Okay. I know they're not 'free' so aren't relevant to the SummerSun Web site. However, they are free in the sense that you only pay for calls. Click here to jump straight to our call price chart.

This page is for the UK mobile phone buyers who want to know what to get. Some people know a bit of information, but this is advice from someone whose sole topic of conversation is mobile phones.

If, after reading this, you are still unsure as to what you should get, email me, and I'll try and reply to it.

Why Pay As You Go?

• You just buy vouchers, so you're in control of what you spend & how you spend it.
• Good for children because they can use vouchers to top up.
• If you don't have direct debit or any of this fancy nonsense.
• No monthly or hidden charges.
• All money used goes on calls.
• No credit checks.
• No contract to sign.
• You're free to do what you want.

What do you want to use it for?

That's the main thing. Everyone is different, so you need to know what you want before you rush out. I can't just recommend one company, because your needs might be different.

I have compiled a few categories of people. See which one you fit into. Keep in mind that a lot of people end up using their phone more than they intended to, so leave some scope for change.

Perhaps you need to use it if you have an accident, or just to phone a friend or relative to let them know where you are. This is what you need. You really should look for the following points when choosing a phone if you fit into this category:

• Vouchers that last forever, so you don't pay for it if you don't use it
• A cheap and simple-to-use phone, so you can use it quickly
• One with good battery time, so you can have it switched on wherever you are

A lot of phone tariffs fit into this category. With BTCellnet's Pay & Go, you get all of the above features. All you have to do to keep your phone active is to make or recieve at least one call every 6 months. When you do use your phone, you won't get stung by high call charges, either. Calls cost as follows:

Alternatively, try Orange's Just Talk. You just have to use your phone every 6 months to keep it active, like BTCellnet's Pay & Go above. You will not get 2p weekend calls, though. Calls cost:

Orange are also a well-trusted network by their customers. Orange also give you the option to choose your own off-peak times. You get 11PM to 7AM as standard, plus you can choose any of the following: 7AM to 11AM, 11AM to 3PM, 3PM to 7 PM, or 7PM to 11PM.

Since they are at school, they won't use their phone during the day, mainly at evenings & weekends. In this case I recommend either BTCellnet's Pay & Go for use at night, or One2One's Pay As You Go if they use it in the afternoons.

With BTCellnet's Pay & Go, you get all of the above features. All you have to do to keep your phone active is to make or receive at least one call every 6 months. When you do use your phone, you won't get stung by high call charges, either. Calls cost as follows:

One 2 One have a simple tariff. They abandoned the Peak—Off-Peak argument for a simple tariff. No matter when you use the phone, calls cost 30p per minute for the first 2 minutes you use the phone each day, and just 5p per minute after that. So peak-users can rest in peace.

Virgin Mobile, also on One2One (not many people know that) offers a similar deal. No matter when you use the phone, calls cost 15p per minute for the first 5 minutes you use the phone each day, then just 5p per minute after that.

The other three networks, Orange, BTCellnet and Vodafone all have a no-peak tariff that is almost entirely similar. Calls cost 25p for the first 3 minutes each day, then 5p per minute after that. The only difference is that Vodafone charges the same rate for voicemail, where Orange and BTCellnet charge 10p. BTCellnet and Orange charge 10p per text message, whereas Vodafone charge 12p each for the first 3 each day, then 9p per message afterwards.

I would recommend BTCellnet for a group of friends, because calls between BTCellnet phones (ie from one BTCellnet phone to another BTCellnet phone) are only 10p per minute during the week, and 2p per minute at weekends, whereas One2One and Virgin Mobile charge them at standard rates.

A few networks offer cheap off-peak call rates, but if you stray into peak territory, watch out! Pick a tariff with good off-peak rates, but with decent peak rates as well.

Once again, the versatile BTCellnet Pay&Go crops up, because its peak calls are only 25p per minute, which is the cheapest general network. However, if you will always use it at the same time when you use it at peak times (i.e. to phone the kids at the end of school time) I would use Orange's Just Talk. Users get off peak times of 11PM to 7AM as standard, plus one of the following time bands, which can be changed every 30 days:

Since you use it mainly at off-peak times, a flat-rate tariff such as One2One or Virgin Mobile is not the choice for you. For charge details, see the section at the bottom entitled "Call Charges" or click there.

Some networks give expensive peak calls to make up for cheap off-peak calls. If you use it mainly at peak times, a flat-rate tariff may be the option. A flat-rate tariff doesn't use peak/off-peak charges. They charge you the same no matter what time you use it.

The two that come to mind are Virgin Mobile and One2One pay As You Go. The call charges are as follows:

They both offer generally the same thing. One thing to consider is that although One2One goes down to 5p per minute quicker, the 30p per minute is a bit of a sting compared to 15p per minute for the initial 5 minutes on Virgin, however, if you are observant you may notice that you spend 60p on One2One on expensive calls, but 75p on Virgin for expensive calls.

The other three networks, Orange, BTCellnet and Vodafone all have a no-peak tariff that is almost entirely similar. Calls cost 25p for the first 3 minutes each day, then 5p per minute after that. The only difference is that Vodafone charges the same rate for voicemail, where Orange and BTCellnet charge 10p. BTCellnet and Orange charge 10p per text message, whereas Vodafone charge 12p each for the first 3 each day, then 9p per message afterwards.

Another option could be Fresh from Value Telecom (see table below). They offer standard calls at 10p per minute at any time.

If you are a heavy user, you'll want the best from your phone. So look upmarket towards the Nokia 3310 (not to be confused with the Nokia 3210) or the other top phones. If you wand a WAP phone, look at the Siemens C35 (around £60 to £130) or the Nokia 7110(the ultimate phone) at £100 - £170.

Unless you want crazy bills from calls at 35p per minute, the main tariff for you would be Vodafone's NextStep. There is a daily charge of 50p, but you get 50p of calls for it (5 minutes). This comes out of your balance at midnight the day before.

Calls cost a flat rate of 10p per minute, with calls to other networks at 40p per minute. Text messages cost 10p.

The huge table has been updated and moved here. It's rather large. It may take about 30 seconds to load.

BTCellnet Pay&Go

The call charges may look too low compared to the others, but there are no drawbacks. I use the BTCellnet service, and I find the services are just as good as any other network. One obvious advantage is that BTCellnet have the best WAP service, called Genie.

Orange JustTalk 

In the table above, Orange has two columns because calls are cheaper if you use a £50 voucher. The calls using a £50 voucher are shown in the right-hand column. Orange have withdrawn all £5 vouchers. They say that they will continue to offer £5 on e-topup cards.

Orange also offer two 'add-ons', which you can purchase seperately.

One2One

The £10 free calls on one2one is marked *. This is because you get £3 on the phone, and the other £7 when you register with One2One. Phone them for more information.

Value Telecom

Fresh - Text messages cost 3p each to other Fresh moblies or 10p to other mobile networks. Fresh is part of Value Telecom and is available from The Carphone Warehouse.

Here are some links for you if you need more information.

Here are some UK phone numbers for the networks above.

The SummerSun Guide to Mobile Phones (UK). Added 06 January 2001. Updated Tuesday, 10 July 2001 16:02 . This page updated when necessary. All information correct at time of writing.

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