Do You Want 60 Quid Coz I Do (dialaphone.co.uk)

Member Name: criple

Product:	dialaphone.co.uk
Date:	31/10/02 (1800 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Wide Range Of Phones, Excellent Tariffs, Good Incentives

Disadvantages: Bad Customer Service

How do you dial for a phone if you don't have one to start with? Well if you have a PC it's as easy as ABC!

Dial-a-phone.co.uk is the UK's leading specialist supplier of mobile phones direct to the consumer (or at least that's what they tell us)

They have been established since 1995 and state that they can offer the best deals around due to their low running costs. They are a mobile phone distributor and not an airtime provider and cannot therefore offer number portability and upgrades. All this means is that if you are looking for a new mobile and are not concerned with keeping the same mobile phone number or your existing contract they could offer you a fantastic deal. All dial-a-phone offers are subject to a 12-month airtime agreement with one of the major networks. They offer different tariffs with Orange, T-mobile, O2 and Vodaphone. If you require a tariff such as Virgin then you will have to go elsewhere. You may find some tariffs exclusive to dial-a-phone that you would not find on the T-Mobile website for example. This is because although T-Mobile is responsible as your network provider there are other companies that supply the airtime. You may therefore get one deal with one mobile company that is not available with another. I will explain further in my review one way in which this could possibly affect you.

So, we've established that you're hungry for a new phone and you want something that didn't go out with the Arc. The next step is to log in to the website and have a browse at what they have to offer. When you first log in to the home page you will be presented with some of the offers that are currently available and brief details of the network and incentive. The pictures of the phones are clear and of a good size, you can click on them for further details of the individual offers.

At the moment for example there is a Nokia 7650, Samsung A300, Nokia 3410 and a Samsung T100. This will freq

uently change but it gives you an idea of the range of phones available. All these phones advertised are on T-Mobile tariffs but you can get them on other Networks. As an example the Samsung T100 is free on T-Mobile but you have to pay £9.99 if you want it on Orange. There is currently only this one and the Nokia 8310 available on the Orange network with dial-a-phone.

If you don't like any of the offers on the home page you can easily check out what else is available by going to each of the different network providers. Underneath the pictures of the phones there is the symbol for Orange, O2, T-Mobile and Vodaphone, if you click on any one of these it will take you to all the current offers for that provider. This is ideal if you know which network you want, the downside is that they may not be offering the phone you want. This may mean looking at alternatives. Some phones offer better deals than others and some networks offer better deals than others. Most phones ordered via the website entitle you to a free camera. Nothing too fancy but if it's free then go for it.

There are currently 6 phones available on T-Mobile, 5 of which are free and one of which you will have to pay for. As an example of the type of deal you would get at the moment would include:

Free Connection
Free Accessories
Free 3 Months insurance (you don't have to continue with this)
Free Next day delivery
Free Nokia 3410
14-Day piece of mind guarantee
6 Months free line rental at month 6 at 12

Freetime 750 tariff
750 Free off peak minutes per month (tariff dependent)
Free Voicemail (tariff dependent)
£13.99 per month including itemised billing
50 free text messages (tariff dependent)

If you were to compare this if you bought the phone direct from T-Mobile the same tariff would cost exactly the same at £13.99 per month but you would not get any free accessories, insurance or line rental.
r>The
re are 2 phones available on Orange, 11 available on Vodaphone and 10 available on O2. Again tariffs are quite varied but each offer is usually better than the comparison if you buy it direct from the network provider. As another example with Carphone Warehouse the Ericsson T68i retails at £69.99 on the 200 anytime tariff including cross network, with dial-a-phone it is free.

Excellent offers are all well and good but customer service is just as important. I have ordered phones on 3 separate occasions and ran in to trouble with them once.

They answer the phone quickly and I was impressed with that but here is one problem that I had. I decided that I didn't want to keep a phone I ordered on the tariff it was on. The same day as it arrived I telephone dial-a-phone to ask them to change the tariff. They said they couldn't just change the tariff as each tariff could in fact be with a different air time provider (not network) Even though I wanted to stay with the same network I had to send the phone back and they would send me out the exact same phone on the same network but on a different tariff. I wasn't happy with this and I told them to take the phone back altogether.

To my surprise I had to pay line rental from when I received the phone until it was collected, pay for the return out of my own money and wait for it to be refunded. Apparently if you take the phone out of the box you are agreeing to the contract even if you don't connect the phone. I did take this up with T-mobile who said I didn't have to pay but dial-a-phone were very rude, unhelpful and down right ignorant. I also had to remind them 4 times about my refund, which took 8 weeks.

As for the phone I ordered for my husband and my brother each promise has been fulfilled down to free line rental vouchers and free cameras. There have been no hidden charges and no cock-ups with tariffs. They have sent confirmation emails quickly after rece
ipt of ord
er and delivered within the specified time. I have to conclude that if you are happy with the phone and tariff then you will have no problems, if however you need to make a return the 14 day piece of mind guarantee only applies if you DO NOT OPEN THE BOX!

There really isn't much else you need to know as the website is simply functional for selling the phones and nothing else. Everything you need to access is on the homepage, which includes a small section entitled 'about us' contact details, FAQ and jobs. There is a ring tone feature that allows you to download ring tones to compatible Nokia and Samsung phones, it isn't free however and you have to phone a 0906 number. The site is very simple and easy to navigate and the images of the phones are of good quality. All the information you need regarding the phones and tariffs are at you finger tips and easy to find.

If you decide you wish to purchase a phone you can either do this online or via telephone. The telephone lines are open 24 hours and it is a free phone number 0800 0928 244. Whichever method you choose you must have a valid debit or credit card in the name of the person that the contract will be in. This is for credit purposes and you will not be allowed to place an order if you don't have one. Placing an order online is simple, you simply click the buy on line button and it will display the item you wish to order along with tariff details and price if applicable. You then click 'go to check out' which takes you to a secure screen where you have to agree to the terms and conditions. The next page you input will ask for your personal information along with residential and employment status, DOB and number of credit cards. You must enter all details correctly in the next page. If I recall it requires bank details and the card number you are using to hold the phone. They may hold a fee of around £75 that won't be taken out unless you fail to con
nect or return the
phone.

Once you have completed all details you will receive an email confirming everything. If you order late in the day it may not arrive the next day due to cut off times. Someone must sign for the receipt of the phone but it doesn't have to be the name of the person who has taken out the contract.

If you have any problems you can contact their customer services on 0870 333 6061 between the hours of 8-10 weekdays and 8-6 at weekends.


***** UPDATE *****

My husband has just had a letter from dial a phone stating that he will receive £60 (at the moment, normally £20) for everyone he recommends to dial a phone. This is a fantastic deal and although I cannot ask for people to let us recommend you, if you do decide to purchase from them could you please bear us in mind. All you have to do is enter Mr P Tupman and 07764202756 and if you call them on 0800000077 give the same details. Don't worry about the number given and the fear of us getting funny calls, you won't get through on that number. If you would like to speak to me about it then please let me know, if you do purchase from dial a phone YOU will also become a member of their recommend a friend scheme and receive a payment for everyone that you recommend. Thanks

Like I said they offer some fantastic deals but be warned if you open the box you don't win anything but it will cost you.