Broadband/ADSL - which one to get?

[XRchic]

Hey

We are looking to get a decent Broadband package somehow over the next few weeks. We have all of our phones with Telstra (mobiles and land line) and we get all sorts of benefits from having the lot bundled together etc.

We were thinking of sticking with Telstra and get Bigpond, but we are not sure what else is out there. We dont really download a lot of stuff (ie music or movies) but we would like it fast.

Are there any good packages with Telstra that any of you guys have, or even a good package with someone else. We are prepared to change providers if another package is good enough!

We figured that so many of you guys have Broadband that you would all have some good ideas.

Also, what is the deal with connection? Do they still come to your house and set it all up for you, or do you just go get the modem from somewhere and you set it up yourself? Or do you have a choice?

Thanks

Jac and Eamon

[JTFG]

I don't know what packages Bigpond really have but if Cable is in your area then definatly get that!

[brenx]

I used to be on Telstra ADSL. It wasn't too bad and wasn't offline very often but interuptions usually happened right when something important needed doing. My Telstra acct was 256/64 $59.95 10mb webspace and 10gb limit.

I churned over to Internode and haven't looked back. 512/128 $49.95 50mb webspace and a 20gb limit. Haven't had an outage since I've been connected to them. Very please. I want more speed but my wallet tells me no. :( No 12 month or 24 month contracts with Internode either

nb..I've also had Bigpond cable. Outages are very common. Especially when the modems get warm.

[SunDrifter]

www.whirlpool.net.au

Plenty of information here. I wouldn't recommend Telstra however, they are fairly expensive.

I use iiNet, and apart from the outage for a couple of hours last night, they have been good for the last few years. I hear good things about Westnet.

[XRchic]

Hmmmm thanks guys! All useful stuff. Since I know nothing, Im going to be taking a lot of note of what you guys say.

[BlueXr8]

AAnet is who i use (ADSL) and dont have a problem unless the power goes out

[OldManGhia]

Telstra Bigpond have a couple of good deals available. First 3 months free plus a modem $130 and they will credit you $130 on your bill so the modem is basically free. Plans start at $29.95 for 200MB @256/64kbps, $39.95 for 400MB @ 512/128kbps or Un-limited starting at $59.95. They also have a half price offer for upto 12 months depending on what other services you have with Telstra. Half price as above are $14.97, $19.97 & $29.97. They provide a self installation kit which is very simple to setup, just follow the instructions and you should be on in a few minutes.\

I would recommend you stay with Telstra because a lot of other ISPs just can't provide the same service that Telstra do. They maybe a little dearer then others but it is worth it. Most (not all) ISPs lease their equipment from Telstra so if you have a problem Telstra will fix it when they want to but if you are with Bigpond its fixed straight away. Also if Bigpond have service interuptions they generally give you a credit on your next account. My bill this month was $62.95 instead of $69.95 because the ADSL service was out for a couple of hours. Doesn't happen very often though.

Hope this helps.

Steve

[ColuntryLad]

I have shopped around abit and I am now useing Wildit and find them very good for reliability and speed the only complaint is when I ring generally get a answering service but normally get a reply within 24 hours.
If your a Whirlpool member they have planns that are totally unlimited as well

[thefargo]

was with iihug (iinet) but service was terrible, lots of outage and difficult to get help. Sat on help line (on phone) for at least 45 min each time on hold..which is great as they play a message telling you were to get help on the internet.. lol
with telstra big pond, unlimited, half price for 9 months, no problems at all. the self install kit is easy to follow. I think some issues depend on where you are.
we are in southern south aust and new phone lines have gone in around here, so we don't have any hassles.
telstra may need to install for you if you have multiple phones connected and/or monitored home alarm. this was going to be the case for us, but as we had already had an installation done before, we were okay...they put splitter boxes or something like that in your system.

[3Toed]

Originally Posted by brenx

I churned over to Internode and haven't looked back. 512/128 $49.95 50mb webspace and a 20gb limit. Haven't had an outage since I've been connected to them. Very please. I want more speed but my wallet tells me no. :( No 12 month or 24 month contracts with Internode either

I'm on exactly the same plan and it's very good. I do believe that you need to stay with them for 6 months though or you'll get charged some early cancellation fee. Maybe it doesn't apply if you churn to them though.

If you won't be downloading a lot then another plan to consider is the 1.5M/256k 10 GB plan. It's $59.95.

[Doogstar]

I'm with TPG (www.tpg.com.au) on their 'Premium 1500' plan $69.95. 1500/256 plan with 25GB limit. It shapes down to 64K when you go over your limit. 6 month contact, setup fee $59.95.

Pretty fast and I can't remember the last time it was down. Help desk is Australia based and very helpful.

Make sure you get a decent download limit, as the faster you CAN download, the more you WILL download. I would say a minimum 5GB.

Setting it up yourself is not too hard, most ISP's supply a setup CD. You just need to put some ADSL filters on your other phones in the house.

As Sundrifter suggested, Whirlpool is the place to go to see what is right for you , use this link to go direct to their 'Broadband Choice' tool. http://bc.whirlpool.net.au/

Good luck, the forums are a different experience on ADSL compared to dial-up. It would be like going from a Suzuki Swift to a F6 Typhoon.

[XRchic]

Originally Posted by Doogstar

Good luck, the forums are a different experience on ADSL compared to dial-up. It would be like going from a Suzuki Swift to a F6 Typhoon.

Thanks mate. Well since I cant get a Typhoon just yet, I will have to get ADSL... my parents have Bigpond and its so fast and nice... it sucks coming home to this poo. And my computer is not slow (its not the fastest out there Im sure), so its kinda wasted with dial up!

Thanks everyone

[jonk]

Adam 24Mb ADSL 2+. $34 for 5GB download. Don't go with Telstra, you'll regret it later, trust me. Their discout is not a discount at all.

[banarcus]

Just stay away from Telstra. It took me about 18 months to get out of the contract penalty free and that was with the ombudsman involved.

[SunDrifter]

Yep, don't go with Telstra. For those telstra subscribers... maybe you should check out whirlpool as well, you might just find a better deal.

I've had a bit of a look around, and apparently iiNet's customer support is getting pretty bad, so bear that in mind.

I've only had to call them twice, once for last nights unplanned outage (report on whirlpool). And once for a line fault (telstra at fault), and i found them to be pretty good. But it does take a while to talk to somebody.

[pauljh74]

Telstra lock you into longer contracts if you get sucked in by the "free" months. Also they count uploads as well as downloads. If you use peer to peer file sharing to download stuff like music etc, having uploads counted will hurt your usage. A 1500/256 ADSL connection will be quick enough as many sites you connect to aren't that fast anyway. Also cable modems are more expensive and cannot be used on another network. So Telstra cable modems can't be used on the Optus network - even if they are the same model modem.

ADSL is much more competitive and the hardware can be used with any provider. If you want to keep your Telstra products bundled with them, then iinet may not be for you (I'm not bagging them as I'm happy with them as a customer), as you benefit greatly by bundling your landline with them. Look around Whirlpool's "Broadband choice" section, pick a plan then check out the forums and get a feel for the ISP's service quality and reliability.

[flappist]

A bit of reality here.....

If you live outside the capital cities it is ALL Telstra. None of the VISPs have any infastructure and are just reselling Telstra wholesale.

The differences are:-

Authentication:
If your username/passwd is buggered up or the A/S is broken you have to deal with the VISP and they fix it.

Oncarriage:
Some of the more povvo VISPs have limited bandwidth after the IPSN/ERX and that can limit you when things are busy.

IPSN/CMUX/ULL problems:
The VISP has to contact the infastructure owner (Telstra) and they fix it, this sometimes is slow as the VISPs do not always pass on the correct message. If you are with a VISP and call Telstra to fix the problem they are prevented by law from helping you.

Price:
Ever seen how many XR6 turbos and monaros are in a Telstra carpark? (j/k). Most VISPs are cheaper because they have no overheads, they own nothing and just have a small team of billing nazis and techs and a big bag of excuses.
Telstra have, by law, to sell their product at a cheap rate to others. The others then re-sell it to you and make a profit for doing basicly nothing, like real estate agents......

Your choice should be made by concidering, price and reliability. If ADSL is just a fun toy and not important, go the cheapest. If your world ends when it stops then........

Actually if we all started our own VISP... (fordforums, fordforums...internet that flies...) we could all save a heap of money. But who would run it?

[Laminge]

Is there life outside capital cities? :P

[Falcon Coupe]

Telstra are way too dear, i would try Internode, Netspace, Westnet or IInet first, look at the whirpool pricing page and compare them all.

I'm with Internode atm they are Adelaide based :

http://bc.whirlpool.net.au/isp.cfm/Internode/9.html

IInet:
http://bc.whirlpool.net.au/isp.cfm/iiNet/15.html

Netspace:
http://bc.whirlpool.net.au/isp.cfm/Netspace/11.html

Westnet:
http://bc.whirlpool.net.au/isp.cfm/Westnet/24.html


Compare the above four with Telstra: No competition.

http://bc.whirlpool.net.au/isp.cfm/T...-ADSL/1-2.html

[XRchic]

Originally Posted by Laminge

Is there life outside capital cities? :P

We live in Mt Barker... so there must be!!! Hahaha.

[Dazza XLT]

We were out bush when we signed up. Bigpond ADSL, for 24 months. I get 12 months half price. Can't argue with that. Haven't had any issues with them so far.
Good experience over here!

[Mk II]

While every one says that telstra is to expensive and all the rest it does quite a few features that are very nice to have.

For example you can live stream the v8's off of bigpond and it doesn't count towards your downloads. You can also do this with the NRL and AFL. Then there is the gaming that doesn't count towards your downloads amongst other things..

So while i agree it is more expensive, the video streaming is very very nice to have.

Food for thought,
Mk II

[Sorted]

I am with AAPT - free modem - no fixed contract

512k Broadband 12gig download max per month - if you go over 12gig the speed goes back to 64 then resets back to 12gig after the month is over

I have two computers running off this and havent got close to 12 gig

$69 per month for the plan by itself

OR $69 per month including phone line rental

[OldManGhia]

I don't mind if everyone prefers to use Westnet, Iinet or any other ISP just means less of an impact on bandwidth when I'm watching V8 Supercars live with no adds.

[Reign]

Ive got Telstra cable (extreme one), no probs at all. If cable is in your area I would suggest it.

[V8R]

exetel here.. myself and many ppl ive recommened are happily internetting along

[Perana]

Im with Ozemail (which is now just rebranded iinet) atm.. Happy with the service really.. But now that iinet are downgrading my plan from 1500kbps to 512kbps im going to be changing to Internode where I can get up to 24mbit (my exchange has an agile dslam installed) with double the quota for the same price i was paying!

Have just noticed that Internode are in the planning stages of installing a dslam in Mt Barker aswell... That means that Internode won't be relying on Telstra's infrastructure and can also offer much higher speeds (24mbit compared to 1.5mbit) and can (but not always) be cheaper aswell

As far as connection usually they will supply a modem (for a price or as part of going on a contract) which you install yourself, After seeing what some ISP's charge you may be better off buying it yourself though. some will offer wireless modem's aswell which would allow you to use your laptop without it connected to the modem. Also you need to either get filters installed on every phone and alarm system or a central filter which takes care of everything.

[blueoval]

Jacqui - have you tried Adam internet?

I get ADSL2+ for my home in Christie Downs for $45 a month for 10gig.

[Perana]

After looking at the plans offered on Bigpond I would'nt recommend them .. 200MB quota on the base plan and if you go over its 15c per MB... Even though you don't download much you will be suprised how much you will use! Especially with the higher speeds. Also telstra count uploads (what you send to the internet) AND what you download where just about all other ISP's only charge for what you download.

Im pretty sure Mt Barker won't have Telstra Cable Internet either

[Jeeepers]

I am using Bigpond Cable Extreme, I have mo probs. 10 gig limit but no extra costs. Just downgraded to 64kbpm if you go over. Recently downloaded Windows Vista 64bit from Microsoft, 4.2 gig download, and it was all done in 36 mins. "smokin"
$69.95 a month. Jeez, I recal paying that for 33.6kbpm for 40 hours per month. Ahh the good ol' days. :