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buying outright vs contract cellphone


viper78978

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was talking to a friend and he said how buying phone outright is cheaper than going on a contract.
what do you guys think of this? I think either way you have to pay for the phone The contract way you pay it little by little over 2 years .
I always went with the contract way as paying 800 outright is just too much to shallow

 
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1 minute ago, viper78978 said:

was talking to a friend and he said how buying phone outright is cheaper than going on a contract.
what do you guys think of this? I think either way you have to pay for the phone The contract way you pay it little by little over 2 years .
I always went with the contract way as paying 800 outright is just too much to shallow

 

I could be wrong, but I think you pay interest on the monthly payments and by the end of the contract you've spent more on the phone than what it's worth.

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If you are a traveller, ALWAYS buy outright. Because when you buy on contract, your SIM is locked to your phone till the contract is up. Aka, you need a new phone every time you go to a new country. On the other hand, if you buy it outright, you show up in Thailand, swap out SIMs and you have a working, local Thai number.

 

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I guess it depends on your plan.

 

I have an awesome plan that they don't offer anymore.  So if I go into a contract, they will require me to get a more expensive plan in order to pay off the phone.  Over the duration of the contract and beyond (since I can never get my original plan back) I would pay way more than the value of a new phone.

 

I always buy outright.

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5 minutes ago, canuckistani said:

If you are a traveller, ALWAYS buy outright. Because when you buy on contract, your SIM is locked to your phone till the contract is up. Aka, you need a new phone every time you go to a new country. On the other hand, if you buy it outright, you show up in Thailand, swap out SIMs and you have a working, local Thai number.

Not any more.  They haven't been allowed to sell locked phones for almost a year.

 

http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/crtc-wireless-code-cellphone-1.4161711

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6 minutes ago, goalie13 said:

I guess it depends on your plan.

 

I have an awesome plan that they don't offer anymore.  So if I go into a contract, they will require me to get a more expensive plan in order to pay off the phone.  Over the duration of the contract and beyond (since I can never get my original plan back) I would pay way more than the value of a new phone.

 

I always buy outright.

I don't use my phone enough when I travel to make it worth my while. Rather use Wi-fi which a lot of places have. Maybe if you're a business traveller that might be a good deal. 

I used my cellphone in London, Edinburgh, and Paris, didn't get a huge bill when I got home. 

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Typically if you take the contract price over a 2 year term with the phone subsidy and compare it to the price to purchase the phone outright and then used a BYOP plan, its cheaper to go with the purchase the phone outright option.

 

Just do the math. Compare the purchase outright + BYOP plan cost with the two-year term cost and upfront cost of the phone on the plan. 

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I always buy unlocked phones outright but I think in January the major Canadian wireless companies cant lock your phones anymore. Unlocked is awesome for travel and you can switch companies at anytime. I'm not sure about the interest on a 2 year phone plan though..just do the math maybe to see. I'd guess its same price as buy out or slighlty more.

 

If you know anyone who works at a cellphone booth and are okay with another area code get yourself on a Sask or Manitoba phone plan. 

 

 

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Buying outright always saves money. You are essentially financing a phone by going on contract, and you'll typically pay an extra $20/month to do so.

 

If buying an $800 phone is tough to swallow, then buy a $400-500 phone. There are plenty of great ones in that range. 

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It's cheaper in the long run to buy outright, but if you get a phone for free with a contract you basically pay it over 2/3 years on top of your contract so if you can't afford paying 800 for a new phone that is an option even if you are paying more in the end.

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Now that 2 years is the max I prefer contracts.  

 

I've finished one 3 year contract and after that two 2 year contract with Telus. I hated the 3 year deals but the 2 year ones are fine. I don't need a new phone every year.

 

iPhone 7 128gb is an $1100 phone outright. I got it from Telus in March on a 2 year deal for $55/mo with 2gb data.

 

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It depends on your needs,  but usually the plan they put you on to subsidize the phone is a pricy one with features/ limits you'll never need/reach. 

 

That's why buying a 200-500 dollar phone unlocked outright then finding a plan that offers in the range of what you'll actually use is cheaper over the two years.

 

Depends on the exact phone/contract/plan/personal usage though. You'll need to do the math. It's also most worthwhile if you're planning on sticking with that phone for the long haul, and not upgrading every single year

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