Mobile phones free on contract?

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gadgetmannz

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# 40825 4-Sep-2009 15:33

Have been in the UK for about 4 years now. I always keep an eye on NZ as home is home. It doesn't look like you can get a decent phone for free on contract in NZ. Is that the way it is? In the UK I walk into a phone shop and they give me a free phone and usually some cash to sign up for a contract. Or I sign up online and they give me a PS3 or a 32" LCD as a bonus.

I'm guessing it's not like this in NZ because there's a lack of Network providers. They don't have to give out free phones because people have to buy them plain and simple. Please let me know if I'm wrong or if you have any thoughts on the matter.

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tonyhughes

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# 253212 4-Sep-2009 15:38

There are three network providers here with their own infrastructure. (And some MVNOs as well).

At least two of them give you free phones (and sometimes hefty account credits too) depending on what value customer you are.

I just re-signed a 2 year contract with my current provider and got a Nokia E75 totally free, despite being only 1 year into a 2 year contract already.

A friend is with one provider, and I just got a deal for him with another provider where he gets two $500 handsets free and a $100 account credit for moving.

sbiddle

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# 253213 4-Sep-2009 15:45

It really depends how much you spend.

As Tony pointed out free phones do exist. The market here however is certainly not the same as the UK or Australia where most people expect (and get) free handsets simply for signing any contract.

tonyhughes

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# 253216 4-Sep-2009 15:50

bazzer

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# 253217 4-Sep-2009 15:52

tonyhughes: There are three network providers here with their own infrastructure. (And some MVNOs as well).

At least two of them give you free phones (and sometimes hefty account credits too) depending on what value customer you are.

I just re-signed a 2 year contract with my current provider and got a Nokia E75 totally free, despite being only 1 year into a 2 year contract already.

A friend is with one provider, and I just got a deal for him with another provider where he gets two $500 handsets free and a $100 account credit for moving.

How much do you spend per month on your account? Yeah, thought so. Sometimes I think you're purposefully antagonistic. You know very well, I'm sure, that in the UK you can get a free phone on a reasonably low value plan, and that is what the OP was referring to.

Of course, this discussions been done to death, so maybe that explains it?

Having said that, when I bought my first phone 10 or so years ago, it was free on a 12 month cheap plan and I got a $50 food voucher for a mail roder food place. Actually, my wife got a free phone from Telecom a while back (few years) and only signed up to a 12 month plan cheap plan, so it does happen but not as good a deal as in the UK I suspect.

tonyhughes

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# 253223 4-Sep-2009 15:56

bazzer: How much do you spend per month on your account? Yeah, thought so. Sometimes I think you're purposefully antagonistic. You know very well, I'm sure, that in the UK you can get a free phone on a reasonably low value plan, and that is what the OP was referring to.

Of course, this discussions been done to death, so maybe that explains it?

Having said that, when I bought my first phone 10 or so years ago, it was free on a 12 month cheap plan and I got a $50 food voucher for a mail roder food place. Actually, my wife got a free phone from Telecom a while back (few years) and only signed up to a 12 month plan cheap plan, so it does happen but not as good a deal as in the UK I suspect.

WTF?

Is that aimed at me? (edit... yes it is, now I can see you quoted me).

"Yeah, thought so." <<< thought what? I am not a huge user. How much do you think I spend?

I have NO idea about UK phone plans. Never been there, never even LOOKED at a UK providers website, and have no idea about the mechanics of UK mobile handset/plan pricing. Sooooo - no, in fact, I do not "know very well".

The OP made a guess, and I answered his questions with some actual facts (for once - lol).

Not sure what the big deal is here.

Enjoy the rest of your day.

bazzer

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# 253230 4-Sep-2009 16:16

It's all good. Sorry for the non-quote originally.

I just figured you had your finger on the pulse internationally as well as down home. The OP's question is one that comes up all the time, so I figured you'd ahve heard it before?

I'd like to know where you can get a $1,000 phone for free on a reasonable plan. If I go to the Telecom website, I see they have it for $679 if I sign up to a $150 per month plan for 2 years. Is that huge? Well, not huge but a fiar commitment. Vodafone is probably worse...

You must've got a hell of a good deal! :)

freitasm

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# 253232 4-Sep-2009 16:19

bazzer:
tonyhughes: There are three network providers here with their own infrastructure. (And some MVNOs as well).

At least two of them give you free phones (and sometimes hefty account credits too) depending on what value customer you are.

I just re-signed a 2 year contract with my current provider and got a Nokia E75 totally free, despite being only 1 year into a 2 year contract already.

A friend is with one provider, and I just got a deal for him with another provider where he gets two $500 handsets free and a $100 account credit for moving.

How much do you spend per month on your account? Yeah, thought so. Sometimes I think you're purposefully antagonistic.

I'm lost for words here bazzer. Tony didn't do anything and wasn't antagonising anyone - he posted facts and that's all.

Why the attack? I really don't get why you decided to go down that path.

gadgetmannz

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# 253234 4-Sep-2009 16:21

Wow interesting posts! $679 for a phone on a $150 a month contract. What phone was that?

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tonyhughes

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# 253240 4-Sep-2009 16:25

bazzer: It's all good. Sorry for the non-quote originally.

No prob - I rampantly edit my posts in the first few minutes too.

I just figured you had your finger on the pulse internationally as well as down home. The OP's question is one that comes up all the time, so I figured you'd ahve heard it before?

I am time-poor, and generally only focus on NZ conversations :o)

I'd like to know where you can get a $1,000 phone for free on a reasonable plan. If I go to the Telecom website, I see they have it for $679 if I sign up to a $150 per month plan for 2 years. Is that huge? Well, not huge but a fiar commitment. Vodafone is probably worse...

My mobile bill is around $150 a month INCLUDING my mobile data, SMS, MMS etc.

You must've got a hell of a good deal! :)

Yes, good deals are there to be had if you can show compelling reasons to your provider.

(To be a little less cryptic, our provider looks after ALL our communications and external IT needs, and this reaps us benefits across the board).

bazzer

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# 253281 4-Sep-2009 17:54

freitasm: I'm lost for words here bazzer. Tony didn't do anything and wasn't antagonising anyone - he posted facts and that's all.

Why the attack? I really don't get why you decided to go down that path.

Shall we put my poor response down to a bad day?

It seemed to me that Tony's response was a bit "fringe" to the actual question. Yes, he got a free $1,000 phone on a contract, but turns out it's a reasonable size plan and he's backed by some hefty numbers too. His case is out of the ordinary for personal plans in general, I would say.

In the UK, you can pick up a pretty decent phone on a very reasonable plan (e.g. N97 free on a £40 plan, I'd equate £40 to about $60 purchasing power). Now, maybe that's not where the OP was coming home, in that case, my bad. I hope we're still all friends?

tonyhughes

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# 253286 4-Sep-2009 18:01

Not hard to find free phones on much lesser plans too, just not $1000 phones.

NonprayingMantis

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# 253322 4-Sep-2009 20:46

bazzer:
freitasm: I'm lost for words here bazzer. Tony didn't do anything and wasn't antagonising anyone - he posted facts and that's all.

Why the attack? I really don't get why you decided to go down that path.

Shall we put my poor response down to a bad day?

It seemed to me that Tony's response was a bit "fringe" to the actual question. Yes, he got a free $1,000 phone on a contract, but turns out it's a reasonable size plan and he's backed by some hefty numbers too. His case is out of the ordinary for personal plans in general, I would say.

In the UK, you can pick up a pretty decent phone on a very reasonable plan (e.g. N97 free on a £40 plan, I'd equate £40 to about $60 purchasing power). Now, maybe that's not where the OP was coming home, in that case, my bad. I hope we're still all friends?

£40 is nothing like $60 purchasing power. It's closer to $100 (maybe a little less)

and yes, there is a hell of a lot more competition in the UK market than here. Not only that, but UK providers don't tend to have fixed line products to sell either, meaning they have no incentive to keep prices higher on mobile to keep fixed line usage up.

and thirdly, movbile providers in the UK, even small ones, can take advantage of massive economies of scale that NZ providers cannot. NZ population = 4m. UK population = 60m. Bulk buying 50,000 handsets from Nokia (as Voda and Telecom do) will get you nowhere near the same cost savings as bulk buying 750,00 handsets.(which UK providers can do)

Also, the RMA in NZ means colocation of cell towers is virtually impossible, meaning each provider has to put up new towers to serve their own customers.