Saturday 10 June 2017

I'm homing in on a new phone and contract...


My contract expires on the 27th! Goodbye O2 and goodbye Windows handsets. So. What's next? I'm keen to get back to Xperias, for their usability, their Android system and the fond memories I have of the P. There are a lot of options, though, for the Xperia's current-day counterparts. It's time to think price and features. Which of these do I go for?

As mentioned in last week's #psychologysaturday post, the XA1 Ultra has the 16MP low-light front camera, great for club selfies with celebs. It's a good a reason as any. It's the only handset in the range advertised as having this feature. The Ultra, on sale in the Sony Store at £329, is available a little cheaper if you shop around. Eglobal Central UK has it at £205, a suspiciously low price from an obscure outlet, but trusty Argos offers the Ultra at £278-284. I'd need advice on how to handle this. Having memory difficulties, there will always be some aspect of the phone-buying or contract-buying procedure that I won't register, and the last thing I need is another 2 years roped into a contract and handset that don't suit me (cough cough, Carphone Warehouse).

The next issue: I need a contract. A SIM-only contract that's cheap and gives me a plentiful amount of data. I was hoping for unlimited, but the cost of such contracts have gone through the roof in recent years. In 2012 I got a 24-month unlimited data deal with Three, for £27pm, something Carphone Warehouse told me I couldn't get. On Three's site, it's still listed. This is, however, SIM-only now.

A few friends have suggested Giffgaff,  the contract-free network provider. The £20 goody bag, with unlimited data, is tempting. Their customer service has a bad rap, though, although many say they've never had to use it.

A problem for people with memory difficulties: The people who are experts in mobile phones are the people who sell them. The people who are experts in memory difficulties are either NHS psychologists (some of them, a least) and charity workers like the great people at Headway and Ways to Work. I haven't found anyone with the combined knowledge of the two. The closest person to that... might be me.

Shit.

Or, it might be you. Tweet me if you can help me, otherwise the only person advising me will be the technological rock and lifeline in my life, my amazing dad.

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