Kogan Mobile 2.0 arrives using the Vodafone 3G network

[sincity]

According to Ruslan Kogan, the relaunch of Kogan Mobile network today is like the return of Simba to the Pride Lands in the Lion King.

"The way we view the past is a bit like the Lion King," Kogan told the assembled press conference. "Scar was bad and made Simba leave, but that doesn't mean that Simba shouldn't come back when the time is right."

Unlike when Kogan launched Kogan Mobile as an MVNO on the Telstra network and failed spectacularly, this time around Kogan has worked directly with Vodafone to ensure a working partnership without the pitfalls of reselling agreements.

The deal has been in the works for two years - or about the time that the Telstra arrangement ended.

Just can't wait to be MVNO king

Kogan will be delivering a complimentary Kogan Mobile SIM card with every connected device it delivers from the Kogan online store. Customers can also sign up through the Kogan Mobile website.

There are three plans on offer, with the option to pay up front for 30 day, 90 day or 365 day instalments for the phone plans.

The 3XL plan offers 3GB of data (renewed every 30 days) with unlimited talk and text for $29.95 for 30 days, $79.95 for 90 days and $299.95 for 365 days.

The 5XL plan has unlimited talk and text plus 5GB of data (every 30 days) at $36.95 for 30 days, $99.95 for 90 days or $369.95 for 365 days.

For those looking at a dedicated data plan without talk and text, there's a 2GB data plan for $14.95 for 30 days.

Be prepared for 4G

One of the surprising elements of the announcement is that the Kogan Mobile network will only be running on 3G rather than Vodafone's 4G network.

Kogan promises that will change early next year, and explained that the reason for the 3G launch was that the deal was initiated back before Vodafone launched its 4G network.

While execs wouldn't comment on whether the arrival of 4G to the Kogan Mobile network would impact pricing when it launched, they did promise anyone signing up to the longer-term plans now would automatically be upgraded for no extra cost when 4G was switched on.