Mobile broadband - Telecom vs Vodafone.....

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m00sie

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# 16211 29-Sep-2007 12:51

Apologies if this has been covered, but which is better?

Looking at both networks, and vodafone is more expensive (looking at the 1gb plan + another gb for $10) but seems to have faster speeds and cheaper devices (vodem etc)

Telecom has a cheaper plan, but was talking to a guy from telecom and he said that in poor coverage areas the speed can drop back to marginally better than dial up speeds.

I assume telecom would have better coverage??

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# 88638 29-Sep-2007 14:14

The speeds Telecom fall back (CDMA 1x RTT) are much better than Vodafone GPRS.

As for devices, both have a good range (PC Card, Express Card, USB).

3G coverage still is a major win for Telecom though.

At the end it's all up to which one you prefer really.

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alasta

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# 88641 29-Sep-2007 14:40

I'm not sure where you got the impression that Telecom is cheaper. Last time I checked (admittedly a while ago) the 1Gb plan on either provider was $60 per month with a $10 per month discount for taking up a 24 month term contract, and a $10 per month surcharge to double your traffic quota.

johnr

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# 88648 29-Sep-2007 16:08

One carrier says including GST and the other excluding GST

I suggest you go back and check again who costs more

m00sie

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# 88650 29-Sep-2007 16:43

Thx for the info. Think ill stick with telecom if vodafone coverage isnt going to be as good. Didnt check the gst thing, registered for gst so can claim it back either way.

Zimsar10

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# 88667 29-Sep-2007 19:03

m00sie: Thx for the info. Think ill stick with telecom if vodafone coverage isnt going to be as good. Didnt check the gst thing, registered for gst so can claim it back either way.

What area do you live in? I would suggest contacting Vodafone directly with regards to coverage at this stage, due to their coverage maps being out of date (although this will soon rectified on their website, as they are updating it soon). Also, their prices can be found here: http://www.vodafone.co.nz/personal/plans-services/plans/3G-broadband-and-data/3g-broadband-plans.jsp On a 24 Month Plan you can pay another $10 insurance & get 6Gb of Data for $79.95.

I also remember reading on Geekzone that Vodafone was going to increase their speeds on their 3G Network to 10.8Mbit down, it was only a rumour at the time, however of the two things that were rumoured, one being ADSL2+ going live in Ponsonby with Vodafone/iHug this did come true within weeks of the post being made.

Telecom only currently offer 1Gb of data plus another 1Gb of data for $10 or 2Gb (if you like) of data for $59.95 excluding GST of course, so in reality it's close enough to $70. http://www.telecom.co.nz/content/0,8748,202032-200524,00.html#datacard

nzbnw

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# 88679 29-Sep-2007 22:20

ZIMsar10: What area do you live in? I would suggest contacting Vodafone directly with regards to coverage at this stage, due to their coverage maps being out of date (although this will soon rectified on their website, as they are updating it soon). Also, their prices can be found here: http://www.vodafone.co.nz/personal/plans-services/plans/3G-broadband-and-data/3g-broadband-plans.jsp On a 24 Month Plan you can pay another $10 insurance & get 6Gb of Data for $79.95.

With mobile data is more likely not to be which area you live in, but where you plan to use it. As Mauricio has already said, 1xRTT is a more enjoyable experience when compared to GPRS. And EVDO has a larger coverage footprint.

I also remember reading on Geekzone that Vodafone was going to increase their speeds on their 3G Network to 10.8Mbit down, it was only a rumour at the time, however of the two things that were rumoured, one being ADSL2+ going live in Ponsonby with Vodafone/iHug this did come true within weeks of the post being made.

Previously Mauricio has also said, existing devices (i.e. Vodem) will be unable to take advantage of these upgraded speeds anyway.

Telecom only currently offer 1Gb of data plus another 1Gb of data for $10 or 2Gb (if you like) of data for $59.95 excluding GST of course, so in reality it's close enough to $70. http://www.telecom.co.nz/content/0,8748,202032-200524,00.html#datacard

With most things in life (not all I accept), you get what you pay for.

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Zimsar10

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# 88721 30-Sep-2007 13:23

Vodafone offer by far the best value for money currently with their Mobile Data Plans & their coverage is improving all the time. With their new 900Mhz Network coming online next year, I think coverage & general performance can only improve.

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# 88722 30-Sep-2007 13:28

Their 900mhz WCDMA/HSPDA network is going to be a sticking point with people who have only 2100mhz WCDMA/HSPDA data devices (like the vodem?). So if you were seriously considering 900mhz HSPDA - i would hold off till there were some datacards?

I've found that coverage on Telecom has been extremely good overall, getting EVDO connectivity in the strangest of places in the Rotorua/Taupo region in the middle of nowhere.

With CDMA here - you know that you won't have to upgrade to get the better coverage for Rev A as its rolled out, failing that Rev 0 provides a nicer fallback than traditional UTMS. Additionally - 1X really, really does provide a better experience than GPRS.

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Zimsar10

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# 88727 30-Sep-2007 13:57

Sure thing GPRS is a dog, totally agree with you on that. But as the 900Mhz network rolls out coverage will significantly improve, as well as building penetration.

Telecom's EVDO Network is very good with superior fall back onto 1xRTT, but with it's limited life expectancy (maybe 5-6 years, due to Telecom rolling out a a UMTS/WCDMA network) customers will also face the same problems with regards to hardware upgrades, as will Vodafone customers, possibly within the next 6-9 months (at a guess) from now.

cokemaster

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# 88731 30-Sep-2007 14:03

But there lies the situation:
If I go with Vodafone now and lets assume I get a device that only supports 2100mhz UTMS/HSPDA, I'll need to upgrade to take advantage of any improvements in 900mhz UTMS/HSPDA soon despite being in a 24 month contract (discounted hardware), thus I would pay $$ for a device now and $$ for a device in the not so distant future.

If I go with Telecom now, I know that my datacard will work for at least 5 years which by then my 24 month contract will be over and I can get a new datacard on a new contract.

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# 88732 30-Sep-2007 14:04

The problem is that customers getting on Telecom know their investment on CDMA data cards is protected for another five years. Customers getting on Vodafone HSDPA now are not sure their investment is protected for another five months.

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Zimsar10

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# 88739 30-Sep-2007 14:25

cokemaster: But there lies the situation:
If I go with Vodafone now and lets assume I get a device that only supports 2100mhz UTMS/HSPDA, I'll need to upgrade to take advantage of any improvements in 900mhz UTMS/HSPDA soon despite being in a 24 month contract (discounted hardware), thus I would pay $$ for a device now and $$ for a device in the not so distant future.

If I go with Telecom now, I know that my datacard will work for at least 5 years which by then my 24 month contract will be over and I can get a new datacard on a new contract.

That's right, good point, so in the Vodafone case you are best to wait then.

Zimsar10

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# 88740 30-Sep-2007 14:28

freitasm: The problem is that customers getting on Telecom know their investment on CDMA data cards is protected for another five years. Customers getting on Vodafone HSDPA now are not sure their investment is protected for another five months.

So would you rather Vodafone stay with inferior 2100Mhz technology & not move onto superior 900Mhz technology with improved coverage & building penetration?? I don't think you would be too happy with that somehow. Technology is changing all the time, most people who have invested $$ in technology are fully aware of this & are use to change, it's fact of life.

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# 88742 30-Sep-2007 14:38

ZIMsar10:
freitasm: The problem is that customers getting on Telecom know their investment on CDMA data cards is protected for another five years. Customers getting on Vodafone HSDPA now are not sure their investment is protected for another five months.

So would you rather Vodafone stay with inferior 2100Mhz technology & not move onto superior 900Mhz technology with improved coverage & building penetration?? I don't think you would be too happy with that somehow. Technology is changing all the time, most people who have invested $$ in technology are fully aware of this & are use to change, it's fact of life.

Don't twist my words please. Read it again, but I will summarise it here: if you have immediate needs, and need to invest now, and if you worry ROI, buy into something that will last five years, not five months.

Current Vodafone hardware won't work on 900 MHz, meaning anything you buy now will not work with the next, "expanded" network, in five months or so.

None of the current options will work with the "superior" technology as you call it.

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freitasm

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# 88749 30-Sep-2007 14:52

I forgot to say, if you can wait until the first devices with 900 MHz support show up in the market, then by all means go with Vodafone if this is your preference.

I believe devices will show up just before their network goes live.

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