UK consumers that are planning on nabbing up the iPhone 3G on July 11th could be hit with some rather shocking cell phone bills when downloading music or programs overseas. While Apple and it’s British provider O2 have utilized the unlimited download facility as a marketing ploy within the UK, yet a far different data and wi-fi allowance will apply when using the device abroad.
Usage charges will soar to £3 for every Mb of data downloaded with the EU and £6 for everywhere else in the world. These totals could certainly add up quick as “watching the average BBC iPlayer programme, which is about 300Mb in size, would cost £900 if you were in France and £1,800 for someone visiting America. ” via Times Online.
While expensive international tariffs are imposed by other providers such as, Orange and T-Mobile, iPhone owners may be more likely to rack up the downloads considering the larger screen size and soon to be faster 3G speed.
Music downloads remain highly favorable among iPhone owners, as it carries with it the built in MP3 capabilities of the iPod. Steve Weller of Uswitch noted that “Just downloading one track would cost you about £9 within the EU and £18 if you are travelling globally,” Weller added. “You would be better off buying a full-price CD from a shop.”
Moreover, “some services such as automatic e-mail updates use data services without asking the user’s permission. The only way to avoid them racking up the bill for your holiday is to disable them before you leave the UK. ”
One option that users may find helpful may be to take out a data-roaming-add-on which O2 offers a range of bolt-on options, including a 50Mb package costing £50/month.
Hopefully this will save a few people the agony of receiving an outrageous cell phone bill that will be sure to break the tank.
One Comment to “Traveling Brits be warned; international download rates through the roof.”
50 megs for 50GBP?? Lunacy. Best get the phone unlocked and stick a 3 SIM in it. 3 Ireland gives me 10 gigs a month for 20€, which I can use in 8 countries around the world of which 6 are in Europe.
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