Telstra's new USB modem ready for Next G speed boost

Alex Zaharov-Reutt
Friday, 12 September 2008 07:54

IT Industry - Strategy

Prepare to shell out AUD $439 to purchase the device outright, after which you’ll still need to pay for a monthly data plan, or there are other plans available, with Telstra highlighting a $149 price for the modem on a $59 per month plan, which gives you 1GB of data per month.

That’s sadly still a lot more expensive that plans from competitors, such as iPrimus who is reselling the Optus 3.5G data service and is offering a monthly 12GB for $79.95 per month, with speeds slowed to 64Kbps after that 12GB is reached, but the ace up Telstra’s sleeve is Next-G’s range and super-fast speeds and better network reliability.

Despite recent price drops by Telstra, which really saw prices stay the same while increasing download limits, with the highest plan actually increasing by $15, as long as Telstra has the best network, it will continue charging higher prices.

That, after all, is business, and you get what you pay for, as some Optus and Virgin Mobile 3.5G data customers have discovered and complained about.

Still, competitive pressures are always building, and given the moves we've seen from Telstra to move to a 10GB plan and Optus respond (through iPrimus) to bring a 12GB plan to market, the next 12 months should see prices and download limits changing dramatically even further... hopefully even from Telstra!