then be sold for £250, meaning it has cost me £350 for 2 years.
I have an O2 sim only deal for £10 a month, so this costs me £240 for 2 years.
Total cost for 2 years = £590, or £24.58 per month.
You can get decent 2 year deals for £26 per month, albeit with sometimes £50 upfront extra.
I looked at a Samsung Galaxy S21 on EE on a 2 year phone contract and it worked out cheaper to take a contract with the phone over sim only, over buying a phone separately. I was very close to taking it but decided to see how long my S10 lasts instead and carry on with GiffGaff.
Edit- a 2 year contract is just about acceptable to me but I wouldn't be happy with 3 years, that's too long in my view but I guess to make the latest phones affordable it appeals to some, I suspect many don't realise they are signing up to 3 year contracts because they don't look at the detail.
Edit- a 2 year contract is just about acceptable to me but I wouldn't be happy with 3 years, that's too long in my view but I guess to make the latest phones affordable it appeals to some, I suspect many don't realise they are signing up to 3 year contracts because they don't look at the detail.
Jamescrs said:
I looked at a Samsung Galaxy S21 on EE on a 2 year phone contract and it worked out cheaper to take a contract with the phone over sim only, over buying a phone separately. I was very close to taking it but decided to see how long my S10 lasts instead and carry on with GiffGaff.
Edit- a 2 year contract is just about acceptable to me but I wouldn't be happy with 3 years, that's too long in my view but I guess to make the latest phones affordable it appeals to some, I suspect many don't realise they are signing up to 3 year contracts because they don't look at the detail.
I agree.Edit- a 2 year contract is just about acceptable to me but I wouldn't be happy with 3 years, that's too long in my view but I guess to make the latest phones affordable it appeals to some, I suspect many don't realise they are signing up to 3 year contracts because they don't look at the detail.
By around 18 months to 2 years, my battery is starting to degrade, and it's time to get a new phone as I get less hours of use before it needs charged. As soon as it becomes inconvenient, I change it for a new one.
(I'm a reasonably heavy user, and use my personal phone for work. Often on calls, reading emails, using google maps, taking photos, and so on)
Simple maths.
Compare the costs of outright + sim only and the full term contract price for the same plan as the sim only. Unless the contract offers a decent saving, buy the phone outright.
I don't change phones as often as many (~4yr cycles). I've bought most outright, but the current one I bought on a 2yr contract as there was a decent saving in doing so. The 2yrs is up shortly so will move to sim only as the phone (Note 10+) is still in immaculate condition and working perfectly. With a bit of luck I reckon this one will last at least 4yrs and quite possibly a chunk more.
Compare the costs of outright + sim only and the full term contract price for the same plan as the sim only. Unless the contract offers a decent saving, buy the phone outright.
I don't change phones as often as many (~4yr cycles). I've bought most outright, but the current one I bought on a 2yr contract as there was a decent saving in doing so. The 2yrs is up shortly so will move to sim only as the phone (Note 10+) is still in immaculate condition and working perfectly. With a bit of luck I reckon this one will last at least 4yrs and quite possibly a chunk more.
Jamescrs said:
I looked at a Samsung Galaxy S21 on EE on a 2 year phone contract and it worked out cheaper to take a contract with the phone over sim only, over buying a phone separately.
Yes that's likely the case. I think where the value is in the case of three year contracts is not buying the S21 but buying the S20 because it's out of date and can be had a lot cheaper, then use that saving to fund replacing the phone every two years instead of three, so although you're never completely up to date, you're never three years behind either.That and you're left with complete flexibility to upgrade as early or late as suits you vs the new device market.
AJB88 said:
Three want £34 p/m for their unlimited data etc + £29 up front which works out at £1,032 over 24 months
But going through a site like USWITCH the same phone is £22 p/m for 100gb data etc + £29 up front which works out at £557 over 24 monthsOk the above example is 100GB and not unlimited but I would imagine 100GB would be fine for most people.
Longtime Lurker said:
But going through a site like USWITCH the same phone is £22 p/m for 100gb data etc + £29 up front which works out at £557 over 24 months
Ok the above example is 100GB and not unlimited but I would imagine 100GB would be fine for most people.
I was comparing like for like though. I'm sure you can find it a lot cheaper for 20gb a month etc. Ok the above example is 100GB and not unlimited but I would imagine 100GB would be fine for most people.
The rules change in December 2021 ( thanks EU ! ) - which stop mobile companies locking phones to networks as this stopped customer shopping round for deal.
This has to networks separating the contract for phone and the mobile contract Some are more obvious than others virgin freestyle for example 2 year "loan" on the phone and rolling 30 day on the mobile contract
Voda and O2 do the same "device financing" and call plan are separate and you can pay of the phone early ( like any loan)
Makes it much easier to work out real prices and move suppliers
This has to networks separating the contract for phone and the mobile contract Some are more obvious than others virgin freestyle for example 2 year "loan" on the phone and rolling 30 day on the mobile contract
Voda and O2 do the same "device financing" and call plan are separate and you can pay of the phone early ( like any loan)
Makes it much easier to work out real prices and move suppliers
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