DiGi's "Unmentioned" Charges

This happened to me in real life (RECENTLY!) and I'm writing this post to warn all who are thinking of getting the DiGi's iPhone plan to think twice before signing that contract.

In DiGi's iPhone plan, you get X amount of free minits, SMS, MMS and Internet usage depending on the plan you choose. Being a student and paying for my own phone usage, I opted for the iDiGi 88.

I was skeptical at first. I've used prepaid all my life, so the terms and conditions of postpaid service are alien to me. So I started researching. First, checked out the price plans, their pros and cons. Then on the day I went to buy/collect my iPhone, I asked the DiGi ground staff these questions:

"So I only pay RM88 per month, for two years (24 months)?" "Since I'm paying for 6 months in advance, what if I exceed? Do I only pay the balance for the first 6 months?" "That's all I pay right?"

The DiGi staff answered that I was correct. I asked a similar set of questions to the D'Chat operator, who also answered that I was right, confirming what the first DiGi staff said. OK, so here I was thinking that I could definitely afford at least around RM88 a month for calls and SMS.

My bill for April just arrived. Yes, DiGi did waive off RM88 due to my 6 months advance payment. HOWEVER, I discovered that DiGi has also charged me another previously "unmentioned" monthly amount of RM88. My greatest shock came when I realized that after the 6 months is up, DiGi is actually charging me RM88 + RM88 = RM176 a month!

Let's ignore the fact that both DiGi staff have supplied me with FALSE INFORMATION. Let's ignore that I, as a student paying my OWN phone bill, will now have to pay RM176 a month for the next 24 months. Thats a grand spanking total of RM4224!

What I don't understand is, why is DiGi charging me a second amount of RM88? I already paid RM1590 for the iPhone 3GS. The initial minimum RM88 a month would have cost about RM2112 for 24 months. In total, I'm "supposed" to pay roughly RM3702 for the phone + call charges. I haven't even included the 5% service tax.

Let's do a little math. Assuming that I use RM88 for call charges a month for the next 24 months, excluding the cost of the iPhone:

RM4224 - RM2112 = RM2112

I'm actually paying roughly DOUBLE the amount that I signed up for.

So, please...I implore anyone who is thinking of buying the iPhone now or in the future...ensure that those figures you see on that contract are the ONLY charges that you will have to pay.

And to DiGi, I'm demanding compensation and a full explanation for this injustice. Your staff have supplied me with false information, twice.