[DBMandrake]

http://www.9to5mac.com/orange_ipad_deals

[Ben]

Mhmm, OK...

I'd have thought a monthly £5/500MB package would be much more attractive for this sort of device, with non-horiffic out of bundle fees.

£15/month is too expensive for a non-phone non-computer, IMHO.

[DBMandrake]

I think they made a big mistake by not making the £7.50 1GB plan last a month instead of a week.

Ah well, I could always get a 3 SIM, chop it with a meat clever and pay £5/month for 1GB :) (or 2GB depending on what page on their website you believe...) And if it's a voice SIM you can get data on Orange 2G as well.

3's Pay&Go prices suit intermittent use quite well I think - a single topup of £5 will give you 150MB of data which doesn't expire for 90 days, (and you can queue more than one 150MB block) perfect for intermittent use when you are mostly using the device around home on Wifi but occasionally use it elsewhere - but then when you pack it in the car to go on holiday for a week, just buy the £5 addon from your accumulated credit and you get 1GB lasting for a month. Not to mention that I find 3 almost universally faster than Orange. Orange's speeds have really slipped in my area lately, I'm lucky if I get 250kbit/sec in the evening, on 3 I'm still getting over 1Mbit at the same time of night...

[DBMandrake]

Just looking on the iPad order page on the Apple website, and I see that for the 3G iPad you have the option of ordering an Orange, O2, or Vodafone Micro-SIM as part of the package - for the princely sum of 20p :P

This is a pre-activated SIM so until you activate it there is no charge, so it's really a no brainer to get one if you're ordering the 3G model. Another good reason to get one even if you're not planing to use one of those three networks, is to use as a cutting guide for cutting a SIM from another network like 3 - as all the cutting guides I've seen rely on having a Micro-SIM as a reference to get the contact alignment just right.

[Ben]

Yes definitely, seems like a good idea to order a SIM if getting the 3G model.

I'm staying away from the 3G for now :( The one I've bought has a housebound future!

I'm not sure I'd embrace any of the official iPad tariffs :/

[DBMandrake]

A few months from now you'll probably have a 3G model as well, you wait and see ;)

I can't afford any iPad at the moment but if I was getting one I think it would have to be a 3G model, and I'd choose the Orange Micro-SIM for the simple reason that Vodafone and O2 have poor 3G coverage around here....although I think I would keep the Orange SIM in reserve and use a cut 3 SIM on a handset plan... :)

[MrBriz]

I've also, as Ben has, opted not to get a 3G. Lets be completely honest here, 99.9% of the time I use the iPad I will be in range of a wireless router. If I really need to get online I'll always have my iPhone with me.

I am tempted in either jailbraking my iPhone or getting a MyFi to provide the iPad with a WiFi connection wherever I am, so hopefully I won't have a problem!

[Ben]

@MrBriz

Hello! :D Yeah, I think there really are two iPad user camps, and Apple have done a great job identifying that there should be two versions of the device.

While I'm confident that my (initial?) iPad will be housebound, if it does prove to be a capable device then it's certainly very attractive as a netbook. Certainly more attractive to me than a netbook ever has been! In such mobile usage I can't imagine being 3Gless given how little WiFi I seem to manage to get when I'm out-and-about with my iPhone. Even when I did find a BT hotspot in London getting onto the damn thing was a nightmare - thanks for that Vodafone.

[DBMandrake]

Mhmm, OK...

I'd have thought a monthly £5/500MB package would be much more attractive for this sort of device, with non-horiffic out of bundle fees.

£15/month is too expensive for a non-phone non-computer, IMHO.

Looks like 3 have jumped into the fray with an official deal with Apple to supply 3G Micro-SIM's for the iPad :)

http://blog.three.co.uk/2010/05/25/data-plans-for-ipad-from-three/

http://www.three.co.uk/Mobile_Broadband/iPad_data_plans

The summary is that on a rolling 30 day contract you can get:

£7.50 for 1GB for 30 days
£15 for 10GB for 30 days

No indication yet on whether there is a Pay&Go option or whever it's possible to "pause" the subscription like you can with AT&T in the US....(also we don't know until someone tries it, whether it will roam on Orange 2G for data like a phone SIM can)

Certainly beats the pants off Orange, Vodafone and O2's iPad price plans.

Orange:

£2 for 200MB for one day
£7.50 for 1GB for 7 days
£15 for 3GB for 30 days, recurring (plus free wifi)
£25 for 10GB for 30 days, recurring (plus free wifi)

O2:

£2 for 500MB for one day (plus free wifi)
£10 for 1GB for 30 days, recurring (plus free wifi)
£15 for 3GB for 30 days, recurring (plus free wifi)

Vodafone:

£10 for 1GB for 30 days, recurring
£15 for 3GB for 30 days, recurring
£25 for 5GB for 30 days, recurring

(and this is Vodafone's revised pricing, after seeing what O2 and Orange released - initially Vodafone was offering £10 for 250MB for 30 days, not 1GB)

[Ben]

That's good. Very good. The £7.50 option on a 30 day contract could be a big seller if 3 can get it to market in a meaningful way.