snaps

Today I treated myself to a Skinny $20 mobile and added a $5 top-up. This will do for the short term until I source a decent or semi-decent tariff.

The cost of mobiles and calls appears to have dropped markedly in the last 12 months, some even having a data package attached.

I believe Skinny is the 'New Kid in Town' and responsible for the price drop from all suppliers.

Beware that some UK mobiles may not work here, especially the older ones.

Snap Shot

I purchased a 'Two Degrees' brand mobile phone in Christchurch in 2011. I think it cost $39.99 with a bit of credit included.

It was a 'Samsung' model. I couldn't get to grips with it so I got a basic Nokia as that was what I had in Britain and I kept the original NZ phone number too. Happy days.

I think UK mobiles do work in NZ but the call will be treated like an international call. So, you could be phoning your take away order on your British phone in NZ and the call will go via Britain.

(My husband's mobile phone stopped working which is how we fell out with, 'Dick Smith' electrical retailer but that's a whole other story. The end result being neither of us will even step foot in a branch of, 'Dick Smith' ever again. That's the NZ equivalent of, 'Comet' or 'Currys' etc. Also, wait 'till a retailer tries to charge you nearly fifty dollars just to send the 'phone back to the company just for an assessment of the problem, that's a real belter !)

My mobile phone is pay as you go, I just buy twenty bucks worth at a time which seems to last me for ages. I don't really understand how their pay as you go scheme works. I buy a block of darta then I use half of it, then I get a text saying my credit is low, then I buy more phone credit, half of that is used straightaway. Or something like that, clear as mud.

However I do understand, 'pay money, make phone work.'

BTW I want a toy kiwi called Kevin, like Rhys Darby had in the Christmas, Two Degrees' adverts ! (Not a toyboy kiwi who's name is Kevin - honestly, some people !)

Pentium

Can I ask advice re phones? We are coming over at the end of the month, and have a holiday house in Kaukapakapa for 3 months, which doesn't have phone or internet. Of course we'll be relying heavily on internet for house searching etc. Should we a) get internet connected to the holiday house (owner says is an option) b) Get a phone plan with loads of data? Which one will work best in rural areas?

snaps

A fair number of coffee/tea shops seem to do free internet connection while there, but not sure you could spin one drink out for all day.
Some of the mobile packages have 500MB of data attached each month and I'm sure that I saw a number of 'dongles' on the 'Two Degrees' rack today.
You may be able to pick up a free SIM at Auckland airport, they are advertised as available but have so far failed to see where.

snaps

Pentium - This may help... http://www.consumer.org.nz/reports/m...ovider-details

lardyl

Telecom has two wifi hotspots (called Telecom WiFi Zone) close-ish in Helensville and Parakai:

http://www.telecom.co.nz/helpandsupp...hones/94208485

If you have telecom smartphone you can hook up to that and tether it to your laptop. There are limits on data but should be plenty to do email and check out properties online. I've used these in the city before they txt you an access code and away you go.

good luck in the waps

Pentium

Great, thanks all! Really hoping I will be able to set it up at home and not have to spend weeks at coffee shops!

snaps

Update.
Took out a $16 package with Skinny for 30 days. Easy sign-up and even choose my own number for $5 extra. This month I get 1Gb of data and 180 of calls and unlimited texts, nearly as good as GiffGaff in the UK. All this works well on a Google Nexus 4 I brough from the UK.
PS I'm not an employee of Skinny

Helen256

Can I ask a silly question here... I was hoping to bring my iPhone out and just change the sim card (it's unlocked)... is that probably not going to work?

barnsleymat

That will work no problem

snaps

We had an iPhone work straightaway on Skinny too.

TheCockneyKiwi

Point to note. Some phones will not work that well over here.

We bought a Sim + PAYG credit with Telecom NZ and stuck this in the wife's (rather old) Blackberry. Didnt work, so we paid $99 for a mini Samsung Galaxy. As its Android, you can download all your Apps. Facebook, Hotmail, Gmail etc.

Seems to work fine.

I pick my work SIM up tomorrow, so will ditch the UK number. The Sim should work in my Nokia Lumia 920.

Helen256

Thank you! I should probably be looking at other things to frett about but there's so much to think through isn't there?!