There is so much going on in the wireless and naked broadband space that we decided to try and get some of the best deals out in the open for consumers to access.
We attacked the wireless broadband prices first and with some results that might make people sit up and take notice.
Virgin Mobile is offeing 6GB a month (even though the graphic on the Today Show said 4GB, it is 6GB – they changed their prices on Thursday) for $39, while Telstra is offering the same for a whopping $79.95. However, Telstra charges this amount because their coverage is the best throughout Australia. Does that mean they should be twice as expensive? I think they could do better. Fianlly, there we looked at a prepay plan – 3 Mobile's 4GB foir $49. This is not as good as the Virgin deal either, but at least you know what you are getting and how much you are paying.
We then looked at Naked ADSL. Naked means you unplug your landline and plug in your internet connection, which you also use for phone calls.
We talked about my current play, which is from iiNet and is $49.95 for 10GB. Not too bad, but I am thinking of changing plans because they also charge for uploads as well as downloads. And when you compare it to TPG's huge 120GB for $10 more ($59.95) it puts things in perspective. Finally, there was the Internode price of $69.95 for 50GB a month. Bear in mind these plans mean that the data is split 50-50. This means with the iiNet plan, 5GB is for use during peak traffic and 5GB off-peak.
Also threw in a couple of tips you should take into consideration when setting up an account:
- Talk to other broadband customers via the largest broadband community Whirlpool's Broadband News and Information thread (http://whirlpool.net.au/). It will give you the low down on all the latest trends within broadband, and a general overview of some of the vendors in the space.
- Check out the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman annual report that lists companies and the number of complaints they have had here (http://www.tio.com.au/publications/annual_reports/ar2009/PDFs/AR_09_PartSix.pdf)
- All plans give you an overall fee including set up cost. The best way to know your overall outgoings is to check out the set up costs with your plan and then divide by 24 months or however long your plan is.
