Mobile phones – or smartphones as we call them these days – are a valuable addition to our lives. But they’re also frighteningly expensive. It’s not uncommon to part with more than £1,000 – and that’s before you consider line rental.
It turns out, though, that you don’t have to empty your bank account to finance this modern lifestyle essential. Read on to discover our smart tricks to slash the cost of your next phone.
Buy Your Handset Outright
The first rule is to buy your new handset outright. Many contracts will attempt to get you to pay a monthly fee for both the handset and the line rental. But this is effectively a loan with interest included in the monthly payment.
What’s more, because it is an unsecured and risky loan, the interest rate tends to be high. You can often find yourself spending hundreds of pounds more than you need across the lifetime of a phone, just for the benefit of paying in monthly installments.
Buy A Mid-Range Phone
A lot of people believe that they need to have the most expensive handset to get the experience that they want but rarely is this the case. Mid-range phones tend to be around 30 to 50 per cent of the price of the flagship models. Still, they offer a passable experience for the vast majority of users.
Sell Your Old Phone, Even If It Is Broken
Your old phone might be in a sorry state, but that doesn’t mean it’s worthless. You can sell smashed mobile phone handsets on the secondary market to vendors who refurbish them. The amount of money you get depends on the extent of the damage, but you can usually get quite a bit. You can then put the money you get from the trade-in towards the cost of your next phone.
Stay Within Your Data Allowance
When it comes to data usage, some networks are pretty good. They’ll automatically prevent you from using more data until you buy extra bolt-on packages to prevent you from paying excessive charges. Others, though, don’t have any such safeguards in place, and that’s where you can get into trouble. Always keep one eye on your data use. And if you’re the sort of person who uses a lot of gigabytes, then pay for an unlimited monthly package. It’s probably safer.
Keep Your Current Handset Until You Need A New One
Smartphone progress was moving forwards apace back in 2012. But in 2020, it’s a different story. Most new models are only marginally better than the previous generation, meaning you can usually leave it a little longer before upgrading. You will eventually have to swap for a new one, but there’s nothing wrong with keeping a phone for three or four years these days.
Buy Your New Handset As The Manufacturers Release Their New Models
Apple and Samsung – the two biggest smartphone makers in the world – tend to release their handsets in the latter summer or early autumn. When they do, the price of the prior generation tends to fall as retailers attempt to shift stock. It’s the best time to save money on the cost of your next phone.
