3 UK blow apart the PAYG market with 321 offer: coming to Ireland?

kn

3 UK have blown the UK PAYG market wide open with an offering of just 3p/minute calls, 2p texts, and 1p/MB data. No doubt it is just as much a reaction to the voip operators as the other network operators. Can you imagine if they adopted something similar here like 5c/minute calls and 2c texts and data? It would blow Vodafone/o2/Meteor out of the water.

If you have a SIM free phone and go up North or across the water even only a few times a year it really is worth your while picking up a 3 UK SIM card.

http://www.gizmodo.co.uk/2013/07/threes-just-dropped-a-price-bomb-on-the-uks-payg-market/

jenno86

I prefer the deal they have here at the moment.

jenno86

jenno86 wrote: »

I prefer the deal they have here at the moment.

Likewise

EGriff

For data that's still £10 for 1GB. Not great.

Their €20 offer here is much better if you use a lot of data.

Big Pussy Bonpensiero

48 still wins hands down. €10 all calls and all texts won't ever be topped, even the current deals (The Don, Guido etc) are better than what you're suggesting.
Also, add-ons for 48 are €3 for 50 minutes, which is 6c a minute.

3 will have to do better to top 48.

jenno86

Do they own 48 now? It was a part of Telefonica but I'm not sure if it was part of the o2 deal.

vicwatson

And the bargain is hiding where?

thebuzz

vicwatson wrote: »

And the bargain is hiding where?

You can't ask, that's cheating!

kn

vicwatson wrote: »

And the bargain is hiding where?

For light users its great for us popping up North or over to the UK a few times a year. For PAYG users generally in the UK or if 3 were to do something similar here its really good for light users and users who have landlines and fixed broadband already for most of their needs.

jenno86

kn wrote: »

For light users its great for us popping up North or over to the UK a few times a year. For PAYG users generally in the UK or if 3 were to do something similar here its really good for light users and users who have landlines and fixed broadband already for most of their needs.

If your on 3 Ireland it doesn't cost anything different to use your phone in the UK. I still get my texts, calls and data for no extra charge. 3 Like Home.

km79

jenno86 wrote: »

If your on 3 Ireland it doesn't cost anything different to use your phone in the UK. I still get my texts, calls and data for no extra charge. 3 Like Home.

Not anymore 👎

Pique

THFC wrote: »

48 still wins hands down. €10 all calls and all texts won't ever be topped, even the current deals (The Don, Guido etc) are better than what you're suggesting.
Also, add-ons for 48 are €3 for 50 minutes, which is 6c a minute.

3 will have to do better to top 48.

Whippersnapper!

jenno86

km79 wrote: »

Not anymore 👎

Really? since when?

km79

km79 wrote: »

Not anymore 👎

According to their website you still can.

Edit: Actually looks like you're right, new customers have to pay for an add on.

Dman001

THFC wrote: »

48 still wins hands down. €10 all calls and all texts won't ever be topped, even the current deals (The Don, Guido etc) are better than what you're suggesting.
Also, add-ons for 48 are €3 for 50 minutes, which is 6c a minute.

3 will have to do better to top 48.

But with 48, the €10 a month is a 'subscription' fee, and don't get the tenner credit to use. At least with Three, you've the €20 to use, which is handy when your free texts and data expires at the end of the month.

km79

[Deleted User] wrote: »

According to their website you still can.

Edit: Actually looks like you're right, new customers have to pay for an add on.

Yeah my contract ended in may. List tethering which was very useful and 3 like home which was deadly as I go to England a few times a year. Ill prob add it on for 2.99 each time I go now

jenno86

km79 wrote: »

Yeah my contract ended in may. List tethering which was very useful and 3 like home which was deadly as I go to England a few times a year. Ill prob add it on for 2.99 each time I go now

Luckily I don't have to.

kristok 2

It's a decent package if you don't use the net to watch netflix etc, for anyone who gos online just to Facebook etc its better than the 20 euro all you can eat

daRobot

We currently have much better phone deals than the UK. Was looking into it quite a bit as was considering a move there a few months back. Surprising really, but there you go.

Big Pussy Bonpensiero

Dman001 wrote: »

But with 48, the €10 a month is a 'subscription' fee, and don't get the tenner credit to use. At least with Three, you've the €20 to use, which is handy when your free texts and data expires at the end of the month.

Boo hoo??? It's €10 a month for free calls and free texts. It won't be topped.

I used to be with 3 for about 4 years. That €20 credit always seemed to disappear relatively quickly, most of the time within 30 days, and once the freebies run out you may as well top up straight away.

The only problem people seem to have with 48 is the fact it's done online and there's no face to face.

Even just compare the numbers over the course of the year. Let's just say with 3 you only top up every 6 weeks you still spend €160 (and that's being very generous). Realistically, you're going to be hitting €200-€220.
With 48 it's €120 for year round free texts and calls to everyone.

km79

THFC wrote: »

Boo hoo??? It's €10 a month for free calls and free texts. It won't be topped.

I used to be with 3 for about 4 years. That €20 credit always seemed to disappear relatively quickly, most of the time within 30 days, and once the freebies run out you may as well top up straight away.

The only problem people seem to have with 48 is the fact it's done online and there's no face to face.

Even just compare the numbers over the course of the year. Let's just say with 3 you only top up every 6 weeks you still spend €160 (and that's being very generous). Realistically, you're going to be hitting €200-€220.
With 48 it's €120 for year round free texts and calls to everyone.

Do ya really have to be between 18 and 22 or is that just an advertising gimic ?

Zardoz

daRobot wrote: »

We currently have much better phone deals than the UK. Was looking into it quite a bit as was considering a move there a few months back. Surprising really, but there you go.

No we dont,the UK deals are far superior .
Its only in the last few years that Irish mobile rates have become anywhere reasonable but we are still well behind.
In January 2009 it was revealed that Ireland was nearly the most profitable market in the world for multinational mobile operators like Vodafone
Vodafone and O2 who still have most of the market here are still a rip off compared with the UK.

frozenfrozen

I tried 48 it was terrible. I still follow them on facebook from when I was using that to get support for the terrible service and nearly weekly I see a message to the effect of "Sorry your calls and texts aren't working at the momo our little support monkies are totally working to try fix it lol we are so hip and cool."

Zardoz

Zardoz wrote: »

No we dont,the UK deals are far superior .
Its only in the last few years that Irish mobile rates have become anywhere reasonable but we are still well behind.

I would agree with daRobot. I lived in the UK last year and found our deals far superior. Albeit I was on PAYG, don't have a clue about bill pay.

THFC

THFC wrote: »

Boo hoo??? It's €10 a month for free calls and free texts. It won't be topped.

I used to be with 3 for about 4 years. That €20 credit always seemed to disappear relatively quickly, most of the time within 30 days, and once the freebies run out you may as well top up straight away.

The only problem people seem to have with 48 is the fact it's done online and there's no face to face.

Even just compare the numbers over the course of the year. Let's just say with 3 you only top up every 6 weeks you still spend €160 (and that's being very generous). Realistically, you're going to be hitting €200-€220.
With 48 it's €120 for year round free texts and calls to everyone.

That's fair enough, but if you have a smartphone and want to use it to its potential then 3's deal is far superior in terms of data. For €20 you get AYCE data, free texts to all networks, free 3 to 3 calls, free calls to any network on the weekend, and the €20 left over which can be used either for weekday calls or, now thanks to carrier billing, to buy music, books or apps if you have an Android phone. As someone who has never touched that €20 each month, I have hundreds to spends on books, apps etc.

It all comes down to what you need from your credit or phone, there is no "best deal" out there.

ciano1

Is anyone else here still getting the extra €10 free when they top up with 3?

For the €20 a month I'm getting
- AYCE Data
- Free any network texts
- Free 3 to 3 calls
- Free any network weekend calls
- AND €10 extra credit at the end of every month.

Zardoz

Deleted User wrote: »

That's fair enough, but if you have a smartphone and want to use it to its potential then 3's deal is far superior in terms of data. For €20 you get AYCE data, free texts to all networks, free 3 to 3 calls, free calls to any network on the weekend, and the €20 left over which can be used either for weekday calls or, now thanks to carrier billing, to buy music, books or apps if you have an Android phone. As someone who has never touched that €20 each month, I have hundreds to spends on books, apps etc.

ROI Calls (per min.) 35c on that deal.
You wouldnt be long going through 20 euro of credit ,thats only 60 minutes of calls to non 3 numbers for 20 days a months,i.e three minutes a day.

Zardoz

Zardoz wrote: »

ROI Calls (per min.) 35c on that deal.
You wouldnt be long going through 20 euro of credit ,thats only 60 minutes of calls to non 3 numbers for 20 days a months,i.e three minutes a day.

Yep. Like I said, depends on you needs. Most of my calls are via Skype/Viber, and everyone I know is on 3.

grimm2005

ciano1 wrote: »

Is anyone else here still getting the extra €10 free when they top up with 3?

For the €20 a month I'm getting
- AYCE Data
- Free any network texts
- Free 3 to 3 calls
- Free any network weekend calls
- AND €10 extra credit at the end of every month.

Yep, on that myself, it's pretty unbeatable atm tbh, I get at least 2 months, sometimes more, out of a €20 top up. When the month is up, I just buy a 500mb internet addon out of my loads of credit for €5 and then swap to cabbage for sending texts to folks who don't have viber/whatsapp etc. so even after my freebies are gone my credit only gets used for calls. Most of my mates are on 3 as well so I use very little credit on calls and most calls I make are on the weekend anyway so it's a moot point. The free UK roaming is an absolute god send also as I'm over there several times a year.

The 48 offers are decent alright but their closest to 3 is their €20 deal but it only includes 3gb of data (which tbf would be plenty for most) but you then have to top up €20 every month as you don't get credit, it's more like bill pay. If you're on an old feature phone and are not arsed with smartphones than the 48 deal would be very good.

djimi

THFC wrote: »

Boo hoo??? It's €10 a month for free calls and free texts. It won't be topped.

I used to be with 3 for about 4 years. That €20 credit always seemed to disappear relatively quickly, most of the time within 30 days, and once the freebies run out you may as well top up straight away.

The only problem people seem to have with 48 is the fact it's done online and there's no face to face.

Even just compare the numbers over the course of the year. Let's just say with 3 you only top up every 6 weeks you still spend €160 (and that's being very generous). Realistically, you're going to be hitting €200-€220.
With 48 it's €120 for year round free texts and calls to everyone.

How do 48 verify your age? Would the age thing be easy to get around?

Timmaay

Ok my head hurts from all this 48 v 3 monthly offers, going back to the original topic, I go up north and to the uk afew times a yr, I don't need any monthly subscriptions, I'll probably only spend 10/20quid with this 321 offer a yr, if i got a sim, and threw 10stg on it, would the number stay active if i only switched it on every few months, and does the credit run out? I'd be planning on just leaving the sim under the back cover of the phone until I needed it.

upandcumming

frozenfrozen wrote: »

I tried 48 it was terrible. I still follow them on facebook from when I was using that to get support for the terrible service and nearly weekly I see a message to the effect of "Sorry your calls and texts aren't working at the momo our little support monkies are totally working to try fix it lol we are so hip and cool."

No you don't.
Fair enough you may have had a bad time with them, but don't talk pure shite.

frozenfrozen

upandcumming wrote: »

No you don't.
Fair enough you may have had a bad time with them, but don't talk pure shite.

Can't be arsed finding the rest of these. I can assure you I have seen this happen several times and to this day I am still completely sure of their terrible service as my sister is on 48 as are a few of my friends. Since you seem to be apologising for them run an internet speed test on your phone on 48. I get 500kbps up and down on mine with 3. I saw about 1/7th of that speed on 48. Took them a ridiculous time to send me out a nano sim also. They're a network completely based on the cheap price and trying to appeal to young people. They are in no way a good network

kneemos

ciano1 wrote: »

Is anyone else here still getting the extra €10 free when they top up with 3?

For the €20 a month I'm getting
- AYCE Data
- Free any network texts
- Free 3 to 3 calls
- Free any network weekend calls
- AND €10 extra credit at the end of every month.

Yep,€10 cash back bless em.3G is crap outside urban areas and the call centre employees are almost incomprehensible but otherwise they're great value.

Big Pussy Bonpensiero

km79 wrote: »

Do ya really have to be between 18 and 22 or is that just an advertising gimic ?

djimi wrote: »

How do 48 verify your age? Would the age thing be easy to get around?

Everyone I know said their D.O.B. was 18 years previous to the day they signed up:pac: They don't verify. My dad is also with them, as are a number of lads well over the age of 22 I know.

frozenfrozen wrote: »

Can't be arsed finding the rest of these. I can assure you I have seen this happen several times and to this day I am still completely sure of their terrible service as my sister is on 48 as are a few of my friends. Since you seem to be apologising for them run an internet speed test on your phone on 48. I get 500kbps up and down on mine with 3. I saw about 1/7th of that speed on 48. Took them a ridiculous time to send me out a nano sim also. They're a network completely based on the cheap price and trying to appeal to young people. They are in no way a good network

lol, that was once. I've been with them for almost 1 year now, that was literally the only problem I had with them. Funny you had to back 3 months on their profile yet could only find 1 problem.
As for the network speed it's grand unless you actually proper internet. Internet is more than adequate for FB, Twitter, WhatsApp, Viber, YouTube, etc. Unless you're downloading large files it's grand.

Deleted User wrote: »

That's fair enough, but if you have a smartphone and want to use it to its potential then 3's deal is far superior in terms of data. For €20 you get AYCE data, free texts to all networks, free 3 to 3 calls, free calls to any network on the weekend, and the €20 left over which can be used either for weekday calls or, now thanks to carrier billing, to buy music, books or apps if you have an Android phone. As someone who has never touched that €20 each month, I have hundreds to spends on books, apps etc.

It all comes down to what you need from your credit or phone, there is no "best deal" out there.

Totally agree. I sound like a 48 sales rep the way I'm going on:o

No one I know that's joined 48 has gone off it though.

Mycroft H

kneemos wrote: »

Yep,€10 cash back bless em.3G is crap outside urban areas and the call centre employees are almost incomprehensible but otherwise they're great value.

I'm out on erris head as I'm typing this and I've a full 3g signal. Not exactly an urban location

gerrykiddy

Deleted User wrote: »

According to their website you still can.

Edit: Actually looks like you're right, new customers have to pay for an add on.

Interesting wording here. If you were in before the 30th April its included. If you joined after the 30th April its an add on. I joined on the 30th April believing it was included only to find out that they made a mistake. They gave me 20e to cover a few add on payments but it seems in Threeland the 30th April didn't happen this year. Just as well it wasn't the 25th December.

Davy

Moved from bargain alerts

kn

Timmaay wrote: »

Ok my head hurts from all this 48 v 3 monthly offers, going back to the original topic, I go up north and to the uk afew times a yr, I don't need any monthly subscriptions, I'll probably only spend 10/20quid with this 321 offer a yr, if i got a sim, and threw 10stg on it, would the number stay active if i only switched it on every few months, and does the credit run out? I'd be planning on just leaving the sim under the back cover of the phone until I needed it.

As long as you use it at least once every 6 months then it stays active.

bk

Getting back to the OP, this 321 plan would be excellent value for money for light users like my parents.

The currently use pay as you go and top up by €10 and it normally lasts a month or two as they use the phone so little, but they rarely get the benefit of free texts and calls etc. as they top-up so little.

So a simple plan like this would probably allow them to stretch a top-up out to every 4 or 5 months!

So I hope they bring this plan to Ireland.

unkel

+1

For a lite user who needs a bit of data this is very good value. I'd be using less than 100 minutes, 100 texts and 500MB, so 3+2+5 = 10 pounds so about €12 per month