Vodafone 3G vs Telecom XT: review discussion

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62 posts

Master Geek

#291829 21-Jan-2010 12:08

Having used both Telecom & Vodafone data stick ( new ) in December, I'd agree with the article, really well put together.

One thing though that is not mentioned as the tests were on Windows and that is installation on a Mac. Here there is a huge difference.

The vodafone stick was really not fun to install at all under Snow Leopard, I did 3 laptops ( Two macbook pros, aluminium & 2008, latest white macbook ), it sat forever with no indication of what was going on, the dedicated application never got created. I ended up downloading the latest app from UK Vodafone, but basically it was not a fun experience & the online support sites are not very clear.

The telecom stick just worked, really slick install & nice app for monitoring usage.

NonprayingMantis

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Uber Geek

#291831 21-Jan-2010 12:09

one other point I just noticed.

Vodafone On Account

100MB $10 per month, no term contract or hardware discount.
1GB $49.95 per month, 24 month term contract and a free modem.
1GB $59.95 per month, no term contract or hardware discount.
3GB $69.95 per month, 24 month term contract and a free modem.
3GB $79.95 per month, no term contract or hardware discount.

On 1GB and 3GB plans you can double your data cap for an additional $10. Once you exceed this data is charged at 50c per MB for the 1GB and 3GB plans and 10c per MB for the 100MB plan.

you list a $100MB plan on Vodafone on account but I can't find that anywhere on their website - you also say that overage on that plan is only 10c/MB, but overage on the other plans is 50c per MB. That feels a bit odd since it would mean that using, say, 8000MB on that plan is cheaper than using 8000MB on the 3GB plan

3GB plan = first 6GB for $79.95, then remaining 1856MB at 50c/MB = $79.95 + $932.50 = $1012.45

100MB plan w/10c MB overage
8000MB = $10 for first 100MB, and the remaining 7900MB at 10c/MB = $10 + $790 = $800

beck7747

10 posts

Wannabe Geek

#291832 21-Jan-2010 12:13

I agree with the comments above, this is a really good article and with plenty of plain english so that those of us with less knowledge about these things can understand what you're talking about too! Looking forward to more reviews in the future :-)

sbiddle

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#291835 21-Jan-2010 12:15

NonprayingMantis: one other point I just noticed.

Vodafone On Account

100MB $10 per month, no term contract or hardware discount.
1GB $49.95 per month, 24 month term contract and a free modem.
1GB $59.95 per month, no term contract or hardware discount.
3GB $69.95 per month, 24 month term contract and a free modem.
3GB $79.95 per month, no term contract or hardware discount.

On 1GB and 3GB plans you can double your data cap for an additional $10. Once you exceed this data is charged at 50c per MB for the 1GB and 3GB plans and 10c per MB for the 100MB plan.

you list a $100MB plan on Vodafone on account but I can't find that anywhere on their website - you also say that overage on that plan is only 10c/MB, but overage on the other plans is 50c per MB. That feels a bit odd since it would mean that using, say, 8000MB on that plan is cheaper than using 8000MB on the 3GB plan

3GB plan = first 6GB for $79.95, then remaining 1856MB at 50c/MB = $79.95 + $932.50 = $1012.45

100MB plan w/10c MB overage
8000MB = $10 for first 100MB, and the remaining 7900MB at 10c/MB = $10 + $790 = $800

The 100MB plan is listed on the Vodafone site, it's under "mobiles" and not "computer".

NonprayingMantis

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#291843 21-Jan-2010 12:27

sbiddle:

The 100MB plan is listed on the Vodafone site, it's under "mobiles" and not "computer".

ah, I was looking here:
http://www.vodafone.co.nz/shop/plansMobileInternet.jsp?plantype=data&billingMethod=onAccount&menuKey=mnit600004

where it is not listed as an option for on account

strange that for very high users it should work out so much cheaper though don't you think? (unless my maths is absolutely terrible)
(although still a heck of a lot more expensive than XT for that level of usage)

keewee01

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#291873 21-Jan-2010 13:22

Great article, a very interesting and informative read!! Thanks.

lapimate

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#291888 21-Jan-2010 13:46

Shouldn't (see 1st para.) "WCDMA (Wideband Code Diversion Multiple Access)" be "WCDMA (Wideband Code DIVISION Multiple Access)"?

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sansom

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One NZ

#291892 21-Jan-2010 13:54

timmyh:
sansom:

In fact, one greedy customer bought over 100 512MB bundles in one month!

Wouldn't that be "one highly engaged and very highly valued customer..."

Yes & hello Tim! - but they were a very brief customer: by the time we'd tried to work out who they were, what was going on, they were gone!

Hamish

ahmad

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#291897 21-Jan-2010 13:59

Great work Steve!

What happened to the other XT prepaid plans? The 120Mb and 240Mb plans are also available on Prepaid, and their effective cost after the minumum top up discount (20% for $20 topups) make them only $10 and $15 per month (rounded to nearest $).

Last year I did an unscientific test of speed around Dunedin using and iPhone as you may recall. I don't want to get into the speed aspects of that exercise but want to raise the issue of 2100Mhz vs 850Mhz frequencies.

I found the in-building deterioration of 2100Mhz signal and speed to be at times to be terrible. From this, it seems to me that iPhone users are likely to get consistently better performance on XT than Vodafone as long as the iPhone does not support 900Mhz; and even if that ever happens, metropolitan users will still only have 2100 support at this stage.

I know this relates to a specific device/handset but do you have any thoughts on the issue?

sbiddle

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#291900 21-Jan-2010 14:02

lapimate: Shouldn't (see 1st para.) "WCDMA (Wideband Code Diversion Multiple Access)" be "WCDMA (Wideband Code DIVISION Multiple Access)"?

Cheers

Damn.... I made a spelling mistake and Word changed it. I picked it and and thought I'd changed it but missed it when I proof read it..:-(

wtf

38 posts

Geek

#291927 21-Jan-2010 14:50

PaulBrislen: Yes, I can understand how you'd get used to hosing rain and wind all "summer" long... ;-)

Well Paul, going by the last 24 hours in Auckland you would know. (For those in other places, it has been hosing down in Auckland...it often does rain here in summer.)

On a more relevant note, it would seem that that if you tend to use either of these networks from one location, and the neighbours ask how good it is, you should tell them that it is cra^H^H^H unsatisfactory. Because if you are getting good speed you don't want the neighbours jumping on and spoiling it for you, and if you aren't getting good speed you don't want them making it any worse.

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#292002 21-Jan-2010 19:04

Great write up Steve. Very similar conclusions I came to when I did the run of speedtests. Telecom still takes the cake in the speed race, but interesting you also picked up that Vodafone seem to nudge ahead in a few other areas too.

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#292006 21-Jan-2010 19:16

Very informative read, great work Steve!

I found it very interesting to read about the different states your data card enters into, I had no idea.

grant_k

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#292013 21-Jan-2010 19:58

nate: Very informative read, great work Steve!

I found it very interesting to read about the different states your data card enters into, I had no idea.

+1

A great read. In fact, I would go so far as to say it is the best review on Geekzone for the past 12 months.

It seems that a career in Technical Writing or Technical Journalism is beckoning you Steve

bbman

646 posts

Ultimate Geek

#292038 21-Jan-2010 22:21

Great work Steve, the explaination around data access, the modes and phases of a connection was outstanding and of great benefit to me. Explains a lot!

Thanks for going to the effort!

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