Vodacom confirms S6 and S6 Edge pricing. Brace thyself

Mobile operator Vodacom has confirmed it will be offering the new Samsung flagship handsets, the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge, as of Friday this week and has revealed local pricing for the pair of devices, which are arguably the most highly anticipated devices from the Korean electronics giant since the Galaxy S3.

The 32GB version of the Galaxy S6 will cost R12 399 on prepaid, is available in black, white or gold and will come with a free wireless charger and cover worth a combined R1 100. (Read our review here).

Meanwhile, the real star of the show, the 64GB iteration of the Galaxy S6 Edge will cost an eye-watering R16 149 on prepaid and comes in the same colour variations and with the same freebies as its less edgey sibling. We dread to think what the 128GB will cost. Also, Samsung now has the dubious honour of making the iPhone 6 Plus look positively affordable. Yikes.

Both devices are also available on a range of Vodacom contracts, almost all of which have been subject to a nominal price bump that comes into effect next month, much to the ire of consumers.

There’s no word from Vodacom yet as to whether other configurations of Samsung’s new devices will also be available and, if so, what they’ll cost. The full range of devices should, however, be available in Samsung’s own Brand Stores including the two new outlets in Durban and Cape Town announced at the end of last month.

Samsung’s not the only manufacturer bringing new phones to market, LG’s G-Flex 2 is also available from Vodacom from today at a standalone price of R10 149. The first 500 buyers will receive a free Tone Pro headset and a phone case. The G-Flex 2 was first announced at CES and is LG’s second attempt at a curved handset that, in our limited hands-on time with it at the local launch event, proved surprisingly fun to use, even if it does make us want to pretend its a miniature seesaw every time we put it on a flat surface.

As novel as the G-Flex 2 is, one has to wonder how much traction it’ll get given the hype surrounding Samsung’s latest top-end offerings and the inevitable competition from forthcoming devices like HTC’s One M9. It’s a tough time to put out top-end Android phones, but we guess it beats waiting and getting lost in the noise entirely.