mobile data plan... do we have bright future?

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nakedmolerat

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#14629 12-Jul-2007 20:36

i wonder when vodafon will stop overcharging us.... in my home country, unlimited data plan for gprs/3g/hsdpa will cost around nz$25 per month... they are unlimited plan!!! woohooo... maybe this can only be achieved if there is more than one mobile phone provider (more than 5?). our fixed line broadband cost about the same for 2MB dl/ul and unlimited plan... sigh

anyway i tried skype call out using IM+ from shape service with my new nokia in vodafone network. i rang few overseas numbers (mobile and landline netowrk) and guess how good the quality is? i give 9/10. awesome quality :)

im hoping vodafon will come out with reasonable data plan in the near future...

anyone know if there is any gps software for smartphone users? apart from gmaps+nokia maps

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#77898 12-Jul-2007 20:54

The 200mb and 1gb plans offered by both vodafone and telecom represent good value for money, particularly when compared to what is offered by some operators overseas.

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nakedmolerat

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#77931 12-Jul-2007 22:52

cokemaster: The 200mb and 1gb plans offered by both vodafone and telecom represent good value for money, particularly when compared to what is offered by some operators overseas.

which country u referring to??? 1gb uh...

why country like NZ need to have limit on broadband? can anyone explain this to me?

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#77935 12-Jul-2007 23:00

Well obviously places like the US and UK... both of which have been stated as shining beacons of light for internet usage.
US has problems defining what 'unlimited' actually means. While the UK has problems with flatrates and VOIP.

Obviously radio waves are a finite resource, there is a high cost in terms of equipment, and carriers are out to make money... so I'm not too sure if you'll see download all you can for $20 yet.

I feel that 1GB is a reasonable amount of data, and for another $10 you can get a second GB. Particularly when you don't need to have an associated voice plan (like landline broadband).

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freitasm

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#77936 12-Jul-2007 23:01

There's no limit. There's a cap. After that cap you pay as you go.

The limit is there because New Zealand is a group of islands, and moving data into the country is not cheap. Most of the content comes from overseas, impacting overall costs.

I think 1GB (or 2GB if you use the current $10 for 100% cap extension) is a fair amount of data for a cellular data connection. More than this is better to get a DSL or cable modem, because the performance is simply much better than any cellular can provide you. And cheaper.

nakedmolerat

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#77947 13-Jul-2007 01:02

i agree, no limit but cap. pay if u use more than u 'should' be using.

i have cable internet+tv from telstra for my regular use at home. and yup, it is the best isp so far when im in nz. i wont use vodafon network to play game or download stuff. i travel a lot. when i travel, i still need internet. internet = library. unlimited number of journals and reading materials are easily accessible from the net. one whole journal in pdf form would be around 30-40meg. if i need to research 10 different journals, it would be 300-400mb. seriously, i dont see exactly how 1gb is huge enough for all of us.

if vodafon offer no cap data plan, do u think every customers will start downloading excessive amount of data? i dont think so... i myself will not ridiculously download absolutely anything from the internet. oh well, cant complain.

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#77958 13-Jul-2007 09:03

nakedmolerat:
if vodafon offer no cap data plan, do u think every customers will start downloading excessive amount of data? i dont think so... i myself will not ridiculously download absolutely anything from the internet. oh well, cant complain.

It doesn't matter... cellsites have a limited throughtput so even if 20-50% of the users starting leaving bittorrent open, it probably would downgrade the experience for everyone.

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#77961 13-Jul-2007 09:22

nakedmolerat: if vodafon offer no cap data plan, do u think every customers will start downloading excessive amount of data? i dont think so... i myself will not ridiculously download absolutely anything from the internet.

You speak for yourself. But I can certainly imagine some people downloading everything and making the experience bad for everyone else.

As cokemaster wrote, cell sites have limits. More users means either less bandwidth for everyone on that cell site, or reduced coverage.

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#77971 13-Jul-2007 11:04

nakedmolerat: which country u referring to??? 1gb uh..why country like NZ need to have limit on broadband? can anyone explain this to me?

If you take New Zealand's closest neighbour for example, Australia, 1GB with Telstra on their Next G mobile network with no speed caps (yes aussie have speed caps on mobile data) is cost about $80AU per month and they don't offer the $10 extension like the two New Zealand telcos do.

As for data, as already stated data cost money and as a small nation our Telcos simply don't have the customer base to offer unlimited mobile data in the hope that not a majority of people will not abuse the privilage (people will of course abuse it, saying otherwise is like having you hear in the clouds) to cover the uneconimical users.

200mb for $29.95 and 1GB for $49.95 is good value and more than meets the needs of a vast majority of New Zealand mobile broadband users. Doubling your data cap for $10 extra is no less than a bargin.

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