Ring Seven - new prepaid mobile phone service

[YorkshireLad6 7,152]

A new prepaid mobile discounter arrived this week - Ring. Their Ring SEVEN deal offers calls for 7 cents/minute to all German land and mobile networks plus to many international destinations including UK and USA and is therefore currently the cheapest provider on the market. The downside is they charge 14cents per SMS. If you do plan to use SMS services then their Ring CLASSIC deal offers calls (including international) for 7.9cents/minute and 7.9cents/SMS - still a fraction cheaper than most other deals. At 24cents/1Mb of data it's not bad for ad-hoc internet services either. Roaming rates when used abroad are the same as all other providers.

 

For a short time only it costs €9.90 to sign up to the Ring SEVEN tarif, but you get €20 initial credit (so €10.10 for free). You can top up your credit at many stores and filling stations, as well as online with PayPal or a credit card. If you currently top up with €15 online you get an additional €5 added to your credit making calls even cheaper. There is also a rather curious bonus system - if you redirect your mobile number to a German landline (e.g. home), for which there are no additional costs, you accumulate bonus points - 15 points per call minute or pro-rata. For every 500 points collected you get 50cents of credit added to your account. I can only assume this is to encourage you to give out your mobile number for folks to call you to increase Ring incoming call revenue.

 

You can only order the starter pack online, and pay by credit card, bank transfer or PayPal. No ID is required. Once you have received the SIM card in the mail you need to activate it online. If your current provider and contract allows it you can transfer an existing number onto the Ring account. Your old provider may charge you for this.

 

Ring is based on the E-Plus mobile network. Not one of the best, especially outside of populated areas, but for most people there are few problems.

 

It's highly likely that this is the beginning of a slide in mobile prices since the Bundesnetzagentur announced massive reduction in network interconnection costs. From early 2011 the costs for transferring calls between networks will be more than halved from approx. 7cents/minute to approx. 3.4 cents/minute. It's likely that many other providers will follow suit in announcing new deals, or price reductions in existing contracts.

[PES 3,977]

Then isn't Discotel offer of 7.5 with your beloved t-Mobile network still a better deal (for domestic use)? I saw that Discotel offers service through O2 and T-mobile these days, you can choose. Only when you choose T-Mobile there is no option for a dataplan. Now if you want to call abroad Ring offer is great.

[YorkshireLad6 7,152]

This is Nickel and Diming really. Discotel is only 7.5cents/min if you take the 0.5cent/minute refund at the end of the year into account. Yes, there is an advantage on being based on (my "beloved") T-Mobile, but I'd say the cheaper cost for calling abroad and the sign-up and top-up bonuses have the edge.

 

My main point is that this is the beginning of a potential slide in costs.

[PES 3,977]

I looked into this for a second handy I need, and having had and T-Mobile, 02 and Eplus handy contract... T-Mobile takes the cake for coverage. That is why I am tempted by Discotel's offer, but I would like a 200gb dateplan (that I can only get with 02). Thanks YL6 for the heads up.

[bal00 1,917]

 

I looked into this for a second handy I need, and having had and T-Mobile, 02 and Eplus handy contract... T-Mobile takes the cake for coverage. That is why I am tempted by Discotel's offer, but I would like a 200gb dateplan (that I can only get with 02). Thanks YL6 for the heads up.

 

 

FYVE or klarmobil might work too.

 

FYVE uses the Vodafone network, they charge 9 ct per min/SMS (including foreign landlines) and they offer 150 MB for 5 Euros a month (speed is limited to 384 kbit), or you can get 500 MB at 7.2 Mbit for 10 Euros.

 

klarmobil uses T-Mobile, charges 9 ct per min/SMS (not including foreign landlines) and you get 500 MB at 7.2 Mbit for 10 Euros.

[MikeJ 1]

 

Ring is based on the E-Plus mobile network. Not one of the best, especially outside of populated areas, but for most people there are few problems.

 

I'm in Stollberg (Sachs), which is very much outside of a populated area - does anyone know whether there are likely to be problems there?

[YorkshireLad6 7,152]

You really need to ask around. You can check coverage maps, but they are only a rough guide...

[fraufruit 42,471]

I've had EPlus for years and have never had any problems connecting when on the road outside of Munich, including in other countries.

 

Will the Ring 7 plan be on offer as an Eplus package?

[YorkshireLad6 7,152]

 

Ring is based on the E-Plus mobile network.

 

[fraufruit 42,471]

Yes, I got that yet I don't find the package on offer at the Eplus site where I can just switch plans.

[YorkshireLad6 7,152]

It's not an E-Plus product so you can't buy it from E-Plus. Ring is a discount re-seller - a company in its' own right which buys in bulk from E-PLus and resells it under its' own brand. Just like Aldi for example.

You would have to cancel your E-Plus plan and start with Ring anew (you can keep your number)

[fraufruit 42,471]

Thanks, YL.

 

Tech Idiot

[YorkshireLad6 7,152]

 

Thanks, YL.

Tech Idiot

 

Sorry, I was only trying to help....

[MikeJ 1]

 

You really need to ask around. You can check coverage maps, but they are only a rough guide...

 

 

 

I've had EPlus for years and have never had any problems connecting when on the road outside of Munich, including in other countries.

 

Thanks for the info, looks like I should be OK but can't be sure. I'm fairly technically inept even when the jargon's in English - trying to work it out in German just makes things worse!

[fraufruit 42,471]

I really meant "Thanks", YL and I really am a tech idiot. I was referring to myself.

 

Oh how embarrassing. Sorry.

[PES 3,977]

 

I really meant "Thanks", YL and I really am a tech idiot. I was referring to myself.Oh how embarrassing. Sorry.

 

I undestood your post, Fraufruit. Seems YSL is a bit slow on the uptake today. ;)

[YorkshireLad6 7,152]

 

I really am a tech idiot

 

...and a sucker too :)

[YorkshireLad6 7,152]

I should have spotted this earlier. As a new year offer, Ring are currently adding €60 of opening credit to your new account when you sign up to their Ring 7 product (which costs €9.90), but there is a slight catch - you get €10 to use immediately, €25 to use in your second month of use, and €25 to use in the fifth month. Clearly an attempt to keep customers tied into their service.

[btomi 157]

Wow, thanks for pointing this out since it sounds pretty much like what I am looking for, it is cheaper than skype calls to most landlines in places I want to call. And not a problem to carry the sim card and swap them out of my existing german one (I do that with my UK number already).

 

The other thing I noticed was free roaming in some countries? This is also a big plus but I am wondering if it also works such that you can still ring another 7 user for free with the free-roaming. Since from what I understood, it is free to call another 7 user, and if there is free roaming, theoretically, I should be able to buy another sim card for my friends and we ring each other for free?

 

Pity the mobile calls are quite a bit higher.

 

Anyway the free €60 package to start with is pretty attractive for no cost already. Which you have to use up per month.

 

The last thing I am unclear with is whether when your credit is finished, it terminates your call. It says something in german that I do not understand. Someone help me there please? Thanks

 

Failing that I was looking at a data package and skype calls which I do at the moment via my PCs. But the cheapest data rate from callmobile.de I found was €9.90 per month for 500mb. Which if I do the maths quickly works out at cheaper than 7cents/min if I maximise the usage. (based on 50mb/hr for skype usage)

[btomi 157]

hmm dont know how to edit, I made a mistake and it was free SMS to other ring users not calls. Which is also pretty good as I send a lot of txts at the moment.