More data needed for our money

djstern

I have been bombarded recently with offers from other service providers that make giffgaff look very expensive in comparison. I have been with giffgaff for more than nine years but my SIM only contract for £6 per month only gets me 500MB of data. The competition is offering me 4GB, 5GB or 6GB for the same monthly charge of £6. Isn’t it about time that giffgaff increased the monthly data allowance on its’ £6 per month plan, and similar increases for the more expensive contracts, in order to be able to compete once again with the competition. I am concerned that otherwise giffgaff will start to lose loyal customers like me. This is particularly relevant during the current Covid-19 crisis when data usage is much higher. What do other loyal giffgaff users think?

benjamin567

djstern

djstern This is particularly relevant during the current Covid-19 crisis when data usage is much higher.

There will always be another provider that offers more competitive plans than giffgaff in some area, and we are more than happy for members to come and go as they do.

giffgaff do realise that people are using more data at the moment (especially if they don’t have Wi-Fi at home) so they have just introduced a new “golden goodybag” where you get an extra 3GB of data on the £10 goodybag if you recur it.

giffgaff needs to remain a profitable company whilst still being attractive to new members which they definitely are IMO.

Just take a look at O2’s SIM-only deals: https://www.o2.co.uk/shop/sim-cards/sim-only-deals#deviceType=phone&contractLength=P12M (very expensive!).

Every provider will have its drawbacks, a lot of the cheaper MVNOs have online-only support without a community which is like giffgaff only having agents!

wagstaffes

djstern I agree with you, the £6 goodybag should have at least 1GB of data. You can get 2GB at Lebara for only £5.

m0dcm

djstern competition is offering me 4Mb, 5MB or 6MB for the same monthly charge of £6.

Just to make it clear, as I’ve been away from the forums a while, a Mb is smaller than a Gb, The other age old issue, is that other networks and MVNO’s may be offering better deals, but what are signals like in your area? I’ve stuck with giffgaff now for 8 years and each year things get better, but I’m biased., And the O2 Network always seems to give better signal wherever I go in the Valleys of South Wales and when I lived in the Midlands.
Just be careful out there, the world changing at an alarming rate, and offers that look great on paper, just could backfire….

Dave

rqt

djstern
It is very clear from the meagre data allowance of the £6 goodybag that it is not aimed at (or suitable for) anybody that wants to use data.

It also seems to me, judging from price changes over the last couple of years, that giffgaff are probably not concerned about losing customers (such as myself) who are spending less than £10 per month.

So if you feel the need for better value then you probably should move.

tonic98

djstern the goodybags could do with a review.. maybe a choice of two £6 goodybags.. one with more data and say 100 minutes and 200 texts and the Same for the £8 goodybag

karenyates

djstern
It is definitely a smaller data allowance then many other providers,so it really is personal choice.
You can obviously move over and try one or all of the other networks and be safe in the knowledge,you can always return to giffgaff is you choose.
Good luck whatever you decide. 👍

jesi23

djstern . The competition is offering me 4Mb, 5MB or 6MB

I presume you mean GB here as there are 500MB in the £6 Goodybag.

You get unlimited minutes and SMS texts to UK numbers (01-, 02-, 03- and mobile networks) on ALL Goodybags now; the difference is in the data allowances.

For those willing to commit to a £10 recurring Goodybag (with payment details saved) there is a ‘Golden Goodybag’ with an extra 3GB allowance until sometime in October 2020 as a trial option. As my husband has been using a £10 recurring Goodybag, I signed him up for this one!
He had been using the £10, recurring, but tried the £12 as a once off as we no longer have broadband, and had set up his recurring back to £10. I went to change his order to the £12 recurring, as he has used more than 7GB this month (£10 normal 6GB +1GB) and saw the Golden Goodybag offered as a recurring feature.

This will supply as much data as he has used this last month, at his normal cost, so he is pleased!

We have the £20 Goodybag in a Windows Lumia phone for our Internet (80GB +1GB Extra) which I think is good value for money for our laptops and devices.

The £6 Goodybag is best value for those with feature (non-internet) phones because it keeps elderly members connected with services and communication even though do not need data. My own mobile is a Doro PhoneEasy with big buttons and no internet access, and I used to resent needing to pay more just to get unlimited communication when I could not use the data allowances provided! The new (since 26 February 2020) choice of Goodybags based on data requirements alone suits me fine, and I expect it suits a lot of other ‘tech-challenged Seniors’ who want their phones to make calls.

Costs for International calls are also cheaper, so make sure you are comparing like-for-like before you change networks. But you are always welcome to leave giffgaff if you find a better deal, and come back when you find it doesn’t satisfy, with no penalties (except that you lose any accumulated payback or unused credit on your account when you transfer your number over to a different network).

Everyone has the same options on giffgaff without being tied to a contract, and do not lose out when they pause Goodybags for a period of time, or want to move to a higher or lower priced Goodybag at any time. As it is really a PAYG network, you get what you pay for. In my case, Peace of Mind!

_{_🤡}

djstern

djstern Thank you for supporting my point. I know that I can leave giffgaff but I don’t want to after nine reasonably trouble-free years as a member. I want giffgaff to succeed and if it loses a lot of loyal users, it will not do so. I do not deliberately use a lot of data but it seems to get swallowed up in the background with my old Android phone. For example, automatically updating my newspaper that I downloaded with WiFi at home, updating the local bus times whether I want them or not and similar things like that use up my 500MB very quickly. At least give us a GB or two for our £6 per month!

djstern

m0dcm Sorry Dave about my error in putting MB instead of GB. After 55 years in IT I shouldn’t make such a fundamental mistake. I have now edited my original post to correct the error.

David

davek89

What I think is that it’s a competitive free market and if you’re not happy with giffgaff’s offering then you’re perfectly at liberty to exercise your choice and take your business elsewhere. This is the process by which free markets make us richer.

scrupps

The data allowance on giffgaff is indeed poor. I received an email from Plusnet yesterday offering much better deals than giffgaff. giffgaff are falling behind and need to up their game.

For me, giffgaff is a no brainer as I spend time on the forum and earn payback which makes giffgaff very cheap for me. However, for people who don’t want to engage on the forums, giffgaff is no longer particularly cost effective.

aaron1867

I don’t have Wifi at home, so rely solely on mobile data and I buy the 80GB goodybag for £25. I still ue a lot of it.

Feel as if we still need a truly unlimited amount of data and if we don’t go over the limit, then we should be given a £5 refund. I most certainly am considering moving network, when I see the next changes to the goodybag.

tazzy19

aaron1867
Simply buy the £20 goodybag, you’ll then save £5

823677

823677 this must be considered even if means a slight increase in costs.

giffgaff currently make an average profit of £10 annually per customer/member.
How much more are you prepared to pay ?

823677

Completely agree that all Goodybags need data increases. It’s no good just saying giffgaff need to make a profit but surely they are saving money by getting us to be their customer support. giffgaff is run by its members for its members and if we say we want more data then this must be considered even if means a slight increase in costs.