3 rolls out the bargain bin, $19 cap plans
In this tough financial climate, 3 Mobile is calling out to our inner cheapskates, launching a $19 per month cap plan.
If you live in a metropolitan area of Australia and you like cheap phone bills, chances are you're already a 3 Mobile customer. In case 3's $29 Cap plan wasn't cheap enough for you, the company has introduced a $19 plan, in line with the cheapest monthly capped plan for a 3G phone service in Australia.
The new plan includes all the trappings of a 3 Mobile cap, including 3-to-3 talk minutes and the choice of a content bonus. As you'd expect, the $19 plan's $70 of included calls per month is less than half of the included value associate with a $29 plan, and significantly less than the $250 worth of calls each month you'd get with 3's $39 Cap plan.
That in mind, people considering a switch to this cheaper plan should have a very close look at their monthly mobile phone usage. $19 per month is bargain-bin pricing, but if you exceed the $70 call limit, you'll be charged at the standard rate of 35 cents per 30 seconds and 25 cents for each SMS you send. It wouldn't take much for your bill to end up looking like a weigh-in result on the Biggest Loser, rather than an invoice for a super cheap mobile phone plan.
3 is currently offering three mobile handsets for $0 upfront on the $19 cap: the Sony Ericsson G502, the LG KF310 and the Nokia 3120 Classic.