Commitment Costs

Growing up in the aggressive prime of 80s capitalist Britain, the commandments "competition is good for the consumer" and "the consumer is king" rang out from tv screens and radios like a daily call to prayer. It was as monolithic and dogmatic as anything in Orwell's 1984. Over 20 years later, it has left a behind a rail system that's a snake-pit of complexity and spiraling costs and a telecoms sector that just gets cheaper and cheaper. You win some, you loose some.

In Germany, one look at the contract phones from the big boys has you jabbing the page in disbelief at how miserly they're prepared to reward your loyalty. By UK terms, the contacts are prehistorically expensive and low-value, giving very little in the way of "free" any network minutes and only double digit SMS allowances.

My top tip is to bring a cheap unlocked phone with you (all the PAYG ones from Carphonewarehouse are unlocked as standard) or get your current handset doctored (a friend's cost 8 euro to unlock at a place on Karl Marx Str). Then head to your local Media Markt or Saturn to get a pre-pay SIM. There's a wide choice from about 9 euro, including credit to start you off. Check what they're offering and be sure to pick one that's going to be easy to top up.