One of The Register's hacks came face-to-face last week with an offer from Vodafone that just didn't add up - in any currency*. After falling for the hype about mobile phone radiation giving you flat feet, or whatever, our reporter popped into his local mobile phone outlet – in this case a Vodafone shop – to buy one of those cases that makes your phone bulkier and less likely to kill you. "That'll be £19.99," the Vodafone shop assistant said. "But we've got a special offer on – if you buy a hands-free kit, you get the two accessories for £24.99 each." Never one to miss out on a bargain, our lone Vulture enquired after the regular price of the hands-free kit, in anticipation of all the money he was about to save. "Normally, they're £29.99," came the answer. Hmmm. Let's see, two accessories which can be bought separately for a total of £49.98, or if you take advantage of the Vodafone special offer, can be bought as a bundle for err, £49.98. Now that's a really special offer. With that sort of creative thinking found running amok at the UK's leading mobile operator, it's not hard to see why Mannesmann is reluctant to give into its hostile takeover bid. ® See also: *Confusion reigns over Mannesmann bid Man beaten to death for using mobile phone in pub Schroeder and Blair tussle over Vodafone bid Mannesmann humiliated in court as Vodafone goes hostile Mannesmann rejects Vodafone's £64bn bid