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Having a mobile phone is no longer an option that can be ignored in today’s hustle and bustle world. A good mobile phone will improve business and interpersonal relationships by keeping people connected. Of course, choosing a mobile phone is not always easy. In fact, finding good mobile service can be down right tedious and difficult. Many people in the UK are choosing to use Vodafone . Surprisingly, mobile phone users claim that while the prices are competitive, the quality of service is second to none. In particular, Vodafone has found favour within the business sector. However, discussing the tariffs and offers associated with the Vodafone will often be a deciding factor for choosing Vodafone as your preferred mobile service dealer. First, let’s explore the tariffs associated with Vodafone. Any Vodafone mobile phone user not utilizing the convenient direct debit payment is charged an additional £3.53 for each monthly bill. In addition, each extra option adds an additional tariff according to the number and type of options chosen. For instance, choosing £6.00 worth of additional features only cost £3.00; £12.00 worth of additional features only cost £6.00; £30.00 worth of additional features only cost £14.00; £60.00 worth of additionally features only cost £25.00; and £120.00 worth of additional features only cost £40.00. The main tariff for Vodafone is dependent on the package the mobile phone user purchases. Vodafone currently has up to four different contract packages to suit a maximum number of mobile phone users – PAYG (pay as you go), Online, Anytime, and 3G. Each package offers benefits for the right Vodafone mobile phone user, and the benefits of each contract package should be investigated thoroughly to find the best contract package for you. PAYG is a pay as you go mobile phone meaning you pay for services as those services are used. PAYG offers 100 anytime minutes for £15.00 and 200 anytime minutes for £25.00. Additionally, the PAYG contract offers two programs – Smartplus and Smartstep. Smartplus allows for local and nationwide calls during the day for 30p and during the evening / weekend for 5p per minute, and free phone numbers (0800) are 30p per minute. Answer phone deposit is free while answer phone retrieval is 30p. Interesting in messaging? Each text message sent is 12p, each picture message sent is 36p, and each video message sent is 60p. Smartstep utilizes a slightly different method for Vodafone mobile users with PAYG. The first 3 minutes of each day is 30p, and the after those first 3 minutes, all calls are 5p when making local and nationwide calls. Again, depositing a message to an answer phone is free, and retrieving messages from an answer phone is 30p for the first 3 minutes, and 5p after for the rest of the day. Sending a text message is 12p and then 9p, sending a picture message is 36p, and sending a video message is 60p. Vodafone Online contract offers many free “extras”, and makes for an affordable contract for many mobile phone users. Each contract comes with a 12- or 18-month agreement, and offers packages by anytime minutes. The anytime minutes are available in 75, 125, 200, 350, 500, 700, and 1000 packages to suit anyone’s preference. The tariff for each package is £16.00, £20.00, £25.00 or £30.00, £40.00, £50.00, £60.00, and £75.00 respectfully. The Vodafone 3G contract package is often cheaper with the anytime minutes, but the service requires the purchase of a special 3G mobile phone which can be quite costly. The features available are not as extravagant or numerous as other popular Vodafone contract packages, but the service can be a lot cheaper after the initial purchase of the 3G mobile phone. The 3G contract package offers 500 minutes for £40.00 and 1000 minutes for £60.00. Each month, the 3G mobile user gets an inclusive 100 text messages, with an additional tariff added after the initial 100. The Anytime contract package offered by Vodafone also offers a good choice of features and tariffs for mobile phone users. The anytime minutes are available in 25, 75, 125, 200, 275, 350, 500, 700, and 1000 packages. The tariff for each package is £15.00, £20.00, £25.00, £30.00, £35.00, £40.00, £50.00, £60.00, and £75.00 respectfully. Again, all packages have a 12- or 18-month contract. In additional, the Online and Anytime contract package has a £1.50 itemized billing fee, and all minutes will rollover for one month. Text messaging has a tariff of 12p per message for all contract packages, offers competitive fees for MMS and SMS of between 15p and 72p. Additionally, the favoured “Stop the Clock” feature is available on all the above packages with an 18-month contract. As is obvious, Vodafone has competitive tariffs for mobile phone users. Each contract package offers a perfect fit for someone. However, the one reason many people choose Vodafone is simple – Vodafone offers customer service unmatched by any other mobile phone service provider .
Staff editor, Mobile Phones Section, March 2007 |
