Would you like a free mobile phone for your business? We have a range of mobiles available free of charge on a variety of tariffs. Our basic business tariff starts at £25 and includes the following:

• 500 mobile minutes
• 3,000 landline minutes
• 250 texts
• 500MB of data

This includes a free mobile handset. You could choose from the following:

• BlackBerry Curve 8520
• HTC Wildfire
• Nokia X6
• Sony Ericsson Elm

For business users looking for more mobile minutes the tariffs rise as follows:

• 750 mobile minutes - £30
• 1,000 mobile minutes - £35 (data increased to 750MB)
• 1,250 mobile minutes - £40 (data increased to 750MB)
• 2,000 mobile minutes - £45 (data increased to 1GB)

All of these tariffs include texts, data and landline minutes as above. They are on the Vodafone network and subject to 24 months contract.

With higher tariffs the choice of free business mobile available becomes greater. This brings in the likes of the BlackBerry 9800 Torch, Apple iPhone, HTC Desire HD and a host of other SmartPhones.

Large business mobile tariffs

For business users looking for more than one handset contact us to get the best deals. We can supply multiple free handsets, either the same or a range of different ones to suit different tastes and jobs.

We can cater for SMEs with 5 or more mobiles and corporate mobile users with several hundred handsets. The greater the number of handsets the more value we can bring to your business in terms of cost reductions and communication improvements.

As well as Vodafone business mobile tariffs we also offer Orange and O2 contracts. We can help you with upgrades and with solving problems with your existing mobile dealer.

For a free no obligation discussion on your business mobile needs call 0115 944 8977 or complete our online enquiry form.

Business Mobile World are based near Nottingham giving us easy access to customers throughout the East Midlands counties of Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire. We are mobile phone dealers primarily involved with business contracts but we do also offer upgrades for several networks and new consumer connections via our partner sites.

Business Mobiles in Nottinghamshire

Having your business mobile phones handled by a local company means that you will benefit from a more personal service. If handsets break and need replacing this can be done quickly and any problems can be resolved face-to-face with a real person not over the phone to a call centre.

Mobile phone upgrades

When your contract is nearing its end you will be able to upgrade your phone in return for re-signing with the network. We can help you with Orange upgrades and O2 upgrades for individuals. Get in touch with us to see what deal we can put together for you.

New mobile connections

The best deals are available on new connections. If you are changing network you will benefit from a better handset and possible free gifts in order to entice you to sign. Some of the latest SmartPhones available include:

• Nokia N8
• HTC Desire HD
• BlackBerry Torch 9800
• Google Nexus S
• Samsung Galaxy S
• HTC Wildfire
• BlackBerry Bold 9780

These can all be found at UK Mobile Phone Deals, many with free gifts and cashback offers.

If it's a single mobile phone, or several if you are a business user, that you are after we offer a range of different options and tariffs to suit. Just contact us for a free no obligation quotation.

Ofcom, the communications regulator, is advising the Government that the time is right to free up some 2G spectrum for 3G services, including mobile broadband. The specific frequencies are 900MHz and 1800MHz.

These are currently licenced to O2 and Vodafone exclusively and it was always competition issues that stopped any progress being made with regards to the carrying of 3G on these frequencies.

However with the merger of Orange and T-Mobile in the UK to form Everything Everywhere, and their network sharing plans which are already underway, the competition argument carries much less weight.

2G, particularly on the 900MHz frequency, is already well established even in rural areas. Switching on 3G on this frequency would provide instant benefits for consumers who are currently struggling to get a decent 3G signal.

The possibility of this change happening swiftly is increased by Ofcom's latest statement but there is no indication whether the Government's original date for settling this matter of the end of 2011 will be brought forward.

We are able to offer mobile internet broadband from £12.77 per month (plus VAT) including a FREE USB modem stick. This provides you with a usage limit of 3GB per month - more than enough for the average business user.

As always there is plenty going on in the world of business mobiles. We will shortly be seeing the first handsets with the Windows Phone 7 operating system. This OS would seem to be a radical departure from past Windows Phone efforts but Microsoft are very much playing catch-up at the moment.

Windows Phone 7 includes plenty of features that Smartphone users now take for granted such as touch technology, social networking and cloud based services. Is there any innovation built in? The views so far seem to indicate it will be good to look at, fast and user friendly - will that be enough to compete with Android and iPhone?

Many new mobile handsets will also have the capability to make and receive calls in HD. Orange are the first network supporting this. HD should ensure a better quality call.

Birmingham City Council are trialling 4G technology. Much quicker than 3G and more stable this is expected to become widely available throughout the UK in 2012. The UK sits 24th in the latest global survey of mobile broadband.

4G mobile broadband could be up to 50mbps or greater, compared with the current 7.2mbps. The EU is making noises with regards to closing the gap between browsing in your home country and overseas, the difference between the two being up to 30 times in terms of cost. The EU would like to see this figure much closer to zero, reflecting Europe as a true single market.

The Apple iPad is gaining popularity amongst business users and is replacing laptops for many employees. It does have a number of business features built-in as well as numerous business and enterprise apps available to download.

As part of the 21c Telecom Ltd group of websites we are now Vodafone Platinum partners. This puts us in an elite group of around 25 telecoms consultants and enables us to provide you with excellent service on the Vodafone network.

The latest operating system from Microsoft, Windows Phone 7, is due to be released on UK handsets this month. It is said to be the most tested and, therefore, bug-free operating system for mobile smartphones released from MS.

The length of time in the making does mean that it is significantly behind the Apple and Android OSs and it is yet to be seen whether their features such as Xbox  integration will have enough appeal to gain them significant market share.

Their new devices will feature social networking heavily as well as device integration. Is this enough to reverse their declining smartphone market share? (from 20% to around 5%).

Key partners include the mobile phone manufacturers LG, Samsung, HTC and Dell, and they have all five of the network operators (Orange, Vodafone, O2, T-Mobile and 3) on board too.

From a business perspective the new handsets should integrate with existing Microsoft IT in a seamless manner. Many businesses prefer to use a Windows based operating system for their smartphones as it makes their life easier using a familiar platform.

Initial handset releases will focus on the consumer market with business mobile phones to follow in due course. Once handsets have been officially announced we will carry more information about Windows Phone 7 mobiles here.

With the ever increasing sales of smartphones, offering all of the gadgets and apps you could ever need, it seems to be forgotten that the main function of a phone is for voice calls. However, has the quality of voice calls increased markedly in the last few years? Not really.

That is all set to change with the introduction of High Definition (HD) voice calls. This will give a measurable improvement in the sound quality of traditional mobile voice calls. They should sound as though you are face-to-face with the other person with a reduction in background noise, hisses and crackles.

Orange are the first network to offer this service via Orange HD Voice. This is available on a limited number of handsets but expect it to be adopted by all phone manufacturers if it delivers better call quality. Other networks will no doubt follow with their own offerings.

The technology, Adaptive Multi Rate Wideband (AMR-WB) has been adopted as an international standard for 3G mobile networks. It is already available in other countries, such as Germany.

It works by compressing the voice signal to maximise the amount of bandwidth on a network. For the network operators no more capacity is needed whilst delivering better quality calls.

Currently it will only work with calls between 3G HD handsets. If calling a landline or non-optimised phone you will not experience the HD call quality.

The first four handsets used by Orange at launch are HD variants of the Nokia 5230, Nokia X6, Nokia E5 and Samsung Omnia Pro. Rumours abound of other HD handsets being in development.

The first real tangible benefits of the Orange T-Mobile UK merger will soon be felt by their customers. Starting from October users of either network will be able to utilise the other network signal when their own is struggling. Effectively they will have a sort of UK roaming.

When the service rolls out in October it will not be automatic, as there are handset issues which need to be addressed, however you will be able to opt-in to the service if you use either network.

New handsets issued by the companies will no doubt come pre-configured to switch between networks automatically and over time the whole service will therefore become totally automated.

This could be a huge selling point for the merged companies and it will be interesting to see if O2 and Vodafone consider a similar type of arrangement in the face of such strong competition.

For users of Orange business mobiles this is great news as a better signal in more areas can only be a good thing for businesses with their team spread throughout the UK.

At Business Mobile World one of our key aims when talking to businesses is to reduce their bills. Saving money on your tariff, and therefore your monthly spend, is obvious and quantifiable. We have some examples of savings we have made for business mobile customers already on our website.

You can see from these examples that savings of hundreds of pounds a month, or several thousand pounds over the course of a year are often achievable. This makes for very happy customers.

Not so obvious are the savings your business could make by improving its communications. Getting new handsets which function in exactly the way you need them to and offer additional services which could be useful will save every one of your employees time. Time is money, so the saying goes.

We find that heavy email users tend to want BlackBerry phones and we can help with both the handsets and the setting up of BlackBerry email, BIS, BES and other email solutions.

These benefits are long term and in addition to savings which can be made on your contract terms. When it comes to taking out a new contract or renewing your current one we will be looking at a balance of both options to deliver the maximum savings to your business.

The business telecoms market is ever changing, particularly with the merger of Orange and T-Mobile in the UK. This means that new tariffs are becoming available and inclusive terms can differ wildly between networks.

That's why utilising the services of a broker to find your business the best deal and save you the most money makes sense. Our knowledge of the latest mobile phone technology can point you in the direction of the best handsets for the way your business uses them.

At the same time we can help with mobile data usage, via a dongle or laptop with integrated sim card, and also advise on the full range of telecoms products we offer including landlines, fixed broadband, tracking and more.

The cost of business mobile contracts could be set to come down soon as a number of networks launch new business tariffs.

Vodafone have launched Business Choice which is aimed at SMEs with 2 to 50 mobile phone handsets. This is a flexible tariff with a number of paid add-ons allowing companies to mix and match their requirements and build a tariff that reflects their usage.

Businesses can choose the number of minutes to be shared, data allowances and technical support, and the basic plan includes free calls to UK landlines, free UK calls to company mobiles on the same plan, 150 standard UK text messages and free voicemail retrieval as standard.

As an incentive a £5 monthly discount for all businesses signing up to certain options before August 15th is available. Contact us for more information.

At the same time the parent company of Orange and T-Mobile, Everything Everywhere, have announced their intention to launch an assault on the UK business market. The combined power of these two networks should produce better tariffs for business mobiles than are currently available.

With a merged network, coverage, which is essential for business users, should no longer be an issue meaning that both networks will be able to increase their business customer base.

Full details of any new business tariffs from Orange and T-Mobile will be printed here as they become available. In the meantime to take advantage of the enhanced coverage and low cost business tariffs currently available from these networks get in touch with us.

There doesn't seem to be a lot of interesting mobile news currently, certainly not since we last posted on 10th February. The most interesting news from the world of mobile phones, both business mobile phones and consumer mobiles, is posted below.

Firstly it looks like the Orange/T-Mobile merger is going to go ahead without regulatory inspection in the UK. The decision is with the EU and it would appear that the companies involved have made enough concessions for the OFT to withdraw its objections and the EU to approve it. The decision is expected early next week.

Hopefully once regulatory approval is granted we will then get a timescale for the merger and perhaps more details of the direction that will be taken by the newly-merged network. Fingers crossed it will bring lower prices and more innovative products but don't hold your breath.

Vodafone would appear to be the fastest network for web browsing on mobile phones according to a recent independent survey commissioned by O2. The figures are general across the UK rather than region specific and the actual differences in speed between the major networks is unlikely to be noticeable by the average user.

Vodafone have also launched what is thought to be the world's cheapest phone. The 150 should sell for around £10 and is aimed at the developing world. The developing world is seen as the main growth area in the coming years as phone sales in the developed world fall.

TalkTalk are looking to enter the mobile phone arena by becoming a MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) later in the year. This service is in addition to the home phone, broadband and digital TV products it already offers.

Sony Ericsson have been censured by the ASA (Advertising Standards Agency) over claims it made in a TV advert with regard to it's Satio handset and its ability to connect to Facebook. The handset does not come with a Facebook app and initially could not even run the app due to software problems. However the Facebook app is now available for download onto the Satio.  

A collection of stories, snippets and interesting information from the world of mobile phones.

• Some of the latest mobile phone apps include one from the AA listing 14,000 places to eat, stay and drink in throughout the UK. This guide will also tell you about local points of interest based upon your location. For those that regularly misplace their phone or have terrible memories where they last put it down a new app called Where's My Phone could be the answer. It allows you to whistle and the phone rings in response, allowing you to locate it.
  
• SmartPhones represent 25% of the mobile phone market yet nearly half of all phone based web traffic comes from them. The average SmartPhone user utilises around 300 minutes per month. Facebook is the most popular website accessed by mobile phone users.
  
• New mobile phones - the Sony Ericsson X10 is due to arrive in April, although it could be earlier. This phone makes use of the Android operating system and features a full touchscreen, 8.1mp camera with auto focus and 16x digital zoom, Timespace (a social networking aggregator), 1GB built-in memory expandable up to 16GB and GPS.
  
• Business Mobiles - companies, particularly corporate users, are spending up to one third of their mobile phone communication bill on personal calls made by their employees. This represents a total spend of £1bn which could possibly be saved by better management and procedures for company mobiles.
  
• The OFT are lobbying for an investigation by UK authorities into the Orange/T-mobile merger. The deal will already be scrutinised by the EU but fears of reduced competition and increased prices for consumers have led to the call from the OFT. A UK investigation could further drag out the merger timescale for several extra months.
  
• Apple - O2 have sold their 2 millionth Apple iPhone in the UK despite losing their exclusivity late last year. The next big thing, the Apple iPad, due for launch later this year, is also on the radar for all of the networks looking to tie up deals with Apple. No news yet of an exact release date or pricing.
  
• O2 continue testing on the 4G mobile network. Speeds of up to 150mbps are potentially available using this technology, however this has not been achieved yet and a full rollout of this is a little way off still.
  
• Nearly 97 billion text messages were sent in the UK in 2009. This represents an hourly rate of 11 million! These figures show a steady increase from 2007 and 2008 despite competition from social networking sites such as twitter and facebook.
  

This may be the last post before the 25th so a Happy Christmas to all of our customers, new and old, and a prosperous New Year.

Talking of New Year, the date for Vodafone's iPhone launch is now known. It will be on the 14th January 2010. Pre-orders are now being taken direct via their website although there don't appear to be any tariff details as yet.

Don't expect to see any startlingly different tariffs from either Orange or O2. It is likely that they will follow the other two networks both in terms of pricing and length of contract.

For the cheapest iPhone deals the best option could be Tesco Mobile who are offering 12 month contracts. It does mean that you have to contribute towards the cost of the phone initially but you are better off in the long run in terms of total cost. It also allows you to upgrade after 12 months which could be useful as it is likely the next generation iPhone or a variant will be released by then.

These are the deals for individual customers. For iPhone business mobile contracts get in touch with us for your tailored quotation. We have a wide range of business mobile tariffs from all of the major networks and can assist with a single iPhone or multiple iPhones for all of your employees.

The New Year is an ideal time for businesses to take a look at all of their outgoings. Remember we can help with a wide range of telecoms providing your business with an integrated solution and saving you money in the process. Our quotes are free and without obligation.

Orange have reported that they sold more than 30,000 iphones on their first day of offering the handset to their customers. There is no stopping the momentum behind the iPhone, particularly now that Tesco Mobile have announced they will be selling it online and in their mobile shops.

Tesco currently have around 100 mobile shops within their stores, a number which is set to grow to 200 during 2010. No tariffs have been announced but they claim they will be offering a little "Tesco value" to their customers.

Does this herald the start of a price war? Orange getting the iPhone certainly didn't, with tariffs set almost exactly the same as O2. Vodafone come into the market in 2010 and this extra competition may start the prices heading ownwards.

However, how much room for manoeuvre is there in the price? If you are paying £30 per month over 24 months your total outlay is only £720. With an iPhone GS costing in the region of £500 (probably a bit less to the major networks) there isn't much of a profit margin.

Whilst we can supply the iPhone to our business customers, we find that other handsets from Nokia and RIM (BlackBerry) are much more popular. It did pop into our Top 10 business mobile handset chart for August 2009 but hasn't been seen since.

As a business phone it doesn't offer any extra features above many considerably cheaper handsets. Businessmen with their heads screwed on understand value and understand that every extra penny spent on their mobiles is a penny off their profits.

So if you are looking for a business mobile phone and are considering the iPhone get in touch with us for some free advice and some cheaper (and better) alternative handsets that will save your business money month after month.

Further to the meeting held by Peter Mandelson with all 5 major network providers to have a Spectrum reframe (to hit Labour's Mobile broadband targets by 2012).

T-Mobile and Orange are now telling the UK regulator that they do not want to give up spectrum in exchange for regulatory approval of their planned merger. This isn’t going to please OFCOM as the merger will have 37% of mobile customers and over 50% of all available spectrum.

It will be unlikely that Vodafone and 02 will give up any of the 900mhz bandwidth if T-Mobile and Orange are not going to let go of any of their spectrum to meet Mandelson's 2012 targets. It should be remembered that there is a General election coming up next year which could change things!

What is Spectrum?

According to Wikipedia it is "the range of all possible frequencies of electromagnetic radiation". For more information read the Ofcom pdf relating to the Frequency Allocation Table which contains 224 pages of further info.

Author: Simon Hunt

Position: Telecommunications Consultant with 21C Telecom

The latest news on the release date of the iPhone on the Orange network is that it will be 10th November, a day after O2's exclusive deal expires. This will make them the only official competitor in the run up to Christmas as Vodafone will not be carrying the iPhone until next year and neither 3 nor T-Mobile have officially announced that they will carry the phone.

3 are rumoured to be considering carrying the handset, with no offical announcement, whilst T-Mobile have ruled themselves out, although they are importing iPhones on an unofficial basis for some of their high spend and valuable customers.

So if you are looking for an iPhone on contract this Christmas your choice is likely to be O2 or Orange. This could drive prices slightly lower although a real price war is unlikely until Vodafone start their iPhone sales in the New Year.

If you are an Orange customer looking to upgrade to an iPhone and your contract is due for upgrade in the next couple of months get in touch with us as we also offer consumer upgrades on the Orange network in addition to our core business mobile sales.

Similarly if you are on O2 customer we can help you with upgrading to the Apple iPhone. You just have to be nearing the end of your contract.

The tariffs for a free iPhone on O2 start at around £35 for a 24 month contract. This includes 600 minutes, 500 messages and "unlimited" data. This is for the basic 3G 8GB. If you are looking for the iPhone 3GS 32GB you are going to have to pay around £75 per month to get one free of charge.

There are no details of tariffs yet on the Orange website but there is the option to pre-register for news of release and the opportunity of getting one as soon as it is released.

If you are a business customer we can help you with a new iPhone on a wide range of tariffs. Just contact us for a free no obligation quotation.