Verizon is like the Superman of 4G LTE, soaring high with coverage that blankets 70% of the country. T-Mobile, while it covers a respectable 62%, still has a bit of catching up to do in this league. Source: T-Mobile. But wait, there's a twist in the tale when we switch to 5G. Here, T-Mobile transforms into the Flash, zooming ahead with its 5G
Virgin Media Freestyle Trade Up Terms and Conditions Please read the following terms and conditions carefully. You should understand that by placing an order to Trade Up you agree to be bound by these terms and conditions. It is recommended you take note of your IMEI number before you Trade Up in case there are any potential problems with your order. Please see the FAQ for help on how you find your device’s IMEI number 1. What is Freestyle Trade Up? Trade up is a service that allows existing Virgin Media Freestyle customers (“you”) to upgrade to a new phone early by using the value in one old phone (a “Device”) to pay off your existing active Freestyle consumer credit agreement (your “Freestyle Loan”) with Virgin Media Mobile Finance Limited governed by the Consumer Credit Act 1974 (“Trade Up”). You are able to Trade Up any valid Device; it does not need to be the Device associated to your existing Freestyle Loan. 2. Who Provides Trade Up? The Trade Up services are operated for and on behalf of Virgin Media Limited (Company No. 2591237) at 500 Brook Drive, Reading, RG2 6UU,(“Virgin Media”) by Likewize UK Limited ( Company No. 08401611) with its registered office at Crewe Logistics Park, Jack Mills Way, Shavington, Crewe, CW2 5XF, England,, (“Likewize”) (together “we”, “us” or “our”). 3. Eligibility To place a Trade Up order, you warrant: (i) you are a resident in the United Kingdom; (ii) that you are an existing Virgin Media customer with an active Freestyle Loan with Virgin Media Mobile Finance Limited; (iii) you are the owner of the Device or have obtained express consent from the rightful owner to Trade Up the Device; (iv) the Device is not subject to any previously agreed trade in or Trade Up arrangement; (v) the Device was not purchased from Virgin Media within 30 days prior to placing the Trade Up order; and (vi) the Device is not stolen or listed with us or a third party as stolen. As part of the eligibility process, we will check the Device with CheckMEND, from the suppliers of IMMOBILISE as used by UK Police forces to trace stolen and missing property. If the Device fails any due diligence check we may notify the relevant police authority and we may pass the Device and your details to them and the Device Quote as defined in section 4 below will not be used to settle your Freestyle Loan. 4. Placing your Trade Up order To determine the value of your Device, when placing your order you shall provide a true and accurate description of the Device, including but not limited to the following information: (i) the correct brand/make, model and IMEI number of the Device you wish to Trade Up; and (ii) the condition of the Device that you wish to Trade Up, which shall be classed as either: (a) a working device, which means all features of the Device are in good working order and condition, there is no physical damage to the exterior ( to the buttons or screen) or water damage, the device is able to make/receive calls and SMSs, its battery is included and is able to maintain charge and power up (“Working Device”); &;or (b) a non-working device, which means a Device that is not fully functional ( does not power up, has a damaged screen, case or buttons or has water damage) but includes a battery, is not crushed or bent; has no missing components (“Non-Working Device”). The Device’s Trade Up value (“Device Quote”) shall be solely determined by Virgin Media, Likewize or a third party based on the make a model of the Device. Device chargers and accessories may not be returned with your Device and hold no monetary value. They shall not form part of the condition and cannot be used to complete the Trade Up process. Such Device chargers and accessories will not be returned to you; therefore we recommend you carefully check the contents of your package before returning it to us. Once a Trade Up order is placed, the Device Quote shall be valid for up to 14 calendar days to enable you to complete your order. If the Device arrives after 14 calendar days from the date the Trade Up order is placed, the Device Quote shall be updated – see section You will be sent a free postage pack via Royal Mail after placing your order; this will normally arrive 2-3 working days after your Trade Up order has been placed. We do not accept responsibility for lost, stolen, late or damaged postage packs containing your Device. Proof of sending is not is not proof of receiving. If we don’t receive your Device after 28 calendar days, your Trade Up order will be cancelled. For the avoidance of doubt, your current active Freestyle Loan and any new Freestyle Loan are separate and shall continue to be payable as normal and in line with your recently advised payment schedule. Important Information prior to Trade Up: (i) By placing your order and sending your Device, you will be unable to cancel your order. (ii) Please remove any SIM card and any accessories, including without limitation memory cards, prior to Trade Up. We shall not be liable for any consequences of you not removing the SIM card or accessories, including any charges then occurred. You shall continue to be responsible for such charges; and (iii) We strongly encourage you to backup and store elsewhere any data stored on the phone any memory card, including but not limited to images, messages and videos, on the Device that you wish to retain before to Trade Up. We will not be liable for any damage, confidentiality, loss or erasure of any such data, including personal data, or for any consequences of you not removing your data, including use or disclosure of such data. 5. Trade Up contributing to your Freestyle Loan Once your order has been received, we shall, in our absolute discretion, determine whether the description of the Device when the Trade Up order is placed, is an accurate and true description of the Device received: (i) If it is determined to be a true and accurate description, the Device Quote shall be used to part settle/settle your existing active Freestyle Loan. (ii) If it is determined to not be a true and accurate description or if the Device is received after 14 calendar days from the Trade Up order and the value has subsequently changed, then the Device Quote shall be invalidated and a new revised quote (“Revised Value”) will be offered to you to part settle/settle your Freestyle Loan. You shall be notified of such Revised Value by e-mail and you shall have 5 calendar days from the issue of the Revised Value to either accept or reject the Revised Value. If you do not accept or reject the Revised Value, we shall assume you accept the Revised Value and this will be used to part settle/settle your existing active Freestyle Loan. If you do reject the Revised Value, we shall return the Device back to you free of charge. You have 14 calendar days from your acceptance or rejection of the Revised Value to cancel your new Freestyle Loan. For the avoidance of doubt, the Device Quote or, if accepted, the Revised Value shall only contribute to your existing Freestyle Loan. Any outstanding amount on your existing Freestyle Loan remains payable in line with your recently advised payment schedule until paid off completely. This balance can be paid by contacting Virgin Media and making a debit or credit card contribution. Payments in relation to your existing Freestyle Loan will not be taken for up to 30 calendar days from the date your Trade Up order was placed to allow us to process your order. After 30 calendar days, your payment shall resume and a revised payment schedule will be sent to you by email. If the Device Quote or Revised Value is higher than the balance of your existing Freestyle Loan, a credit for the difference between the Device Quote Value or Revised Value and the outstanding balance of the Freestyle Loan shall be paid into the bank account, used to pay your existing Freestyle Loan monthly payments, within 10 working days. 6. Privacy and Data Protection Where applicable, any data collected during the course of the Trade Up services will be processed and stored wholly in accordance with applicable data protection laws and regulations. The Promoter will use reasonable endeavours to ensure no data will be processed or stored outside the EEA or by third party organisation, except for the administration of the Trade Up services. By placing a Trade Up order with us, Virgin Media and/or Likewize may use your personal information to contact you about special offers about goods and services that may be of interest to you. Any personal data will only be used in accordance with Virgin Media’s or Likewize’s privacy policy, which can be viewed here: (i) Virgin Media’s Privacy Policy ; and (ii) Likewize’s Privacy Policy . General We reserve the right to modify these terms and conditions from time to time. If we make changes to the term and conditions of this Agreement, then we will notify and make available such revised terms and conditions. Ownership of the Device shall only pass to us once we have received the Device and when the Device Quote or Revised Value has been accepted and payment has been dispatched to you. Subject to in no event shall Likewize, Virgin Media, their affiliates, directors employees, agents or licensors, be responsible or liable for direct, indirect, special or consequential damages, arising in any way out of the Trade Up Services, including but not limited to, (a) any technical difficulties or equipment malfunction (whether or not under Virgin Media or Likewize’s control); (b) any theft , unauthorised access or third party interference; (c) any part the Trade Up order or after order process that is late, lost, altered damaged or misdirected (whether or not after receipt by Virgin Media or Likewize) due to any reason beyond the reasonable control of Virgin Media or Likewize; (d) any tax liability incurred in connection with the Trade Up; or (e) use of the Trade Up services. By placing your Trade Up order, you agree, to the extent permitted by applicable laws, and except as provided herein, to release and hold Virgin Media and Likewize harmless from any and all liability whatsoever for any injuries, losses or damages of any kind arising from participation in or in connection with the Trade Up including without limitation, acceptance, receipt use and/or misuse of the Trade Up services. Virgin Media and Likewize reserve the right to invalidate any Trade Up order where there is suspected fraudulent use of the Trade Up services. Nothing in these terms and conditions his agreement shall limit or exclude Likewize’s or Virgin Media’s liability for death or personal injury resulting from our negligence and any other liability that cannot be excluded or limited by English law. We are not liable or responsible for the failure to perform the Trade Up services, if in any way the Trade Up services are not capable of being conducted as reasonably anticipated due to any reasons beyond our reasonable control, including without limitation the act of default of any third party supplier and/or our compliance with any applicable law or regulations. This agreement and any dispute or claim arising in relation to the same shall be governed and construed in accordance with English Law and is subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England. On March 1st, 2005 Virgin Mobile was officially launched. On July 19th, 2021, Virgin Mobile was renamed to Virgin Plus, implying the expansion of the company and the efforts of supplementing today's Virgin Mobile plans and Virgin mobile family plans. Their initial launch was initiated by offering prepaid plans.The retailers featured on this page may compensate us when our readers follow links to their websites and make a purchase. MoreWe look at whether you're better off joining Three or Virgin Mobile when it comes to network coverage, speeds, prices and benefits. Last updated: 15th February 2022 How Virgin compares with Three for signalRead whyat in new window) Virgin Mobile now use Vodafone’s network (they used to use EE), meaning they get access to one of the most widespread networks for call signal (2G/3G) and for 4G data signal (see 5G further down).More of the UK’s landmass is covered with call signal on Virgin than on Three, meaning you’re more likely to stay connected while you’re on the go, even in some pretty surprising also stay connected to 4G more often on Virgin if you’re out in the countryside. In urban areas there’s little difference between the networks for both call signal and 4G data. In any case, you should use both networks' coverage checkers below to see how coverage is in your area. Check everywhere you’ll actually use your phone, that’s more important than the national link: More about Virgin Mobile's networkIf your phone is 5G-ready, then you can get 5G on both Three and Virgin on all of their plans. While both are expanding their networks rapidly, it seems Three is coming out ahead of cover 300+ UK towns and cities while Virgin cover a comparatively low 120+ towns and cities. But, 5G is still only on a street by street basis. So how well do each network cover their declared locations?On both networks you’ll only really get 5G in the busier, more populated areas. This includes train stations and other transport hubs as well as stadiums and high streets. Neither network is great at covering whole towns and cities. Both sell 5G at no extra cost. You'll get it on every SIM only plan or phone contract, as long as the model itself has 5G data as a link: Latest news on Three's 5G rollout Don't just look at your home postcode but where you work, your commute, where you go for pleasure: anywhere you'd use your phone "Virgin have the better blend of coverage overall. You’re more likely to stay connected on the go with them than Three, but the differences disappear in urban areas. Which is better for 5G will depend on your location."Compare pricing and deals We look to see if Three or Virgin Mobile have quicker downloadsRead whyat in new window)Both Virgin and Three sit in the middle for fastest 4G speeds. They’re not the fastest, nor the slowest. We use the results of independent network tester Opensignal who take millions of measurements from volunteer measure Three’s speeds at around Mbps and Virgin’s hosts Vodafone at around Mbps. But these are only averages and don’t give you the whole there’s no speed caps on Virgin, we can say you get the same peak speeds of around 80 Mbps in city centres and lows of 6 Mbps in rural areas as we got in our tests. Three got peaks of 44 Mbps and lows of around 10 Mbps. So from our experience we’d say you can get higher peak speeds on Virgin, but if you’re out in the sticks you might get better 4G speeds on Three. If you’re not satisfied you can always return your SIM within 14 days of receiving link: Three's 4g+ Big Network Build news✔ Three are racing ahead for 5G speedsSince 5G has been live for a while on both networks, we can make some pretty accurate predictions of typical 5G speeds using results from Opensignal and Speedtest by on Three fall between Mbps to a blistering Mbps vs speeds on Virgin’s host network of Mbps to Mbps. Both have a lot of variation in results, so we think it’s dependent on your location. Both are revolutionary compared to 4G and will allow more advanced features to be developed for phones that weren't previously possible. But if you want bragging rights, Three are probably the current best reason Three currently have the advantage is that they've secured more radio spectrum in the same more-optimal wavelengths to broadcast their 5G on. It's paying off now but as more spectrum gets sold, Three may not have a permanent link: What speeds might Three's 5G achieve? "Three get you faster average 4G speeds and blistering fast 5G. It will depend where you live, however. Some areas might not have 5G and Virgin tends to have faster 4G speeds in city centres. But Three are generally faster over all your usage."Compare pricing and deals Here we look at other things Virgin and Three offer to keep you connected on your overall call signal is weaker than Virgin’s and tends to suffer more indoors, as their frequencies aren’t as good at getting through building materials. But indoor signal can suffer on all help out, both networks have got WiFi calling (lets your phone make calls via WiFi where no mobile signal) and 4G calling (utilises more types of signal for calls, so better chance of having reception).Three’s is much better overall. With Virgin’s you can’t transfer a call from WiFi signal to 4G signal without your call dropping. Their list of supported devices is also quite short, and if your phone isn’t on there it’s not likely to think Three's list of supported phones is actually a little defensive (the phones the guarantee rather than the models that might work). It kicks in easily when needed and supports SMS texting link: Our guide to the best WiFi calling networks✔ Virgin Mobile offer more WiFi hotspots than ThreeVirgin Mobile customers get a real advantage from joining a mobile provider that's also part of a broadband supplier: Virgin Media. You can tap into their broadband any of Virgin’s pay monthly plans you’ll get access to a network of million+ hotspots, which are usually located in places like restaurants, transport hubs (including the London Underground) and on the high is useful as it saves on using up your mobile data allowance. You get unlimited usage. Using less data means you could in theory choose a smaller, cheaper plan (although the actual savings are hard to predict).Three don’t offer nearly as many hotspots, but you do get free WiFi on the London Underground, which pairs well with their great WiFi calling to keep you connected (here's how to get that on Three).Useful links: Free UK-wide WiFi on Virgin Mobile | Three's free WiFi on the Underground"You’ll probably have better luck getting WiFi calling to work on Three and they also have a better feature. WiFi hotspots on Virgin are nice, but there’s plenty of free WiFi out there anyway. Three have the upper hand overall."Compare pricing and deals Both Three and Virgin Mobile have free data schemes, so which is more generous?There used to be an excellent benefit on Three called Go Binge. It gave you an effectively unlimited data allowance to stream a selection of apps on your phone, even if you were on a plan that had a data are a few networks still offering similar schemes, which you can read about here. But Three aren't one of them. Virgin do have something similar, for social media messaging data, which you can read about video and music streaming are some of the data-hungriest activities you can do on your phone, so not having this count towards your data usage on Three was a real Three are getting in danger of becoming a bit of a low-frills provider. They've stripped out other benefits too recently, like their Wuntu Rewards app and their easyJet upgrade link: Read Three's existing customer guide for Go Binge ✔ Virgin Mobile's free data focusses on social media appsVirgin don't have anything quite as generous as Three's Go Binge was in terms of writing off the cost of data for specific apps but they do still have something:If you're on a pay monthly phone or SIM only contract, they'll not charge you for data you use for pictures and texts via the messaging apps Whatsapp and Facebook Messenger. And also the social network effectively means you can use these as much as you like without worrying about the data. In our guide to networks that offer free data, we point out that you use this type of app a lot but that they're not really the biggest consumers of basically saying it's a nice feature if you use your phone with these apps a lot but don't expect it to save you huge amounts of link: Data-free messaging on Virgin Mobile"Now Three don't offer Go Binge to new customers, this is a win for Virgin Mobile by default."Compare pricing and deals Is roaming on Virgin Mobile as good as Three's Go Roam? On any of Three’s pay monthly plans you used to be able to roam in 71 worldwide destinations and this was one of our favourite roaming schemes. But you no longer get access to this if you’re new to you have to pay a daily charge while you’re abroad to be able to access your regular UK allowance. It’s currently £2 per day in the EU and £5 not too terrible for worldwide roaming, but there are still a lot of networks that offer inclusive EU roaming. It’s sad to see our former favourite for roaming Three not even offer EU roaming £5 a day doesn’t sound too bad when compared to some of the really expensive rates you’ll have to pay in worldwide destinations. Virgin’s rates are particularly high. But either way it’ll get expensive fast. Useful link: Full details on Three's free roaming scheme ✔ Virgin Mobile promise to keep inclusive EU roaming While mobile networks no longer have to offer free inclusive EU roaming, Virgin Mobile have promised to keep their roaming scheme in place. You can check all their roaming destinations Mobile don’t go beyond this basic provision though. And have quite a few finickity rules about how much of your normal data you can use abroad (see their roaming calculator here to work it out).So if you mainly travel within the EU, you’re covered with Virgin. But if you regularly go further afield, you might want to check Virgin’s extra roaming costs here as you could end up paying a lot for even using a little bit of can set a cap to make sure you don’t accidentally overspend. While Virgin’s roaming scheme isn’t anything special, it’s still nice that they offer it. And it’s a lot better than Three’s scheme for EU roaming. Useful link: Virgin's guide to all their roaming costs "We think the majority of people do their roaming in the EU. The fact Virgin still include it and Three don’t, means Virgin with this category by default."Compare pricing and deals Here's what you'd miss out on by joining Three instead of Virgin Virgin offer a decent benefit that helps you save a bit of your data when using certain social media apps. It won’t save you quite as much as a free data streaming data scheme would, but it’s still nice to you're on a pay monthly phone or SIM only contract, they'll not charge you for data you use for pictures and texts via the messaging apps Whatsapp and Facebook Messenger. And also the social network means you can browse these apps without having to think about how much data you’re using. As we said in our guide to free data schemes, this won’t save you a lot of data, even if you use these apps a basically saying it's a nice feature if you use your phone with these apps a lot but don't expect it to save you huge amounts of data. Useful link: Data-free messaging on Virgin MobileMost people's data usage varies from month-to-month, depending on what you've been doing with your phone. Sometimes you'll get right near your data-limit or over, sometimes you'll get nowhere offer a solution to the annoyance of losing your unused data and help you get the most of what you paid for (see all the networks that offer it here).It's called Data Rollover on Virgin, and it comes with every pay monthly SIM only plan or phone contract. It lets you keep unused data to use next month instead. It's a second chance to use think it pairs well with their WiFi hotspot network and free social media data as you can save a lot of data then roll it over for your next month. Three don’t offer any form of data rollover, not even on pay as you link: Everything you need to know about data rollover Which of the two currently has the best value SIM only plans? Here are the key promotions Three and Virgin Mobile have on right now We look at prices and differences between their smartphone deals Virgin offer what are known as “split contracts” for their phone deals. This is where you have a separate finance agreement (loan) for the cost of your phone and one payment for your usage (mins, texts, data).This means you can pay off your loan and upgrade your phone early, you can change or leave your usage plan whenever while still paying off your phone and they also let you set your contract length at either 24-months or you’ll need a good credit rating, because most of Virgin Mobile’s smartphone contracts are based on credit agreements (basically loans). Otherwise, you’ll find a decent range of iPhone, Samsung and some other cheaper Android models with Virgin Mobile, all with no upfront link: See Virgin's full range of phones ✔ Three's contracts are more conventionalGetting a contract on Three is very different to getting one on Virgin. All their contracts are 24-months only and there’s no credit agreements or early upgrades. It’s a lot simpler, but a lot less phone range is very similar to Virgin's. We've built a new tool for you to compare phone contract prices on Three, Virgin and other mobile search for the phone you want, click on it, set the usage plan you want and it’ll show you a comparison of what sort of prices you’ll get on each look at our popular model example comparison further down the page to compare Virgin Mobile and Three's starting prices on some of the best selling link: Compare mobile phone contracts "When comparing 24-month contracts, Virgin tend to be cheaper. Add to that the option to take a 36-month contract to reduce monthly costs, the choice to upgrade early and change your usage plan and Virgin are a much more attractive option overall."Compare phone contracts
Virgin Mobile reserves the right, without notice, to temporarily limit throughput speeds when monthly data usage on the $40 Broadband2Go Plan exceeds 5GB.Customers will continue to have access to Broadband2Go service but maximum speeds may be limited to 256 kilobits per second or below for the remainder of the monthly plan cycle. Virgin Mobile offer a fair number of SIM-only plans, starting from 4GB per month all the way to unlimited data. Best of all, these plans are pretty cheap when compared with other big networks. All of Virgin Mobile's SIM-only plans operate on a 30-day rolling contract, so you're free to cancel or change your plan whenever you want.In this Guide About Virgin's Switch to Boost Mobile Best Virgin Mobile/Boost Mobile Plans & Deals Switching to a Different Carrier Article Summary Virgin Mobile was an MVNO that operated on Sprint's network until February 2020, when it was shut down in favor of Boost Mobile.7. Jan 19, 2012. #1. I am currently on Virgin Mobile's Beyond Talk plan which is $25 per month and has 3G speeds with unlimited web, data, messaging, and email plus 300 minutes. T-Mobile has a plan that is $30 per month and has 4G speeds with unlimted web and text plus 100 minutes. I'm thinking of making the switch from Virgin Mobile to T-Mobile.