Optus broadband dumps excess usage into affordable 1GB blocks

Joseph Hanlon - Editorial Director

Last updated 04 June 2013

optus-4g

Optus today announced big changes to its mobile broadband offering, ditching per megabyte excess usage charges in favour of 1GB blocks.

With the new plans, customers choose a monthly data allowance as usual, but if they exceed this data level they are automatically allocated an additional 1GB for an extra $10. Further data blocks are added to the account as needed, up to a maximum of 20GB extra in a single month.

The downside is that you will pay $10 regardless of whether you use the entire 1GB of extra data or not.

The excess usage fee is cheap compared with competitors Vodafone and Telstra, though. At $0.02 per MB, excess usage on Vodafone totals $20 for 1GB. The same on Telstra will set you back $100.

The plans range in price from $20 to $60 per month for a SIM-only on a month-to-month contract, with the option to add a tablet or modem device on 24-month contracts. An iPad on the $60 per month plan costs an extra $28 per month, for example.

In compliance with the latest ACMA guidelines, the Optus mobile broadband service includes usage alerts for customers at 50%, 85% and 100% of their monthly data allowance.

Joseph Hanlon

Editorial Director | X | LinkedIn

Joe Hanlon has been immersed in mobile phones, plans and the internet for over a decade, having written for publications like CNET, Techradar, Gizmodo and Lifehacker. He steers the editorial ship and makes sure that we are always serving up the most useful guides and recommendations. If you ever bump into Joe on the street, don't be afraid to ask for a phone recommendation. It's embarrassing how much he enjoys talking about this stuff. He also loves listening to podcasts, so feel free to email Joe with recommendations.

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