I am interested in getting one, but I don't want to go on a plan. I prefer to use pre-paid SIM cards for the different countries I visit.

The Optus plans for the new Iphones sound pretty expensive to me.

Well, if you want to continuously enjoy the features of the iphone, and visits a lot of countries, I suggest that you take the plan. well, if you are buying different sim cards for the different countries you visit, then it would be ok, but if you will stick to your sim and go on roaming, you wont be able to access some features. I think you also cant make calls with a prepaid on roaming.

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I know in past that roaming was considered to be about the most expensive feature you could use on a phone and when overseas it meant that use of your phone was based on connecting with a local network but then your call would be relayed back to Australia before then going overseas again to connect - ultimately $$$/m.

If you are mainly in cities Mike, other than all the fancy stuff downloading, is there really any benefit over a standard G for coverage?.
I got a standard Optus phone on a $19 package recently, giving me $50 spend a month and I can access a number of features via the web if I want to, but being a relatively low user it was just a case of getting what was a reasonably cheap deal.