IP Competition Heats Up With Internode 3G Plan
0Overall Score

NodeMobile triples its memory allowance on all 3G plans as the competition for customers intensifies, ahead of NBN changeover.

The company has also sweetened the deal by giving all subscribers of NodeMobile, its 3G wireless broadband service delivered through the Optus network, an automatic quota boost on their previous plans or a free upgrade.

If users exceed their allowed limits, a further 500 megabytes can be purchased for $19.95 on its 3G Data Blocks. Other sweeteners include a price cut for their Huawei E1762 modem.

The new pricing structure ranges from 1.5GB for $19.95 to 18GB for $79.95, with five data options available at a connection speed of 64kbps.  

When the service was first launched in 2009, their base 250 MB plan was priced at $14.95 a month and a 3 MB plan for $39.95.

The changes to data quotas were made following increasing customer demand, which “better reflects how people are using their 3G broadband plans in the real world,” said Internode product manager Jim Kellett .

“Many customers upgraded to multi-gigabyte 3G plans after finding that a 500MB plan did not meet their needs.”  

Previously the maximum available plan was 6 GB per month.

Interconnecter capacity between Internode and Optus networks has also been improved fourfold, improving performance during peak times, which is a common user complaint, says the company.

The Optus ‘Yes’ plan is still more competitively priced, however, charging $29.95 for 4GB and up to 120GB anytime mobile broadband for $49.95, although NodeMobile’s service is far better value than the current offering by Big Pond, which starts at for just  0.4 GB for $29.95.

10GB is currently the maximum allowance available on Virgin’s mobile internet service.