Any alternatives to Vodafone Rural Broadband?

Forums › New Zealand Mobile and Wireless › Any alternatives to Vodafone Rural Broadband?

ruff

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#280628 30-Dec-2020 12:47

I have a Vodafone Rural Broadband setup at a lightly used holiday house in Southland.

We have an external antenna, and the vodafone modem (out of contract).

We receive good quality 4G broadband with this setup.

The only problem for me, is the limited data cap. And, it's especially grating as there is no rollover data. The house is unused for much of the time, and the data wasted most months.

Are there any decent alternatives?

Are there any unlimited data sim's worth looking at? And, if so, would they just drop into the existing modem?

Any and all advice welcome.

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#2628082 30-Dec-2020 12:51

Skinny , Spark , 2degrees

snnet

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#2628083 30-Dec-2020 13:07

I'd be inclined, as mentioned by @Linux, to pop a SIM in (prepay perhaps) from one of the carriers listed, buy a data pack while you are there and it will be much less wasting money, just don't renew when you aren't there

taneb1

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#2628084 30-Dec-2020 13:09

Depending on where you are, Yrless might also have coverage down that way / has unlimited plans that are speed based rather than cap based.

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sbiddle

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#2628086 30-Dec-2020 13:10

There are local WISP's covering most of the country, including several covering Southland.

ruff

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#2628096 30-Dec-2020 14:14

Thanks for all of the great suggestions.

There is a bit of data use while I am not at the house (security cameras running).

And we do sometimes rent it out. (Although with the borders closed... not recently).

So, we will need something active there all the time.

I might try one of the Skinny Endless Data plans, and see how that goes.

(Does anyone know what the reduced speed that it drops down to is?)

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Linux

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#2628097 30-Dec-2020 14:18

Yes as stated on site 1.2Mbps

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raytaylor

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#2639295 21-Jan-2021 00:05

Depending upon where you are in southland, if you can get Velocitynet they are pretty good.

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ruff

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#2639441 21-Jan-2021 10:17

Cheers for that.

I think that 2degrees is looking like one to try. They offer the most rural data at the cheapest price. $85 for 170 GB.

And a 2 month free trial.

I did ask them if I could supply my own modem a couple of weeks ago. But no reply... which was not a great first impression.

(Also, frustrating that no rural providers offer roll over data).

Anyway, will keep this thread updated with results.

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scottjpalmer

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#2639451 21-Jan-2021 10:30

ruff: I think that 2degrees is looking like one to try. They offer the most rural data at the cheapest price.

Very limited availability though 😭

nztim

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#2639463 21-Jan-2021 11:09

ruff:

I did ask them if I could supply my own modem a couple of weeks ago. But no reply... which was not a great first impression.

None of the FWA allow you to BYO modem which makes it useless for us as a failover from Fibre/xDSL

Any views expressed on these forums are my own and don't necessarily reflect those of my employer.

ruff

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#2639467 21-Jan-2021 11:23

We currently use a directional external antenna to grab Vodafone 4G from Riverton.

So, we should hopefully have coverage.

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BlinkyBill

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#2639501 21-Jan-2021 13:04

For $60 Netspeed deliver 5Ghz wireless broadband, 80GB afternoon and unlimited morning, using (I believe) the Vodafone network, to Southland.

halper86

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#2640139 22-Jan-2021 14:01

Does Yrless have any towers around Riverton? If they do I'm sure they could come up with a deal.

I have a mate out in Wendon Valley that uses them for their house internet, by far the fastest and cheapest for where they are!

ruff

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#2640157 22-Jan-2021 15:12

Both look like good options, thanks!

Reached out to Netspeed, no reply from contact form...

Reached out to Yrless, emails to them bounce back...

Reached out to 2 Degrees for a 2nd time, no reply from contact form...

I guess the country is still on holiday...

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ruff

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#2661898 23-Feb-2021 17:22

Thanks to everyone that helped.

If it assists someone in the future, Velocitynet seems like the best option for that part of the world.

But, it's still Rural Broadband...

$99 for the 120Gb/mo plan

- $30 for the unlimited AM addition

And then, Starlink came along...

I was on the waiting list, and have been notified that it will be available to me mid to late this year.

So, with a bit more cost, and a lot more speed and no mention of a data cap. That's what I will try.

www.ruff.co.nz

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