The Changing Face of Mobile Contracts

It used to be the case that mobile phone contracts lasted 12 months but these days most providers are keen to get you signed up for 18 or 24 months. This makes choosing the right handset and network very important as it can be a big commitment. When selecting a mobile phone we are aware that it's style or function may start to become outdated towards the end of our contract. The benefits of longer contracts for the provider are straightforward: they get more money from you and can rely on your custom for longer. There are also benefits for the consumer which are clear if you compare your first mobile phone to your current model.



The technology available now means that our phone can be used to take (surprisingly high quality) photographs, browse the internet and watch television online. We also have inbuilt GPS and video calling functionality. The handsets we use are worth a lot more than they used to be yet most contracts don't require a fee upfront for the phone. Despite all the increases in handset quality most of us still get a free handset as long as we sign a contract of 12 months or longer. It is also worth pointing out that the amount of minutes and text messages we are allocated tends to increase each year whilst the cost of calls tends to fall. My current contract allows to unlimited text messages and calls to those on the same network.

There are of course cheaper options for those who are unwilling to pay a monthly fee. Pay as you go phones are still popular particularly with those wanting to spend less per month. Pay as you go users are not obliged to sign up for a particular length of time so they can jump ship whenever they want. Pay monthly SIM only deals are also available for those who also have a handset they are willing to stick with but who want a better price for calls.

What ever contract you choose you cannot argue that there isn't enough choice. Now, more than ever before we are able to decide what we want and how much we are willing to pay for it.

Three Offers 15GB Mobile Broadband for £15

Mobile Broadband provider Three are now offering 15GB of data per month for £15. The deal is avaliable for those who sign up to a 24 month pay monthly contract. This is perhaps Three's best mobile broadband offer for those willing to comit to a long term contract.

Most mobile broadband contracts offer around 3-5GB for £15 so this latest offer will appeal to those who are 'heavy' users. There is nothing worse than going over your monthly alowance and being charged an arm and a leg for a few mb of data so the 15gb limit will appeal to some.

Hopefully this offer will lead to a 'price war' between the main providers. If a company wants to keep its customers during such shakey financial times they need to offer great value epecially for luxurys such as mobile broadband. Three seem to know this, lets just hope the others are paying attention.

3 announces 170 per cent rise in mobile broadband subscriptions

The telecoms provider Three has recently announced that it has seen a 170% increase in new mobile broadband subscriptions for the first half of 2009. The company currently has 3.8 million mobile broadband customers between their fixed monthly and pay as you go options.

Three's revenue has increased by 2% making them one of the only major broadband companies to record a profit this year. It seems that only the best mobile broadband offers will attract customers during a recession. The average spend of most of Three's customers has gone down but they have attracted new customers to their mobile broadband offering.

Orange Launches Mobile Broadband Contract for Under £5 Per Month

The mobile broadband industry suffered some negative press recently when Ofcom released it's data about average download speeds and coverage. The average speed achieved is actually considerably less that the 'up to' speeds normally advertised. This will come as no big surprise to most but Ofcom argued that the main providers should be more clear about the speeds customers are actually likely to experience.

Orange has attempted to get customers back on side by offering a new low cost pay monthly mobile broadband package. The contract is the first to be offered for under £5 per month and comes with a free dongle. Users are tied in for 18 months giving a total cost of around £90.

Other new contracts recently released offer pay as you go and even month-by-month mobile broadband contracts. There is now a much wider range of contracts on offer to the 9/10 homes which have yet to sign up for mobile broadband.

The downside to Orange's new contract is that is only offers a meager 500mb monthly download limit. This might be enough to check your emails and browse occasionally but it wouldn't last long for most users. The deal is only being offered to those who already have a fixed line broadband or mobile phone contract with Orange.

Three Offers One Month Mobile Broadband Contract

The Mobile Broadband industry is a very competitive one. Each year the big broadband providers try to bring out better deals in order to convince new consumers to sign up with them. Some offer free laptops others generous download limits. Three has decided to offer a new one month only contract aimed at those who don't want to get tied in to 18 months worth of monthly charges.

Their pay as you go mobile broadband offerings now include a month-by-month contract with a 5gb download allowance. Their 'dongle' (don't you just hate that word?) costs £20 on this contract taking the first monthly cost to £35. Users can cancel at any time and will only be required to pay for the remainder of the month. In contrast those canceling most 12+ month contracts are obliged to pay the remainder of their monthly costs making it effectively impossible to cancel most mobile broadband contracts.

This deal is likely to appeal to those needing mobile broadband in the short term. Students who spend part of the year at home will be able to use mobile broadband whilst at university without having to pay for it year-round. The downside to this plan is that you would receive a considerably smaller download allowance than with a long term contract.