iiNet wins Best Mobile Provider in the 2022 WhistleOut Awards

Our good friends at WhistleOut want you to love your plan. But love is complicated. So every year, the experts at Australia’s leading mobile and internet comparison site weigh up the pros and cons of every provider, plan and handset to find the best match for most Australians. The winners of the 2022 WhistleOut Awards have been officially announced, and the most desirable suitors for your SIM and smartphone might surprise you.

WhistleOut also introduced an all-new category this year, the Sustainability Awards, which aims to give credit where it's due to telcos that are putting in work to reduce their carbon footprint. The first two winners of the new award are Belong (Sustainable Internet Provider) and relative newcomer felix Mobile (Sustainable Mobile Provider of the Year).

IiNet took out first place in the Best Mobile Provider category. The Vodafone-powered provider has had a strong year in the BYO category with regular deals and discounts that make it a mainstay in our picks for the best SIM plans. iiNet’s plans start at $10 per month for unlimited calls and text and 8GB of data. But even its top-tier plan won’t break the bank, offering 55GB of data, 100 international call minutes and unlimited national calls and texts for $20 per month.

Here’s a preview of iiNet’s mobile plan offering:

WhistleOut’s Alex Choros said that iiNet’s win was a reflection of its affordable mobile plans that offer "excellent value no-frills options, even when you ignore the deep discounts it tends to offer new customers.”

Taking out the top place for the Best Internet Provider in Australia is the wheeler and dealer of NBN discounts, SpinTel. A familiar name in our own round-up of NBN plans, SpinTel shares similar qualities to iiNet, in that its ongoing value and regular pricing are only sweetened by consistent sales and discounts for new customers.

Spintel currently has one of the cheapest NBN plans on the market. The NBN Unlimited Entry plan will get you 15Mbps typical evening speeds and unlimited data at the discounted price of $44 per month (for the first six months). If you need more speed, SpinTel’s high-end Unlimited Premium plan will get you 100Mbps typical evening speeds and unlimited downloads at the discounted price of $69 per month (for the first six months).

Speaking about SpinTel’s award, Choros had this to say:

"SpinTel has become very popular with WhistleOut users, and for good reason. Not only does it offer great plans at low prices, it is also one of the fastest NBN providers in the country. However, it's not just NBN plans where SpinTel shines. The company is also delivering excellent value in 4G home broadband, an internet category that is quickly growing. Simplicity and value are key elements of SpinTel's offering, and the company is a deserved winner of the 2022 WhistleOut Internet Provider of the Year award."

Last, but not least, tech giant Apple took the smartphone spotlight back this year after OPPO’s win in 2021 as Best Smartphone Manufacturer. Not only was Apple named Best Smartphone Manufacturer, but the Apple iPhone 13 also took out first place for the Best Smartphone of the year.

Choros credits Apple for offering “incremental upgrades in all the right ways” when speaking about the manufacturer’s win.

Head over to WhistleOut’s official announcement for a complete list of winners in the 2022 WhistleOut Awards.