In message 1182908442.998126.82600@n2g2000hse.googlegroups.co m,
DavidDB <david.hewett@gmail.com> Proclaimed from the tallest tower:

> Are there any Mobile Phone Tariffs for Deaf Users?
>
>
> I have for 20 years now put up with buying into phone plans that
> supply 1,000 of free talk time to attract customers and have for years
> paid punitive rates for SMS messages.
>
> At home I use FREE e-mail and various FREE Instant messenger systems
> to contact my mainly hearing friends and family.
>
> My BT phone bill is always expensive and so complicated to understand
> I don't even bother opening it to see how I need to pay £50 but only
> made £5 worth of "calls" - mostly visitors borrowing a cheap call
> because like 99% of people with a flashy mobile these days they have
> "run out of credit" .
>
> A New era is finally upon us, Smart phones - The flashy TV commercials
> - web-sites promise at last MSN LIVE MESSENGER - GOOGLEMAIL - SKYPE -
> YAHOO MESSENGER and of course many others available now 24 hours a
> day. At home but far more importantly for the deaf for almost the
> first time there is an easy way to communicate beyond specialist
> closed devices - The SmartPhone promises universal communications -
> that is something the hearing world have taken advantage of almost
> since the invention of the telephone and never more so than in the age
> of the mobile.
>
> Three's X series looks compelling - but even as an IT professional I
> found it almost impossible to establish exactly what "fair usage" of
> their bandwidth really meant - but hey - they have loads worthless
> free "hearing minutes" I'm not knocking THREE I'm sure in the hearing
> world its a fantastic deal - I just resent committing myself to an
> outrageous 18 month contract paying for stuff I cannot use, The Orange
> site is no better but they thoughtfully provide to completely useless
> telephone numbers on their disability access page. GRRRR - A quick
> scan of all the major telephone networks paint a similar picture.
>
> Well Im not going to take it any more!
>
> And if I have made you question for a moment that the phone in your
> pocket represents excellent value for money to a deaf user then I
> invite you to get vocal about it too.
>
>
> So Phone companies - Stuff your Free Hearing Mins - Music Downloads -
> Ringtones - FM Radios - 18 month contracts - and fat-cat price plans.
>
> STOP RIPPING US OFF.
>
> Its now technologically simple for any phone network to create a Deaf
> Price Plan that would allow us to communicate easily with the hearing
> world through a universal device with internationally recognised
> standards - yet its being excluded from a large community - is it not
> time for the phone companies to take our voice seriously - or will the
> regulators OFCOM do it for us? - don't bank on it - their website
> advice to Deaf users is "look at the service providers price lists on-
> line" and confusingly recommends the w3c.org web-site - really useful
> if you are a budding website designer.
> The RNID site sections on mobile phone is little more than a buyers
> guide that reads like it was written when mobiles were first
> introduced but I guess if you don't know what an SMS message is - its
> the place to go.
>
> So has ANYONE out there found a better deal - a provider that
> understands the problems deaf people have using phones - and more
> importantly can do it so that the most disadvantaged in our society
> are not penalised any longer for being disabled.

Virgin Mobile do several Text only package on their PAYG phones.
Range from £7.50/month for 100 texts to £24/month for 800 Texts.

They also do text and picture message bundles.

http://www.virginmobile.com/vm/gener...les.shop.sm034

These are normally paid by direct debit, but are not contacts, so you can
cancel at any time. You(or friends) can also make and receive phone calls,
which are paid at the normal tariff rates.


--
Regards,
Chris.
(Remove Elvis's shoes to email me)