Telstra iPhone 4 plans fail to impress
Telstra’s iPhone 4 plans fail to impress, after Telstra made an aggressive play with the company’s iPad data plans hopes were high that the company’s iPhone 4 plans would be similarly priced.
Telstra’s iPhone 4 plans pricing should maybe not come as a surprise, but with a number of iPhone 3G customers coming off their 24 month contracts with rivals Optus and Vodafone now would have been an ideal time for Telstra to sign customers looking to switch to another mobile network. Telstra is positioning the iPhone 4 16GB model at no upfront cost on a $79 Cap Plan or above when signing up to a 24 month plan, but cripples the iPhone 4 with only 500MB of included data per month. Equipping the iPhone 4 with only 500mb of included data cripples the device, as many will be forced to bundle in additional data packs at $19 for 500Mb or $39 for 1Gb per month.
Telstra’s NextG 3G network can certainly command a price premium for data intensive users of the iPhone 4, but not to the levels of Telstra’s current price structure. Rival Optus’ iPhone 4 plans will give customers a ‘free’ iPhone 4 16GB on a $59 cap plan and include a much healthier 2Gb of data per month. to bundle in that quantity of data on an equivalent Telstra plan would almost double the Optus’ price per month.
Telstra’s Executive Director of Consumer Rebekah O’Flaherty was quick to push the importance of paying a premium for Telstra’s Next G network for the iPhone 4.
“We are looking forward to bringing the next generation of iPhone to Australians on the country’s largest and fastest national mobile network – the Next G network,” she said.
“Our customers are counting down to the launch and we have some great value Cap Plans to make the most of iPhone 4 when it arrives in Australia. We know our iPhone 4 customers will love the speed and coverage available on the Next G network as they browse the mobile net, update their social networks and send email on the move.” O’Flaherty said.
Telstra's iPad cap plans start at $49, but incur large upfront charges
Telstra has a range of iPhone 4 plans tailored for business users, for further information or to register in the iPhone 4 on Telstra customers can visit www.telstra.com/iphone4.
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well guess what… when your 3G network is far superior to that of your competitors you can pretty much charge what you want… why are people still surprised by that?
Keep in mind that it’s very difficult to use 2GB of data on the Optus 3G network with it’s glacial speed and spotty coverage (having used it the last two years).
Telstra broadband is NOT the same product as Optus’ and Vodafone’s.
Telstra’s problem is that they want to lock you into a 12 month contract even if you bring you own device.
Bollocks.
Firstly, a 500MB data allowance will not “cripple” the device – I reckon most iPhone users won’t use that much in a month. Secondly, the included data allowance counts as credit if you wish to go to a larger pack – so a 3gig pack (normally $49) will be discounted by $20 (normal price for 500MB), so you can get an extra 2.5gig for $29. It’s still not the cheapest, but the NextG network is by far the best network in Australia. I’ve hated Telstra for the last few years because they’re the only network with coverage at my workplace and they’ve charged me a fortune for it – in the last few months they’ve greatly improved their value to the point where I can actually recommend them to people. You get what you pay for…