New Contract - ~£30 per Month - #Confused

Dave W · 18 May 2020 at 13:50

hi all,

I am at the end of my 2 or 3 years with the Samsung S8 and it has been great.

I need some advice on a new contract and am happy to commit to up to £30 a month really. I do need a new phone as my battery is well on the way out. the phone has been great though.

As my phone is now 3 years old and I can't really find any fault with it (aside the battery) I am not desperate for bleeding edge tech now. I have NO interest in any Apple products, but I am pretty open to anything Android now. I would prefer expandable storage, decent battery and that but not overly fussed. I have considered the Pixel 3a as it is cheaper now and I feel would constitute a decent upgrade. I think the associated cost would likely come from any Data. I currently have 30gig and I use what I am allowed really, I could probably get by on 10-20.

As I said, if it is not already apparent, I am hopelessly confused!

any ideas all?

thanks in advance to the best forum full of dorks I have come across!

PC777 · 18 May 2020 at 13:59

Do you still require the headphone slot? If so you can get good deals on the S10 series, S10e is a good cheaper deal. I personally went for an S10+ over the new S20 range as they took that feature away.

joelk2 · 18 May 2020 at 14:06

Phones ltd.co.uk seems to be the best comparison site I've found for contracts. Seems to search most of the big folks which might help.

Also if you find a deal you like have a check on Quidco incase they are listing the deal with some extra cashback.

As an example I found a deal where mobile phones direct were giving a cashback but going through Quidco you could also get an extra £60 cashback which certainly is something to take into consideration when looking for phones.

Phones are a nightmare and mindfield.

Dave W · 18 May 2020 at 14:19

alright guys, thanks there. Headphone slot would be my preference, but not a massive deal breaker. I wish I cared more!

Biz.Kid09 · 18 May 2020 at 14:27

Have you run the sums on buying a Pixel 3a outright for example and getting a 12mth sim only?

Can sometimes work out cheaper and gives you more flexibility than a standard £30mth24mth contract.

PC777 · 18 May 2020 at 14:29

A S10e with headphone slot, closer to a £30 contract though could be as much as £40 or £50+ for a S10 or S10+. Also Samsung so easy data transfer from your old S8.

Or you could buy direct upfront and go pay as you go or sim only contract, but I prefer handset and contract myself.

Dave W · 18 May 2020 at 14:32

I would be quite happy to stick with Samsung tbh. My Mrs has a Huawei and that is good, although I am slightly concerned about getting Coronavirused from it.

I keep coming back to the Pixel 3a though, not entirely sure why. Talk me into or out of that?

PC777 · 18 May 2020 at 16:20

Pixel 3a is weaker on paper than even the S10e, but a cleaner Android experience, also still has a headphone slot which Google actually bought back for that model.

I would definitely have considered a Pixel 3a for those reasons too, so definitely worth getting as well.

flea.rider · 18 May 2020 at 16:46

just get a new battery ? and a cheaper monthly plan .. i just did with ee and my p20 pro (but my battery is fine)

Deleted member 77746 · 18 May 2020 at 17:18

Heat mat, battery and a new back would cost less than a brand new phone then get a sim only deal on a monthly rolling.

BMox81 · 18 May 2020 at 18:41

Have you tried having a look on Uswitch?

Normally if you put in your criteria you can find some decent deals.

Saw a decent deal for the Pixel 4 on Three for £30 a month with 100gb data, but given how battery is a priority for you that might not be the way to go.

Dave W · 18 May 2020 at 20:27

hm, sound ideas guys. Can I replace a battery on an S8? I thought it was a sealed unit?!

the Pixel 4 for ~30quid a month is tempting, but thats me being a dick. Uswitch will be worth a look, ta!

I just realised an SD slot would be handy too, but I get the impression that is being somewhat phased out.

thanks again

Deleted member 77746 · 18 May 2020 at 20:31

Dave W said:
hm, sound ideas guys. Can I replace a battery on an S8? I thought it was a sealed unit?!

Sealed? Not the back it's not. https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/Samsung+Galaxy+S8+Teardown/87136

flea.rider · 18 May 2020 at 20:45

Dave W said:
hm, sound ideas guys. Can I replace a battery on an S8? I thought it was a sealed unit?!

the Pixel 4 for ~30quid a month is tempting, but thats me being a dick. Uswitch will be worth a look, ta!

I just realised an SD slot would be handy too, but I get the impression that is being somewhat phased out.

thanks again

yeah the p20 pro is to .. but a hot hair dryer releases the bond .. i did the usb on mine .. £8 is all it took
give it a go .. ebay is your friend .. battery and reseal .. then the tube to show you how ..

unKle · 18 May 2020 at 20:52

I've been using a pixel 3a for a few months now, I can't praise it enough, I was using a oneplus 7 pro last year, scratched the iphone itch (11 pro max) this year as having never owned one before, sent that back as I couldn't justify having a £1300 phone in my pocket. Sold the oneplus and bought the pixel, picked it up for under £300 and I love it. Proper finger print sensor on the back, headphone jack and stock android. Definitely worth considering, especially with a sim only contract, should work out cheaper now they've dropped to £279.

Dave W · 19 May 2020 at 11:18

Three have got the Pixel 4, 100gig of data for £30 a month. I have gone for that in the end.

I really appreciate all your thoughts. In the end I have been seduced by the Pixel and would likely have been happy with the 3a, but for the cost I felt the upgrade to the 4 was justified. I can utilise the cloud storage to stretch the 64g and in the end I have reached the conclusion that I am tired of searching!

If ya'll are interested I will report back, but I get the impression you all know a lot more than I do and my 'review' will not have a lot of value!

thankyou

BMox81 · 19 May 2020 at 13:13

Dave W said:
Three have got the Pixel 4, 100gig of data for £30 a month. I have gone for that in the end.

I really appreciate all your thoughts. In the end I have been seduced by the Pixel and would likely have been happy with the 3a, but for the cost I felt the upgrade to the 4 was justified. I can utilise the cloud storage to stretch the 64g and in the end I have reached the conclusion that I am tired of searching!

If ya'll are interested I will report back, but I get the impression you all know a lot more than I do and my 'review' will not have a lot of value!

thankyou

It's a cracking deal to be fair. I'm hoping for a similar one later in the year!