Tip 24: How to shop around for the best mobile phone plans.1:30
David Koch reveals the steps for shopping around for the best mobile phone plans.
Smarter ways to use a smartphone and keep costs down
ALTERNATIVE-branded devices are hitting the smartphone market, allowing users to buy handsets for a much cheaper price.
Telco comparison website Whistleout’s Joseph Hanlon says buying a phone outright — most are sold at major electrical retailers — offers much more flexibility when choosing a SIM-only deal.
“Changing your expectations of a smartphone and picking something lower classed is always a really good option,’’ he says.
“You can save hundreds of dollars and then you can sign up to a SIM-only plan which are often very high value.”
Maddy Dwyer, 26, purchased her iPhone 6 Plus for about $1000 and pays $50 per month for 9GB of data and unlimited calls. She recently checked out a new Optus-branded phone.
“I’m always on my phone so I’m open to changing devices, I always use wi-fi wherever I can because it’s not always abundantly clear how much data you are using,’’ Dwyer says.
“I am always considering cheaper brands of smartphones ... I think I’m a bit over the whole smartphone craze and I want to look at ways to save money.”
Optus head of mobile marketing Tim Cowan says there’s a few critical things consumers can do to try and keep their monthly smartphone charges down.
“First look at how you most use your phone — is it to mainly to make calls (local or overseas), or do you mainly stream content like entertainment and music and use social media apps,’’ he says.
“This will determine the features that are relevant to you and how much you should spend on a plan.”
This month Optus released its first new range of its own handsets, the Optus X Sleek, for $149 — a cost that is considerably less than the charges of a popular-branded smartphone.
Originally published as Smarter smartphone options