iPhone 5 & T-Mobile UK

[PVisitors]

So T-Mobile have just begun their nationwide LTE roll out today, and of course the iPhone is announced today. The news that LTE is now hitting the UK on my current network is basically why I am going to buy the iPhone 5.

Anyway, does anybody have any experience with T-Mobile UK in regards to how they deal with the iPhone announcements. Once it is announced will I be able to walk into a shop and enquire about how much iPhone contracts and tariffs will cost? Obviously I doubt I'll be able to even place a pre-order to be honest. When do they announce the contracts, is it on announcement or when the iPhone 5 is released.

Finally I have an upgrade due on my current contract which was a HTC Desire 2 years ago. I checked last week and my current upgrade options (for free) are the SGS3 and the iPhone 4S. What are the chances of me being able to pick up the iPhone 5 on my upgrade contract and what do you reckon they will charge for the phone cost?

 

[Centralman]

So T-Mobile have just begun their nationwide LTE roll out today, and of course the iPhone is announced today. The news that LTE is now hitting the UK on my current network is basically why I am going to buy the iPhone 5.

Anyway, does anybody have any experience with T-Mobile UK in regards to how they deal with the iPhone announcements. Once it is announced will I be able to walk into a shop and enquire about how much iPhone contracts and tariffs will cost? Obviously I doubt I'll be able to even place a pre-order to be honest. When do they announce the contracts, is it on announcement or when the iPhone 5 is released.

Finally I have an upgrade due on my current contract which was a HTC Desire 2 years ago. I checked last week and my current upgrade options (for free) are the SGS3 and the iPhone 4S. What are the chances of me being able to pick up the iPhone 5 on my upgrade contract and what do you reckon they will charge for the phone cost?

Hey

I'm with T-mobile UK and it will not have 4G as yet.

T-mobile will rebrand as EE but that will be the 3G network and the 4G EE as I understand it is a separate company in the group.

Pricing not sure for 4G but the 3G one will probably be the same as it currently is,

 

[cfc4ever]

Not sure about UK, but in Aus we have 3 major carriers that carry the phone. Normally they play a game of cat and mouse and leave it as late as possible. This is so they can try and out do each other.

This is what happened with the 4 (from memory someone correct me if I am wrong)

Telstra went, then Vodafone, then Optus. Basically all within 72hours of release (not the announcement), interestingly the night before launch Telstra went again and put up all the data (in Aus we pay alot more for data, than the rest of the world e.g. I pay with telstra $69 a mnth for 6 gig on my iPad)

Telstra's original plans include between 500mb to 1G of data. They then basically doubled it.

 

[hobx]

Telegraph is reporting that the Guardian (couldn't see where) is reporting that the Iphone5 will launch with LTE in the UK.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/apple/9535582/Apple-iPhone-5-event-live.html

Could be interesting....

 

[tiptopp]

So T-Mobile have just begun their nationwide LTE roll out today, and of course the iPhone is announced today. The news that LTE is now hitting the UK on my current network is basically why I am going to buy the iPhone 5.

Anyway, does anybody have any experience with T-Mobile UK in regards to how they deal with the iPhone announcements. Once it is announced will I be able to walk into a shop and enquire about how much iPhone contracts and tariffs will cost? Obviously I doubt I'll be able to even place a pre-order to be honest. When do they announce the contracts, is it on announcement or when the iPhone 5 is released.

Finally I have an upgrade due on my current contract which was a HTC Desire 2 years ago. I checked last week and my current upgrade options (for free) are the SGS3 and the iPhone 4S. What are the chances of me being able to pick up the iPhone 5 on my upgrade contract and what do you reckon they will charge for the phone cost?

I'm not on T-Mobile, but have been doing a lot of reading about EE and their 4GEE product. A number of thoughts:

• EE is a separate brand, with separate pricing structures
• If you're currently on Orange or T-Mobile, and want to go to 4GEE, you'll be signing up to a new minimum term contract
• The frequency that's being used is 1800Mhz. Whilst this allows speed, it is (apparently) not as good as the frequencies which will be auctioned next year in terms of penetrating buildings
• Only 16 cities get 4GEE this year, with no clues as to how quickly the rest of us get it over the next 18 months. I don't live in one of them
• The thoughts of the guy who looks after the 20,000 handset Orange contract at work reckons pricing will be one of the levers pulled to control takeup and ensure that there isn't a surge - i.e. it won't be cheap!
• I can't decide what to do, as I'm really happy with Vodafone, and don't really know what I'd do with 4G anyway - I just want it!

Usually, the networks take a couple of days to come up with their tariffs, but they've probably only got tomorrow, as pre-orders could possibly start on Friday.

It's highly unlikely that you'll get the iP5 for free as an upgrade. I'm impressed that the 4s is already free - you must be paying a few quid for your contract! Previous years, the new iPhone has been around £100 on a £30 to £40 contract (2 years).

 

[andybno1]

I wouldn't get too excited yet as 4G will only be in London, Bristol, Birmingham an Cardiff at first and then 16 cities by Christmas so a little wait till the others get it: (happy I'm in one of these cities just need iPhone to lte capable now )

Belfast
Derby
Edinburgh
Glasgow
Hull
Leeds
Liverpool
Manchester
Nottingham
Newcastle
Sheffield
Southampton

 

[PVisitors]

I'm not on T-Mobile, but have been doing a lot of reading about EE and their 4GEE product. A number of thoughts:

• EE is a separate brand, with separate pricing structures
• If you're currently on Orange or T-Mobile, and want to go to 4GEE, you'll be signing up to a new minimum term contract
• The frequency that's being used is 1800Mhz. Whilst this allows speed, it is (apparently) not as good as the frequencies which will be auctioned next year in terms of penetrating buildings
• Only 16 cities get 4GEE this year, with no clues as to how quickly the rest of us get it over the next 18 months. I don't live in one of them
• The thoughts of the guy who looks after the 20,000 handset Orange contract at work reckons pricing will be one of the levers pulled to control takeup and ensure that there isn't a surge - i.e. it won't be cheap!
• I can't decide what to do, as I'm really happy with Vodafone, and don't really know what I'd do with 4G anyway - I just want it!

Usually, the networks take a couple of days to come up with their tariffs, but they've probably only got tomorrow, as pre-orders could possibly start on Friday.

It's highly unlikely that you'll get the iP5 for free as an upgrade. I'm impressed that the 4s is already free - you must be paying a few quid for your contract! Previous years, the new iPhone has been around £100 on a £30 to £40 contract (2 years).

Yeah what I meant about the IP5 as an upgrade is whether I could offset the cost with them. For example stay on my current contract (renewed for the 24 months obviously) and then pay £x for the upgrade IP5.

Yeah I was surprised they were offering basically two of the flagship phones for iOS/Android considering my contract really isn't that much. AFAIK, granted I haven't really looked around which I'll have to do when the IP5 is announced but for £30pm I get unlimited internet including unlimited tethering, unlimited texts and 1600 minutes. It's a pretty old contract from when smartphones had hardly taken off so they weren't being conservative on allowances like they are now.

Thanks for explaining the EE 4G situation though, rather frustrating that they're not treating 4G as an evolutionary speed upgrade but as a payable extra basically. My city (both my term time address and home time address) have been announced in the rollout plans by christmas which is good news, however.