O2 UK unveils 4G LTE plans, kicking everything off later this month

O2 has unveiled more details on its 4G LTE pricing. The company announced earlier this month that 4G will be launching at the end of August, and while some hints to pricing were provided, today we've got some idea as to how much you'll be looking to fork out each month to take advantage of the increased data speeds. Starting at £26 for SIM-only plans and £32 a month with a 4G handset, O2 is clearly looking to compete with EE.

The UK mobile operator is attempting to make the rather expensive deal appear that much sweeter with exclusive access to music, sport and gaming content as an O2 customer. Their 4G plans also come with a "90-day Happiness Guarantee." So what will the cheapest 4G plan contain? For £26 a month, unlimited calls, SMS and 1GB of data will see you through the 30 or so days, with bundles going up to 8GB.

Just like EE, O2 will be milking it when consumers require more than 1GB of data (and who won't on a 4G connection?). Should you desire 5GB of access a month, you'll be looking to fork out £36 and additional bolt-ons can be added any time - £6 for 500MB and £10 for 1GB. "Recognising the ever-growing use of data," O2 will provide all O2 4G customers a minimum of 1GB data as standard (just as we noted above). It's not too bad if you're light on usage.

To celebrate the launch of 4G, O2 will be offering additional value on its most popular SIM only and airtime tariffs until October 31st. 

If you're looking to take advantage of O2 Refresh, providing you the flexibility to get the latest hardware whenever you desire, you'll be looking at prices starting at £22 a month for 1GB data and up to £37 a month for 8GB. Monthly device payment will range from £10 to £25, depending on how consumers wish to pay.

 

Exclusive content, you say?

So what about this exclusive content O2 continues to boast? Here's what the official announcement details:

• Music: O2 4G customers will have access to the most popular music tracks and videos in the UK through O2 4G Tracks – completely free for the first 12 months when they sign up to 4G direct with O2. O2 Tracks features the Official UK Top 40 Singles Chart and a unique collection of playlists and videos, handpicked by artists. O2 has supercharged O2 Tracks by adding a music video service, which streams the hottest music videos direct to your device, so customers can now watch the latest music videos in high quality on the go.
• Sport: O2 customers will have access to free and exclusive Priority Sports videos on the move, including weekly content from sporting heroes offering training advice, fitness and nutrition tips, interviews and top music playlists to work out to. Priority Sports, supercharged by O2 4G, will bring behind the scenes action from world-class teams, events and venues including O2′s England Rugby sponsorship, Twickenham Stadium and NBA Live at The O2. The O2 Priority App is available to download by texting SPORTS to 2020.
• Gaming: O2 4G customers will get exclusive access to some of the latest and greatest multiplayer games to play seamlessly on the move. An exclusive deal with Gameloft will allow O2 customers to play leading titles including Asphalt 8: Airborne, Modern Combat 4: Zero Hour and Zombiewood over 4G. O2 customers will be able to play these games without eating into their data allowance.

An interesting part of this new 4G deal is that O2 customers with a 4G ready device (like the Lumia 625 as an example) will be able to transfer to a 4G tariff without needing to sign a new agreement. Be sure to pop over to O2's website to learn more and check out pricing and details for businesses and mobile broadband.

So what are your thoughts on O2's 4G announcement?

Source: O2