Maybe we’ve got enough mobile broadband for the moment. In its most recent quarter, Optus saw its growth in new mobile broadband customers shrink dramatically.
Optus and Vodafone have signed an agreement to share more of their 3G and 4G infrastructure, allowing them to expand coverage more quickly and for Vodafone customers in regional areas to eventually roam onto Optus’ network where Vodafone coverage is weaker or non-existent. What will that mean for customers of both networks? Will it threaten performance and reception? What happens if you access those networks via another provider? We’ve got all the answers.
Is airport broadband slower in regional areas than in capital cities? And is taking your own 4G dongle a better idea than using what gets supplied in the lounge? Road Worrier decided to find out in a Sydney-versus-Townsville, Telstra-versus-Optus faceoff.
As we’ve been anticipating all week, Optus has officially launched its 4G network with a customer trial commencing in the Newcastle and Hunter Valley areas. But don’t start queuing at your local Optus store or asking us what it costs: the trial is amongst a group of invited participants and no-one participating is being charged to use the service.
It’s not just Vodafone’s old dongles that get cheaper: Telstra’s prepaid Turbo is now on offer through Dick Smith for $29 including delivery. As OzBargain commenters point out, it’s showing up at similar prices through other stores later in the week. [Dick Smith via OzBargain]
Virgin Mobile has increased the data allowance on its contract (postpaid) mobile broadband plans. The improvements are welcome, and somewhat surprisingly they also apply to existing contract customers.
The latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) show that our appetite for mobile broadband isn’t diminishing, with 47 per cent of internet connections coming through mobile broadband. But that also means we need to reiterate an oft-made point: the fact that wireless services are popular does not mean that fixed-line projects such as the National Broadband Network (NBN) are irrelevant. The biggest proof? We keep downloading more data.
One of the more annoying features of Optus’ prepaid offering for mobile broadband is that it counts data in 10MB chunks, which means your usage can ratchet up fairly speedily. That will change from late April, with Optus switching to a slightly more reasonable per MB charging model.
Telstra has made good on its promise to add a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot to its range of devices that use its LTE 4G network. Business customers can buy the device from today, while general consumers can purchase it from March 27.
People who find the idea of mobile signal access on a plane disturbing aren’t going to like this either. The Eurostar train which flits effortlessly between the UK and mainland Europe is soon to get mobile phone coverage for the 37.9 kilometres where it runs under the English channel.
