EE announces cheaper 4G tariffs

Posted on 23 Jan 2013 at 09:01, by Gareth Halfacree

EE has responded to complaints about the small data allowances on its high-speed 4G network by lowering the prices of its existing tariffs - but still has yet to introduce an unlimited data deal.

Announced in October last year, EE's 4G contracts provide access to the company's high-speed mobile broadband services when paired with a Long Term Evolution (LTE) compatible handset. While download speeds might be fast, the data transfer allowances are paltry: the entry-level £36 SIM-free contract provides just 500MB of data transfer per month, which could be used up in less than six minutes of full-speed downloading.

Even the company's top-end tariff, which offers 8GB for £56, provides little in the way of a comfortable buffer for those looking to use the high-speed network for more than just browsing the web: at the peak 12Mb/s speeds promised by the network, that allowance can be used up in just an hour and a half.

To address these concerns, EE has revised its pricing and launched a new top-end package offering 20GB of data for £46 a month, based on a two-year SIM-free contract. Those picking up a handset as well, which they'll need if their current device doesn't support EE's LTE network, will see that figure jump to £61. For those who don't need 20GB of data transfer allowance, EE has dropped the cost of the 8GB SIM-free tariff from £56 to £41 a month, while the entry-level 500MB plan drops from £36 to £31.

Pricing for the 4G network is still at a premium, however, and for power users the lack of an unlimited data allowance is galling: the 20GB package equates to just under four hours of downloading each month based on a 12Mb/s LTE network performance. As other networks begin to roll out their own 4G upgrades later this year, EE will likely adjust its pricing - but, for now, high-speed mobile broadband comes with a significant cost premium attached.

The new 20GB plan is available until the 28th of February, after which the top-end offering will revert to the 8GB tariff, EE has stated.

Get more reviews, tutorials and in-depth advice, every month with Computer Shopper.
Click here to try 3 issues for £1

< Previous News : Smartphones Next >

User comments

Service Levels

They may be reducing the cost, but have they got any specific terms and conditions about the level of service the 4G offering will have. No point having an unlimited service, if it's only available half the time.

By Synthespian on 24 Jan 2013