Best value for money mobile phone

Here is another way to calculate money equivalent of your mobile phones contract or in other words best value for money mobile phone.

This may be especially challanging for those who like to count the notes.

Step 1: Find out your full liability... Here is an 18 month Vodafone contract mobile phone deal with Nokia N96 handset for free. If you pay £45 a month, your liability to the network (Vodafone, Orange, O2 ... ) will be 45£ * 18 months in other words £810 pounds. Is this the value of your best value mobile phone contracts? No, It is not.

Step 2: The mobile phone is not really free, find the price... To find the money value of your mobile contract take off the money value of a free phone. N 96 sim free is £447.79. If the phone is not free then add the value of charge for the handset to liability. Subtract this £447.79 from £810 and you will have £360 which you pay.

Step 3: Minutes and texts cost money too, how much... What do you pay £360 for? Your agreement from the network to supply certain minutes, texts and other additional services for certain period. In this example, we show Vodafone tariff which gives 900 (anytime, any network) minutes, 3000 texts and unlmtd internet browsing. Divide £360 by 18 and you will find monthly money value of your contract, value for money mobile phone. In this case £20 a month.

Step 4: Compare and decide Let's compare minutes, texts and other add ons that you get for £20 a month on contract with the same on pay as you go. Vodafone existing pay as you talk tariffs give you minues for 20p per minute/10p per text. That means maximum 100 minutes or maximum 200 text messages. No add ons. Not a lot compared to 900 minutes and 3000 texts and unlimited internet browsing. For different contract deals though the decision may be different.