The best SIM Only deals [Updated regularly][Work in progess]

StaticNoise

We're all looking for a bargain on our phone's price plan, right?

With all the various networks and their websites, confusing 'limits' and charges, and with the helpful, but badly organised CallCosts.ie,
there's a real need for clarity and simple, straightforward information.

Please welcome, the Irish SIM Only Mobile Offers spreadsheet.

http://smarturl.it/BoardsMobileDeals
(This link is masked in able to track visitor hits, nothing else)


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What is it?

Following the success of the 'Best SIM Only Deals' spreadsheet that features the UK operators,
kindly put together by a member of Hot UK Deals, there was a need for a clear,
transparent, and easy to use Irish version.

This guide, which is a work in progress, offers a quick glance at some of Ireland's biggest networks.

Who is included in this guide?

- Three
- O2
- Meteor
- - Vodafone
- Tesco Mobile
- Lycamobile
- 48
- eMobile
- Blueface

Who isn't included in this guide?

- Postfone - Postfone do not have SIM only plans


These will be added in the coming weeks.

Eh, where's the 'best offer' bit? Isn't that the point?

Good on you, Sherlock. You've spotted something that is very important!
As it is a work in progress, the 'best offer' will be added shortly. I'm considering offering a highlighted 'good offer' and a 'best offer', similar to the UK version. The 'good offer' would be the cheapest, but a reasonable plan. The 'best offer' would be the offer which gives you the most bang for the most reasonable buck.

Does it include any tariffs which come with a phone/tablet?

There is no inclusion of any contract plans with mobile devices, as there are far too many special offers, complicated tariffs and other information that would make it too difficult to include. Also, since there are upgrade and loyalty offers, customer discounts, and in-store specials, this would be too problematic to include. If you're looking for a good deal with a phone, pop to the Carphone Warehouse, as they'll be able to give you a better indication of what offers are available.

Are there any affiliate links or other charges for using the guide?

Nope. That would be sneaky and mean. There is no charge for using the guide.

However, if you've changed plan, or you've found a better deal and have saved money, consider engaging in a random act of kindness, or maybe throw a few quid to a charity of your choice. If you want to show your appreciation to me, just throw me a 'thanks' on the thread. If you want to do none of these things, that's fine too! The guide is released under a Creative Commons license, so it is for the benefit of the community!

I don't want to click your dodgy looking link. What can I do?

The short url is only created so that I can track how many visitors are using the guide. It is purely for analytical reasons and nothing else. I'm not selling, sharing, or using the data for any reason, and it doesn't change the outcome of the guide whatsoever.

The guide is on a publicly visible Google Spreadsheet, hosted on Google Drive.
If you really want to visit the link without telling me that you've done so (you big meanie!), you can visit the link by clicking below. Just highlight it with your cursor and go!

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/154CzF7froth4-lX4GGSHY43-PC1KvwV3rDntOIjBZ_A/pubhtml

Hey, you big eejit! I found an error!

Whoops. I'm sorry to hear that. Just post a reply in this thread, or send me a PM and I'll get on it as soon as I can.

MBSnr

Hey thanks!

The TescoMobile 12 Month SIM onlys can be added easily.
€10.00per month 150 any network minutes 150 any network texts 500MB monthly data
€20.00per month 300 any network minutes 10000 any network texts 1GB monthly data
€30.00per month 10000 any network minutes 10000 any network texts 15GB monthly data

StaticNoise

Thanks, that was an ommission. It was on my draft, so I'll get on that shortly. Thanks for the feedback.

Kristopherus

With the Three sim only Classic Flex Max tarriff, you can use up to 50% of your units to make calls to UK.

StaticNoise

Update: 18 March 2014

Recently added: 48, eMobile, and Blueface.

Recently updated: Tesco Mobile (+ 12 month sim only plans)

Other updates: Information why Blueface business plans are included, and other network's aren't.

userone123

Why have you a FUP of 15GB on Three when there is no FUP? Also you can no longer use 50% of your units to call the UK, you now need an add on.

StaticNoise

userone123 wrote: »

Why have you a fun of 15GB on Three when there is no FUP? Also you can no longer use 50% of your units to call the UK, you now need an add on.

Three do have a fair usage policy, which you can read below.

Three continuously monitors network performance to ensure that the service received by customers is not impacted through a minority of users placing high demand on network resources (e.g. large bandwidths over long periods). Should your data usage exceed 15GB in a 30 day period and your usage affect other network users, we reserve the right to limit your Service.

Also, customers on grandfathered plans (and some offers) may still use their units.

userone123

'Granfathered ' plans as you like to call them got 2GB not 15GB. The 15GB figure is in place to stop abuse. If you go over 15GB you won't get charged nor cut off (they'll probably do nothing), thus no fair usage policy. In fact my My3 account shows over 2000GB

hallo dare

userone123 wrote: »

'Granfathered ' plans as you like to call them got 2GB not 15GB. The 15GB figure is in place to stop abuse. If you go over 15GB you won't get charged nor cut off (they'll probably do nothing), thus no fair usage policy. In fact my My3 account shows over 2000GB

You're data speed gets throttled back to almost unusable when you go over 15GB.

Fresh Pots

hallo dare wrote: »

You're data speed gets throttled back to almost unusable when you go over 15GB.

I've used about 19gb this month and my speeds are still fine. Maybe they throttle you if your always at it but it doesn't seem to be automatic once you hit 15gb

StaticNoise

Yes, that is the case. However, there is a policy in place should you go over limits and they think that you are acting the eejit. They have the right to slow down or limit your service if it is affecting other customers. It doesn't mean that it is necessarily enacted, but it is there.

Dudda

Just an FYI
The Micro SIM Only and Maxi SIM Only are not 4G. Only the Mega SIM Only plan is 4G.

StaticNoise

Many thanks for information. I'll update that shortly. It may take a few hours to reflect the changes.

Update: Done - thanks again to Dudda

Kristopherus

Blueface have a Special Offer going till 31st March.

The Ireland Unlimited plan is €19.50 + vat @ 23%

The Ireland & UK Unlimited plan is €23.50 + vat @ 23%.

You must sign up by 31st March 2014.

StaticNoise

Great minds think alike, Kristopherus: I was only looking at that and I was chatting to staff to get more information about it before I added it to the spreadsheet. I need to confirm that it is, in fact, a mobile (with a standard 08 prefix) rather than a VOIP offering. It seems to be the case.

Not only am I a Blueface customer, who received the email, but I am someone who is looking at moving to it.

Update - Done - thanks again to Kristopherus.

Vexorg

Kristopherus wrote: »

Blueface have a Special Offer going till 31st March.

The Ireland Unlimited plan is €19.50 + vat @ 23%

The Ireland & UK Unlimited plan is €23.50 + vat @ 23%.

You must sign up by 31st March 2014.

I cannot find this offer on the Blueface website, would you have a link?

Thx.

Kristopherus

Vexorg wrote: »

I cannot find this offer on the Blueface website, would you have a link?

Thx.

Its not on the site. I got the initial info here http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056638431&page=107

The relevant posts are on that page. Then go to blueface.ie. At the bottom rhs of the home page you will see a nag-ad to chat with them. Open that up & you can have a webchat with them. You can ask as many questions as you wish. I asked them to email me the offer. In short its the €25 reduced to €19.50 and the €29 one reduced to €23.50. Best of luck.

StaticNoise

Update: 26 March 2014

Recently added:
Blueface 'Unlimited' plans special offer - €19.50 (Ireland) / €23.50 (Ireland & UK) [Ends March 31st]

Recently updated:
Added the network colour and styling. Looking sexy and sharp!

Other updates:
Information why Blueface business plans are included, and other network's aren't.


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Update: 25/04/2014


Clarification/Error:
There was an incorrect statement that 4G was available on all Meteor Bill Pay plans. This is not the case: 4G is only available on 'Mega SIM', and not on the cheaper plans.

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Upcoming developments

Now that the tariffs are complete and accurate, I intend to add the 'best value' offer information over the coming days.
I am still in the process of figuring out and identifying the best way to define the 'best deal', so it will take time.

If you have any recommendations on how to achieve this, or care to highlight/nominate your opinions, get involved in the thread, or give me a PM.

RangeR

eMobile have TWO Select Unlimited plans. One for eircom customers [€24 per month - 5GB data] and one for eircom and non eircom customers [€32 per month] - 15GB Data. Otherwise they are identical.

StaticNoise

Update: 26/04/2014

Clarification/Error:
There was a clarification and distinction made to the Eircom packages.
Eircom customers pay €24 per month for the Select Unlimited bundle, whilst non-Eircom customers pay €32.

Thanks to RangeR.

wba88

StaticNoise wrote: »

Update: 26/04/2014

Clarification/Error:
There was a clarification and distinction made to the Eircom packages.
Eircom customers pay €24 per month for the Select Unlimited bundle, whilst non-Eircom customers pay €32.

Thanks to RangeR.

The first 'Select Unlimited' in eMobile is €5 - pricing error and the link doesn't work

StaticNoise

Typo. Apologies. Link fix on the way.

daytob

you are forgetting the tesco deal.
unlimited calls and unlimited texts plus 1 gb of data for 15. but if you have clubcard vouchers you can use 1 x 5 euros cc voucher for your 15 euro top up.
so 8 x 15
and 4 x 5 cc voucher * given you get them quarterly = 140 obviously less if you get more in cc vouchers.
http://www.tescomobile.ie/priceplans/conductyourplan.aspx

apparently from 2moro you no longer need to text all the info in, you will just get the deal by just signing up for it

StaticNoise

Yes, I am aware of that.

The Tesco Mobile price plans are rather complicated, so I need to take a good look at the formatting of them now.

StaticNoise

Update: 25/03/2014

Clarification/Error:
Update to Tesco Mobile - The grid now has a clearer view of 'Clubcard customer' only offers.

Update to Tesco Mobile - URL links for the packages and tariffs.

Formatting changes - Costmetic changes to the matrix and grid for ease-of-reading.

Error fix - I was posting revised changelogs as an April date. Doy!

Upcoming developments:

I am testing 'Best offer' plans. This will no doubt have some controversy. I welcome feedback from users. I will not accept suggestions from network representatives, or third-party clients.

RangeR

RangeR wrote: »

eMobile have TWO Select Unlimited plans. One for eircom customers [€24 per month - 5GB data] and one for eircom and non eircom customers [€32 per month] - 15GB Data. Otherwise they are identical.

You mixed the data allowance on the two unlimited plans The €32 is 15GB and the €24 is 5GB

StaticNoise

Done.

So you actually get better data allowances as a non-Meteor customer? Madness.

daytob

apparently the tesco deal changes 2moro, instead of having to opt in every month for the club card unlimited talk and text you will just automatically get it. * might be wise to check this out 2moro though.
looks really good btw, thanks for such a concise and thorough list

StaticNoise

You're welcome.

And yes, it does change tomorrow. I will be updating it then, and changing the Blueface plans, which are to increase in price.

StaticNoise

Update: 01/04/2014

Recently updated:

Blueface -
The special offer has ended, and pricess have reverted to their original price.

Tesco Mobile -
Removed older tariffs and replaced them with new ones.
Updated bundles and opt-in information.

fionny

Quick few questions... I think that 48 network is superb value:

1. Do you have to lie about your date of birth to sign up (im over 23... by a few years :P but don't see why I shouldnt get a good deal).

2. I assume you can port your number in and out if needed, this is law right?

3. Is the network solid/good etc...?

4. They dont have asia listed for Roaming... am I scuppered if I go there on hols?

Thanks,

AlmightyCushion

fionny wrote: »

Quick few questions... I think that 48 network is superb value:

1. Do you have to lie about your date of birth to sign up (im over 23... by a few years :P but don't see why I shouldnt get a good deal).

2. I assume you can port your number in and out if needed, this is law right?

3. Is the network solid/good etc...?

4. They dont have asia listed for Roaming... am I scuppered if I go there on hols?

Thanks,

1. Yeah, just put your DOB as one that will make you 18.

2. Yeah, you can port. You so it through the web site after you get your sim.

3. They use the o2 network so as long as you get good o2 coverage you'll be fine.

4. No idea.

fionny

Sound out.


FYI ya Asia is not covered... so have to wait until that holiday is over before switching...

Bob24

If I read the tesco mobile website correctly, I think the spreadsheet is incorrect about their €15 top-up offer.

Here is what they say: "UNLIMITED Calls to All Mobiles & Landlines
FREE Tesco Mobile to Tesco Mobile calls & texts, 250 Free webtexts"

The spreadsheets says you get unlimited texts to all mobiles, but my understanding is that unlimited texts are only to other Tesco Mobile numbers (while call are actually unlimited to everyone). I find their wording overly complicated and pretty misleading though.

(Adding unlimited texts is a 10 euros add-on, otherwise it is 13c per text - which can add-up pretty quickly)

schmoo2k

Great spreadsheet very useful!

What would be nice is if you indicated which cell tower operator each provider was using.

Specifically I want to know if anyone uses the Vodafone network (apart from Vodafone) as they have data coverage where my mobile home is, but their pay as you go data rates seem a bit silly.

Good work...

StaticNoise

Update: 19/04/2014

Recently updated:

Following a suggestion from schmoo2k, the network infrastructure operators (for MVNOs) has been reinstated.

fionny

I'm taking the plunge and moving to Three again, I dislike Three but their 20.33 sim only deal is too good to ignore. Shame meteor isn't pricing competitively on their 4G and instead trying to trick people into a 12 month sim only deal... chancers.

emobiles would be good if you didnt have to be an eircom customer.

StaticNoise

Update: 02/05/2014

Recently Updated:

Update to Vodafone-
Changed details about the 12 Month ""RED"" Sim Only
Included the free 100 International SMS and Texts on the above plan.

Update to Meteor-
Updated the 12 Month Mega SIM Only package.

Added information:
Included upcoming roaming changes under EU Regulations.

elvis23

fionny wrote: »

I'm taking the plunge and moving to Three again, I dislike Three but their 20.33 sim only deal is too good to ignore. Shame meteor isn't pricing competitively on their 4G and instead trying to trick people into a 12 month sim only deal... chancers.

emobiles would be good if you didnt have to be an eircom customer.

Is this €20.33 only for the first 30 days however? And then €30.50 per month after that?
Anyone able confirm?

gingernut79

elvis23 wrote: »

Is this €20.33 only for the first 30 days however? And then €30.50 per month after that?
Anyone able confirm?

There's a discount on the rate of some sort but I was on it most of the last twelve months and the monthly charge was 20.33

Damien360

elvis23 wrote: »

Is this €20.33 only for the first 30 days however? And then €30.50 per month after that?
Anyone able confirm?

My wife has that deal. €20.33 per month plus voicemail calls plus MMS messages. Only now starting to email them instead. Heavy texter but very little calls and all data. A good deal but 3 reception is iffy in a lot of places. Average bill of €24 per month mainly due to mms usage.

StaticNoise

Some interesting statistics about my deals spreadsheet.

- Desktop is the most popular device used to view the thread, followed by Android devices (55%).

- Windows Phone is the least popular device- only 9 users have visited on one)

- 25% of users view on an iPad, and 15% of them use an iPhone

- Hong Kong users make up of 3% of viewers: the most popular country after Ireland, the US, and Great Britain. 你好 Hong Kong!

- The spreadsheet is visited most frequently at the end of each month.

- 30th of March was the busiest day, and April 15th didn't get a single click.

T-b0n3

I'm not sure if it's a mistake or if I'm missing something but with the Meteor Mega Sim Only plan you have it down as 30 Euro, seems to be 35 Euro though: https://store.meteor.ie/sim-only-plans/?linkid=plans

Thinking of moving to it, that's why I noticed it.

Thanks

fionny

elvis23 wrote: »

Is this €20.33 only for the first 30 days however? And then €30.50 per month after that?
Anyone able confirm?

I was told by 3 the discount was for the foreseeable future anyway.

StaticNoise

T-b0n3 wrote: »

I'm not sure if it's a mistake or if I'm missing something but with the Meteor Mega Sim Only plan [...]

It appears to have been a weekend only offer, which is since no longer available. I will update this as soon as I can.

fionny wrote: »

I was told by 3 the discount was for the foreseeable future anyway.

Happy days, even better.

Doge

I presume the On Net calls and texts with 3 are by using the likes of viber and cabbage?

I deleted my previous posts to clean up the thread btw.

StaticNoise

waveform wrote: »

I presume the On Net calls and texts with 3 are by using the likes of viber and cabbage?

I deleted my previous posts to clean up the thread btw.

See PM. :-)

And no, you've got normal calls via the telephone, and not using third party products.

Doge

StaticNoise wrote: »

See PM. :-)

And no, you've got normal calls via the telephone, and not using third party products.

This was my first time coming across the term "on net" calls and text and i thought it meant online.
Just did a google search now and I see that it means same network calls and texts.

It might be a good idea to include a note explaining it,
if it isnt there already and I'm blind! :P

This unlimited data deal for €20 is appealing to me because I would like to use Spotify for listening to and discovering music.

It would save me bringing around my bulky mp3 player, and my Moto G only has about 12GBs of useable space with no microSD slot.

I have heard that the 3 data network can be very poor though, i find the 48 / o2 network very reliable in Cork and doesn't buffer during audio playback.

Do you get to use the full €20 top up for calls and texts to other networks?

Thanks!

StaticNoise

Update: 9th May 2014

- Clarification of "On Net" calls and texts.
- Updated pricing error for Meteor Mega Sim (12 Months)

StaticNoise

The Three network varies from place to place, but I have noticed it improving over the past while. I also believe that the services shall improve when the O2 takeover continues. This will bring some new masts and technology to the table.

Try the coverage map. It's not perfect, but it will give you an indication of how things are. The best thing to do is to buy a SIM card, top it up with twenty, and give it a go.

And, yes. You keep all your credit.

http://www.three.ie/explore/coverage-checker/

Bob24

StaticNoise wrote: »

also believe that the services shall improve when the O2 takeover continues. This will bring some new masts and technology to the table.

I think Three will have to be carefull in the way they manage this though.

On average an O2 customer currently pays more money than a Three customer for a similar package (most likely becaue they consider O2 a more "premium" brand which delivers better quality of service than Three).

If after the takeover they were to immediately put everyone on the same network, quality of service should get better for Theee customers but decrease for O2 ones. They will want to make sure they are not loosing these ex O2 users which will actually have became their largest customer base.

I know deploying 4G on O2's network will help with performance, but still I think they will have some technical and marketing challenges before an ex Three and an ex O2 customer are handled in the same way.