Helpful tips from Optus for your family during the school holidays

16 September 2024

Image credit: Ketut Subiyanto

We know that school holidays can be a chaotic time for families. Read on to see some helpful tips from Optus for you at those times when the holidays become stressful - when you’re trying to work from home and the kids are all gaming and streaming around you, for those long hours spent travelling and the kids expect to be constantly entertained, when you get home from work and realise your grumpy child’s screen time tripled that day… and so on!

Maximum speed

Getting ready for a full house? Are your kids having friends over during the school holidays? Optus Internet Turbocharge puts you in control of your connection by giving you the power to turbocharge your home internet speeds for 24 hours for an additional $5. Like all Optus network tools, switching on an Internet Turbocharge is easy in My Optus app.

Ideal for those days when you need to keep your kids occupied with YouTube Premium videos at home (subscription required for YouTube Premium), Internet Turbocharge lets you enjoy the very best of the Optus network for a whole day.

Save up to 10% on YouTube Premium when you group three or more eligible subscriptions on Optus SubHub.

Unlimited data while travelling

Enjoying a quick trip with your kids this school holidays? Tablets can be a great way to keep the kids entertained while your family is travelling.

Whether it’s a road trip or a layover at the airport, sometimes you need some extra data to get you through. That’s where Unlimited Data Day comes in handy. The kids can stream, watch and play to their hearts’ content and it’s only an extra $5 a day per service, with selected mobile plans. Unlock your Unlimited Data Day now on My Optus app. Enjoy responsibly. T&Cs apply

Entertainment

Keep the kids entertained these school holidays with all their favourite shows on Netflix, Amazon Prime, Paramount+, BINGE, and YouTube Premium (with in-built parental controls), with subscriptions available to eligible customers via SubHub. For a family of readers, you can also link your Kindle Unlimited account via SubHub. All the streaming and entertainment your family loves in one easy-to-manage place.

The best part? Bring three or more eligible services together on Optus SubHub to save up to 10% off the lot, every month. Eligible customers and services. Group discounts apply outside free/trial periods. Optus Sport is not further discounted. T&Cs apply.

Want to add a tablet to your family’s entertainment ecosystem? Shop the latest tablets here.

We also have a great range of budget phones for when your kids are ready for their first phone. To help you decide if they’re ready you can access these handy resources free - with the Optus Digital Thumbprint First Phone Readiness guide and quiz.

Managing screen-time

It’s easy to accidentally let your kids spend too much time on their devices, especially during the school holidays. Optus Pause is a great tool to help eligible customers make sure your kids are having regular digital breathers during the holidays so that they can enjoy some time outdoors and with the rest of the family too.

Free for all eligible Optus customers, Optus Pause is available on the My Optus app. Simply log on to the app, select the eligible Optus mobile and home WiFi connections and choose which devices to pause (or keep connected). T&Cs apply. With Optus Pause, you can manage your kids’ time online and stop the endless scrolling before bed.

Digital safety

The holidays are a great time to do a pulse check on your family’s digital safety and wellbeing. Check out the Digital Balance Quiz to see if your child understands how to take a digital breather. Optus Digital Thumbprint supports digital safety and wellbeing with educational workshops, guides and resources for young people and families.

Here are some of the resources you and your family can access to help make the holidays both enjoyable and safe online.

For young people

Blocking unwanted contact guide
Cyberbullying quiz
Cyberbullying: what to do when things go wrong guide
Digital Balance quiz
Fake friends and fake profiles quiz
Hackers, scammers and fake friends guide
Lifehacks for a balanced time online guide
Passphrases, passwords and MFA guide and quiz
Protecting personal information quiz
Scammers and fake friends quiz

For Families

Balancing time online guide
Blocking unwanted contact for your child guide
Cyberbullying: What to say when things go wrong online guide
First Phone Readiness guide and quiz
Passphrases, passwords and MFA for your child guide
Recognising hackers, scammers and fake friends guide
Safeguard your child’s privacy on popular apps and games guide
Stay ahead of scams through family discussions guide

Keep your family happy and entertained this school holidays with Optus. Learn more about our family connectivity tips family connectivity tips.

Easily manage your eligible subscriptions by bringing them together in one place with one simple payment each month. Save up to 10% on subscriptions including Netflix, Amazon Prime, Paramount+, BINGE, BritBox, YouTube Premium and more when you link them to Optus SubHub. T&Cs apply.

_{This is an updated article that was first published on 15 September 2023.}

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Unlimited Data Day T&Cs

For use on mobile phone devices in Australia only. Fair Go Policy applies. Not for commercial use. Add-on may be withdrawn from sale without notice.

Optus Month-to-Month SIM: Approved consumers on selected mobile plans. Available for 24 hours from activation for eligible service only, no data sharing. Limit 1 Add-on per service at a time. You will be charged on your next monthly invoice.

Optus Prepaid Mobile: Available to purchase for customers on Optus Flex Plus, Optus Flex, Optus Flex 5G, Optus Prepaid Epic Data and Optus Epic Value via My Optus app. Unlimited Data Day inclusion is for use in one day. To buy the Unlimited Data Day Add-on you need to have an active recharge. This provides you with unlimited data and uncapped network speeds for one day. Actual network speeds will vary depending on various factors. Inclusions and expiry will not roll over. Limit 1 active Unlimited Data Day Add-on at a time

Optus Internet Turbocharge T&Cs

Internet Turbocharge is available via My Optus App to eligible existing Optus nbn® consumer and business (exc TechFund and Fleet) customers with a valid ABN/ACN only. Existing customers on select unlimited data nbn® plans only. Eligibility is also subject to the line speed capability at your address. Internet Turbocharge will allow eligible customers to take up the highest speed pack available for their premises for $5 for 24 hours. Actual speeds may vary and will depend on a number of factors. Learn more here. Customers on multiple voice lines may have voice lines affected while on Internet Turbocharge. Internet Turbocharge will not have any benefit to customers that are experiencing issues while in a state of congestion or outage. See also our nbn® Key Facts Sheet. Latest version of My Optus app required. Fair Go Policy Applies. Internet Turbocharge may be withdrawn from sale without notice. Available for 24 hours from activation. No refunds or credits available if you cancel your nbn® plan or Internet Turbocharge during the 24-hour Turbocharge period.

Optus Pause T&Cs

Available to Optus consumer and SMB (exc TechFund and Fleet) customers with an eligible mobile, home internet and/or nbn service (up to max. of 30 Optus services). Enabling Optus Pause will disable access to data (via mobile and/or WiFi) to the selected Optus services and devices for the chosen period. Use of standard calls and SMS on the selected Optus services will not be affected. Customers must use an internet connection and be verified as the account holder to enable or disable Optus Pause. Optus Pause is an optional extra available at no additional cost and does not form part of a plan. If a service that is roaming is included in Optus Pause its mobile connectivity will not be paused. Usual charges will continue to apply when Optus Pause is enabled. We may need to remove Optus Pause from an account from time to time, due to system or other issues. While Optus Pause is active we may allow internet access to certain Optus or other websites at our discretion, which may change from time to time. Access to Optus Pause requires the latest version of My Optus app. Optus Pause may be withdrawn without notice.

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