Vodafone really needs to lift its game with the Sim Only Caps it has out in the market at the moment. Seriously there is more value in going Prepaid. Firstly at $55 you only receive 1GB of data where as plans from Exetel and Spin give you 2 and even 3GB of data plus free social internet. Even when you look at the call credits available in these plans they are so far behind most plans available out there. The only consolation is that at the $35 and the $55 Caps you have access to unlimited calls to Vodafone phones.

Bare in mind that this feature (free and unlimited calls to Vodafone) is also available via the following prepaid mobile plans: Txt & Data Recharge (at all recharge levels).

Probably the only other good thing about these plans is that the call rate at 45c per 30 seconds when many of the plans are at 49c. 5c is really not going to make a major change when you are being charged in the high 40s.

Hold on wait, the Infinite Plans make up for all of this. Four plans are available, the $45, $65, $85 and the $100. All of them offer you unlimited calls and text to anyone and anywhere. They also have loads of data starting with 500MB on the $45 plan and increasing to 4GB on the $100 plan. All plans also come with unlimited social network access, covering Facebook, Twitter, eBay, LinkedIn and a few more.

Thank goodness that the Infinite plans are available.

Exetel has undergone several transformations of its mobile phone plans. This includes moving between carriers Vodafone and Optus. The latest range of plans listed above include the Caps 10 to Cap 99. I took interest in these plans as I am personally looking to replace a contract plan that I currently have with Optus and considering prepaid or sim only options. I was particularly impressed with the Cap 35 which offers $440 in call credit + $440 in call credit to other Exetel customers, 1GB of data and free social media access.

Compare this to the Optus Turbo Cap Plus which for $30 gives you $300 in calls, unlimited SMS, 500MB data and free social internet. The Exetel offers is much better with double the data and a lot more in calls although free SMS would suit some people.

The call rates on these plans are high. $440 in call credit would give you 186, 2 minute calls. The Optus Turbo Cap would offer you only 138 calls (remember you are only paying $30 per month prepaid in this case).

At the top end of the Exetel Cap range you have the Cap 75 and the Cap 99 plans. Each of these Caps come with 2000 minutes in calls, over $100 in international calls plus much more data than what you need. Ideal for a business user.

The Cap plans are run through the Optus network.

Exetel also have some cheap plans in the XO and the YO (I wish they could come up with other names). These plans have call rates at 15c and 12c respectively, with a low flagfall of 15c. Call credits are equal to the monthly charges of $15 and $30.

The Mobile A to the Mobile YO plans are run through the Vodafone network.

Overall I am impressed with Exetel’s plans and think they should receive some serious consideration by users of this site. Particularly if you have a smart phone. You may however also like to compare them to what Live Connected has to offer (also use the Optus network). Live Connected seems to have more value (calls and data) but Exetel does offer phone support which you should probably weigh in when comparing plans.

Spin Internet launched their no contract mobile plans about the same time as iiNet. Both organisations use the Optus network to support their offers.

Spin launched with four offers (and recently added two new plans), starting with the Pay As You Use plan which comes with no credit but very low call rates at just 9.5c per 30 seconds. You can then move up to the $14 Cap, increasing to the $24 Cap, $34 Cap, $54 Cap and the Capless plan at $74 which offers unlimited calls and text.

These Cap plans are actually quite good and the call value is quite strong. At the mid level of $34, 1GB and free social media is equal to that offered say by Exetel, but the call credits are double Exetel’s. In fact Exetel gives you $440 to anyone and another $440 to Exetel. Whereas Spin gives you $800 to anyone.

They have also expanded the portfolio more recently with the Capless plan which at $79 is a steal compared to Virgin’s Topless which costs $99. You also get 5GB of data. At the other end, the Pay As You Use plan is exactly that. No credit, you only pay for what you have spent. Don’t make any calls in the month, pay nothing. With a call rate of 9.5c per 30 seconds, this is pretty competitive. Doesn’t quite match the TPG Pay As You Go plan when it comes to data but the call rate is equal (although TPG’s is charged per sec).

Another great find. Spin plans need to be promoted more so that they get noticed. Will certainly be adding Spins Sim Only plans to our Quick Search guide.

We want your Vote!. Tell us which Prepaid Mobile Provider is the Best and help us decide who gets Gold, Silver and Bronze. Voting closes at the end of May so vote now and get your friends using prepaid to vote.

Thought it would be useful to list some of the mobile phone blogs in Australia. There are several as mobile phone and smart phone is a very popular topic for many:

www.blog.prepaidplans.com.au

www.mobilephoneblog.com.au

www.mobilephoneblog.org

www.justamp.blogspot.com/

www.onlymobilephones.com.au/mobile-phone-blog/

www.blog.myone.com.au/

www.bluetoneblog.com/

Optus has launched a new range of prepaid mobile phone plans (to compliment their already diverse range) with a new series of “Dollar Days” plans.

The model for the Dollar Days plans is somewhat different to standard prepaid caps. When you sign up, you choose whether you want to start with a $1 Days, $2 Days or $3 Days option. This is the amount that you’ll get charged on each day you use your phone to either make calls/text or browse the web. If you don’t use the phone at all, no charge is made.

For $1 a day, you can make unlimited calls to landlines, as well as unlimited calls and texts to other Optus mobiles (prepaid or not). For $2 a day, you can also call or text phones on any other network. For $3 a day, you get unlimited mobile browsing for the day as well. If you spend $3 a day across five consecutive weekdays, you get the same deal for free across the weekend.

As with most Optus plans, mobile browsing on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, LinkedIn, FourSquare and eBay is free of charge across the range. International calls aren’t included as standard on any of the options, and are charged at set rates.

If you happen to do something outside if what your plan allows you to, Optus will simply upgrade you to the appropriate plan for the day. Each if you are on the $1 plan and make call to a Telstra network mobile phone, you will get charged $2 for the day. Use the web and you get charged $3 for the day. Once you are upgraded you can then use the options available on that plan for the rest of the day. You can change the default plan which you’re charged for once a month.

There are advantages and disadvantages with the plan. If you can stick to the $1 a day plan and only use it a few times a week you could be better off. However if you compare the plan to something like Savvytel which only charges 12c per 30 secs, it might not be much cheaper. Plus credits only last 60 days.

Scenario One: I make 1 call per day for 3 minutes, covering Optus and other Networks. No data.

Scenario Two: I make 2 call per day for 3 minutes, covering Optus and other Networks. No data.

So the more calls you make the cheaper the Optus Dollar-days plan will be for you, as its unlimited calls per day (need to check the fair use policy). However if you are an infrequent user of your phone, other plans give you better value both in terms of call costs and getting the best value from your credit.

Here is the fair go policy (as they like to call it)

Timing is based on AEST (the time in Sydney, NSW) regardless of your location. Please adjust your usage to allow for time differences. The usage fee is charged on the first outbound standard national call, SMS, MMS or mobile internet access each day after 12.00.00am AEST. An SMS will be sent to you regardless of time of day when the first daily outbound usage activity is completed. This feature cannot be turned off. Usage fee is not charged on days when no outbound standard national call, SMS, MMS or mobile internet access is made. Unlimited standard national daily calls maximum duration is 23 hours 59 minutes 59 seconds. Daily usage fee and add-on inclusions expire on the earlier of: 1. 11:59:59pm AEST each day; or 2. the time on which you select another offer. International calls are charged in increments of up to 10 minutes. You may change between different Dollar Days offers a maximum of once every 30 days. If you change from a Dollar Days offer to another offer after you have paid your daily usage fee, you will forfeit the benefits available under the Dollar Days offer. Me2U is not available with these offers. $10, $15 and $20 vouchers expire in 14 days; $30, $40 and $50 vouchers expire in 30 days; $70 and $100 vouchers expire in 60 days. Unused credit rolls over when your next recharge is before your credit expiry. Options for $10, $15 & $20 top-ups are not available. The $5 data top-up is not available on $3 Days. If you purchase a $5 data top-up on $3 Days, you will receive $5 of credit with a 5 day expiry. Mobile Internet access requires a compatible handset. Optus may in the future require customers to change their Internet connection settings to be able to access the Internet while on the Dollar Days offers. Some Handsets are set to seek data automatically (e.g. email or other apps). This will use the internet and, in some cases, charges will apply. Facebook® is a registered trademark of Facebook, Inc. Twitter® and Twitter® logo are trademarks of Twitter Inc. LinkedIn and the LinkedIn logo are registered trademarks of LinkedIn Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries. eBay and the eBay logo are trademarks of eBay Inc. All rights reserved.

If you are a frequent user of other networks and the web, then $3 a day will cost you $60 a month, at which point going onto a contract plan looks like a better deal as you’ll get a phone included for less money. The new plans will go on sale from this Sunday.

Telstra launched their latest prepaid mobile range a few months ago in the form of the ever popular prepaid caps. Each of the plans comes with a combination of basic credit (to the value that you recharge) plus bonus credit plus a data allowance.

I have been a long advocate for prepaid mobile plans offering some form of data plans. They are slowly bringing these plans to market it but in my opinion its taking far too long. I am glad that Telstra have done it.

Customers can start with the basic $30 with which they also get $30 credit plus $170 bonus credit and 50MB data. The plans increase to $40 with a total of $300 credit and 150MB data, $60 with $500 in credit and 300MB and lastly $100 with $1000 in credit and 500MB data. Credits lasts for only 30 days, which is standard for cap style plans.

Now for call and text rates. What you are looking at is 89c per min for call rates plus a flagfall of 39c and text rates are 29c. So a 3 minute call will set you back $3.06. On the starter Cap with $200 credit this comes to 65 calls. On the top plan with $1000 credit it equates to 326 calls per month.

Overall with Telstra’s superior reception across rural Australia and the inclusion of data in each cap, these plans should be pretty popular I would say. Compare them all here.

Will a free sim offer work in Australia? Over the past few months, I have been looking at the prepaid mobile market in the UK. It seems that the prepaid concept is just as big in the UK as it is in Australia and with several times the population and with a high transit population, I am sure it is a great money spinner for the Telco’s. What is really interesting is that UK Telco’s promote 3 key products: Pay As You Go Plans (prepaid equivalent), Sim Only Plans and Contract Plans. What is even more interesting is that most of the Telco’s also give away sim cards. You can simply register with them and they will mail you a free sim card.

Since doing the research I have thought about what the marketing strategy behind the free sim card is. It is probably similar to free software. Flood the market with your free software and build a client base of free users. At some stage they will need to use the paid version of your product and they will upgrade. It is very similar with Free Sim Cards. Give them out and at some stage a percentage, 5% maybe will need to use it and will top it up with some credit. They might be out, o/seas or just as backup. Having the free sim out there places you in a slightly better position to receive a top up.

So why doesn’t this happen in Australia.Why hasn’t the free sim card become a key part of most mobile and prepaid mobile phone offers. Given the growing traffic to this site and the results from the polls that we undertake, it is quite obvious that people swap prepaid mobile providers. Why doesn’t Virgin or Vodafone offer a free sim card to anyone who wants one . It would probably cost them $1.50 per unit to mailout.

I don’t have an answer to this question. Maybe they think if the customer is likely to change provider then they will simply order or buy the sim card at that time. It would be interesting to see what kind of demand the Optus Free Sim offer had.  Maybe they are all waiting for more dual sim mobile phones to become available.

On a personal level, I think I would be more likely to try a another telco if I had their sim card in a draw or in my wallet. This is the strategy that mobile broadband providers are undertaking in the UK. Prices of 3G mobile dongles has fallen so much that the cost of entry for a consumer to have a backup 3G mobile broadband account is now A$50 – $80. This is great value for everyone and drives the demand for mobile broadband. I understand that Telcos such as Exetel are looking to implement something similar in Australia.

So back to Free Sim. Maybe with the demand for sim only plans slowly growing, this will increase the potential for a another free sim offer from a major telco. Time will tell. I will keep on the lookout.

RevTel is part of the ComTel Corp that also manages the brands Just Prepaid and Amichi mobile. What does this mean to you, well you atleast know that they are part of alarger group, with resources and money so there is some security about them. ComTel has a focus on low cost plans without the frills that cost you much more. Calls rates are 10c per 30secs, 15c Txt and a 20c flagfall.How does this compare, well we believe that it is one of the cheapest plans around. Call rates are cheaper than Savvytel but the expiry is 60 days. If you are looking for an alternative to Virgin, then its worth considering and as I said they are part of a bigger group, so don’t fear that you are giving your money to a small shop. You can compare Revtel rates here.

Amichi Mobile, well I stumbled across this provider. They are a Vodafone reseller but aim very much at the Virgin Bean Counter market. With 5c calls to other Amichi and Vodafone customers, its well up there in the cheapest category. 25c to everyone is on the dearer side. Once again, with this type of service you need to have key people (friends and family) on the Vodafone network. Flaffall at 5c is the cheapest (of those that charge) we have found to date. And TXT is also 5c. So in all, if you are wanting to use the Vodafone network, I would seriously consider Amichi. Now the danger is customer service. As a reseller they are pretty small and without much branding out there, I wonder just how many people use them. Never the less, the package looks good and is worth comparing when you consider other services such as Virgin’s Bean Counter.