One of the more dynamic consumer markets, with considerable development since 2005: mobile broadband (or 3.5G) is finally becoming a reality, while at the same time features offered by handsets have expanded. In terms of networks, the increasing amount of MVNOs has continued to make the market highly competitive.

Mintel defines the mobile phones market as handset manufacturers and network service providers. The report covers mobile phones purchased by consumers and used for domestic and/or business use. Mobile phones (sometimes referred to as cellular phones) are defined as phones that are fully portable and do not rely on a connection to any base unit, instead relying on signals from mobile phone masts of the mobile phone networks operating in the UK.

There are two main types of mobile phone package offered in the UK at present. These are:

• Standard contract or post-pay subscription packages - the customer pays a monthly line rental, with payment usually made via direct debit. Users therefore need to have a bank/building society account and, generally, a good credit rating profile to be accepted onto such packages. Most are also based on a minimum term of 12 months, although one network provider is offering six months. Handsets are usually subsidised by the network provider for new customers and hence tend to be comparatively inexpensive, or even ‘free’ with certain tariffs.
• Contract users can choose from a range of tariffs, depending on how heavily they are likely to use their phone. Most packages offer a 'bundle' of free minutes per month and call charges are generally lower than on prepay schemes.
• Pay-as-you-go packages - the customer buys a mobile phone handset and purchases calls in advance, usually via vouchers but increasingly by using a credit card or via top-up cards. Call charges started off being higher than for contract packages but have fallen in recent years, making such phones more attractive to those who do not use their mobile phones on a regular basis.