JioPhone not Free. Rs.4500 to be spent on Jio plans & Rs.1500 refundable only after 3 years

There is a very famous saying: “There is no free lunch” – You can apply this to JioPhone as well. Yes, JioPhone is also not free. Well it was never free as many presumed it to be. However it was effectively free and the case remains the same now as well. But as per the recent announcement by Jio, it has clarified that if you are planning to use the JioPhone you should be ready to spend at least Rs.1500 for using the phone yearly for three consecutive years. So, in total you will need to spend Rs.4500 in a duration of three years, out of which Rs.1500 will be returned to you after three years of device usage as a security that you have deposited earlier.

The latest details can very well be seen on the Jio website, wherein they have updated the terms and conditions for the JioPhone to make them more clear for the general public. The site says:

“The JioPhone is available for continual use on the Recipient purchasing telecom recharge vouchers of an Authorized Carrier (presently Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited) from the Company or any of its authorized retailers for use in the JioPhone of a minimum value of Rs. 1500 annually for the duration of 3 years from the date of the first issue of the JioPhone.”

In simple words, it means that JioPhone user will need to pay a minimum of Rs.1500 on Jio data plans every year. The device will be paired with the Rs.153 monthly plan. This will allow user to access 512 MB 4G data and can make unlimited VoLTE calls and text messages. Using this plan also means that the user needs to pay atleast Rs.1500 in a year on Jio, which is a basic condition to use the JioPhone.

Jio has time to time spelled it out that a user will have to spend a minimum of Rs.1500 on the phone every year for three consecutive years. Previously too the company has said that the JioPhone user will be to shed some bucks on Jio plans to be able to use the device.

New terms and conditions has made a couple of things clear for the general public, which are:

– The weekly Jio plans, which are no doubt very cheap, should be used by JioPhone users on a temporary basis. However, if you are planning to get a JioPhone, it is almost mandatory for you to use the Rs. 153 plan or any plan of higher value.

– Jio doesn’t want people to take the JioPhone and then stop using it. If you are getting the JioPhone, you have to use it regularly. For that very purpose the refundable security deposit will be refunded only after three years of device usage.

In a nutshell, device users will have to shed Rs.1500 on Jio every year, the company has also said that they will have to use the phone for at least 3 years before they get Rs. 1500 back. A user can only claim the refund against the device after using it for 36 months but before 39 months. Also, one needs to make sure that while returning the device, the phone should be in a working condition with no damage.

However there are some slabs of refund designed for users returning the device before three years. Below is what he or she will have to pay:

– Returning before 12 months: Full fee of Rs. 1500 will be forfeited

– Returning between 12 months to 24 months: Rs. 1000 will be charged

– Returning between 24 months to 36 months: Rs. 500 will be charged

Yet again, there is nothing new that Jio is saying in its recent announcement. When the JioPhone was launched Mr.Mukesh Ambani has clearly stated that the users will get their refund of Rs.1500 back after the device for three years. But a lot of people were confused whether it was ‘after three complete years’ or ‘within three years’. But Jio has made it very clear in its recent announcement that the fee of Rs.1500 is refundable only after the device usage of 3 years.