Vodafone has decided to re-introduce the standard 5 and 10 euro top-ups in all sales channels
The dear, old and much appreciated Vodafone 5 and 10 euro "real" top-ups are back: since January 20, they are available again in stores, in the MyVodafone app and online and, therefore, customers are no longer forced to buy (but they can still do so, if they want) the famous "GigaRicarica". The latter were introduced in October 2019 and consist of a recharge that offers a credit of 1 euro less than what was paid, in exchange for additional services (in this case 3 Giga of data traffic, valid for one month).
After an initial launch phase of the GigaRecharges, Vodafone had removed from some points of sale the traditional recharges finding the opposition of customers, who did not want to pay for additional services but only asked to pay for the actual credit. Vodafone had already announced that traditional top-ups would return in January 2020 and so it was: from yesterday it is possible to choose between a normal 5 or 10 euro top-up and a GigaRicarica of the same amount, but with less real credit. The model of GigaRecharge, it should be said for completeness, had also been adopted by Tim and Wind and, again for fairness, had cost all three companies a warning from AGCOM, the Authority Guarantor of Telecommunications that had moved after several reports from consumer protection associations.
Vodafone 5 and 10 euro recharges: where to buy them
The "new" Vodafone recharges with 5 and 10 euro of real credit are available both online and via the app and in tobacconists, bars and newsagents as well as in the official Vodafone stores.
Premium recharges: how are we doing
All three of Italy's leading mobile operators have made more or less the same move in recent months: to put recharges on the market with a standard selling price, but with a lower credit against one or more premium services. Services that, otherwise, the user would hardly have bought. In addition to the aforementioned GigaRicarica by Vodafone, there are also Ricarica+ by Tim and Ricarica Special by Wind.
The Ricarica+ offer costs 5 or 10 euros, with 4 or 9 euros of prepaid credit included in exchange for unlimited minutes and Giga for 24 hours. With Ricarica+ from 15, 20 or 30 euros the actual credit is 13, 18 or 28 euros but the unlimited minutes and Giga last for three days. In addition you also receive a 2×1 voucher for the cinema. Wind Special 5 and 10 euro recharges, however, are exactly the same as Tim's 5 and 10 euro Ricarica+: 4 and 9 euros of actual credit to get unlimited minutes and Giga for 24 hours.