I have just switched over from O2 Pay&Go to a 12 month contract. I now pay £19 per month, (I have international favourites Bolt On), and 100 minutes of any network calls along with unlimited texts. Although I now get 3,000 minutes of free calls to 3 numbers in the USA, I feel a bit let down from the rest of the contract.
When I was on Pay&Go, I paid a one off fee of £5 and got really cheap rate calls to any number in the States. I could also text the States for 10p and picture messages were 30p. Now that I'm paying £9 per month for my International Bolt On, (as opposed to the £5 one off fee), it's 20p to text the States and sending a picture message, (to UK numbers), costs me a whopping 50p!
When I went into the O2 shop to enquire about the swap over from Pay&Go to pay monthly, I felt pressured to make the switch by the member of staff there and then. I said I was going to think about it while I finished my shopping on the High Street and then I'd be back, but the young man was persistant and I ended up buckling and signing up.
I was led to believe that I would be saving money and it would be more convinient to have a contract, instead I now find myself not wanting to text the States, (which is where my wife spends a lot of time working), because I then have to count the cost. When cash is tight, those 20p texts tend to mount up very quickly. I can no longer send photos of our kids or dogs to my wife when she's away, (I'm sure for a lot of people this may seem trivial, but to us it's family time we're otherwise missing out on). I now have to come home and upload photos, then email them over.
I really expected more from O2, but it seems that once you're in that contract, the charges can mount up. What has shocked me the most is that someone who is on Pay&Go gets cheaper picture messages and International texts, (without having to worry about having the money in the bank to cover the charge), and people like myself who sign up for a 12 month contract, are paying through the nose for the same service!
I won't be renewing my contract when it runs out, and I'll probably be finding another provider who's tarifs make more sense.
