As the iPhone 3G S finally hits stores today, Telstra has waited till the very last minute to reveal its pricing strategy. Sadly it is more expensive and offers consumers less.
Telstra has unveiled numerous pricing options for consumers eager to get their hands on the latest Apple unit. Plans range from $30 to $250 a month, but customers opting for a cheaper plan will have to pay some hefty upfront costs.
To grab an iPhone 3G S for $0 up front you will have to sign up to a $100 a month plan over 24 months for the 16GB version and a $150 a month plan for the 32GB.
But the deal Telstra is heavily pushing is its $150 Ultimate plan, which offers $0 upfront, up to 2000 minutes of standard voice calls, up to 2000 SMS and 150MB of data.
This small amount of data usage is definitely not going to please fans of the iPhone 3G S, a model which promotes internet usage. After the 150MB is used consumers will have to fork out extra fees and costs to upgrade to a larger data allowance.
The fact that this plan is more expensive than Vodafone’s is also surprising seeing that its plan offers consumers 2GB of data and unlimited voice calls for only $114 a month.
But Telstra are evidently trying to justify having the fastest network on the market and the best coverage available.