How much do you need to save each month for BYOD to make sense?
D = (U+S)/N
where
😧 the monthly discount for BYOD to make contract cost same as non-BYOD.
U: the cost of unlocking the device
S: the subsidy/discount on the phone when buying on contract
N: the number of months you want to compare. Usually this will be 24, but use a different value if you wanted to compare the cost of walking away from contract in x-number of months.
For most devices Telus offers a device discount of $500. The unlock cost is $35. So:
D = (35+500)/25
D= $22.30
Thus if the monthly discount is less than $22.30, you will save money by signing a contract and getting discounted phone.
On older contracts Telus only offers 10% discount for BYOD. Assuming they will renew your old contract and give you a new phone, your monthly contract would have to be $220 or more to opt for the 10% BYOD discount.
On new contracts, Telus only offers $20 discount for BYOD. So it is close, but the $20 still isn't much of deal.
Of course there are other reason for buying a factory unlocked device. This post only considers $$$.
