
BT's
Total Broadband Anywhere package has launched –
Web User news editor Ben Camm-Jones takes a look at the deal.
The concept: BT is offering customers on the Total Broadband Option 3 package the chance to get a mobile handset, the BT ToGo, which will let them connect to the web when they are on the move, as well as make calls and texts. The lowest-priced deal will cost an extra £5 per month to existing customers. New customers signing up will get the handset, BT Total Broadband Option 3 with unlimited downloads and a maximum 8Mbps connection speed, plus a wireless router for £23.99 per month.
The handsets: Made by Taiwanese manufacturer HTC, there is a choice of two handsets – the S620 and S710. Although the S710 has a few marginal extras that the S620 lacks, there's very little to distinguish the two models. Both have qwerty keyboards and run on the Windows Mobile 6 operating system. The S620 comes free with all packages, but if you want the S710 you'll have to pay an extra £30 with all but the two most expensive deals.
The handsets themselves are easy enough to use if you're familiar with BlackBerrys and other smartphones, but if you're making the step up from a standard mobile you'll struggle at first. The controls, while not especially great (particularly when navigating web pages) are no worse than most smartphones. However, neither handset comes close to the iPhone in terms of ease of use and overall web experience.
They are, in all fairness, good devices, well-designed with adequate screens. Both have built-in cameras and MP3 players. There's precious little built-in storage space but room for memory cards is provided.
The deals: There are four packages, starting at £23.99 with BT BB Anywhere 50. The next package up, BB Anywhere 150, costs £33.99, the next, BB Anywhere 250, is £38.99 per month and the top-end deal, BB Anywhere 600, is an eye-watering £53.99 per month. If you're struggling to comprehend these figures, then take a deep breath – that price is only for the first three months. After that, each deal goes up by £6 per month.
The difference between the four deals is purely down to the amount of talktime and texts you are allowed per month. BB Anywhere 50 gives you 50 texts and 50 minutes of talktime per month, which seems punitively low, especially if BT expects people to use the BT To Go in place of their current mobile phone. The top deal, BB Anywhere 600, gives you 600 minutes and 700 texts. This effectively means that customers will pay £30 a month more for an extra 550 minutes and 650 texts.
Read part two of Ben Camm-Jones' first look at BT Total Broadband Anywhere.
www.bt.com/broadband
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