Mobile Data

A collection of the best deals on data from mobile providers.

Last updated:
November 15, 2021

Overview

There are different ways of providing internet access depending on your client’s circumstances and needs, as well as your organisation’s resources and digital inclusion plan. 

If you are providing limited or ad-hoc support - topping-up someone’s existing account through their current phone/internet provider is simplest and can be done remotely. See guidance on topping up someone’s phone remotely.

Depending on their provider, this may not be the best value for money or give all clients equal amounts of data for the money spent.

Amazon Fire 7 (2019)

£49.99

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Easy to use

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Light and compact

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Amazon Alexa-enabled

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Not the fastest

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Feels cheap

Lenovo Tab M7

£70.00

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Small

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Easy to use

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Portable

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Very bad sound

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Slow to charge

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Low-resolution screen

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  • Small
  • Easy to use

  • Small
  • Easy to use

Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 Lite Wifi

£119.00

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Loads apps quickly

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Decent battery

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Responsive touchscreen

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Drab screen lacks clarity

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Sounds dull and harsh

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Poor cameras

Huawei MatePad T 10s

£149.00

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Decent display

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Responsive touch controls

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Expandable storage

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Lacks support for Google services

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Mediocre battery life

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Poor sound

Lenovo Tab M8 FHD (TB-8705F)

£169.00

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Great battery life

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Small and light

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Good performance

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Poor speakers

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Underwhelming cameras

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Screen could be better

Alcatel 1S (2020)

£80.00

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Outstanding full-charge battery life

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Simple to use

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Inexpensive

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Good display

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Terrible battery use after short charge

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Cameras aren’t great

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Processor isn’t very fast

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External speaker is horrible

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No NFC

Huawei Y5P

£90.00

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Display isn’t bad

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Nicely laid-out menu

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Durable

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Usability issues due to lack of Google

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Poor cameras and speakers

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Slow

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Average battery life

TCL 20 SE

£99.00

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Long-lasting battery

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User-friendly

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Nice display

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Durable

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Weaker battery life from a short charge

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Average to poor camera quality

Oppo A5 2020

£100.00

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Incredibly long-lasting battery

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Fast and responsive security features

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Easy to use

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Slow charging

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Front camera isn’t great

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Poor quality manual

Costs and data deals (as of Nov 2021): Sim-Only

If you want better value for money and equal amounts of data for the money spent - you can purchase data-only sim card deals. 

Solidaritech in West Yorkshire sometimes negotiate a bulk-buy deal of pay-as-you-go, data-only sim cards. 

A data-only sim card from Smarty provides unlimited data for £17 a month (as of Nov 2021). The sim card comes with an app where you manage your data and top up. Their cheapest £6 per month deal lets you buy small amounts of data online or in shops that offer PayPoint services -  £1 for 1GB – not the cheapest rate, but you only pay for what you use, rather than losing unused data at the end of the month. There is also the option to transfer your phone number across to the new Smarty sim card. However, it isn't straightforward for someone to top up someone else's account remotely.

A number of organisations that we've spoken with recommend the mobile provider Lyca, which works well for their clients.

If you want to provide data for a whole household, without having to top-up multiple devices, you could provide a new data-only sim card that can be inserted into a Mobile Broadband WiFi Router, which acts as a hub for other devices (phones, tablets, laptops) to tether to.