Why are Telus (and all the major big-3 companies) such a huge ripoff?

[krishanharry]

I've been with Teuls now since 2003.

For a few years, I even used my phone for business use, racking up in excess of $2000 of charges in a single year, yet Telus refuses to honour our relationship by offering me something competitive with other (smaller) carriers...

I have a 3-year old Blackberry, on a BYOD plan at $65+tax /mo.  I'd like to upgrade to either a Nexus 5, or iPhone 5s, both as 32GB versions.

Telus doesnt carry the Nexus 5 in 32GB version, for reasons that are probably asinine.

A switch to the 5s will cost me $330+tax upfront, and a $22/month plan fee increase  - grade-school math means that the iPhone will end up costing me approximately $914 over two years. (!!!)

Fido is offering the same phone for $600 up-front, and the same plan of $65+tax/mo.  I've also spoken with customer retention on 3 separate occasions - everytime they refuse to compete with Fido, and they offer me a plan that will cost me more moey, and offer me less service.

Why are mobile services in this country SO messed up and ridiculous?

[tsizzle · Accepted solution]

A rip off in contrast to what?Their prices are very comparable vs. the rest of the world and considering what you use your phone for, not entirely unreasonable. I say this as somoene who has routinely paid bills of $120/month. If you do want to compare vs. elsewhere, make sure you look at the advertised rate + monthly subsidy repayment when looking at international rates, its misleading as it is presented in most cases.

Also, you have been lied to by a Fido rep or someone who is unfamiliar with their pricing. Buying an iPhone outright will cost you the same or more at almost any other carrier:

http://www.fido.ca/web/page/portal/Fido/iPhones#iphone5s_tab ($719)

https://shop.koodomobile.com/phones/models/index.html ($725)

http://www.virginmobile.ca/en/phones/phone-details.html?model=iphone5s16&colour=Gold&contractTerm=SP... ($730)

http://www.rogers.com/web/content/compare-iphones ($719)

http://www.bell.ca/Mobility/Products/Apple-iPhone-5s ($730)

For $65 at Telus you can get a BYOD SharePlus plan (unlimited nationwide talk & texting + all the usual stuff) + 2GB of data.

Think of it this way, 10 years ago you paid $30 a month for your phone but all it did was voice calls + text messages. 5 years ago you paid $50 a month and your phone was a blackberry which could basically email + voice + text. Now you want an iPhone which can literally do anything you can imagine and you need to pay $70 a month. Seems like a natural progression based on how you're able to use your device. 

[tsizzle · Accepted solution]

A rip off in contrast to what?Their prices are very comparable vs. the rest of the world and considering what you use your phone for, not entirely unreasonable. I say this as somoene who has routinely paid bills of $120/month. If you do want to compare vs. elsewhere, make sure you look at the advertised rate + monthly subsidy repayment when looking at international rates, its misleading as it is presented in most cases.

Also, you have been lied to by a Fido rep or someone who is unfamiliar with their pricing. Buying an iPhone outright will cost you the same or more at almost any other carrier:

http://www.fido.ca/web/page/portal/Fido/iPhones#iphone5s_tab ($719)

https://shop.koodomobile.com/phones/models/index.html ($725)

http://www.virginmobile.ca/en/phones/phone-details.html?model=iphone5s16&colour=Gold&contractTerm=SP... ($730)

http://www.rogers.com/web/content/compare-iphones ($719)

http://www.bell.ca/Mobility/Products/Apple-iPhone-5s ($730)

For $65 at Telus you can get a BYOD SharePlus plan (unlimited nationwide talk & texting + all the usual stuff) + 2GB of data.

Think of it this way, 10 years ago you paid $30 a month for your phone but all it did was voice calls + text messages. 5 years ago you paid $50 a month and your phone was a blackberry which could basically email + voice + text. Now you want an iPhone which can literally do anything you can imagine and you need to pay $70 a month. Seems like a natural progression based on how you're able to use your device. 

[NFtoBC]

You could buy the Nexus 5 directly from Google at a lower price, and keep your current plan.

Based on discussion elsewhere on this forum, the discount carriers are not always equal to the "Big 3" in a number of ways, including coverage.  YMMV.

[xray · Accepted solution]

You can buy the Nexus 5 from Google or the 5s from Apple and continue on your current plan. I don't see the problem.