Recently, a number of German MVNOs have slashed prices for prepaid mobile Internet access. Now, mobile network reseller Talkline has launched a 60 day try and buy offer for mobile Internet connectivity for people with a usage that makes a contract more attractive than prepaid. During this time the two year contract can be canceled at any time.
Other offers by the competition, except for the prepaid data mentioned above, always bind customers two a two year contract without the possibility to cancel the contract for reasons such as lacking coverage at the places of use.
Included in the offer is a free PCMCIA or USB 1.8 MBit/s HSDPA modem. A 27 Euro activation fee is charged when signing up (which is probably not refundable) and a monthly basic charge of 8 Euros applies for the duration of the contract. The first six months, however, are free. On top of the basic charge, users can select a data offer either based on volume or time:
- 200MB: €20.-
- 400MB: €35.-
- 5GB: €50.-
The SIM card can also be used to make voice calls, but prices are not attractive with 39 cents a minute to the national fixed line network and 69 cents to other national mobile phone networks.