Three years ago, I was paying $60/month for unlimited calls, 100GB data, and international roaming included. Now there are plans advertising $40/month with “unlimited everything” and I’m somehow getting less value than before.

The trick is in what counts as “unlimited” and what’s been quietly removed while you were looking at the headline price.

What “Unlimited” Actually Means Now

When Telstra, Optus, and Vodafone advertise unlimited data, they mean unlimited at full speed up to a cap (usually 40-150GB depending on the plan), then unlimited at throttled speeds after that.

The throttled speed is where it gets interesting. It’s “up to 1.5 Mbps” on most plans, which is technically enough for browsing and streaming at SD quality. In reality, you’re getting 0.5-1 Mbps during peak times, which makes even loading websites frustrating.

Three years ago, 100GB plans gave you 100GB at full speed, then nothing. That forced you to be conscious of usage. Now, “unlimited” means you get 40GB at speeds that work, then functionally useless speeds for the rest of the month. It feels worse even though technically you can use data forever.

International Roaming Disappeared

Most mid-tier plans used to include basic international roaming in common destinations — New Zealand, USA, UK, parts of Asia. That’s mostly gone from plans under $80/month now.

Instead, you buy travel packs. $10/day for 1GB in most countries. Sounds reasonable until you’re gone for two weeks and you’ve spent $140 on top of your regular plan.

Or you forget to activate the travel pack and accidentally use data at standard roaming rates, which are genuinely criminal — $3-10 per MB on some networks. A few background app updates and you’ve got a $400 bill.

The telcos saved costs by removing automatic roaming inclusion and monetised it separately. Headline plan price dropped $10-15/month, but if you travel internationally even once a year, you’re paying more overall.

5G Isn’t Available Everywhere They Claim

Plans advertise 5G access like it’s ubiquitous. In major CBDs and some suburbs, yes. Drive 30 minutes from the city centre and you’re back on 4G most of the time.

That’s fine, except the network optimisation has shifted to prioritising 5G coverage in high-value areas at the expense of 4G maintenance in other areas. I live 15km from Sydney CBD and my 4G speeds have degraded noticeably over the past 18 months.

When I raised it with Telstra, the response was basically “upgrade to a 5G device and plan.” My device is 5G capable. There’s no 5G signal where I live. So I’m stuck with degraded 4G performance while paying for 5G I can’t access.

Data Banking Is Gone

This was a genuinely useful feature. Unused data from your monthly allowance rolled over to the next month, up to a cap (usually 200-500GB total). If you used 40GB one month, you’d have 110GB available the next month.

Most providers have quietly removed this from new plans. Your data allowance resets monthly. Use it or lose it. The only exception is Optus, which still offers data banking on some premium plans, but they’ve reduced the rollover limit.

Why remove it? Because it encouraged people to stay on capped plans where they might occasionally exceed their limit and pay overage fees. With “unlimited” plans, there are no overage fees to collect, so the business model shifted.

Customer Service Degraded Significantly

Try calling your telco’s support line. You’ll wait 30-45 minutes on hold, then get someone who follows a script and can’t actually solve problems outside narrow parameters.

Three years ago, wait times were 10-15 minutes and you’d get someone with authority to make account changes, apply credits, or escalate issues. Now, everything requires “supervisor approval” which means another call, another hold, another script-following agent.

Online chat support is worse. It’s AI-powered triage most of the time, and getting to a human requires navigating deliberately frustrating menus.

This isn’t specific to one provider — all three major telcos degraded support quality around the same time. Cost-cutting measure that they could get away with because competition is limited and most people won’t switch providers over poor service alone.

Network Priority Tiers Exist But Aren’t Advertised

Your plan tier affects your network priority during congestion. Premium plans ($80+/month) get priority access to bandwidth. Budget plans get deprioritised when towers are busy.

This isn’t disclosed clearly in plan documentation. You find out when you’re at a stadium or shopping centre and your “unlimited” data barely loads web pages while your friend on a premium plan streams video fine.

It’s technically not throttling because your speeds recover when congestion clears. But functionally, you’re getting worse service at peak times specifically because you’re on a cheaper plan.

Telcos defend this as network management. Which is true, but it’s network management that disproportionately impacts their cheapest customers.

”Unlimited Calls” Excludes More Numbers

Unlimited calls used to mean you could call any Australian number without per-minute charges. Now read the fine print — most plans exclude premium numbers, directory assistance, and increasingly, some service numbers like customer support lines for businesses.

This is marginal for most people. But if you regularly call certain business numbers or access services through phone rather than apps, you might find yourself paying per-minute fees despite having “unlimited calls.”

It’s pure cost-shifting. Telcos used to absorb these costs as part of unlimited call packages. Now they’ve carved them out as separate charges.

What Actually Got Better

To be fair, some things improved.

Data inclusions at entry-level price points increased significantly. You can get 30-40GB for $35-40/month now. Three years ago, that would’ve been 10-15GB.

5G speeds are genuinely impressive where available. Peak speeds of 300-600 Mbps are common in well-covered areas. That’s faster than most home broadband.

eSIM support is widespread. Makes switching providers easier and enables dual SIM setups without physical cards.

Plan flexibility increased. Month-to-month contracts are standard now. You’re not locked into 24-month agreements to get reasonable rates.

So it’s not all worse. But the trade-offs feel like net negatives for many users.

How to Get Actual Value Now

Don’t stick with the same plan indefinitely. Promotional pricing for new customers is significantly better than ongoing pricing for existing customers. Switch providers every 12-18 months if you’re on a month-to-month contract.

Look at MVNOs (Mobile Virtual Network Operators). Companies like Boost, Amaysim, Belong, and Mate Mobile run on the big three networks but offer better value. You lose some features (priority access, international roaming) but save $20-30/month.

Track your actual usage for a few months before choosing a plan. Don’t pay for unlimited data if you use 20GB/month. Don’t pay for international calls if you use WhatsApp for everything.

Negotiate retention deals. When your promotional period ends and they try to move you to full price, call and threaten to leave. They’ll often offer continued discounts to retain you.

Why This Matters

Phone plans are a significant ongoing expense. $50/month is $600/year, $6,000 over ten years. Getting worse value year-on-year adds up.

More frustrating is the feeling of being manipulated. Headline prices drop, advertising promises more, and actual experience degrades. It’s not illegal, but it’s deliberately misleading.

Telcos know most people won’t read fine print, track feature removal, or compare their current plan against historical offerings. They’re counting on inertia and ignorance to let these changes slide through.

Being aware of what you’re actually getting versus what’s being advertised is the only defence. It won’t change the industry, but it’ll stop you from paying for “unlimited” that’s actually quite limited.