Originally Posted by
DownUnderFlyer
Telstra will be the right choice when coverage in regional areas is required. If you are only in bigger cities, I would recommend Optus (or their reseller Virgin Mobile which is cheaper) as you save quite a bit of money this way.
I would not recommend 3 for the very small network coverage and the roaming charges.
You can also save quite a bit of money if you really understand how the offerings work. I over-bought; what came stock with the card would have been good enough, but I bought an additional $50 worth, not realizing how the 1 gig promo worked. It's very confusing, and it's not at all clear when the promo capacity kicks in.
But coverage was exceptional, speed very good. no roaming (until I got back to the US and tried it, and watched the remaining amount quickly spin down towards zero... and beyond!
).
It's a shame that 3G coverage isn't an acceptable use for daily coverage, something that would allow you to ditch your DSL line and be free to roam, as it were. But the download constraints are too tight for that.