Scheduled to air via YouTube on Thursday, 7 August at 11:00 PM AEST, the showcase will run through 15 minutes of indie games for the Switch and Switch 2 consoles.
But in a tale as old as time, keen Hollow Knight fans — myself included — have got excited for a potential release date, only to be met with continual radio silence. It’s been a long wait, especially when you consider that Silksong had a playable demo all the way back in 2019.
Just to tease fans even more, the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra performed a piece of Silksong music by composer Christopher Larkin as part of a Hollow Knight medley during the recent Press Play concert.
Adelaide Symphony Orchestra just teased a bit of Silksong music as part of a Hollow Knight medley
As much as I’d like to see Silksong feature during Thursday night’s Nintendo Indie World, I’m not expecting an appearance. Xbox has handled most of the game’s public showings in recent years, including its confirmation as a Game Pass title, so I wouldn’t be surprised if the release date announcement comes from Team Green.
Still, it doesn’t hurt to dream. I’ve got my clown wig, makeup, and squeaky nose ready to be made a fool of once again.
Are you looking to save on your phone bill? We’ve rounded up the cheapest SIM plans from a range of different carriers to help you find the best price. If you’re unsure about whether a SIM-only mobile plan is what you need, our quick guide to SIM only mobile plans will get you up to speed.
Generally speaking, if you don’t want a new phone or a lock-in contract, a SIM plan is the way to go. It’s easy to get what you need without paying for excess features. Unlimited phone calls and text messages usually come standard, with data and international roaming the main points of difference. If you do want a phone, however, check out the current deals on phone plans, including discounted handsets.
We update this article monthly, so bookmark this page to keep up to date with the cheapest SIM plans. Prices update in real-time, meaning you get the latest deals available in Australia right now. You can also use a custom search to choose a plan that suits your exact needs. All of the plans featured in this article include an expiry period of at least 28 days. You can purchase a SIM plan with a shorter recharge window, ideal for travellers who only need a bit of data while visiting Australia.
SpinTel is once again the current cheapest postpaid SIM plan in Australia. On the Optus 5G network, new customers can get the $22 plan for $14 per month for the first six months with 25GB of data.
Southern Phone is the other postpaid SIM plan currently cheaper than $20 per month. Its Medium 5G SIM Plan costs $19 per month for the first six months, down from $29. 40GB of monthly data is also one of the larger allocations on offer, making Southern Phone worth a look. Like SpinTel, this is another plan on the Optus 5G network.
SpinTel’s full $22 price is also the cheapest non-discounted postpaid SIM plan at the time of writing. It’s closely followed by Dodo’s $23 plan (Optus 4G) with 15GB of data. Tangerine’s 12GB plan on Telstra’s 4G network also costs $23 if you want an alternative to Optus.
Prepaid
iiNet and TPG once again have the cheapest prepaid SIM plans at a discounted price of $12.50 apiece for 25GB on Vodafone’s 4G network. The discount applies for the first six months, after which it goes up to $25 per month. That last part is an important point of difference: many prepaid SIM plans operate on 28-day or 30-day recharge cycles.
If you want access to Vodafone’s expanded 5G network, TPG’s 50GB plan is half-price at $17.50 per month for six months. Beyond Vodafone, Aldimobile’s $19 prepaid SIM plan is the cheapest Telstra option, including 4G access and 10GB of data. It recharges every 30 days, so you don’t get quite as much time as the TPG and iiNet plans. At least it’s longer than the 28-day plans.
Speaking of which, the cheapest prepaid SIM plan on the Optus network is from OnePass Mobile (previously Catch Connect). The 28-day plan costs $20 and includes 15GB of data to use on Optus’ 4G network.
There’s more competition between the three main networks under the prepaid banner, which is ultimately good for your wallet.
Cheapest 5G SIM plans
As 5G rolls out to more parts of Australia, and compatible phones become cheaper, it’s easy to take advantage of higher download speeds. 5G SIM plans cost more, making them better suited to users who need the extra speed or perhaps don’t have reliable NBN connections.
Postpaid
Most of the cheapest postpaid SIM plans featured earlier are also 5G-compatible, so SpinTel and Southern Phone are sub-$20 options.
Tangerine remains the cheapest 5G postpaid plan on the Telstra network, priced at $29 per month. However, it only uses parts of Telstra’s 5G network, so it’s worth checking the coverage map beforehand.
Prepaid
As per usual, there are plenty of discounted starter packs, although the discount usually only lasts for the first recharge. At $17.50 per month each, the iiNet and TPG Medium plans are the cheapest 5G prepaid SIM plans. Both are half-price for the first six months and include 50GB of data. Download speeds for both cap out at 150Mbps, which is fast enough for most folks.
On the Telstra network, Boost Mobile’s $26 plan includes 32GB of data for the first three recharges (on a 28-day cycle). The standard 7GB data allocation is smaller than most in its price bracket, but Boost also happens to be the only MVNO with access to the full Telstra network.
Cheapest 365-day SIM plans
If you know what you need over a longer period and want to save money in the process, a 365-day SIM plan might do the trick. Simply pay once per year, and get a bank of data to use with unlimited calls and texts. It’s a cost-effective way of paying your phone bill for basic internet users who aren’t big downloaders.
Kogan is the current cheapest long-expiry SIM plan, costing $149 for 365 days, providing 240GB on Vodafone’s 4G network. As for Optus, the best deal comes from OnePass Mobile, the rebrand of Catch Connect. It currently costs $149 for its 365-day plan that comes with 200GB. That’s $51 off the long-expiry plan from the Optus MVNO, working out to be a strong dollar-per-gigabyte ratio.
It’s also worth pointing out that Boost Mobile’s 300GB 12-month plan is $50 until 11 August, bringing it down to $250. It’s the cheapest way to access Telstra’s full network on a 365-day SIM plan.
What you need to know about SIM only plans
It’s fairly easy to change your SIM plan provider. Even more so with the rise of embedded SIM (eSIM) technology, letting you change plans almost instantly with a compatible device. Instead of requiring a physical card, eSIM stores network information directly to your phone.
Irrespective of which service provider you go with, the actual network used will be either Optus, Telstra or Vodafone. Many of the cheapest SIM plan providers are mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs). This refers to carriers that use the network infrastructure of another company.
Boost Mobile is a popular MVNO that has full access to Telstra’s network, reaching 99.5% of Australians. Not every MVNO includes a network’s full coverage, so it’s worth checking a company’s website to ensure your area is serviced.
In terms of how much data you should choose, data from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) found that Australians generally pay for more than what they need. On average, Aussies use 10.2GB of phone data per month, so it’s likely you could get away with a smaller allowance that costs less.
It also depends on how much you stream and download content using your phone. If you mainly use home or office Wi-Fi and don’t stream much, stick with a cheaper plan.
Postpaid versus prepaid
There are a couple of slightly different SIM plan options to choose from. Postpaid refers to plans that operate on a monthly billing cycle, where you pay at the end of each cycle. Postpaid SIM plans generally don’t involve a lock-in contract, so you can freely swap if your needs change or a better deal comes along. If you hit your data cap for a month, your telco might limit speeds until the next cycle or charge extra costs, so check the fine print beforehand.
Prepaid, on the other hand, sees you pay at the start of each cycle for a fixed number of days. Most prepaid SIM plans have a 28-day expiry cycle instead of a full month. Shorter expiries are also available if you need a SIM while travelling, making it a flexible option. The upside is that if you go over your data limit, you won’t incur extra costs. A lot of prepaid plans don’t automatically recharge by default but you can set up auto-recharge manually, with some telcos offering discounts or bonuses if you do so.
Phone number portability
The SIM changeover process takes about 10 minutes of your time or even less if you choose an eSIM. You will receive instructions to visit a website, provide your details, prove your identity (online) and then insert your new SIM.
Note you will have a choice to migrate your existing mobile number or choose a new one. About 15 minutes later, you should be up and running. However, the documentation will indicate it may take up to 24 hours and be affected by working hours.
Best network coverage
Network coverage is one of the most important factors to consider when buying any phone plan. Low prices and all the data in the world don’t mean much if you can’t get a signal. Fortunately, Australia’s mobile phone network coverage is more competitive than ever because of the TPG Telecom and Optus partnership.
Telstra still boasts the broadest network coverage, reaching 99.7% of the Australian population. Optus and Vodafone aren’t far behind, covering 98.5% and 98.4% respectively. Optus expects to rapidly expand its 5G network, so expect plenty of competition in the next couple of years.
Telco
Overall network coverage
5G network coverage
Telstra
99.7%
91%
Telstra wholesale
98.8%
75%
Optus
98.5%
80.5%
Vodafone
98.4%
Not advertised
More important than percentages is whether your location has coverage. The best way to find out is to check each telco’s coverage map:
The best way to find out if a plan suits you is to try one for a month. Lock-in contracts are largely a thing of the past, so it’s easier than ever to try one provider and swap if it doesn’t work out.
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Epson has launched a new projector in Australia that toes the line between flagship and affordability for big-screen enthusiasts. Known by its EH-LS9000B model name, it might not produce an image as big or bright as the EH-QL3000 announced earlier in the year, but it’s less than a third of the price.
At $7,299 in Australia, the Epson EH-LS9000B may not be cheap, but it immediately has more mass market appeal than a $24,999 projector. It’s capable of projecting a 4K image up to 300 inches in size, with a brightness reaching 2,200 ISO lumens.
That’s pretty decent compared to Epson’s $25k projector that supports a 1,000-inch image and 6,000 lumens. Not that technology works this way, but it’s still fun to calculate: the EH-QL3000 works out to be 0.04 inches and 0.24 lumens per dollar, while the EH-LS9000B is 0.04 inches and 0.30 lumens per dollar. Again, there’s not much to read into, beyond a curiosity of numbers.
In more practical observations, the EH-LS9000B uses a laser light source combined with three LCD chips that span 100% of the RGB colour gamut. Epson rates the light source to last 20,000 hours, which is more than 830 days of continuous use. The projector also supports 10-bit HDR, including HDR10+ and HLG formats.
Epson says its new projector employs a “4K frame interpolation” technology that reduces blurring. It’s likely best used when watching sports, as motion smoothing tends to make films and TV shows look odd.
As for gaming, an online support document confirms that the EH-LS9000B supports refresh rates up to 120Hz via HDMI input, meaning you could plug in a console and get smooth gameplay. It’s not clear what other gaming features the projector supports, however, like anti-latency technology.
If there’s one consistent criticism of Apple’s premium-level phones, like the iPhone 16 Pro Max, it’s that the colours tend to be a bit drab. When “Desert Titanium” is arguably the most colourful variant of the lot, it’s a dire situation for colour-loving tech heads. Fortunately, it looks like Apple will introduce a comparatively brighter colour with its iPhone 17 Pro range.
From a colour perspective, the base iPhone 17 model includes different hues of blue, green, and pink. At first glance, the colours look eerily similar to the Google Pixel 9’s Wintergreen and the Pixel 9 Pro’s Rose Quartz finishes.
As always, none of this is official until it comes from Apple. However, previous leaks, like the iPhone 16 colours, have proven to be fairly accurate. The final production colours tend to be a slightly different shade than the factory mockups currently circulating, but it’s pretty close.
Last year, Apple announced the iPhone 16 range on 10 September before releasing the phones on 20 September in Australia. Apple usually operates like clockwork, so expect a similar announcement and launch cycle next month.
I certainly hope that bright orange colour is part of the iPhone 17 Pro range. High-end phones could do with a long-overdue splash of vibrancy.
NBN Co is partnering with Amazon’s Project Kuiper to provide low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite internet connectivity to rural Australians, starting in mid-2026.
LEO technology is set to eventually replace the NBN’s existing geostationary (GEO) Sky Muster satellites that have been in use over the past decade. Australia’s GEO satellites orbit more than 36,000km away, while Project Kuiper’s LEO satellites will orbit closer to 600km. The intended result is faster, lower-latency, and more reliable internet to Australians not reached by fixed line or wireless services.
The rollout of the new LEO technology will start with the “lower half” of Australia, including Tasmania, in 2026. Sky Muster will remain in service throughout the transition. 78 Kuiper satellites are currently in orbit, with the constellation to expand to more than 3,200.
NBN Co CEO Ellie Sweeney said the partnership is part of making “buffering in the bush a thing of the past.”
“Transitioning from two geostationary satellites to a constellation of Low Earth Orbit satellites will help to ensure the nbn network is future-ready and delivers the best possible broadband experience to customers living and working in parts of regional, rural and remote Australia,” Sweeney said.
Between now and then, NBN Co will consult with internet providers and communities, including various testing, before the new service is offered commercially. Sweeney declined to comment on the cost of the partnership, citing commercial sensitivity, but emphasised that NBN Co is funding the initiative, and that the money is not coming from a “taxpayer equity injection”.
Project Kuiper began in 2019 as an Amazon-backed venture to provide broadband connectivity around the world. Although NBN Co hasn’t yet discussed exact speeds, Project Kuiper’s website lists possible download speeds of up to 1Gbps for enterprise users, and up to 400Mbps for regular customers.
Nintendo has increased the price of the original Switch console in the United States, citing “market conditions”. Australians can breathe a sigh of relief for the time being, as the price increase doesn’t apply here.
Communicated via a short news post on Nintendo of America’s website, the video game company raised prices over the weekend across its suite of previous-generation hardware. All versions of the Switch — including the OLED and handheld-only Lite models — now cost more in the US and Canada.
An original Nintendo Switch now costs US$339.99, while the OLED model costs US$399.99, $40 and $50 more, respectively. When contacted by GadgetGuy, a local Nintendo representative confirmed that the price increases do not affect Australia or New Zealand.
For now, the Nintendo Switch 2 price remains steady in the US. However, Nintendo has left the door open for change, saying that “price adjustments may be necessary in the future”. Various other Nintendo products are also more expensive alongside the Switch.
“Other Nintendo products, including certain Nintendo Switch 2 accessories, select amiibo, and the Nintendo Sound Clock: Alarmo, will also see adjustments,” Nintendo’s news post said.
It’s common knowledge that LG makes some of the best OLED TVs around. The C5 is the latest LG OLED iteration, and there is so much to love about it. The C series sits between the lower-price B series and the flagship G series. I’ve spent the last month watching it in my unusually bright living room, putting it through its paces on games, TV shows and documentaries both old and new. Overall, this is an excellent TV.
Whether it’s got enough over last year’s model to deter just trying to pick that up at a discount is a question, but there’s no denying that this is a beautiful TV.
Out of the box, there are a lot of menus involved in setting up this TV. To get started, you need to log in to an LG account and accept a whole bunch of terms and conditions for AI assistants, targeted advertising and other things I don’t think people should have to deal with on a premium TV.
The physical setup was, at least, quite easy on the 55-inch model I tried.
Image: Alice Clarke.
After all that, my first thought when using the TV was something along the lines of “ooh, pretty!” Because wow, LG OLED TVs remain super pretty.
LG C5 OLED TV specifications and price
Model name
OLED55CPSA
Size reviewed
55-inch
Price (RRP)
$3,299 (55-inch)
Display type and resolution
4K OLED
Refresh rate
120Hz Native (VRR 144Hz)
Picture Processor
A9 AI Processor 4K Gen8
Inputs
4 x HDMI 2.1 (incl 1 x eARC)
Ethernet
Bluetooth 5.3
SPDIF
RF input
3 x USB 2.0
Wi-Fi 6
Operating System
WebOS 25
Warranty
2 years (in addition to your Australian Consumer Law rights)
If you’re reading this and thinking, “wow, that is super similar to the C4”, first of all, congratulations on having an excellent memory. Second of all, that’s because on paper, they are very similar.
The big call-outs are that the C5 has gone all in on AI (with mixed results), has a slightly faster processor, and is a bit brighter.
More importantly, when compared to TVs in general and not just the C4, the C5 has four HDMI 2.1 inputs, it has support for all major HDR formats (more than most other brands, which usually choose an allegiance), and a remote with a motion-controlled cursor. That last feature is something you either love or hate.
General viewing
The big thing with OLED TVs is, of course, black levels. Because of the way the light is controlled by individual pixels, OLED TVs are capable of much blacker blacks than other technologies. This shows so well with dark scenes, those set at night or in space.
In the David Attenborough Ocean documentary, the darker ocean scenes just popped. The contrast was perfectly stark, highlighting the mysteries of the deep and the tragedy of trawling. The details stand out so clearly.
In the bright scenes, the colours of the fish are vibrant, the water looks inviting, and the undersea world comes alive. The motion was fluid (pun intended).
The only hiccup was with the white subtitles on the black background — there was some noticeable halo effect, which I was quite surprised to see so obviously on an OLED TV.
Image: Alice Clarke.
On older content, the upscaling does an excellent job, making old episodes of One Tree Hill look Full HD or better. The colours popped, the edges were well defined, it was less fuzzy than I’ve noticed on some other, less fancy TVs, with almost no artefacts, and nothing got in the way of the ridiculous teen drama. It’s very impressive for AI upscaling.
While there is some motion smoothing turned on by default, I was shocked that I didn’t feel the need to adjust it, because it didn’t look weird. What sorcery was this?
Watching basketball, the ball movement was clean and easy to track. It’s an excellent TV for sports.
Image: Alice Clarke.
There really wasn’t any content I could throw at this TV that it didn’t excel at.
However, on a bright day in my apartment that’s essentially a glass house, things went a little south. While the reflections didn’t look as bad in person as they do in this photo, it still wasn’t great. OLED isn’t as constrained by the general concept of the sun as it used to be, but it still struggles against brighter TV technologies, such as Mini LED.
Image: Alice Clarke.
Gaming
What a pleasure it is to play games on the LG OLED C5. Smooth motion, excellent HDR, and a gaming dashboard that gives easy access to info and settings.
I spent a lot of time playing Fortnite, Forza Horizon 5, Mario Party Jamboree, Donkey Kong Bananza and other games across Nintendo Switch 2, PS5 Pro and Xbox Series X. I was impressed by the depth of colour, reasonably high brightness for HDR, and the commitment to maintaining 120fps when possible. The C5 is also compatible with 144Hz, but I was unable to test that.
While the input lag of around 13ms isn’t as good as some fancier, more expensive TVs, it sits nicely in the average range you’d expect for this price bracket.
Remote
For some reason, the old, beautifully ergonomic Magic Remote drew a lot of hate from people who hate joy and comfort (Editor’s note: it’s me. I hate joy and comfort.). I loved that old remote. It had everything you needed and was delightful to hold. The motion controls are weird, but also delightful and useful.
This year, LG changed up the remote design to a more traditional candy bar shape that is uncomfortable to hold and lacks whimsy. It does still have the motion-controlled cursor, but the new body shape makes it uncomfortable to wield.
Image: LG
What is unforgivable, though, is that they replaced the ‘change input’ button with an AI button, so now it takes a bunch of extra clicks to switch to the Xbox or whatever through the home screen. It ensures you get to look at ads along the way, which I’m sure is just a happy accident.
What’s worse is that the AI assistant doesn’t seem to understand Australian accents. I have to put on an American accent just to get it to understand what I’ve said, and even then, it doesn’t return any genuinely useful results.
Audio
The speakers in this TV make my ears sad. It’s not LG’s fault, it’s the nature of thin TVs — there just isn’t enough room in the TV’s body for air to move. If you want a thin TV to sound good, you need to get a soundbar with it.
I tried the $1,699 LG S95TR soundbar that comes with rear speakers along with the LG C5 OLED TV, and it’s pretty good. Quite often, the soundbar would mute itself at random, and the subwoofer would try to take over all the audio duties, which sounded both bad and hilarious. But when it worked, the Dolby Atmos effect was solid, and audio placement was where I’d expect.
It’s a solid step above entry-level surround sound systems, and the inclusion of rear speakers and a subwoofer means it’s automatically better than any standalone soundbar in its price range.
Who is the LG C5 OLED TV for?
This is the TV for people who want an OLED TV that features both HDR10 and Dolby Vision without springing for G5 prices.
LG is no longer the default choice for OLED, given there are so many other strong players in the market. But the C5 is such a good proposition at this price point that it’s worth exploring for anyone who has a living room that isn’t too bright.
LG C5 OLED TV
The LG C5 is the TV for people who want an OLED that features both HDR10 and Dolby Vision without springing for G5 prices.
