Mobile phones/plans

[theregistrar]

Hi guys - will be moving to Singapore next month and have some questions about mobile/cell phones and plans and hope you guys can help me out.

Is there a difference in pricing between bringing my own phone and just using the plan vs signing up to a plan and getting a phone at a discounted price?
If so, how much is the difference approx.? Reason I'm asking is I'm considering whether to buy a new phone and bring it over or get one in Singapore (fyi, my phone is getting old and I want to get the HTC one...in HK right now)

Thanks all in advance.

[zzm9980]

Go to Singtel.com and price it out. The price with a contractor or Sim only is about the same.

Note you will not be able to get LTE without a contract, so you might as well buy the subsidized phone and save some money since you're committed anyway. And yes, they have the HTC One.

[theregistrar]

Thanks a lot - what about the other mobile networks? Or is Singtel the best? I'm just keen on the best LTE network.

[sundaymorningstaple]

Six of one/Half dozen of the other between the three majors.

[zzm9980]

Thanks a lot - what about the other mobile networks? Or is Singtel the best? I'm just keen on the best LTE network.

Of the people I know, those with Singtel seem more pleased than those with M1.

Singtel and M1 support LTE on two different bands (1800 and 2600Mhz). There is a white paper somewhere that describes how Singtel has towers for both bands in most places, while M1 for some reason only puts some towers on one band, and other towers on the other band. I think they do this to combat interference from other carriers in specific locations.

It is important to note some LTE phones only support one of the two bands (1800). The iPhone 5 is one of those phones that only support LTE on 1800.* So if you have phone like that, Singtel is probably the better choice. If your phone supports both bands, M1 might be better if you find yourself in an area where M1 is using 2600Mhz for LTE.

*-Sorry , I don't know which Android phones support which bands. You'll find a lot of popular models (such as Galaxies) have multiple SKUs for various regions. They use different CPUs and GPUs even in some regions, let alone supporting various frequencies. Best advice I can give is to figure out your phone's (or the one you want to buy) actual model number/sku, and then do research to see what is supported.

[zzm9980]

Here's some reading if you want to know more:
http://www.slideshare.net/smita_amin/si ... rt-q4-2012

http://www.hardwarezone.com.sg/feature- ... out-4g-lte

[theregistrar]

Very detailed info thanks - I just checked HTC one and it supports both bands.
From what you said - I am guessing it's very similar between M1 and singtel with no clear winner...
BTW, does it make a big difference in price if you get those bundles (TV, mobile phone, internet, etc.)