Reliance Jio, Airtel, Vodafone, Idea: The ‘Unlimited Data’ Offers
Soon after Reliance Jio entered the Indian market, incumbents such as Airtel, Vodafone and Idea launched their own unlimited calling offers. Now, it seems, is the turn of mobile data to take centre stage. The Mukesh Ambani-backed operator is providing data at never-seen-before prices with the new Jio Prime plan, and has forced the rivals to launch similar plans of their own. We take a look at the latest bundled data plans offered by Reliance Jio, Vodafone, Airtel and Idea Cellular to see which delivers the best value for money for the consumer.
Reliance Jio Prime subscription + Rs. 303 recharge pack
Reliance Jio is providing to Jio Prime customers 28GB of 4G data with the Rs. 303 prepaid recharge pack, which has 28-day validity; Jio Prime postpaid users get 30GB of high-speed data for the billing cycle at the same price. Under this plan, customers who subscribe to the Rs. 99 Jio Prime plan will be able to use 1GB of 4G data per day, and make unlimited free calls.
For those who find 1GB data insufficient, there’s the Rs. 499 Jio Prime recharge pack, which provides 56GB data to prepaid users, with daily cap of 2GB. Postpaid customers get 60GB of 4G data for the billing cycle, with the FUP set at 2GB per day.
Airtel Rs. 345 recharge pack
Airtel is providing the Rs. 345 recharge pack that provides prepaid users with 28GB of high-speed data for 28 days. While the daily FUP is set at 1GB, customers will be able to use only 500MB of data during the day, while the remaining 500MB allotted for the 12am to 6am period. Those who want to skip the restriction of timings can opt for the Rs. 549 recharge pack, which comes with 1GB daily FUP, but no limits based on timings.
The Rs. 345 and Rs. 549 recharge packs come with free calls, but with several caveats. Those who make calls beyond the 1,200 bundled minutes will be charged at 30p per minute (for local and STD calls). Moreover, Airtel has capped the free calls per day at 300 minutes, after which the charges will be 30p per minute. Additionally, calling more than 100 unique users in a week entails call tariff of 30p per minute for the rest of the validity.
For postpaid customers, Airtel will provide free data to customers starting March 13, as per an official communication. However, the company has not announced how much free data the users will get, or other conditions attached. The Airtel subscribers will need to open the MyAirtel app to see how much data they get free as part of the offer.
Vodafone Rs. 346 recharge pack
Vodafone has reportedly launched the Rs. 346 recharge pack that comes with 28GB of mobile data and unlimited free calls. Like rivals, Vodafone is also putting a cap of 1GB on free data consumption, after which the consumer will be charged. In an official statement, Vodafone said, “Vodafone customers are diverse as are their wants. To satisfy these diverse needs and wants, Vodafone offers various segmented propositions. This is one such segmented offering and the offer is valid only till 15 March.”
Idea Rs. 348 recharge pack
Idea is providing users with 500MB of high-speed data with the Rs. 348 recharge pack, along with unlimited free calls; this totals to 14GB of data per month. Users are required to have a 4G handset (but not a 4G-enabled SIM) to avail this new offer from Idea. Not available as an open market recharge pack, the pack is aimed at low-data consumers and is offered to users by Idea executives. You can also check if you are eligible for the offer using the My Idea app.
