TIM Next, how the Tim offer works for the purchase of a smartphone in installments

TIM Next is the exclusive TIM offer that allows buy a top-of-the-range smartphone in installments and, after 12 months, decide to replace, keep or return it. The main advantage is given by the possibility of having the latest flagship from Apple, Samsung or Huawei every year - depending on the models available - choosing from time to time whether to change it, keep it or return it at no additional cost.

We emphasize right now that a extra contribution aimed at financing the smartphone protection service. In any case, we will address this topic better later, in the central part of our in-depth analysis, with which we intend to answer the most frequently asked questions by users about TIM Next.

Before getting to the heart of the guide, a final note: the offer can only be subscribed by TIM customers with an active data promotion. So, if you are interested in joining the contract and you come, for example, from Vodafone, you must necessarily switch to TIM or buy a new SIM and choose one of the current TIM offers. As you may already imagine, there are many topics to be addressed. So let's not waste any more time chatting and let's get to the heart of the matter immediately, explaining how TIM Next works.

Click and go to the topic that interests you most among those listed below.

Index

• TIM Next: how it works
  • How the gearbox works
  • What conditions must the phone meet to be eligible for replacement?
  • How long to change phones
  • How long the contract lasts
  • In case of theft
• Tim Next: insurance
• Tim Next: models available
• Tim Next: payment method
• Does Tim Next Plus still exist?
• Tim Next: assistance
• Tim Next conviene?
• Alternatives

TIM Next: how it works

The operation of TIM Next is very simple. First of all, if you are interested in the offer, check the page "TIM Next - Always choose the best”That among the models available there is also the phone you want to buy. Once you have ascertained this and read the general conditions of the installment plan, click on the button Find Store. This will start the search for the TIM shop or authorized dealer closest to your home, where you will then go to buy the new smartphone (in installments).

Twelve months passed from the subscription of TIM Next, you will receive a message from TIM: the SMS will inform you that from that moment it is possible to proceed with phone replacement with one of the new models associated with the offer. It will be up to you to decide what to do, having three options to choose from: change your smartphone and therefore sign a new contract, keep it and continue to pay the installments as done in the first twelve months, return it in the store without additional costs. It goes without saying that people interested in this offer find it tempting the opportunity to change their phone after 12 months, or, in the event that the device is not to their liking, to return it without paying any penalties or additional contributions.

This, broadly speaking, is what TIM Next offers. Now, however, let's go into even more detail on the issue: below we will illustrate every important element for users interested in purchasing a new top-of-the-range mobile phone with the formula proposed by the telephone operator. First of all we will explain how the change works, and then indicate how much time you have available to change phones and, lastly, how long the contract lasts. In the central part of the guide, however, we will deal in depth with the topic related to insurance.

How the gearbox works

As anticipated in the previous paragraph, TIM Next gives the opportunity to change smartphones after 12 months from the subscription of the offer, and in any case after the receipt of the SMS through which the customer is notified that from that moment and until the offer expires replace the mobile phone with another one of your choice among those available. For the change it is necessary to contact a TIM shop or to a authorized reseller for collection, or who in any case gives his / her willingness to collect the old model and deliver the new one.

Since it may happen that an authorized TIM shop or dealer refuses - in the absence of the necessary equipment for collection - to replace the telephone, we invite you to contact customer service first to number 119 and ask which shop is closest to your home where you can complete the file within a few minutes (ten at most, no more). Alternatively, contact the store directly and find out whether or not it is authorized to collect the mobile phone. You will see the number to call in the small window that opens after clicking on the icon depicting the store within the map itself.

What conditions must the phone meet to be eligible for replacement?

Still on the subject of the change, the phone must comply with precise conditions in order to be suitable for replacement with a new top-of-the-range model the following year. First it must turn on and function correctly, including keys. Also, it has to show up intact externally (Micro-scratches and other minor damage are still allowed which are part of the normal wear and tear of a smartphone after one year of use).

Another requirement to be respected concerns the eventual manumission o cell phone repair by an unauthorized dealer by TIM: in this case, the shop can refuse to accept the exchange request. If you have purchased an iPhone, you must proceed with it before replacing unlocking of anti-theft services such as Find my iPhone. If you don't know how to do it, we invite you to read our guide on what to do before selling an iPhone or iPad.

On the other hand, there is no official communication regarding how to behave with the box he original accessories. Reading the opinions on TIM Next on the net, some users have told of how they managed to make the change even in the absence of the box or accessories such as chargers and headphones, while others report having received a charge for failure to return the original packaging. In any case, we suggest that you carefully store the box and the accessories inside it, so as not to have to jeopardize the process of replacing the mobile phone.

Note: the damages that affect the acceptance of the exchange include those caused by liquids. In any case, should the staff responsible for the TIM store detect damage of a certain amount on the smartphone, you may be charged additional costs to proceed with the replacement.

How long to change phones

If you intend to replace the phone with one chosen from those in the TIM Next section you have time until the offer expiration date. In the past, however, after twelve months from the purchase, a window of 60 days was opened within which the customer could change the mobile phone bought a year earlier. From what has been learned on the official website page, this limit has been eliminated: "The replacement or return option runs from the end of the 12th month until the offer expires", reads the press release.

Let's take a practical example. Let's assume that you buy the 12 GB iPhone 128 Pro Max through the TIM Next offer, with zero advance and a monthly payment of 43 euros, to which you can add the 6,90 euros per month fee for Kasko insurance (find more information in the chapter dedicated to smartphone protection). The contract signing date is 22 March 2021. Therefore, on 22 March 2022 you will receive the SMS that will remind you of the possibility to change your smartphone until the contract expires, that is by 22 September 2023 (12 + 18 months, ed).

How long the contract lasts

The TIM Next contract has a minimum duration of 12 months, at the expiration of which you can return the phone in an authorized TIM shop or center without paying any penalty.

Se instead after a year choose to change or redeem your smartphone, you are required to keep the data offer active for 30 months, the minimum time spent in TIM indicated in the conditions of use of the offer. "In the event of termination of the mobile line or data offer before 30 months, the customer is required to pay interest," reports the document from the telephone company.

Therefore, in the event that you decide to change operator when the offer is still in place, you will have to pay TIM the interest due according to the installment plan agreed at the time of signing the contract.

In case of theft

Before continuing with the second part of the guide, let's try to clarify what happens if the phone purchased in installments with TIM Next is stolen. In the past, TIM gave the possibility to add thetheft option paying an additional contribution equal to 3 per month. If then the theft had really occurred, the customer would have obtained the delivery of a new smartphone "against a contribution of 249 €"(Source here).

Let's talk in the past tense why today the official page makes no mention of it. To be sure of this, however, ask the shop staff or customer service if there is no longer the possibility of subscribing to this option and if there is not even the 249 euro deductible.

TIM Next: insurance

Let's now archive the first part of the in-depth study dedicated to how the offer works to focus on equally important topics, such as the so-called “smartphone protection”.

THETIM Next insurance provides an additional cost of 6,90 per month, which is added to the amount of each installment. It is a policy compulsory, thanks to which you have the opportunity to access the repair service "for accidental damage and liquid damage". The collection and home delivery are made by express courier, "within 7 working days from the approval of the request for assistance". In addition, the smartphone reset intervention requires a one-off separate contribution equal to 138 €.

To contact support and request phone repair you have the green number free 800 007766, active on weekdays from 8:30 to 20:30, and on Saturdays from 8:30 to 14:30.

Important: when the smartphone is in repair assistance, you are also required to pay the monthly installment plus the € 6,90 share of the “smartphone protection” guarantee. In this regard, the conditions of use explain that "the conventional guarantee is an integral part of the offers of the TIM Next family, to which it is linked, therefore it is not possible to terminate the installment by keeping the guarantee active, or vice versa".

TIM Next: models available

The models combined with the TIM Next offer are high-end smartphones usually belonging to the brands Samsung, Huawei e Apple. You can find them on the page dedicated to TIM Next, by clicking on the category models.

At the time of writing, the phones available are:

• iPhone 12 mini of 64 GB: installments of 28 euros per month for 30 months, plus 6,90 euros for smartphone protection
• iPhone 12 of 64 GB: installments of 31 euros per month for 30 months, plus 6,90 euros for smartphone protection
• iPhone 12 Pro da 128 GB: installments of 40 euros per month for 30 months, plus 6,90 euros for smartphone protection
• iPhone 12 Pro Max da 128 GB: installments of 43 euros per month for 30 months, plus 6,90 euros for smartphone protection

Each offer also includes the one-off cost of 9,99 euros for the Promo Smartphone, in exchange for an additional 20 GB for one month. Also included in the installment payment three months of 5G: at the end, if you want to continue browsing in 5G you will have to incur an extra cost of 5 euros per month.

Note: the available models usually change during the year, so we invite you to check the entry of new phones by connecting to this address.

TIM Next: payment methods

The only payment method accepted for the TIM Next offer is thecredit card charge. Credit cards belonging to international circuits are suitable Visa, MasterCard e American Express. Once again, we rely on what is reported in the text of the contract: “The offers of the TIM Next family provide for the domiciliation of monthly costs (product installment, conventional guarantee, data bundle) on credit cards only for the Visa, MasterCard, Amex circuits; prepaid cards are not accepted ".

This, therefore, excludes the possibility of paying the TIM Next offer with a rechargeable card (see PostePay) or by directing the monthly installments to your current account.

Does TIM Next Plus still exist?

In the past, TIM had launched the TIM Next Plus offer, through which it was possible to change or return the smartphone after 6 months, instead of the 12 required by the original offer. Today But the promotion can no longer be subscribed: the only offer associated with the purchase of a telephone in installments with the possibility of changing it, maintaining it or returning it after 12 months is precisely TIM Next.

If there is any news about it, we will keep you informed by updating our guide with all the details on the new TIM initiatives.

TIM Next: assistance

The easiest way to receive assistance on TIM Next is to contact the TIM customer service composing the 119. The number is active every day of the week, from Monday to Sunday, by 7: 00 22 to: 30 ("The operators are at your disposal for commercial and administrative information"). In this regard, remember that 187 is the customer service number for the landline.

Instead, if you wish to receive assistance in case of repair, dial the green number 800 007766. As we have already pointed out in the chapter dedicated to insurance, the number is active Monday to Friday from 8: 30 to 20: 30 And in the weekend (except Sunday) by 8: 30 14 to: 30.

TIM Next is it right?

We have come to the conclusions of our study. To answer the question above, let's say yes, TIM Next's offer it's convenient if you need to change phones every year, without waiting for the canons two to three years from the purchase of the old model. It is even more so if you are already a TIM customer, a condition that allows you to avoid changing operators or signing up for a new data offer.

To get an idea of ​​how much you could save, let's assume you choose to buy the 12GB iPhone 128 Pro in installments. The value of the phone is 1.199,90, by buying it in installments with TIM Next you would pay 12 euros for the first 562,80 months, plus another 9,99 euros one-off for Promo Smartphone, for a total of 572,79 euros (excluding the costs related to the data offer). After that, to keep the benefits of the contract, you will have to change the phone with one of the models available one year after the purchase of the previous device, or return it, without paying additional costs.

In case you decide to keep the phone instead, you will pay a total of 1.407 euros, over 200 euros more than the list price of 1.199,90 euros.

Having said that, we invite you to consider TIM Next if you already know that at the end of the 12 months you will change your smartphone to the top of the range for the new year, or to return it, however, taking into account an additional expense for the purchase of a new one. phone. If not, we suggest you look at other promotions.

Alternatives

If you fall into the second category of consumers, there is certainly no shortage of alternatives to TIM Next. For example, if you intend to link you to the Telecom Italia operator, visit our page dedicated to TIM offers, updated month after month with the best promotions that can be activated online or in the store.

Also consider the Vodafone offers, which allow you to save without giving up SMS, Internet and minutes of calls.

You could also consider WINDTRE offers or Iliad offers.

And if you don't want to open each page linked above, take a look at the in-depth analysis on the comparison of telephone offers from the main telephone operators in Italy.