There’s a few reasons for Broadband internet frustration in this country, not least is the lack of quality ADSL connections and stalled upgrades to ADSL given the NBN is looming in all areas. Plus there are people who don’t want to have a fixed line connection linked to a permanent address. Optus has a great solution that won’t blow the budget.
It’s called Optus Home Wireless Broadband and I’ve been giving it a run for the last little while. There’s just one connection required – power. Once plugged in this Huawei device which looks pretty good compared to most ugly modems – connects to the Optus mobile network for all your data needs.
You’re thinking – well, I can just tether my computer to my mobile phone for Internet. Smarty bum. Yes you can. But you’re probably paying $80 a month for 8 or 10 GB of data right?
Optus Home Wireless Broadband will set you back $80 a month but you’ll get 200GB of data. Additional data – can be purchased for $10 per 10GB. (10 times cheaper than mobile phone plans).
It’s quite simple really, you get the device, put in the supplied SIM card and you’re ready to go, you plug it in and the WiFi network is established – password is on the back of the device.
The only real requirement is that you’re in the Optus 4G Plus mobile network – so that will exclude many regional areas but it’s certainly worth checking.
You might expect blistering speeds as per your mobile phone – smartphones these days are pushing 30-40 even higher upload and download speeds. The genius here is that Optus is providing a service with a limited speed to allow you to get more affordable access to the data limits a householder would need.
At best you’ll get 12/1 speeds, though you might be looking more at 5/1 depending on your coverage.
Sitting in my brick man-cave I was getting 5/1 and that’s with just one bar of coverage too.
Think about it – no need to get a landline installed, no need to seek a landlords permission, the choice of month to month, 12 month or 24 month contracts (the $80 price is on the 24 month contract) plus it’s cheaper again if you have an Optus post-paid mobile service.
This little white box is the answer to the prayers of many broadband restricted people. You might live in a share house and want your own connection, you might move a lot renting and don’t want the hassle of installation and waiting times, or you might live in an area with no lines left or poor ADSL coverage – Optus Home Wireless Broadband is worth a look.
Here’s Optus’ Managing Director, Marketing and Product for their Consumer Business Ben White – talking with Trevor Long on Talking Lifestyle about the product:
