In some cases, a subsidised phone does make sense. I've got an S3 for £26/month * 24 months, so £624 lifetime. Even six months later, the phone costs £320 new

In some cases, a subsidised phone does make sense. I've got an S3 for £26/month * 24 months, so £624 lifetime. Even six months later, the phone costs £320 new, and the closest equivalent sim-only contract costs £13/month. That's £632 lifetime, and requires a significant upfront cost. The phone was more expensive to buy new when I took out the contract, and you can get it with no up-front payment on a £21/month contract now, so in both cases it's actually a better deal than presented above. Android 4+ allows you to disable the bloatware, so that's not an issue either.