StarHub Giga Review Singapore: Giga-tastic Value with Two Major Flaws

By and large, Giga is a fully digital mobile service provider from its parent company, StarHub. At this time, it offers three simple no contract SIM-only plans at a competitive price. All in all, I have been using their mobile service since 2021 and I am pleased to share that it has been a pleasant experience so far. Accordingly, if you can look beyond Giga’s flaws, then I feel that it is a mobile service provider that is worth considering. With this in mind, let’s learn more about Giga and whether you should sign up today.

🎁 Use my referral code er4cri to enjoy $2 discount during your sign up. Yay!

Table of Content:

1. About StarHub Giga
2. My Situation and Needs
3. Two Major Flaws
4. Final Thoughts on Giga

Disclosure: This post on Giga contains a referral code. Hence, I may get some money for coffee when you use my referral code to sign up for their services. But nope, there is no additional cost to you. In fact you will get a $2 referral bonus too! In any case, I will only recommend products or services that meets my needs and expectations.

One Minute Summary:

• In summary, Giga offers three no-contract SIM only plans with free incoming calls, Caller ID, and rollover data.
• If you want the most affordable plan, then pay $10.19 for 300 minutes of talktime, 300 SMS, and 20 GB of data.
• If you want the most talktime, or the most amount of data, then pay $20.37 for 1,000 minutes of talktime, 1,000 SMS, and 300 GB of data.
• From time to time, you may also purchase add-ons like talktime ($1.01 for 100 minutes), or data ($2.04 for 1 GB) separately.

Part 1: About StarHub Giga

Launched in May 2019, Giga leverages on the modern technology to provide us with a seamless digital experience for our mobile service needs. To that end, it taps into StarHub’s network, which has been verified by IMDA’s IMconnected Report to be Singapore’s fastest mobile service network.

Part 1.1: Types of Plan Available

At this time, Giga offers the following three plans:

• $10.19 per month: 300 minutes Talktime, 300 SMS, and 20 GB of Data;
• $18.33 per month: 800 minutes Talktime, 800 SMS, and 200 GB of Data;
• $20.37 per month: 1,000 minutes Talktime, 1,000 SMS, and 300 GB of Data.

Part 1.2: Additional Benefits

In addition to the benefits that you have chosen based on the plans above, all the plans will include the following free benefits:

• SIM card (usually cost $37.45);
• Caller ID (usually cost $5.45 monthly);
• Local incoming calls;
• Local incoming SMSes.

While it is easy to take some of the above mentioned benefits for granted, not all the mobile service providers provide them for free. To illustrate, it is common for the major mobile service providers to charge a monthly fee of $5.45 for Caller ID. Obviously, I’m not a fan of paying such fees. Hence, I’m glad to know that Giga provides these benefits for free!

Part 1.3: Free Rollover Data

At the same time, Giga introduces a unique feature that most data-hungry users will adore – Free Rollover Data. For instance, let’s take the cheapest plan at $10.19 a month, and this comes together with 20 GB of data. During the first month, I used 8 GB of data. At the start of the second month, Giga will add the 12 GB of unused data onto my base plan. Thereupon, I will have 12 GB + 20 GB = 32 GB of data during the second month. Correspondingly, we can repeat this rollover process for two renewal cycles, and up to the respective rollover data cap;

• 20 GB for the 20 GB plan, i.e. a total of 40 GB in a billing cycle;
• 200 GB for the 200 GB plan, i.e. a total of 400 GB in a billing cycle;
• 300 GB for the 300 GB plan, i.e. 600 GB in a billing cycle;

Okay, who really uses 600 GB of data in a month?

To illustrate, according to Netflix,

“You can watch about 4 hours per GB of data.”

In other words, with 300 GB of data, you can spend about 1,200 hours to watch all of your favourite shows on Netflix. For one thing, even if you binge on Netflix for 24 hours a day, you still can’t exhaust all the data that Giga offers.

Part 1.4: VoLTE

When I first started using Giga in 2021, I lamented upon its sheer incapability to use its data service whenever I was on a phone call. To illustrate the problem, the web browser would not load the webpage and Google Maps will continue to “spin” forever. Based on my previous encounter, this is a known issue with StarHub’s network.

Despite that early hiccup, I’m relieved to know that Giga VoLTE works on Apple iPhones now! In other words, Giga’s data service will continue to function even when you are on a phone call. To that end, you no longer need to rely on workarounds, e.g. to make an audio call via FaceTime or WhatsApp so that you can use data on another app simultaneously.

Part 1.5: Overseas Roaming

Similar to the traditional mobile service providers’ plans, you can roam with Giga too. At this time, Giga provides two roaming plans:

• gigaRoam APAC: Pay $5 for 1 GB of overseas data, valid for 5 days when you arrive at your travel destination.
• gigaRoam ROTW: Pay $15 for 1 GB of overseas data, valid for 15 days when you arrive at your travel destination.

For this purpose, you may refer to Giga’s FAQ for more information on the list of supported destinations.

Personally, I have used Giga’s overseas roaming service on multiple occasions. This is because gigaRoam has been reliable and both its upload and download speed are sufficient to meet my usage needs. Moreover, I really enjoy its convenience and ease of use. In detail, all I need to do is to purchase gigaRoam and enable the Data Roaming settings on my phone. Thereafter, gigaRoam will activate automatically when I reach my overseas destination. As can be seen, this is a more straightforward process as compared to having to purchase another SIM card, and to change the SIM card on my phone.

Despite that, I feel that gigaRoam is suitable if you are not a heavy data user. Otherwise, its cost may add up when you exhaust the 1 GB of roaming data too quickly.

Part 1.6: Contract and Lock-in Period

For one thing, there is no contract or lock-in period to worry about with Giga. To clarify, you are free to cancel the service or to port out to another mobile service provider at any time without being forced to pay any early termination charges. For that reason, you should submit your cancellation request at least three days before your next renewal cycle. This is so as to prevent any unnecessary renewal charges (which happens automatically every month). After you have submitted the cancellation request, you may continue to use your plan’s benefits until the last day of the current billing cycle. Thereafter, Giga will terminate your plan on the last day of the billing cycle. On the other hand, you should not cancel your line if you intend to port out of Giga. Instead, you should check and confirm the procedure with your new mobile service provider.

In the same way, you may also upgrade (or downgrade) your existing plan with Giga. For this purpose, the new plan will take effect on your next renewal date. It is important to realise that you will lose all the rollover data that you have accumulated from your previous plan. Hence, do plan your usage accordingly.

Part 1.7: Excess Charges

Unlike the traditional mobile service plans, you won’t get a bill shock with Giga. Generally, such (traditional) plans will charge you a premium automatically once you have exhausted your plan’s benefit for that month. However, Giga does not follow such a practice. As a matter of fact, your outgoing services will stop after you have used up your plan’s benefit for the month, e.g. 300 minutes of talktime for the 20 GB plan. Notwithstanding the cap, there may be situations when you need a little more talktime (or other benefits) before the next renewal cycle. Under those circumstances, you may purchase the relevant add-on, e.g.

• Talktime pack: $1.01 for 100 minutes;
• SMS pack: $1.01 for 100 SMS;
• Data pack: $2.04 for 1 GB.

Surely, these add-ons are much cheaper than the premium charged by the traditional mobile service providers.

Part 1.8: App Interface

Above all, you will use Giga’s app for everything – be it to view your data usage, or to make changes to the plan itself. Overall, the app is lightweight and easy to navigate through. For instance, you can view your realtime data usage from the app’s dashboard. If you need help, then tap on Gino (the cat) at the top righthand corner and shoot your question accordingly. Meanwhile, you may make administrative related changes by tapping the menu icon (bottom righthand corner), e.g. to update your payment method or to change to another plan.

Part 2: My Situation and Needs

Part 2.1: Monthly Usage

Ever since working from home became a norm, I spend about 90% of my time at home. Moreover, family and friends are more receptive to answering a FaceTime Audio or a WhatsApp call now. As a result, both my Talktime and data usage have reduced drastically. Summing up, here is my usage needs from a mobile service provider:

• Talktime: 50 to 150 minutes;
• SMS: 10 SMSes;
• Data: 4 to 6 GB;
• Caller ID;
• (Preferably) free Incoming Calls.

Additionally, in the event of a network issue, I would prefer to enjoy good customer service support. After all, many of us are heavily reliant on mobile service. Hence, it is important to have good customer service support that is capable of resolving the matter quickly.

Part 2.2: Why No Contract

Firstly, I enjoy the freedom as there is no contract associated with any of the Giga’s plan. Consequently, I’m free to upgrade or downgrade my plan, or to port out of Giga at anytime. To clarify, we are able to complete this process without incurring any penalty charges.

Secondly, I used to be tempted to change my handset once every two years. This is because the traditional mobile service provider tends to provide an attractive offer whenever it is time to re-contract my plan (at the end of its two-year term). Under those circumstances, I tend to spend more than I should, even when my existing handset is still in a relatively good working condition. Now that I’m using a SIM-only plan that has no contractual period, I realised that I’m able to use the same handset for more than three years! For one thing, this helps me to save more money in the long run!

Part 2.3: Real World Usage

Summing up, Giga offers decent 4G network speed that is sufficient to meet my usage needs. Here are two test results for your reference:

• Google Internet Speed Test (Singapore Server): Download Speed of 237.2 Mbps, Upload Speed of 10.8 Mbps, with a latency of 1 ms.

To this end, Google concluded that Giga’s internet connection is very fast. In fact, the connection is capable of handling multiple devices streaming HD videos, video conferencing, and gaming at the same time.

• Ookla Speed Test (StarHub Ltd Server): Download Speed of 165 Mbps, Upload Speed of 14.2 Mbps, with a ping of 16 ms during idle (6 ms jitter), 25 ms during download (8 ms jitter), and 374 ms during upload (74 ms jitter)

For one thing, both results agree with each other to conclude that my internet connection is very fast and stable. In like manner, I was able to use its mobile service when the MRT train is travelling underground. Hence, you can be assured that you won’t lose any connection in most cases.

Part 3: Two Major Flaws

In spite of its benefits and value, Giga is not a perfect mobile service provider. Well, does a perfect mobile service provider even exist in the first place? In any case, here is one flaw and one striking controversy that you must know prior to signing up with Giga.

Part 3.1: Customer Service

On the whole, you will need tons of patience when you contact Giga’s customer service via its website Live Chat service. Based on my past few encounters, you may need to wait for an average of two to three hours before you get connected to a live agent (via its web chat), if you are lucky enough. To point out, it seems like Giga is still severely understaffed and the management has failed to improve its headcount even after a year. Evidently, netizens on social media platforms like Facebook have echoed the same plight – check out the comments section on most of their Facebook posts. By comparison, its competitor, GOMO, provided speedy responses each time.

In addition to its sluggish live chat service, nobody responded to the emails that I have sent over different time periods. As a result, this raises a huge red flag for sure. Despite that lacklustre support, you may enjoy better luck getting an answer from the knowledge base FAQs section, or the AI generated chat response – which to my surprise, works well.

Part 3.2: Benefits may change over time

When I first wrote this article in September 2021, Giga offers four plans with the following benefits.

• $10 per month: 500 minutes Talktime, 500 SMS, and 6 GB of Data;
• $20 per month: 500 minutes Talktime, 500 SMS, and 40 GB of Data;
• $25 per month: 2,000 minutes Talktime, 2,000 SMS, and 60 GB of Data;
• $45 per month: 10,000 minutes Talktime, 10,000 SMS, and 100 GB of Data.

Since 11th November 2022, Giga has revised the Talktime, SMS, and Data for the four plans. Accordingly,

• $10 per month: 300 minutes Talktime, 300 SMS, and 10 GB of Data;
• $20 per month: 1,000 minutes Talktime, 1,000 SMS, and 100 GB of Data;
• $25 per month: 1,500 minutes Talktime, 1,500 SMS, and 150 GB of Data;
• $45 per month: 5,000 minutes Talktime, 5,000 SMS, and 350 GB of Data.

To summarise the revision on 11th November 2022, Giga has

• Reduced the Talktime for most of its plans by between 25% and 50%;
• Increased the Talktime for one of its plans by 50%;
• Increased the Data for all its plans by between 67% and 350%.

Since 8th March 2024, Giga has streamlined its plans and upsized the data. Now,

• $10.19 per month: 300 minutes Talktime, 300 SMS, and 20 GB of Data;
• $18.33 per month: 800 minutes Talktime, 800 SMS, and 200 GB of Data;
• $20.37 per month: 1,000 minutes Talktime, 1,000 SMS, and 300 GB of Data.

To summarise the latest revision, Giga has

• Removed its top-tier plans that used to provide 1,500 minutes and 5,000 minutes of Talktime;
• Reduced the price for two of its plans by between 8.3% and 18.5%;
• Reduced the Talktime for two of its plans by between 20% to 33%;
• Doubled the Data for all of its plans.

Moreover, Giga has adjusted its price to reflect the 9% GST now.

Overall, it is easy to say that you are getting even more data for the price that you pay today. Consequently, it seems like you are getting more value than before. Despite that, the real question is,

What are your needs?

After all, there are so many no contract SIM-only plans on the market today.

Part 4: Final Thoughts on Giga

All things considered, I have always adored the same life goal – to live more, with less. Through Giga’s offer, I get to pay an affordable and reasonable rate for the mobile service benefits that are sufficient to meet my needs. Besides, I’m not bounded by any contract. In the event that Giga annoys me over the top, I can port out at anytime without being forced to pay a significant penalty. Of course, everything has been ‘giga-tastic’ so far and I hope things continue to be well in the long run.

🎁 Use my referral code er4cri to enjoy $2 discount during your sign up. Yay!

First Published: 2 September 2021
Last Updated: 9 April 2024