O2 4G prices detailed, from £32 with phone and 1GB of data

O2 has revealed its 4G prices, with SIM-free tariffs starting at £26, and tariffs that nab you a phone starting at £32.

You'll pay more to get extra data, and as with EE and Vodafone, there's currently no unlimited 4G data option. All launch deals will come with a minimum of 1GB of data per month.

Slightly confusing matters is the fact that O2 will be offering 4G contracts via its 'Refresh' scheme, which splits your phone tariff and handset cost into two separate monthly payments.

The cheapest monthly 4G tariff costs £22 per month -- which gets you 1GB of data and unlimited texts and calls, while available 4G phones cost between £10 and £25.

With swankier mobiles likely to cost more, O2's 4G could start to get very expensive. If you had a £15 per month smart phone and wanted 3GB of data per month, you'd end up paying a whopping £42 per month. Ouch!

Measly data

O2's data offering is not particularly generous, with a maximum offering of just 8GB, which will drop down to 5GB per month after 31 October when O2's introductory extra data offer expires. 

Update: O2 has been in touch to clarify that in fact your data won't drop after 31 October, but rather you'll only get the higher 5GB and 8GB data options if you sign up before that date. It's a sweetener for those who sign up to 4G as soon as it's available, though there are plenty of reasons not to sign up for an LTE contract straight away, such as low national coverage and the possibility of better deals from the likes of Three.

Extra stuff

While Vodafone offers Spotify Premium and Sky Sports freebies, O2 lets you play a selection of 4G games without eating into your data allowance, sports videos from its Priority Sports service, as well as 12 months free access to O2 4G tracks, for the musically inclined. Not especially tempting, it must be said.

Get out clause

O2 says if you're not happy with your 4G tariff, you have 90 days to be transferred back to an equivalent 3G tariff with bill credit of up to £15.

O2's 4G offering isn't cheaper than Vodafone or EE's, and doesn't get you as much data either. In a statement, USwitch analyst Ernest Doku said that the blue-hued network's plans appear to have, "Fallen slightly short."

You can check out O2's deals in more detail here. The oxygenated operator will launch its 4G network on 29 August. O2 says it'll have 4G in 13 cities by the end of the year, covering London, Leeds and Bradford from launch day, then Newcastle, Birmingham, Glasgow, Liverpool, Nottingham, Leicester, Coventry, Sheffield, Manchester and Edinburgh by 31 December.

Are you excited for 4G, or will O2 need to offer more data and lower prices before you're interested? Let me know in the comments, or on our Facebook wall.