Samsung’s Galaxy S5 goes on sale on 11 April, and you can place pre-orders from 9am on 27 March. Telstra, Optus, Virgin Mobile and Vodafone are all offering the phone on contract, but who has the best deal? We’ve rounded up all the offers.
Given Samsung’s dominance of the Android space, this is likely to be the biggest phone launch of the year. The most visible change is the fingerprint scanner. You can check out the full specifications for the device in Gizmodo’s overview. Here, we’re concentrating on the contract deals that are available.
We’re not huge fans of buying phones on contract, but given the expensive list price for the S5 — $929 is the official outright price. though Telstra is selling it for $912, though grey importers are likely to offer it a little cheaper — many people will choose that option.
In the table below, we’ve listed all the consumer plans that have been announced so far, including the monthly plan and handset costs, the total cost over the life of the contract, the amount of included data (in MB), the amount of call credit included and texting options. If you’re having trouble viewing the table on a mobile device, you can see it as a PDF here.
| Carrier | Plan cost | Handset | Contract | Total | Data (MB) | Call credit | Text |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Optus | $35.00 | $26.00 | 24 | $1,464.00 | 200 | 200 minutes | Unlimited |
| Optus | $50.00 | $21.00 | 24 | $1,704.00 | 500 | 450 minutes | Unlimited |
| Optus | $60.00 | $16.00 | 24 | $1,824.00 | 1500 | 600 minutes | Unlimited |
| Optus | $80.00 | $11.00 | 24 | $2,184.00 | 2000 | 800 minutes | Unlimited |
| Optus | $100.00 | $7.00 | 24 | $2,568.00 | 3000 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Telstra | $55.00 | $26.00 | 24 | $1,944.00 | 500 | $550.00 | Unlimited |
| Telstra | $70.00 | $12.00 | 24 | $1,968.00 | 1500 | $700.00 | Unlimited |
| Telstra | $95.00 | $6.00 | 24 | $2,424.00 | 2500 | $950.00 | Unlimited |
| Telstra | $130.00 | $4.00 | 24 | $3,216.00 | 3000 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Virgin Mobile | $30.00 | $27.00 | 24 | $1,368.00 | 200 | $200.00 | From value |
| Virgin Mobile | $40.00 | $23.00 | 24 | $1,512.00 | 500 | $450.00 | From value |
| Virgin Mobile | $50.00 | $18.00 | 24 | $1,632.00 | 1000 | $500.00 | Unlimited |
| Virgin Mobile | $60.00 | $13.00 | 24 | $1,752.00 | 1500 | $700.00 | Unlimited |
| Virgin Mobile | $90.00 | $3.00 | 24 | $2,232.00 | 3000 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Virgin Mobile | $140.00 | $0.00 | 24 | $3,360.00 | 6000 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Vodafone | $30.00 | $28.00 | 24 | $1,392.00 | 200 | $200.00 | From value |
| Vodafone | $40.00 | $24.00 | 24 | $1,536.00 | 500 | $250.00 | Unlimited |
| Vodafone | $50.00 | $19.00 | 24 | $1,656.00 | 1000 | $500.00 | Unlimited |
| Vodafone | $60.00 | $44.00 | 12 | $1,248.00 | 1500 | $700.00 | Unlimited |
| Vodafone | $60.00 | $14.00 | 24 | $1,776.00 | 1500 | $700.00 | Unlimited |
| Vodafone | $65.00 | $42.00 | 12 | $1,284.00 | 1500 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Vodafone | $65.00 | $14.00 | 24 | $1,896.00 | 1500 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Vodafone | $80.00 | $36.00 | 12 | $1,392.00 | 2500 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Vodafone | $80.00 | $4.00 | 24 | $2,016.00 | 2500 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Vodafone | $100.00 | $26.00 | 12 | $1,512.00 | 5000 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Vodafone | $100.00 | $0.00 | 24 | $2,400.00 | 5000 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
These are the regular prices. Optus is offering an extra 500MB of data on the $60 plan for customers who pre-order. Vodafone is offering to double data on all plans costing $60 a month or more until 1 July. Virgin Mobile is doubling data on the $60 and $90 plans for pre-orders. As ever, 12 month plans are only available through Vodafone, and are much more expensive. Cheaper plans have data allocations that are so small as to be meaningless, and some are fiscally insane (Telstra’s cheapest plan offers one-third of the data but costs essentially the same as the next one up).
Telstra and Optus are also offering the new Gear Fit wristband. Both have it for $10 a month if you also buy a phone on contract; Telstra sells it outright for $249; Optus has it for $240.
Which plan you choose will depend on a variety of factors. Reception matters, but you can’t automatically assume coverage from a given network even if your address is listed on a map. If you plan to switch networks, borrow a phone from a friend or relative on that network and see how it works for you.
Lifehacker’s weekly Planhacker column rounds up the best communication deals.
Comments
5 responses to “Planhacker: All The Samsung Galaxy S5 Contract Deals (Updated)”
Moar glorious tables <3 Good work Angus 🙂
200MB …seriously? Who needs unlimited text these days?
Optus online said they dont offer the Gear Fit @ $10/month
You:the gear is also $10 a month isnt it?
Ronald D:No, we don’t offer gear watch under a plan, you need to visit out online accessories sites and buy it for outright.
You:Telstra and Optus are also offering the new Gear Fit wristband. Both have it for $10 a month if you also buy a phone on contract; Telstra sells it outright for $249; Optus has it for $240.
You:is this correct?
Ronald D:just curious to know, from where did you get the information?
You:http://www.lifehacker.com.au/2014/03/planhacker-all-the-samsung-galaxy-s5-contract-deals-in-australia/
Ronald D:Thanks. I’ll check on the above link.
ill be waiting a few months for reviews before making the plunge anyway 🙂
I’d say staff training isn’t done: it’s mentioned in Optus’ press release https://media.optus.com.au/media-releases/2014/optus-pre-orders-lift-off-for-samsung-galaxy-s5
I’d say staff training isn’t done: it’s mentioned in Optus’ press release https://media.optus.com.au/media-releases/2014/optus-pre-orders-lift-off-for-samsung-galaxy-s5
Anyone continuing with the same carrier from their last contract can try and save a bit of money by calling retentions and seeing if you can get a discount by threatening to leave. Works better if you can show a better value plan from another carrier or MVNO.
I have done this with Optus a few times. It helped that they have been my only carrier. My last discount was $12 a month.
The price could drop significantly when/after Sony Xperia Z2 is released, as Sony Z2 has better specs so Galaxy S5′ price must come down otherwise people would simply go to Sony.
So it is wise to wait. It will not be long.
Generally Z2 should be released about 1 month after Galaxy S5, except some in the UK might get the Sony Z2 nearly at the same time as the Galaxy S5.
Just spend most of my (work :P) day making my own list, if only I’d seen this sooner! Awesome work.
Although thinking about buying it outright (Officeworks $888) and going in a Vaya 4G $19 plan. Should be about $1,300 over 24mths.
Thoughts? Any chance of an article on 4G BYO plans?