Finally. Australia has its first widely available unlimited data phone plan, and surprisingly enough, it's from Telstra and you'll be able to sign-up from May 3. But as we've seen in the US, "unlimited" isn't quite unlimited.
$69 per month will get you 40GB of highspeed 4G data on a 12-month contract. If you manage to burn through all 40GB, you'll be capped to speeds of 1.5Mbps (which, notably, is still fast enough to stream video in standard definition). The plan also includes unlimited talk and text, but no international inclusions.
UPDATE: Just an hour or so after Telstra's announcement, Vodafone took to the wraps off its own unlimited plans (which you'll be able to sign-up for tomorrow). As with Telstra, you get 40GB, 70GB, or 120GB of high-speed 4G data (the bonus data is available until May 22). If you use it all, you'll be capped to speeds of 1.5Mbps. Pricing is as follows:
- $60 per month: 30GB of data + 10GB bonus data, 2000 international minutes to Zone 1 countries
- $80 per month: 60GB of data + 10GB bonus data, 3000 international minutes to Zone 1 countries
- $100 per month: 100GB of data + 20GB bonus data, 4000 international minutes to Zone 1 countries
This is similar to the approach used by US telcos: "unlimited plans" typically include somewhere between 20GB and 35GB of high speed data, after which customers are "deprioritised" and may experience slower speeds during times of congestion. US unlimited plans also tend to restrict the quality at which you can stream video, and include a smaller secondary allowance for when you're using your phone as portable hotspot for other devices.
Vodafone will let you pair its unlimited plans with a new smartphone (that you can pay off over 12, 24, or 36 months) but Telstra's unlimited plan is SIM-only: you'll have to bring your own smartphone. If you want to buy a smartphone on a contract through Telstra, you're currently not able to get unlimited data (although Telstra has also raised allowances on select 24-month plans).
Technically speaking, Optus was the first Australian telco to offer an unlimited mobile plan, but this has been run on an invite-only basis. While Optus says it offers truly unlimited data for $60, customers are restricted to speeds of 1.5Mbps per second when streaming or using their device as a portable hotspot. Heavy data users may be deprioritised, but Optus doesn't provide a fixed cut-off point. Customers taking up Optus unlimited plans are however able to add a second SIM for $50 per month, and a third for $40 per month.
We reached out to Optus to see if it intends to launch these plans widely following Telstra's announcement, but the telco didn't have anything to announce.
Australian telcos and the word "unlimited" have a prickly relationship; in 2011, the Federal Court ruled that Optus was misleading in promoting its broadband plans as unlimited, given that customers would be throttled after exceeding a specified download allowance. However, information about throttling was buried in fine print, rather than presented up front as with these new plans.
While the ACCC does not provide responses about specific cases, a spokesperson told us that "representations that lead consumers into error are likely to raise concerns under the Australian Consumer Law".
We'd say that Telstra and Vodafone have been reasonably transparent in how they're promoted these plans so far, but this is definitely something we'll be keeping our eyes on.
Do you need unlimited data?
As always, it's worth considering whether you actually need an unlimited data plan. The latest ABS Internet Activity Survey suggested the average Australian is still only using 2.2GB of mobile data per month, and while this is on the rise, even the "high speed" 40GB offered by Telstra is a massive leap up.
It's roughly equivalent to watching 160 hours of Netflix on your phone. Of course, if you're relying on your phone as a back-up internet connection or you're regularly tethering on the go, unlimited could be the way to go.
If you don't need quite as much data but want to go with Telstra, it could be worth considering the telco's $49 plan with 15GB of data or its $59 plan with 25GB of data.
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#1
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Telstra
$44 Pre-Paid Mobile
$44.00
Per 28 Day Renewal
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#2
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Telstra
$54 Pre-Paid Mobile
$54.00
Per 28 Day Renewal
Link not supplied
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UPDATE (01/05/2018 - 1:42pm): Updated story to include Vodafone's unlimited data mobile plans
UPDATE 2 (01/05/2018 - 4:45pm): Updated with comment from ACCC
UPDATE 3 (01/05/2018 - 5:10pm): Vodafone has increased data allowances on its unlimited plans
Alex Choros
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