7 Steps To Pick The Best iPhone Plan
The iPhone has been the best selling phone in Australia for years. So, the most common question people have, when they are in the market for a phone is how do I pick the best iPhone Plan.
This article starts by offering suggestions which are designed to help you pick between the iPhone 5s and the iPhone 5c. Then we examine the major Australian Operator’s pricing for the iPhone for both he iPhone 5S / 5c. We move on to consider whether it makes sense for you to go under contract or buy the phone outright. Then we pick the cheapest iPhone plans in Australia and look at the pros and cons of considering just the price. Next, we look at price vs value and try and find the best overall deal on an iPhone in Australia. We finish up with a recommendation.
In summary, we believe that Vodafone / Virgin Mobile have the best iPhone plan in Australia and recommend that you start at the $64 price point ( $60 Plan, $4 handset repayment. ) Here’s why :
1. How To Pick The Best iPhone
For years now, Apple’s annual formula has been simple. Every year, they launch a new hero phone. Alongside that, they make the previous year’s product more accessible : which, to you and me, means they make last year’s model cheaper.
2013 is different. This year Apple have launched 2 new products, the iPhone 5S and the iPhone 5c as well as introducing a more affordable product, a revamped iPhone 4S.
The iPhone 5c is the evolution of iPhone 5. The iPhone 5s is a much more premium product which encompasses all of their most advanced technologies together.
With both the iPhone 5c and 5s, you’ll get a selection of desktop productivity apps also included on this mobile out of the box, for free. Numbers for spreadsheeting, Pages for word processing, Keynote for presentations, iMovie for video editing, all of them, for nothing. Or at least included in the price.
In a nutshell,
- Pick the iPhone 5c for best in class battery life and if colour choice is an important way for you to express yourself. They’re also slightly cheaper.
- Choose the iPhone 5s for a better camera, serious gaming or apps that use motion sensors. And remember, if colour is important to you, you can add a case to your 5s.
The iPhone 5c – Key Differences From The iPhone 5
Apple’s marketing for the iPhone 5c is all about the colour options which are available. The 5c has new packaging which makes the most of the colour variants in market. Whatever hue you choose is visible from inside the box. Apple talk at some length, in their blurb about the iPhone colour options expressing your personality.
Other differences are :
- Construction. The 5c is made from a polycarbonate shell. It has a steel frame inside. Together, these features give the iPhone 5c a feel which is surprisingly sturdy and solid to hold.
- Battery. The 5c benefits from slightly better battery performance. Apple claim an extra 2 hours of extra battery life compared to the iPhone 5.
- Network. The new iPhone supports a hoard of network frequencies never seen before in Australia. This is important for those who travel overseas and also, for the major Australian phone companies, all of which are looking to improve their 4G network speeds using new technologies which use two frequencies at once, for example.
- Camera. The camera on the iPhone 5c is exactly the same as the camera on the iPhone 5. However, for the iPhone 5c, the lens cover has been upgraded. Now, the lens is prevented from scratching by enclosing it behind a Sapphire crystal glass lens.
The iPhone 5s – Key Differences
The iPhone 5s is Apple’s premium phone. Their pitch on this phone is that it brings all the most advanced technologies together in to a single handheld. Sometimes, I think Apple forget how people actually talk about phones ! The iPhone 5s will appeal to you if you’re an Apple fan and / or are prepared to pay more for the latest tech.
What Are The Key Bits Of New iPhone 5s Technology ?
- Processor. The iPhone 5s has two, totally new CPUs – A7 & M7 chips. TheA7 is much more powerful than the A6 which preceded ( the 5s is 5 times faster than last year’s model ! ) it and a lot of the software on the iPhone 5s has been re-written to take advantage of the processor’s power. The extra grunt in the allows for a new generation of apps that weren’t possible on a phone before. The M7 chip allows battery life improvement where you are using fitness / health apps (motion sensors are heavy on battery use before M7)
- Touch ID. Not enough people secure their personal information with a PIN, unlock iPhone 5s by touching the home button (can store up to 5 fingerprints)
- New iSight Camera. 15% bigger sensor (bigger pixels) for better depth, clarity and lowlight performance + increased the aperture to allow 1/3 more light + Trutone flash (first to market)
2. Should I Buy The iPhone Under Contract ?
The simple answer is yes, you should buy your iPhone 5s or iPhone 5c under contract from your phone company. That way you’re sure to get the best iPhone Plan.
Apple sell the iPhone 5s and 5c outright. At launch, on the Apple site, the cheapest, 16 GB memory variant of each phone is :
- The iPhone 5c is $739 outright. It costs about $130 to add 16 GB
- Over the course of a 24 month contract, the phone works out as $31 a month.
- The iPhone 5s is $869 outright. It’s $130 to add 16 GB more
- Over the course of a 24 month contract, the phone works out at $36 a month.
Let’s put aside Apple’s price gouging in Australia which has been highlighted by the Australian Consumer Commission. Apple mark up their products more than almost any other company in the world, to bring them to Australia. The same iPhone costs 14% more here than in the USA.
Broadly, users face a couple of options when choosing their phone in Australia. They can go under contract with their phone company and get a device there and then for $0 up front. Or they can buy the device themselves and take out a SIM only plan. We generally recommend AmaySIM for those who are taking out a SIM only plan. You can read about why we recommend AmaySIM here.
It’s worth noting, however, that both the iPhone 5c and iPhone 5s are 4G / LTE phones and AmaySIM currently only have 3G speeds for the data components of their plans.
So, for the basic 16 GB versions of each phone, the monthly cost if you buy the phone yourself will be :
- iPhone 5c = $31 + $40 for the AmaySIM unlimited plan each month = $71 per month.
- iPhone 5s = $36 + $40 for the AmaySIM unlimited plan each month = $76 per month.
You’ll see below that we suggest the Vodafone $60 price plan ( plus a $4 handset repayent ) is the best iPhone plan for your iPhone 5s / 5c. You also get unlimited calls, but you also get a heap more and it’s less expensive than the monthly payments if you bought the phone yourself and used the best SIM only pricing in market. You’ll also get 4G speeds ( in areas the phone company you choose has coverage. )
Put simply, you’ll get the best iPhone plan under contract with a phone company than it is to buy it yourself and add your own SIM.
3. Pick From The Cheapest iPhone Plans In Australia
Comparing the best iPhone plan options for both the iPhone 5c and iPhone 5s, in Australia, you find the following. Remember, it’s always the 16 GB iPhone which is the cheapest so we’re always talking about the 16 GB version here.
iPhone 5S
- Vodafone Australia and Virgin Mobile offer the cheapest iPhone plan in Australia. They both start at $51 per month. That’s $30 per month for the plan, offering $200 of value and 200 MB of data and a $21 per month repayment on the phone.
- Optus’ entry point is at $62 per month. For $35 per month +$27 phone repayment, you’ll get 200 minutes and 200 MB of data.
- Telstra’s minimum price for an iPhone 5s is $78. That’s $60 for the plan, offering $600 of value and 1 GB of data and an additional $18 phone repayment.
iPhone 5c
- Vodafone’s and Virgin Mobile’s lowest price point for the 5c is $46. That’s $30 for the plan offering $200 of included value and a phone handset repayment of $16 per month.
- Optus’ pricing begins with their $30 price plan. That’s $30 for the plan offering 200 minutes and 200 MB of data and a $27 handset repayment
- Telstra start at $71. That’s $60 for the plan with $600 of value and 1 GB of data.
In short, Vodafone and Virgin Mobile are always cheapest. This is in line with general trends in Australian telco pricing.
4. What’s The Best iPhone Plan Value In Australia ?
But it’s not just all about the minimum monthly pricing, is it ? The inclusions on the $30 plans from Vodafone, Optus and Virgin Mobile are very low. The standout is the 200 MB of data. Almost all users will find that too little.
Average data usage on an iPhone 5 is around 1 GB a month. I you use a lot more or a lot less, you’ll probably know it. If you exceed your usage allowance with either Vodafone or Virgin, you’ll get charged an awful lot, very soon. Optus’ My Plans are more reasonable these days and charge you $10 per GB bolted on automatically if you exceed your limit. Either way, though, you’ll end up paying more in the long run if you underestimate your usage.
And if you get in to the nitty gritty of the plans, you’ll realise that if you go with either Vodafone or Virgin Mobile and pay just $7 a month more ( than the minimum payment ) for your Plan + Device combination, you’ll get :
- At Vodafone, for $64 per month ( $60 plan + $4 handset repayment ) you’ll get Unlimited national calls and texts, 1.5 GB of data
- Virgin Mobile Australia offer a similar thing. For $64 per month, you’ll get $700 a month of calls in your cap and 1.5 GB of data.
- The Optus equivalent is $69 per month ( $50 plan and $19 handset repayments ) which gives you 450 minutes and 500 MB of data.
- Telstra’s price point is the same as covered earlier. $71 = $60 plan and $11 handset repayment. This provides 1 GB of data and 600 minutes of calls.
So, in the opinion of WhatPhone, the best iPhone plan is with Vodafone Australia. You’re paying only $7 a month more than the cheapest plan you could get and for that $7, you’ll get the right amount of data ( 1.5 GB should service the needs of most people. ) You’ll also get unlimited talk and text in Australia and 4G speeds where there’s coverage.
Unfortunately, Vodafone has had a difficult time over the last couple of years. Things are getting better as you’ll see in a lot of the industry press at the moment.
If you still have concerns about Vodafone, WhatPhone has detailed analysis and reviews of Vodafone and how it compares on the different components of phone company value.
- Vodafone vs Telstra
- Vodafone Vs Virgin Mobile
We also offer an in depth analysis of Vodafone Network Coverage and details on the Vodafone Network Guarantee so that if you don’t like your iPhone 5 or 5s, you’ll be able to take it back, no questions asked.
5. Do I need Extra Memory For My iPhone 5c / 5s
At WhatPhone, we recommend 32 GB of memory for iPhone users. 16 GB is simply not large enough these days for average usage. If you take any reasonable number of pictures, if you have anything like a normal music collection, if you take any video at all, 16 GB gets very full very quickly.
6. Exceptions To The Rule
Remember, everyone is different. No-one can tell you exactly the right plan for you. The decision you make should ivolve careful consideration of the CIS or Critical Information Summary. You’ll find it on any product page on any of the Phone Companies websites. Some important questions to ask yourself when reviewing the CIS are :
- Is Voicemail retrieval included in my plan ? How often do I pick my voicemail up ? How much of my cap or allocated minutes will that ‘cost’ me every month ?
- Does this plan include charging for 13 or 18 numbers ? How often do I call those ? When I call them, am I on hold for 45 minutes ?!
- Where do my friends and family buy their phones and plans from ? The telcos all include plans which allow for free calls to others on the same network. If you call the same people a lot, this can make a big difference to you.
- If I don’t use all my voice allocation, what happens to it ? Some providers ( notably Virgin Mobile ) let you ‘roll over’ unused credit.
- How much does it cost to call customer services ? Not all the telcos include calls to their call center within the cap or minute allocation you get. Many customers consider this adding insult to injury – being charged to log a complaint about the Telco’s service !
And finally, one of the critical questions you can ask yourself is :
- Do I need more data ? All of the phone companies offer ‘Bolt Ons’ sometimes called ‘DVAs’ or Data Value Adds. For a few dollars more, you can buy another few hundred megs of data or a GB. Remember, most people find they use their phone a lot more in the first month because it’s a new toy. Then usage tends to increase over the course of your contract. Most customers find their data usage is doubling every year. Think carefully about what the best plan for your iPhone including all the data you need.
7. Now I’ve Bought The iPhone, What’s Next
OK, so you’ve got the best iPhone plan in Australia. What next ?
WhatPhone recommends that you download the usage application that every telco has, to your new iPhone. They’re free and incredibly useful. It only takes a second to check your usage and to make sure that neither your voice or data cap threshold has been surpassed. If you’re getting close you can add on a data bundle and avoid a significant charge. Then you can truly enjoy your new iPhone.