Score a bargain data package for your mobile
GET THE MOST OUT OF YOUR SMARTPHONE WITH MOBILE PLANS THAT WON’T BREAK THE BANK.
IT’S ALL TOO easy to default to one of the big three telcos when it comes to your mobile plan. These carriers are highly visible, and are typically the first to offer plan options for the latest flagship phones.
But unless you’re specifically looking for a contract plan that lets you pay a phone off in monthly instalments — which is typically how Telstra, Optus and Vodafone reel in customers — you’ll get a much better deal by holding onto your existing phone and seeing what’s available from network resellers such as Vaya, Kogan Mobile, Woolworths Mobile and Virgin Mobile.
These providers — known as MVNOs (mobile virtual network operators) — lease network capacity off one of the big three carriers, and typically provide cheaper plans with higher data allowances. However, you don’t get as many ‘frills’ with these providers.
WITH ALMOST ALL PLANS NOW OFFERING UNLIMITED CALLS AND TEXTS AS STANDARD, IT’S USUALLY THE DATA ALLOWANCE THAT SEPARATES ONE PLAN FROM ANOTHER.
While Telstra, Optus and Vodafone have physical retail presences that you can visit, MVNOs are typically online only, or have SIM cards you can only purchase from post offices and petrol stations. Customer support is typically harder to get a hold of, which can be problematic if your SIM card doesn’t activate properly or you have problems with your data connection. Further, extra features like cheaper movie tickets, unmetered audio and video streaming, and bundled international minutes are usually not included.
With almost all plans now offering unlimited calls and texts as standard, it’s usually the data allowance that separates one plan from another.
The other reason to go with a shorter-term mobile commitment is that plans are getting cheaper by the month. Tying yourself into a contract means you’ll miss out on two whole years of great deals and bargains. Plus, with unlimited mobile data plans just around the corner (Optus offered this to a subsection of customers for a very limited amount of time earlier this year), smart shoppers should abstain from any long-term commitments.
WHERE TO COMPARE PLANS
There are various online comparison engines that let you compare the best mobile plan deals using a variety of criteria such as whether you want to get a new phone with the plan, plan type (prepaid, SIM-only or contract), plan inclusions, and network. The two best sites for comparing mobile plans are Finder ( www.finder.com.au) and WhistleOut ( www.whistleout.com.au). However, before using these engines, it’s worth delving into the main differences between prepaid plans and SIM-only plans. Prepaid plans are an effective way to keep a lid on costs. You pay a set fee, which entitles you to a particular amount of calls, text and data, and this is good for a specific time period, which can be anywhere from 28 days through to the entire year.
There are a few things to look out for when shopping for a prepaid plan. The data included is the most obvious feature, but you should also look to the expiry period if want to get the best bang for your buck.
Most providers have moved from a 30-day recharge window to a 28-day recharge. While two days may not seem like much, this actually works out to one extra recharge over the course of the year — you’ll need to recharge 13 times as opposed to 12. Ovo Mobile, Lebara and Kogan Mobile are among the few that continue to charge in 30-day increments.
Another way to save money is by purchasing longer-term prepaid SIM cards. Kogan Mobile, for instance, offers 365-day plans that come with unlimited credit and 6GB of data per month, which works out to be $25 per month — a saving of $4.90 per month compared with the 30-day recharge plan.
It’s worth noting that Optus and Telstra are unique with their prepaid plans in that any unused data is rolled over if you recharge the plan within the expiry window. If your data usage tends to go up and down, this ensures you can hold onto data to use during heavier usage months.
SIM-ONLY PLANS
SIM-only plans have emerged as the inbetween option for those who don’t want to get stuck in a long-term contract, but still want to access the kinds of great deals that have typically been reserved for postpaid users.
In a SIM-only plan, you are still under contract with the relevant provider, but on limited basis — either 12 months or on a month-to-month agreement.
The main differences from an end user perspective is that you’ll be subject to credit checks as with any mobile contract (which may cause an issue if you’ve defaulted on any credit cards or loans previously), and you also open yourself up to excess usage charges when you go over your data limit (which isn’t possible on a prepaid).
Thankfully, excess data usage charges are nowhere near as expensive as they used to be; once you use all of your data, you’re charged in $10 increments, which gives you an additional 1GB of data each time.
This vulnerability to excess usage charges means telcos have made an effort to make SIM-only plans as tempting as possible. It’s no surprise that the 12-month SIM-only plans are the cheapest of all, with Jeenee Mobile offering an impressive 10GB of data and unlimited national calls and SMS for only $25 a month.
Dial it down to a month-to-month contract, and you can still get good deals, with Vaya offering 10GB plans with unlimited calls and texts for $36 per month — and an extra $2 per month adding 200 minutes of international calls to 100 countries.