
The best phones of the year
After significant testing, these are our picks of the phones to buy
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Boost Mobile is one of the only MVNOs that offers full access to the Telstra 3G and 4G networks, and its 30GB prepaid plan is among its most attractive offerings. It packs plenty of data along with unlimited international calls to 25 countries, plus any data you don't use automatically rolls over to the next month.
MVNO stands for Mobile Virtual Network Operator. If you unpack those words individually, the concept of an MVNO becomes clear. They're mobile operators, much the same as Telstra, Optus and Vodafone. However, instead of operating full mobile networks with signalling towers, repeaters and everything else that makes up the hardware of a mobile network, they lease space on existing mobile networks from the big three telcos. Hence, they're "virtual" mobile network operators.
MVNOs tend to focus on prepaid and month-to-month mobile plans. This makes them better-suited to price-conscious phone users who don't need a lot of extra features. Folks who want more bang for their buck won't go wanting either, as there are plenty of MVNOs that offer postpaid plans in both month-to-month and 12- or 24-month flavours.
Network coverage on an MVNO plan is typically identical to a plan from the underlying network provider. You're accessing the exact same network infrastructure, after all. This means that any outages or reception problems you encounter lie with the underlying network provider, not the MVNO.
Your MVNO should provide a coverage map based on its carrier's network footprint. These aren't always 100 percent accurate, but they're a decent baseline to work from.
Customer service is where MVNOs often differ most dramatically from the big three telcos. You'll typically have fewer points of contact with an MVNO, and you may have to contend with longer wait times when seeking technical support.
As always, it's well worth reading the critical information summary of your contract prior to signing up to avoid any nasty surprises such as higher than expected call costs or data-charging systems.
MVNO | Provider network |
---|---|
ALDImobile | Telstra |
amaysim Mobile | Optus |
Aussie Broadband Mobile | Telstra |
Belong Mobile | Telstra |
Bendigo Telco | Optus |
Better Life Mobile | Telstra |
Boost Mobile | Telstra |
Catch Connect | Optus |
Click Broadband | Telstra |
CMobile | Telstra/Vodafone |
Coles Mobile | Optus |
Commander | Optus |
Dodo Mobile | Optus |
Exetel Mobile | Optus |
GoTalk | Vodafone |
gotravelsim mobile | Optus |
Harbour ISP | Telstra |
Hello Mobile | Vodafone |
Hive Mobile | Optus |
iiNet Mobile | Optus |
Internode Mobile | Optus |
iPrimus | Optus |
Jeenee | Optus |
KISS Mobile | Telstra |
Kogan Mobile | Vodafone |
Lebara Mobile | Vodafone |
Lycamobile Mobile | Telstra |
Mate Communicate Mobile | Telstra |
Moose | Optus |
More Telecom | Telstra |
MyNetFone | Telstra |
OVO | Optus |
Pennytel Mobile | Telstra |
Southern Phone | Telstra/Optus |
SpinTel | Optus |
Tangerine Telecom Mobile | Telstra |
TeleChoice Mobile | Telstra |
Think Mobile | Telstra/Vodafone |
TPG Mobile | Vodafone |
Vaya | Optus |
Woolworths Mobile | Telstra |
Yomojo | Optus |
Image: Shutterstock
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