Mobile plans

[DexterPunk]

Whats the best around these days?? im looking to get off Telstra.. but i have a 3G phone. So all i need is a plan .. none of this $0 fones etc... surely theirs some good plans around if you already have a phone? at the moment im paying $49 a month for around $300 worth of calls + txt.

[Doso]

300 dollars of calls + text but at what cost

If i said I'm going to give you 1 million dollars of credit each month for $30 bucks but charge you $50,000 per 30 seconds for calls, it isn't a good deal! just marketing!

[ysu]

I don't think there's such a thing ever as 'best plan'. They are all different, some are better value for what you use your phone, some are worse. Add to it the fact that each telco has about 50 different plans (of which they advertise about 10)

eg. I'm using pre-paid, and it is the best value for me; I'm receiving far more calls than I'm making. I also hate to be locked into a contract for two years. If I need to call someone, I make sure I'm calling their landline.
So the best plan for me is the pre-paid. I don't think there are many other people who can claim the same

[Doso]

you are not generally locked into a 24 mounth plan unless you get a phone in that contract otherwise post piad simply is a month by month agreement

[dvestate]

I was actually going to signup to a Virgin plan (bring my own phone etc) but in the fine print it stated that I had to sing up for 24 months!!!!

So make sure when you sign up its a month to month if that is what you are after

[ysu]

Interesting info Doso, I've been looking around in local dealer shops, the only plans they could offer were
- prepaid
- min 12 mths (optus) the rest were all min 24 mths

I'd like to find out more about no-minimum committment contracts - or 6 months at most. My phone use is on the increase as the business picks up...

And sorry for hijacking the thread, Dex You can shoot me in the back in L4D for it

[DexterPunk]

haha no worries man... i dont yet know what im gunna do, so any related chat is helpfull.

[wabbit]

Dex, whats the name of plan are your currently on anyways? And does it include much data?

[DexterPunk]

i was wrong, its $250 ($200 + some $50 bonus crap) of calls/text... no data... 40c per 30s. its just the 3G $49 cap plan.

[DexterPunk]

3 seem to be offering new iPhones for about $5 a month on their $49 cap ... with $350 calls and text, $240 extra to 3 users, 250MB a month data....

currently paying $49 a month for $250 calls and text, and thats with a phone ive paid off.... no data allowance.

I need to check what the call rates are but that sounds pretty good... id be paying the same as i already am, and have a new phone, and more calls and texts, and at least a bit of net usage. Only downside is i would have a contract for 24 months, i currently have no months... and worse coverage?

[NeilPearson]

i want out of telstra aswell, i just have to wait a whole year until my current plan runs out. damn you iphone!

[DexterPunk]

i just dont think their plans are competitive enough... sure they have the best coverage but thats not worth their costs. tbh, im not really sure that using 3 will effect me as far as coverage, im almost always in the melb CBD or around the suburbs.

[Dan]

I use to be with 3 before work started paying for my Telstra phone and it was cheap and I never had drop outs... I do recall 3 going to the NextG network. The only thing that fails for 3 is the customer service...

If I left my current job, I would be choosing 3 again.

[DexterPunk]

went to 3 today to get an iPhone on the $49 cap plan......... seems whole of melb is out of stock.. my mate got one from the same store friday arvo.. and they already have none left Damn all the iPhone fanbois... they wouldnt let me order one either.... or put one aside. I havnt been all that bothered about an iphone in the passed, but for some reason now that i can't have one, i want one more haha.

[Nigel]

I love my iPhone.

[DexterPunk]

Yeah I'm petty into mine already.

[norbs]

Who has the old iPhone, pre 3gS?

[wabbit]

...i have both. But lent the oldie to a work mate, question?

[norbs]

How much of a difference is there? I might be able to grab a 3G that is 4 months old for $200.

[wabbit]

How much of a difference is there? I might be able to grab a 3G that is 4 months old for $200.

The reason i bought the new one was purely because of speed, watch some youtube vids comparing the two. Speed when launching an app, switching between two (quit & open another), typing, net browsing (400kB/s is great on Optus 3G), spotlight as examples. The whole phone is much better overall due to the new CPU & extra ram. What i didn't expect was the big increase in battery life. I use the phone all the time (read: Its glued to my hand). I can't recommend the 3G at all over the 3GS, I know its cheaper but you'll be stuck with a much slower phone/experience for 12-24 months... not so fun.

For a 3G user, ever left you phone on for a week or two, run Maps.app > search for a place (ie: post office), tap find my location and while its doing all of that, tap back in the address field... yes i know its thinking very hard & you've asked it to perform many tasks at once... still waiting? Yay now try typing... slow isn't it. With a 3GS its all instant. It's the daily stuff we all do on iPhones that the 3GS just flogs the pants off the 3G.

[Enforcer-J]

I'm looking at getting a 3mobile iphone as my telstra contract has expired finally.

$60 per month including $350 calls and 500mb net usage. Best deal I could find and 3 have been recommended by a few friends as the least crappest provider lol.

Will 500mb dowloads get me much? I will probably only d/l apps i feel will actually be handy to use (GPS for example)

[pixelboy]

Vodafones $69 is better value.. free 16gb on 24month..

http://www.vodafone.com.au/personal/iphone/

I am tempted as i'm off contract soon also. But I also want to see what happens here with the palm pre.....

[petey]

I got the above ^ just the other day, got the only one in store (which was white) and I was after white anyway so I'm stoked.

I also chucked insurance in for 10$ a month more ($275 excess) incase for some reason I bugger it up.


And actually I must say, vodafone reception compared to telstra down here is sh*thouse. Rarely will it stick in 3G for a decent amount of time and it takes ages for it to switch to EDGE and get reception at my house out in the sticks. Yet I get Next G wireless broadband no problems at all out here.

[Enforcer-J]

Vodafones $69 is better value.. free 16gb on 24month..

Not really, it's $10 for an extra 500mb downloads and $50 worth of calls (which I wouldn't use anyway)... unless I've missed something?

You gotta spend $150 a month to get one on Telstra...

[NeilPearson]

vodafone are far more expensive on txts aswell. i was looking at this yesterday, 3 is the cheapest in plans and whatnot.

im after a 3Gs 16gb, 3 have it for $49 cap (+$5 a month for phone) for $350 worth of calls and 250 mb of data a month, 25c txts and 40c for every 30 second block. + $250 worth of calls to other 3 customers.

vodafone is $69 a month, with free phone, $400 txt and calls, with 1gb of data 28c txts and 40 cents for every 30 second block. can choose an option of free calls to vodafone or 100 free txts. or another option i cannot remember.

With the iphone you dont need that much data tbh, if you have a wireless router then you can just hook it upto that. Im on telstra, and paying through the arse, and on my 150 data allowance i have yet to go over it. im hooked up to wireless at both home and my gf's house and yeah its all good. i do use it alot at work with twitter and facebook.


EnJ, have to remember, that with the iphone it cannot do 2 things at once. (except music) so if your using the GPS and you need to txt/call someone well it will cancel out the gps.