Optus has launched a new ‘limited time offer’ for prepaid customers who connect to its ‘New My Prepaid Monthly’ plan, with the offer expiring on 19 April 2015.

The telco will presumably have another offer at that time which will also be available for a ‘limited time’, but then it’s all part of the marketing games companies play in the quest to sign you up to various offerings.

So, what does this latest offer deliver?

Available from today (21 January 2015), Optus says that ‘prepaid customers who connect to New My Prepaid Monthly and recharge with $30 will get 500MB more data than the previous plan, for a total of 1.5GB of included data, plus unlimited standard national weekend calls.’

If you’re willing to pay a bit more, which means either $45 or $60 per month, you will ‘get an extra 1GB for a total of 3GB and 6GB of data respectively, in addition to unlimited talk and text to use within 30 days.’

Naturally, this includes access to the Optus 4G network, as well as 3G and 2G where 4G isn’t available. Optus says that ‘customers with compatible devices will be able to access superfast speeds in more places around Australia as we continue the 4G rollout in metro and regional areas’, with its ‘4G Plus network set to reach 90% of the Australian population by April 2015.’

Ben White, the Optus VP of Mobile Marketing said: “We see two distinct types of prepaid customers, those who want as much data as possible to power their smartphones, and those who need loads of minutes to call friends and family.

“Thanks to the extra data and unlimited weekend calls with New My Prepaid Monthly, Optus has one of the most competitive prepaid offers in the market to meet our customers’ needs.”

The plans are obviously meant to compete against prepaid plans from Yatango, Amaysim, Boost and others, some of whom offer 4G (like Yatango), and others who do not offer 4G yet (like Amaysim or Boost), but with Amaysim getting 4G around ‘Easter’.

We’d advise readers to carefully examine the prepaid options available on the market to make sure you’re getting the best deal for your money.

White added: “Prepaid customers enjoy the control and flexibility that paying as you go offers. They don’t want to be locked in but they’re looking for large amounts of data to power their smartphones. Now customers who want more data and unlimited weekend minutes can rest easy knowing their recharges will stretch even further.”

Although the new plans are only available between 21 January 2015 and 19 April 2015, if you sign up, you’ll get ‘the additional inclusions’ for the life of the plan, with the offer available to existing prepaid customers who switch to this ‘New My Prepaid Monthly’ offer.

The inclusions are for use within Australia, and the unlimited weekend calls are ‘based on local time and applies to calls that start between 12.00am Saturdays and 11.59pm Sundays.’

Full pricing details for Optus prepaid plans can be found here.