GADGET GURU

T3's smooth operator dials in to satisfy more querying customers

- STEPHEN KELLY

Q Should I get a phone contract, Guru?

A This is by no means a question with a cut-anddried answer. You are you, and thankfully Guru is not, meaning only you know if a phone contract would be a better choice.

Do the maths. You already know full well that a phone is going to cost you a bit more in the long run if you acquire it as part of a contract with a network. For example, spreading the costs of an iPhone 15 Pro Max over a 24 month contract with EE would set you back around ₹1,31,000 total, with an extra ₹3,000 per month on top for the 25GB data. Buying the same phone outright from Apple would cost ₹1,27,000. Tie it to a SIM-only deal with (say) Giffgaff, and you'll only be on the hook for ₹1,000 per month for the same volume of data. So... slightly less money.

But this glibly avoids all the extras that networks will throw in to try to maintain your business, like subscriptions to streaming services and such. And, of course, it wilfully ignores the benefit of not having to immediately empty your savings account just to upgrade to the next phone. That in itself could well be worth the extra spend.

Personally (and Guru must remind himself that he is a person, not just a gassy question-eating nebula) the idea of being tied into a two- or three-year contract tastes a little bit icky. What if things change? But then Guru has stuck with a single monthly payment to his PAYG provider for a decade and been forced to rock some very ropey phones to avoid lump sums. So perhaps it is him that is the idiot, just this once? No, couldn't be.

Q Guru, how can I possibly trust my tech these days?