In a surprising move, Telstra is now offering an “unlimited” mobile data plan for $69/month on a 12 month BYO (Bring-Your-Own-phone) plan.
I put quotes around the unlimited bit because there is actually a capped speed when you reach a certain quota. At this stage, it’s 40GB.
Of course, it makes sense to put a cap on the data allowance because people most likely will be abusing the network when things go unlimited (it’s why we can’t have nice things). Whether 40GB is good enough as a cap, I’ll leave that debate over to the mercy of the internet peeps.
So, within the 40GB data limit, you’ll get the full speed of Telstra’s fast network but after that, the joy ride is kind of over because your speed will be capped to 1.5Mbps. It’s good enough if you are using it for social media, emailing, and casual browsing – but definitely not when you need to upload big files or stream movies from Netflix.
Telstra’s Endless Data Plan will be available on the 3rd of May, according to Finder. As to what’s included:
I’m currently living on a 2.5GB data per month on the Telstra $30/month pre-paid plan. It’s barely enough as I have to keep reminding myself not to open Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram too often when I’m walking up and about, out of my Wi-Fi range.
A 40GB mobile plan per month, for the promise of an “unlimited” mobile data plan, may or may not be enough to some. It’s probably a clearer footprint compared to a “Fair use policy applies” because fairness is rated differently from one person to the other.
However, it’s a good start in Australia, really.
