Millions of Kenyans browse the Internet everday from their mobile phones. We buy special Internet data bundles that are available at various price points. These data bundles are usually cheaper than browsing the Internet purely with your airtime which is quite costly.
Realizing just how expensive it is to browse directly from one’s airtime, there was need for the introduction of the ‘data manager’ feature. Data manager prevented your airtime from being gobbled out when your data bundle ran out.
Most internet users feel the pain when browsing out of bundle since the per MB billing rates are pretty high. But not anymore. Airtel’s new Be Sure tariff is a game changer on this front and I will explain why.
Airtel decided to revamp its out of bundle rates with their BeSure tariff. Airtel’s original out of bundle rates were charged at KES 4.3 per MB. In the new system, they now charge KES 1 for 5MB (or 20 cents/MB) which removes the stigma of using your airtime as data without having a data bundle.
| Money spent earlier | Money spent Now |
|---|---|
| 5MB @ 4.3 KES/MB = 21.5 KES | 5MB = KES 1 |
| 50MB @4.3KES/MB = 215 KES | 50 MB = KES 10 |
| 500 MB @4.3KES/MB= 2150 KES | 500 MB = KES 100 |
If you do the math, Airtel has slashed their out of bundle rates by 95% which is insane. This means that now you can comfortably browse with your airtime where the current going rate is KES 1 per every 5MB consumed.
Since these are out of bundle rates, there is no need for a bundle subscription, no on or off peak ours and no subscription charges. You purely use your airtime to browse the web. If you had 20 bob airtime for example, you are assured that you will use upto 100MB of data while surfing the web.
Airtel has the cheapest Out of Bundle rates in the market
Airtel also managed to solve another problem with their new out of bundle rates. Previously, they did not have ‘no expiry’ bundles and these kind of bundles resonate well with customers. This deals with the conundrum where unused data goes on to expire or be compelled to finish their data balance before they expire.
Airtel’s solution was pretty cool. Instead of actually announcing data bundles that expire, they decided to lower their out of bundle rates drastically. The out of bundle rates do not expire really and are only limited by your airtime balance.
By doing this, Airtel managed to have the cheapest out of bundle rates in the industry (the industry standard is KES 4 per MB) while also offering their customers a way to enjoy rates that don’t expire.
Options are good
The new out of bundle rates from Airtel are a great option for their Airtel customers and having options is good for everyone. If their data bundles expire or get depleted, they have the option to continue surfing the web without feeling anxious that their airtime balance is being gobbled up at an incredible rate like before.
So if you’re an Airtel customer, I highly implore you to subscribe to the BeSure rate by dialling *544*2# so that you can enjoy these rates.
