Not sure if your plan is doing you justice anymore? One of the smaller Telstra-owned brands is getting data costs below its big brother.
Mobile plans can feel pretty same-same these days, and there’s a pretty clear reason as to why: they typically are.
Every mobile provider with a post-paid plan tends to offer unlimited local calls and unlimited texts, with the main point of difference being how much data you have on offer, and then maybe what the extras include, such as 5G access or roaming costs. With so few of us roaming while we’re stuck in the country — thanks, coronavirus — that last one is largely moot.
That makes the argument of which plan to go for often one between how much data you’re going to need, how much you want to spend, and whether you want 5G access or not. If you’re already over the latter and don’t need it in your life — ideally if you don’t have a 5G phone or don’t live within reach of a 5G network — you’re probably weighing up price to data costs with your mobile bill.
There’s already quite a bit of an offering in that area, but another telco is throwing their hands in with some more choice this week, as Telstra’s own virtual operator Belong announces it has refreshed its plans this year.
There are three for the moment, though one is listed as a promotional plan for the moment, with Belong getting the cost of data down even below its sibling Telstra’s plans.
Essentially, the refreshed Telstra Belong plans all offer large data amounts under $50 per month, with $25 getting 20GB monthly, $35 getting 40GB monthly, and $45 netting 80GB monthly. Each plan reportedly supports data top ups and roll over — so you can increase your data monthly if you didn’t use all of it last time — as well as data gifting, ideal if you have friends and family on Belong and you have data to spare.
“We’ve simplified our plans to ensure that we’re continuing to meet and exceed the needs and expectations of our customers,” said Jana Kotatko, CEO of Belong.
“We’ve always structured our offers to ensure Australians have greater choice not only in finding a plan, but how they use it,” she said.
The result means Telstra’s virtual telco of Belong is now playing properly against the smaller virtual operator offerings from Optus and Vodafone, with Optus’ Gomo offering 18GB monthly for $25, while Vodafone’s Felix offers unlimited downloads capped at 20Mbps for $35.
There is, of course, plenty of competition in the cut-cost mobile world beyond the smaller sub-brands of Telstra, Optus, and Vodafone, though all three of these do share something in common: none of them will work on the 5G network.
However, as Belong is part of Telstra’s voice network, it should also be included as part of Telstra’s approach on weeding out scam calls, which also works on other mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) that use Telstra.
The point of Belong’s change, however, appears one focused not just on competing with Gomo (Optus) or Felix (Vodafone), but giving customers a little more for their dollar, because value clearly matters.
