Hey all!
Before the month is up, I thought to post something regarding voice and data plans for the iPhone 3G. I know one of the most burning questions regarding the iPhone 3G is what is the best plan for the phone, so I hope the following information can shed some light on that. Before we begin though, please note that these plans will be reflective of Rogers Wireless and the region of British Columbia. (See your local Rogers store for information on local offers.)
People who want iPhone 3G without data
If you are one of the people that want an iPhone 3G without data and prefer to use the Wi-Fi feature, then really any voice plan is fine for you. Essentially you will want a plan that will give you enough minutes so you do not end up paying overage fees. Currently there is a very good plan called the “Employee Purchase Plan”. The plan is $17.50 per month and includes the following:
200 Daytime Minutes, Unlimited Evenings & Weekends at 6PM.
In terms of minutes and value, this is the best plan however if you need more minutes, then obviously you should choose a higher voice plan.
In any case, the iPhone 3G from Rogers will run you $249 (8GB) and $349 (16GB) under this plan. (Rogers policy is in order to get the iPhone 3G for $199 (8GB) or $299 (16GB), your VOICE plan must be $30.01 or higher before all add-ons, fees, and taxes).
People who want iPhone 3G with data
For the folks that want to utilize their iPhone 3G for all the glory that it is, you have a few more options. What it comes down to is you may choose a Voice and Data plan combo (where they come together) or separate the two and choose a Voice plan and add a Data plan option.
As mentioned previously, you can still pick up the $17.50 plan (remember the iPhone will run you $249 for the 8GB) and then for a data option, the best value is the iPhone Data Value Pack. This pack is $35 and gives you:
$35 iPhone Data Value Pack
500MB of Data, Caller Display, Visual Voicemail, Unlimited sent Text Messages, WhoCalled service.
So together with the EPP voice plan, your monthly total will run: $67.14 (BC Only). And of course, if you need more minutes or more data, you simply increase your plan, but that does mean increasing the amount you pay. (In other words, you do not have to choose what I just recommended. There are many VOICE plans to choose from but only ONE $35 iPhone Value Pack)
For Voice and Data combo plans, there are three very good choices (Boy Genius Report showcased these a few weeks ago, and I am not sure what region they were for, but for BC they were incorrect).
$45 SmartPhone Plan
200 Daytime Minutes, Unlimited Evenings & Weekends (9PM), 500MB of Data
And then you may choose ONE (1) of the following free promos to add to the plan:
Unlimited Incoming or Unlimited Network Calling or 5PM Evenings or My5 Canada Wide
Note: If you add $9 and make the plan $54 or $7 for 6PM evenings, you can start your evenings at 5PM or 6PM and not choose the 5PM promo option so that you may choose something better.
Note: If you are a student in High School or University, atleast until March 3, 2009, you can add your student ID to the account and get 6PM evenings for free.
$50 SmartPhone Plan
400 Daytime Minutes, Unlimited Evenings & Weekends (9PM), 500MB of Data, Unlimited Rogers to Rogers Local calling
Note: If you add $9 and make the plan $59 or $7 for 6PM evenings, you can start your evenings at 5PM or 6PM respectively.
Note: If you are a student in High School or University, atleast until March 3, 2009, you can add your student ID to the account and get 6PM evenings for free.
Note: The $50 Smartphone plan does not include the four listed promos as in the $45 Smartphone plan
$75 SmartPhone Plan
650 Daytime Minutes, Unlimited Evenings & Weekends (9PM), 1GB of Data, Unlimited Rogers to Rogers Local calling
Note: If you add $9 and make the plan $84 or $7 for 6PM evenings, you can start your evenings at 5PM or 6PM respectively.
Note: If you are a student in High School or University, atleast until March 3, 2009, you can add your student ID to the account and get 6PM evenings for free.
Note: The $75 Smartphone plan does not include the four listed promos as in the $45 Smartphone plan
Next, if you want to have Voicemail and all the extras, you may add the $15 iPhone Value Pack to any of the above three plans. That pack includes the following:
$15 iPhone 3G Visual Voicemail Value Pack
Visual Voicemail, Caller Display, 2500 Sent Text Messages, WhoCalled Service
The Totals
If you get just the Smartphone plans alone, your monthly totals with all fees and taxes (in BC) will be as follows:
$45 SmartPhone plan total: $58.74
$50 SmartPhone plan total: $64.34
$75 SmartPhone plan total: $92.34
If you add the $15 iPhone 3G Visual Voicemail Value pack, your totals become:
$45 SmartPhone plan with iPhone VVM Pack total: $75.54
$50 SmartPhone plan with iPhone VVM Pack total: $81.14
$75 SmartPhone plan with iPhone VVM Pack total: $109.14
Note: The iPhone 3G will be $199 (8GB) or $299 (16GB) with any of the SmartPhone plans, whether you add the $15 iPhone VVM Pack or not.
Note: Because the SmartPhone plans already include a Data option, you will not be able to “add” more data to these plans as you can if you get a SEPARATE voice and separate data option.
And that’s it folks! I will update this as plans change.
If you have any questions or comments, drop them in the comments below, however Keep It Clean. Wireless Carrier phone plans tend to bring out some arguing in people, so please keep it civil.
As always, if you have any specific questions that you want addressed personally, drop me a line at: x1zero [at] iphoneincanada.ca
Enjoy!
