[LINK] News: 'New mobile phones will double as credit cards'

[Adam Todd]

At 03:06 PM 29/04/2007, Kim Holburn wrote:
>See, I reckon $33 a month, which is way more than I have ever paid a
>phone company for a mobile phone is a rip-off.

It's cheaper than my landline.  Landline $32.95 a month, plus call 
costs on top of that, rarely below $40.00 - that's not many calls!

I'd love a cheaper monthly fee, but I'm not going to get 300 minutes 
of free calls, and 30 cent calls to all lands lines for up to ten minutes.

I only upped from $22 a month to $33 a month to take advantage of the 
lower per minute charges, so my volume of calls is higher now than on 
the $22, but I still don't use all the minimum fee all the time.  I try though!

>You admitted in one of your emails that "you rarely ever use all all 
>of that" that you're paying for.

Yes.

I must say too, and I've said it before, I'm pretty impressed with 
the services and customer support of '3' even if the call centre is 
in India.  (They have a note on my account saying I know this so they 
don't bull* me!)

>I'm glad you're not confused.

(smile)

>What about people who don't know much about technology - not to 
>mention people who just don't know much?

I think the technology is a side issue.  I think people get confused 
over "how much" and "how often."

Then again, I watch people subscribing to services that charge then 
$4 a day and they have no hesitation in doing it.

So I think a lot of the confusion is more the fact that it's not 
"cash out of the pocket today" and a credit issue, than it is not knowing.

Sure there are some people who are swindled totally. Look at One.Tel 
(still in the Supreme Court I notice) where they made contracts that 
weren't even binding and then pursued people over them.

I think I was one of very few who contested the "terminated" contract and won.

Still, some phone companies are good, some are not.  Some have great 
communications and others are bloody awful.

At the end of the day, it's the user who has to be responsible.

The Dog didn't make the phone calls!

Buying a car is far more difficult than buying a phone and plan.  If 
people can't handle a phone account, they have little hope of 
handling a car and loan.  (Then again, many people can't handle 48 
month interest free either.)