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Will soon be looking to buy 2 mobile phones; one for me, one for my wife. Have never had a mobile in Australia, so I don't need to think about getting out of contracts, switching or anything similar.

I tried looking at various websites, but the amount of plans/options/clauses can be quite overwhelming.

I will just be looking for something cheap that can make phone calls and send e-mail (text); don't want the latest model or any other bells or whistles.

Does anyone have any suggestions about good companies/plans? Alternatively, share your horror stories about things that should be avoided.

Would be very grateful.

Ive been with 3 for about 3 years now after giving Telstra the flick and am very happy.
Better value and better phones for cheaper prices.
You can't got past a Nokia, I got a N70 which is kind of a "smart phone" which browses the internet, sends emails, plays movies, mp3s, games, takes photos and videos etc and it sets me back $10pm over 24 months ($240 full cost for phone).
Im on the $29 cap which means the most I pay for a month is $29, usually in the low 20s though.
Just checked the Three site and you can get Nokias for free (obviously with not as many bells and whistles as mine) on the $29 cap.

Im pretty happy with my Optus pre paid.
For $30 credit i get 50 free text, 100 free minutes to any mobile and 150 mins to chosen Optus numbers, works out very well for me, all the people i have to call are optus!

"Sorry about that Chief!"

If you want a good economical option running on Optus try this http://www.isim.com.au/Prepaid/Home.aspx
It does not offer all the expensive rhubarb like extremely slow and expensive internet access however!

The minimum spend works out to $20 per year and I average about $6 a month.

I am on vodafone prepaid, top value. free calls vodafone 2 vodafone all day (20c connection fee), bonus call credit when top up over phone with credit card. A few options free calls between 8pm-8am if select night talker.
I have been on prepaid for 5 years now and will never go back onto a contract. If I want a new phone I just pay for one outright, last one cost me $199 for Sony Ericsson Z550i, havent had any troubles with that one.

Have looked at the links you have all suggested; thanks.

Some areas where I'm completely in the dark:

1) I don't quite understand these "cap" plans. If it's a $30 cap plan (for instance), does that mean that you pay $30 every month no matter how much or how little you use the phone? Or, that you can use up to $30 of calls, and then your phone doesn't work until the first of the next month (would seem unlikely to be popular if that is the case)?

2) Is a "cap plan" the same as "pre-paid"?

3) Am I right in thinking that the general rule seems to be:- Either I have to (A) spend a lot on a phone initially, but then only pay for each phone call as you go - no monthly fees/minimum cost; or (B) get a free/much cheaper phone at the start, but I'm then locked in to some 24 month contract that means I have to pay each month, no matter how little I use the phone?

Sploosh wrote:Have looked at the links you have all suggested; thanks.

Some areas where I'm completely in the dark:

1) I don't quite understand these "cap" plans. If it's a $30 cap plan (for instance), does that mean that you pay $30 every month no matter how much or how little you use the phone? Or, that you can use up to $30 of calls, and then your phone doesn't work until the first of the next month (would seem unlikely to be popular if that is the case)?

2) Is a "cap plan" the same as "pre-paid"?

3) Am I right in thinking that the general rule seems to be:- Either I have to (A) spend a lot on a phone initially, but then only pay for each phone call as you go - no monthly fees/minimum cost; or (B) get a free/much cheaper phone at the start, but I'm then locked in to some 24 month contract that means I have to pay each month, no matter how little I use the phone?

1) As I understand it the "cap" means it can cost you up to that amount but not more, but there may be a "minimum spend" clause in the contract that means you get charged that much whether you use it or not. I have heard that some such plans work like this unless you exceed a certain level, then you are paying for the lot - e.g. $30 a month and up to $100 worth of calls [at their inflated rates per call] for the $30, but make $101.00 worth of calls and it costs you $101.00. I am not absolutely sure because I have never used one of these plans - I never spend that much.

2) No - cap plans are contracts with some sort of limit to the potential cost - but watch the fine print as referred to above.

3) Phones are cheaper on plans because the cost of the phone is built into the amount they think they can fleece you of over the life of the contract. No potential to fleece you means you pay the full cost for the phone outright. Watch out for cheap deals on phones where you discover that the phone is locked to one phone company and they may agree to unlock it for an exorbitant fee if you want to change companies.

To save money buy your phone outright, making sure it is not locked to one telco, then choose the prepaid plan that is best for you. The deals are made to look attractive, but the telcos never actually give anything away. That's why I use iSim - I bought one of their phones for my wife - they are cheap because they are older models without all the latest features. For myself I bought a really tiny phone overseas that would fit in a shirt pocket and just put one of their SIM cards in it. Older models tend to not be locked to one telco but newer ones tend to be - it is similar to Digital Rights Management for music.

Psyber, thank you VERY much for all of that information and advice. Looks like buying a cheap model and then using pre-paid is definitely the way to go in my case, as I probably won't use it a whole lot.

You are able to use one you picked up overseas? Hmm... I still have my Japanese one, but assumed it would only work in Japan. Perhaps I'll take it to Australia and see if it happens to work (I'm sure it could not be that simple...)

Psyber wrote:If you want a good economical option running on Optus try this http://www.isim.com.au/Prepaid/Home.aspx
It does not offer all the expensive rhubarb like extremely slow and expensive internet access however!

The minimum spend works out to $20 per year and I average about $6 a month.

I have been reading up on this a lot; is it something that has to be done completely online? i.e. you can't get the isim deal by going to an Optus shop?

Ive got a LG 8330 that you can have for $50. It is locked into the 3 network. It is in good condition. I have not used it for about 6 months. PM me if anyone wants to buy it. Ive got all the stuff that goes with it... cables,chargers etc etc.. hey .. I'll even chuck in a spare battery.. never used before..

Leave them at home when you go to gigs?

Sploosh wrote:

Psyber wrote:If you want a good economical option running on Optus try this http://www.isim.com.au/Prepaid/Home.aspx
It does not offer all the expensive rhubarb like extremely slow and expensive internet access however!

The minimum spend works out to $20 per year and I average about $6 a month.

I have been reading up on this a lot; is it something that has to be done completely online? i.e. you can't get the isim deal by going to an Optus shop?

Yes, online only, the Optus shops don't appear to even know it exists. Overseas bought phones are fine so long as they work on the same frequencies as your supplier of choice here. iSim would reply to an email telling you what frequency they are on - but it is the standard Optus frequency, which an Optus shop can tell you. If your phone is not locked to a particular Telco and would work with a standard Optus prepaid SIM it will work with iSim.

My phone is a "Golden Age" from Taiwan - uses the three common bands. I think it is only the US that is out of synch.

i love being on a cap... i use my phone A LOT!!! my cap is $39 a month through Telstra and i get $250 worth of talk/ text... if i go over that $250, then I have to pay for those additional calls/ text... i think it depends on how much you are going to use the phone.

bay_girl23 wrote:i love being on a cap... i use my phone A LOT!!! my cap is $39 a month through Telstra and i get $250 worth of talk/ text... if i go over that $250, then I have to pay for those additional calls/ text... i think it depends on how much you are going to use the phone.

Yep, I'm the silent type - rarely exceed $6.00 per month. You either work or you chat.

I too am on the 3 network (excellent for 3G coverage and video calling)... my plan is 49.00 cap which includes up to 300 bucks worth of talk, text and international calls. i am pretty sure 3 have a deal where you can get 2 x nokias (the new slide up variety) on the 29.00 cap.

TroyGFC wrote:I am on vodafone prepaid, top value. free calls vodafone 2 vodafone all day (20c connection fee), bonus call credit when top up over phone with credit card. A few options free calls between 8pm-8am if select night talker.
I have been on prepaid for 5 years now and will never go back onto a contract. If I want a new phone I just pay for one outright, last one cost me $199 for Sony Ericsson Z550i, havent had any troubles with that one.

their network coverage is absolute crap.. this weekend at port broughton 175 k out of adelaide those of my family who use voda had no coverage at all, optus was scratchy to say the least, yet my 3 phone (which utilises the telstra network) worked brilliantly all weekend.

Sploosh wrote:You are able to use one you picked up overseas? Hmm... I still have my Japanese one, but assumed it would only work in Japan. Perhaps I'll take it to Australia and see if it happens to work (I'm sure it could not be that simple...)

the phone would work, but you'd probably need a new sim card or something- & an agreement of some sort.

Punk Rooster wrote:

Sploosh wrote:You are able to use one you picked up overseas? Hmm... I still have my Japanese one, but assumed it would only work in Japan. Perhaps I'll take it to Australia and see if it happens to work (I'm sure it could not be that simple...)

the phone would work, but you'd probably need a new sim card or something- & an agreement of some sort.

Hmmm... well, I'll bring it and see. Would be great to have something that can still display Japanese characters as well as English. The information I've got in this thread from everyone has been great; thanks.