Optus’ New World Order: All Mobile Plans Compared

Optus has gone and “done a Telstra“. This week, the telco announced massive changes to its mobile phone business with all existing plans replaced by a core suite of pre-built and BYO options. Here are the plans!

Optus has dispensed with hundreds of legacy mobile plans as it looks to consolidate its consumer offerings. While there are fewer core plans available, the focus is very much on choice and flexibility, with customers able to tailor plans to suit their specific usage habits.

There’s now a choice between four Pre-Built plans (which you can find below) and multiple Build Your Own options (which allow customers to adjust the amount of monthly data, international calls and roaming data they receive each month.)

All plans are contract-free, which means you’re free to cancel at any time without any penalty fees. Customers can also add or remove features month-to-month. (Increasing roaming data during an overseas trip, for example.)

Optus’ new pre-built plans

Here’s the complete lineup of new pre-built plans. Click on our interactive table for a full list of inclusions.

As you can see, Optus is doing away with stupidly small data caps – the lowest amount you can get now is 10GB. But for most people the $49 plan will provide the best bang-for-buck, with 60GB of data per month. (For an extra $10 you can up that to 100GB which is also a pretty good deal.)

All of the plans above are compatible with Optus’ 5G network, although you will need to be in a supported suburb with a 5G-compatible phone to see any benefits. (There are currently around 300 5G mobile sites live which you can see here.)

Customers who choose a 5G-capable handset on selected plans will also receive double the usual data allowance. Bonus.

Optus’ new smartphone plans

Optus has also changed how handset repayments work. You can opt to pay off your device outright or in interest-free repayments over 12, 24 or 36 months. The aforementioned contracts are just for the phone. Naturally, you will still need to pay off what’s owing on the phone if you decide to cancel your plan.

Here are some of the most popular phones available on Optus’ new plans:

[referenced url=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/2019/06/new-telstra-plans-how-do-the-prices-and-extras-stack-up/” thumb=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2018/01/telstra-410×231.jpg” title=”Telstra’s New Plans: How Do The Prices Stack Up?” excerpt=”Telstra has been consolidating its mobile plans for a while now. Today, it took another bold step, with four new contract-free plans set to replace everything else. These new plans, theoretically, simplify things for customers. But do you lose anything by going contract-free? And what are the benefits? Let’s take a look.”]

Introducing Optus One

In addition to the above, Optus is launching a new premium-tier plan called Optus One for $119 per month. It provides the following perks:

• Dedicated One-to-One Personal Care
• Generous Plan inclusions for use at home and when you travel
• Network Priority
• Exclusive Content on Optus Sport

The inclusion of “Network Priority” may raise a few eyebrows. Does that mean customers on cheap plans will be deliberately saddled to a worse service during network congestion? Or what?

Our sister-site Gizmodo has some interesting things to say about this, which you can read here.

What happens to my current Optus plan?

As Australia’s second biggest telecommunications provider, there are bound to be a lot existing customers anxious about how these changes affect them. Much like Telstra, your existing plan should be safe – for now.

However, you can expect to be rolled over to the closest equivalent option at some point in the future. (Optus will contact you beforehand and you should be able to cancel your contract without penalty if you decide the new plans aren’t for you.)

[referenced url=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/2019/10/telstra-vs-optus-new-plan-showdown/” thumb=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2019/08/Optus-Telstra-410×231.jpg” title=”Telstra Vs Optus: New Plan Showdown [Updated]” excerpt=”Australia’s two biggest telcos – Telstra and Optus – have both given their range of phone plans a fresh coat of paint recently. Now that they’ve rejigged their offering, who comes out on top?”]