Help me get my first mobile

I've managed to make it this far without ever owning one, but I just can't do it anymore.  I have a phone  - it was a hand-me-down from my SIL.  It has a T-mobile SIM card in it right now (but I don't think I want to/can use her sim card).  I want to get a Pay As You Go plan, using that phone. 

How do I do it?  Where do I go to get set up?  I'd prefer not to deal with pushy sales people, since I know I just want a bare-bones basic plan and I already own a phone.

Thanks!

Another one who held out against the mobile...I satute you.

I broke down about a year ago, and I know how you're feeling. But, I went into the shop, said I want the most basic pay-as-you-go I can get and they showed me three options. Easy as that. It was in a studenty area, so maybe they're used to us wanting cheap plans.

If they aren't as nice to you as they were to me, ask them to write down the details of their offers and go somewhere else. Or do some online homework first. Don't worry, if you come in wanting pay-as-you-go, there isn't too much they can force on you (except a really pricey phone)

An interesting side note-I still haven't used up the ten pounds I bought with the phone...I'm on orange.

Shop around online. I got a pay-as-you go from Tesco -- it was free if I bought 30 pounds of airtime. I got that about 3 months ago and still haven't used the first 10 pounds! I ordered it via phone, but you could possibly also get it in a Tesco (I don't know). If I were you I'd look around for deals to get the cheapest (or free) phone. That's if you want a no-frills phone, and I'm assuming you do as you've held out this long without one!

If you've already got the phone, you can just purchase a SIM card from whcihever company has the best deal (T-Mobile and I'm sure others have offers where you can buy one for 50p and then buy PAYG time separately).

I hate to say this, but some companies lock their phones, even on pay as you go.  I received a hand-me-down phone, that I thought would be easy to use, and was basic.  A friend of mine used it while in the UK studying and it was a pay-as-you-go phone.  I got a new sim card free from virgin, but the phone was locked by orange and I could not use the virgin sim card.  I'm not sure if it would have worked if I had just got a new sim card from orange though. 

Orange lock their handsets.  There are tons of places where you can get these unlocked though, from between £7 - £12.

Vicky

If I get a new SIM card, does that mean that I get a new number?  I have no idea what the number for this phone was while she owned it. 

We looked at Tesco's plans but ended up with a better deal (for us) through Carphone Warehouse. We did some comparing online, went down to the shop, and told them what we wanted. No pushy salespeople!  Actually, they were very nice and even put the SIM card in for us when we looked confused.

Orange lock their handsets.  There are tons of places where you can get these unlocked though, from between £7 - £12.

Vicky

Depends on the phone, as I found out.  I do think most of the newer ones are probably fine though. 

But yes, new sim card dose mean new number. 

I literally walked into Virgin Megastore, asked for a SIM card, paid for it, and was on my way.  That was *it*.  I have PAYG, and I top up via phone or kiosk every, oooh, couple of months?  I hardly ever use my UK mobile, though!

I hate to say this, but some companies lock their phones, even on pay as you go.  I received a hand-me-down phone, that I thought would be easy to use, and was basic.  A friend of mine used it while in the UK studying and it was a pay-as-you-go phone.  I got a new sim card free from virgin, but the phone was locked by orange and I could not use the virgin sim card.  I'm not sure if it would have worked if I had just got a new sim card from orange though. 

If you can find a 2nd had mobile phone dealer they will unlock it for you.

As the others have said, it's very easy- the SIM card will be dirt cheap if not free because you're going to be putting PAYG time on it.  If you buy a sim card and you find that it doesn't work (ie your phone is locked to T-mobile), then you can get it unlocked easily at many shops, like Vicky said.  If you don't want to deal with that though and you want to be 100% *sure* your phone will work with the sim card straightaway, just get a T-mobile sim since that's the brand that's already in the phone.  

Once you've got the card, just put it in and go- that's it!

If you can find a 2nd had mobile phone dealer they will unlock it for you.

I know, but sadly my friend had bought a phone that is only like one of two that are the same brand that are pretty hard to unlock.  I just wanted to raise the issue, because I knew others would know how to get it unlocked, so long as it's not one of these two makes of (I think Sieman was the maker) a certain brand phone.  I think it would have cost a lot if we did find someone who could do it, it was a year ago, so details are fuzzy, and I'm happy with my carrier now.  In the long run though, it was better for us in our situation to just get a cheap contract as it added to my ILR paperwork, but I think Carrie doesn't have to deal with that.   

I'm really sorry Carrie (and everyone), I think I totally confused this thread though.   

If I get a new SIM card, does that mean that I get a new number? 

Yes.  With GSM the phone number is stored on the SIM card.

I have no idea what the number for this phone was while she owned it. 

There's usually a service code you can dial on the phone which returns the number, but I'm afraid I don't know what it is on the T-Mobile network offhand (Vodafone's is *#100#). 

Failing that though, just place a call to your BT landline, let it ring at least once before abandoning the call, then dial *27# on your landline phone to hear the number.

My husband has tesco as well and he really prefers it as its cheaper than any other network. He just ordered the SIM card from tesco.com.