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Galaxy S3: Smart UnliData 2000 vs. Globe UnliSurf 2499

As we near the official launch of the highly anticipated Samsung S3, the two telco giants vies for the hearts of prospective upgraders and switchers through their plans. Now before you get too excited and sign up for any of these telcos, let’s take a closer look at their offerings and see which one fits your lifestyle and usage pattern.

As we mentioned in our previous post, Globe was the first to reveal their range of plan for the SGS3. This quad-core handset will come in free with their UnliSurf Plan 2499 and will have a standard lock-in period of 24 months. Apart from the unlimited mobile internet, the plan will also have consumables worth Php1,500 a month.

Following the said announcement, Smart recently unveiled their available plans for the same phone. The SGS3 will come in free with their UnliData Plan 2000 which is Php499 cheaper than Globe’s offering.

The catch here, however, is that you’d have be with the carrier for a longer period of time. The lock-in period for this plan is 30 months (instead of the 24-months on Globe).

Here’s a short computation of how these two plans look like:

Globe Galaxy S3
Php2,499 (UnliSurf Plan)
x 24 months (lock-in period)
Php59,976 TCO

Smart Galaxy S3
Php2,000 (UnliData Plan)
x 30 months (lock-in period)
Php60,000 TCO

* TCO: Total Cost of Ownership

Looking at this, it’s clear that neither plan gains a significant edge over the other in terms of the total amount a user has to pay (TCO). But what clearly sets them apart is the lock-in period. The Php500 per month difference between the two plans will come into play in this situation.

If you can afford to shell out an extra Php500 every month so you can get out of the plan a bit faster, then the Globe UnliSurf Plan is for you. But, if you’re not in a rush to switch phones or plan and does not have a spare Php500 a month, better go with Smart’s UnliData Plan. At the end of the day, it boils down to how much you’re willing to shell out for this quad-core handset.

In terms of bundles here’s what the two plans has to offer:

Globe UnliSurf 2499
Php1500 Consumable
Free Texts: 200 (Globe-to-Globe) + 25 (Other Networks)
Free Call: 10mins (Globe-to-Globe) + 5mins (Other Networks)
Free Texts (International): 10
Free Call (International): 20mins IDD
Free UnliCall and Text: 1 Globe or TM number

Smart UnliData 2000
N/A
Free Texts (All Networks): 200
Free Call (All Networks): 150 mins

By having a little bit of everything the UnliSurf 2499 plan bested Smart’s UnliData 2000 plan in terms of bundled services. In addition to this, the former has Php1500 consumable per month. That sums up to an additional 245 minutes worth of voice calls to same network subscriber or 226 minutes to other networks per month compared to Smart’s fixed 150 minutes to all network.

Based on the comparison above, we think that Globe’s UnliSurf 2499 is the better of the two in terms of bundled services and flexibility. Then again, there are also other important factors that you, as a consumer, need to look into such as network coverage and dependability that we really can’t comment on because that depends on your current location.

What we are sure though is that the introduction of these plans for the Galaxy S3 will definitely hurt the sell-ability of the other handsets in their line-up.

With Smart — the HTC Sensation XE, Galaxy Note, Galaxy Nexus which also comes free with UnliData Plan 2000 will definitely be overshadowed by the Galaxy S3. With Globe — the Nokia Lumia 800 and the Galaxy Note might also suffer the same fate. For both networks, it might also hurt the sales of the iPhone 4S which is offered at the same or higher plan.

Just to sum this one up, we are more inclined to recommend Globe’s UnliSurf 2499 for flexibility and maximizing plan usage. But, if you just want a really low monthly fee, Smart’s UnliData Plan 2000 is the obvious pick.

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Avatar for Ronnie Bulaong

This article was written by Ronnie Bulaong, a special features contributor and correspondent for YugaTech. Follow him on Twitter @turonbulaong.

62 Responses

  1. Avatar for corsair corsair says:

    I think it needs to be said as well that in terms of mobile Internet, Globe beats Smart. Smart’s UnliData 2000 gives you unlimited data at good speeds until 1.5Gigabytes (for the entire month). After that, you get throttled for the rest of the month, and speed is comparable to dial-up.

    Globe has a bandwidth limit of around 800Megabytes per day. That’s equal to around 24Gigabytes in a month!

    So choose your plan:
    1. Smart = 1.5Gigabytes/month
    2. Globe = 24Gigaybtes/month

    • Avatar for Yahya Yahya says:

      Globe doesn’t have any caps for postpaid… The 800 mb is only for prepaid users !

  2. Avatar for Mark Mark says:

    If you drill down the values that you will get with Smart’s Plan 2000 vs. Globe’s 1799, you’ll realize you’ll be getting more out of your monthly subscription fee.

    If you consider the 4800 cashout at Plan 1799 of Globe, you’ll be paying 1999 MSF to get the phone for free. :)

  3. Avatar for gen gerona gen gerona says:

    .TCO dapat pag basehan at ang duration ng contract…i think a sure fire will be globe…pareho lang ang globe at smart sa internet..minsan malakas minsan mabagal..im currently using galaxy note..ive used smrt and glub with it and globe, for me, is much better at times…but if ur planning to buy a quad core mobile…better buy a larger device..(e.g. tablet )…IMO, its not necessary to spend money on a device with a big specs for a small utility usage…waiting for the Glxy note 10.1 2 (QUAD CORE version)

  4. Avatar for psikick psikick says:

    di na mention that globe also offers it at plan 1799 at 200 per month..so monthly mo is 1999/mo for 24 months is around 48k.. much lower TCO..

  5. Avatar for Eager Eager says:

    Hmm.. serious question, if smart has a cap of 1.5gb of mobile internet, does globe have that too?
    do these phones get upgraded together with those unlocked ones? once an update will come? for coverage, id go with smart, but in cities, maybe globe will better. and it also will depend on your family and friends’ networks.

    • Avatar for Yahya Yahya says:

      Globe doesn’t have any cap… Except for prepaid though. They have some fair usage policy. And yes ! As long as there’s an update available, it arrives on the phone on time. The carriers don’t have any supervisions in regards to updating the phones.

    • Avatar for DrD DrD says:

      correct me if i’m wrong, but from what i was told when i applied for Unlisurf 1799..there still is a cap for Globe, that is 2GB/day, after that, you bandwith MAY be controlled.

    • Avatar for Mark Mark says:

      2GB/day is stil way way way better than Smart’s 1.5GB/month. Youtube pa lang, ubos ka na sa bandwidth. Tried it on my Smart Postpaid. Usad EDGE kahit H+ ang signal indicator.

    • Avatar for corsair corsair says:

      I completely agree with the post above. I have had the same experience with a Galaxy Note on Smart. Even when I have an H+ symbol in the signal indicator, the speed is only about GPRS-quality after consuming 1.5Gigabytes (combined download and upload).

  6. Avatar for Yahya Yahya says:

    For those of you who has any plans on getting or renewing their contract with smart, their “Unlidata” plan has a 1.5 GB cap per month. Go with globe.

    http://www1.smart.com.ph/help/postpaid/article/2012/03/08/postpaid-mobile-internet-fair-use-policy

  7. Avatar for Edsar Bondoc Edsar Bondoc says:

    Neither of the Two TELCOs got my attention from their respective plans. I felt sammy brand is so overrated? I’ll just wait for iPhone 5(whatever they wanna call it). The inspired by human design is fugly.

  8. Avatar for Enya Enya says:

    Ang 4G internet sa bansang ito is a hit or miss affair! Im currently located in a Smart/Globe hotspot pero I always experience that “now you have it, now you dont ” internet speed! Its crazy erratic. Hindi sulit ang mga unlisurf /unlidata na yan.

  9. Avatar for Lianna Lianna says:

    What about the network? I might be able to “save” with Globe but with their sucky network and data I will be spending “more” sa kabagalan. Sometimes you have to look at the bigger picture. Just saying.

  10. Avatar for Ace Ople Ace Ople says:

    Great review. What’s sweet with a 30-month-lockup
    + an unlidata plan with non-consumable, 150 minutes and 200 SMS? that’s not living more. :)

    • Avatar for John John says:

      “Because your time is your life !!” says their advert. Yet, they suggest you should waste your time locking yourself in a 30 month contract. Rofl.

  11. Avatar for povillo povillo says:

    i will still wait for smart to offer their Lumia 610. im just after the excel spreadsheet.

  12. Avatar for tonybac tonybac says:

    Mahal naman ng mga data plan sa atin. Hintayin ko na lang na may lumabas na mga second hand pero almost good as brand new dito sa Saudi, makamura siguro ako ng at least 500 riyals (almost PHP6000). Grabe ang mahal, wala n bang ibang offering?

  13. Avatar for xtream xtream says:

    upgrading this to next version will be dependent with samsung. by track record it takes time because of the fugly touchwiz.

    go for galaxy nexus (cheaper even if its older, you’re sure of updates from google).

    htc one x for the build quality. note if you want size and battery.

    you dont need that quad cores yet.

  14. Avatar for x x says:

    upgrading this to next version will be dependent with samsung. by track record it takes time because of the fugly touchwiz.

    go for galaxy nexus (cheaper even if its older, you’re sure of updates from google).

    htc one x for the build quality. note if you want size and battery.

    you dont need that quad cores yet.

  15. Avatar for sikwate sikwate says:

    Better get Smart between the 2 plans. What’s the use of getting UnliSurf if your connection is crawling (Globe).

  16. Avatar for reignfire reignfire says:

    Too late. Too expensive. Too ugly.

    Too late that many have (wisely) invested with HTC One X already.

    Too expensive. iPhone’s price, IMO, should be the limit (and they have the bragging right to demand that steep price, banking on its superb brand equity)

    Too ugly. Despite monster specs, Samsung failed to see the basics, people tend to choose phones based on aesthetics and overall design. SGS3’s cheap looking plastic built, uninspired design, and horrendous UI (TouchWiz) is a deal-breaking combo.

    Only hardcore Sammy fans and geeks will fall for this one

    • Avatar for Jim Jim says:

      An iSheep is sourgraping.. He fears that the SGS3 will again beat the iPhone.

    • Avatar for Name: Name: says:

      LOL, who’s iSheep? I’m using HTC One X, troll! =P

    • Avatar for bronx bronx says:

      I disagree with the too expensive too late comment. For one gs3 is the most anticipated cellphone this year riding off the sucess of gs2 and if ur a wise buyer and u intend to buy the best phone, ud wait for atleast the spec or review or comparison before investing ur hard earned money esp since. One x and gs3 are launched not far apart from each other. It is pricey because it is the best android phone as was declared by most mobile websites (e.g. Gsmarena, phonearena among others) but still more affordable than iphone. So no its just right on time and it made a big entrance! And a worthy one too?

    • Avatar for itachi1 itachi1 says:

      Didn’t HTC learn from years before? They brag that they’re the first to introduce a technology, then sourgrapes a few months later because another brand surpasses their flagship.

  17. Avatar for Bryan Bryan says:

    the question is which is the best mobile internet provider?

    • Avatar for John John says:

      Smart !! Strong reception (2G and 3G), check. In all honesty though, I really don’t know. I am quite enjoying my Globe WiMAX subscription giving me 1.8 Mbit/s when it’s supposed to give me only 1 Mbit/s… /Wink

    • Avatar for itachi1 itachi1 says:

      It really depends on your locality. If you are considered a 4G covered area but has a lot of tall buildings, trees, etc. then consider yourself a dead spot. You may want to ask your neighbors about their experience before considering a mobile telco.

      Also FYI: WiMAX is NOT used for mobile internet access. Neither is it recommended to be distributed via Wi-Fi due to its signal inconsistency. Remember that in an ideal scenario, wired signals are always more stable than wireless.

    • Avatar for Yahya Yahya says:

      WiMAX is actually used for mobile internet access ? His statement wasn’t coherent enough to satisfy this talk point. You might want to try it yourself first than just asking your neighbours. And no “he/she isn’t considered a 4g area” but her/his area is what to be considered if it has 4G altogether with the carrier’s relation to the spectrum and the frequency band usages. The “tall buildings, etc” aren’t just further factors in a cavernous isolation, what we can also consider as well is what the carrier can offer – for example a carrier offering their 3G network on an 850Mhz band will take the rival carrier 8 2100Mhz towers to cover the 850Mhz tower. Albeit in which, the carrier having the 850Mhz tower will have slower transmission speeds.

  18. Avatar for Bryan Bryan says:

    So expensive for a phone that is made out of plastic.

    • Avatar for anon anon says:

      Not the cheap kind of plastic but the durable and flexible one. (example: riot shields)
      It might feel “cheap” to some users but it really is a strong type of plastic

      It is actually a neat idea to have a strong but lightweight material as a cover but it is often criticized by people like you who doesn’t even have a slight idea on how good the case and bash it unknowingly…

  19. Avatar for trueno trueno says:

    just want to ask if the headset is the 16 gig version?

  20. Avatar for stark stark says:

    globe definitely wins this round

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