Switching to the ‘Node
Well tomorrow will see this house switch it’s ADSL provider from [Telstra Bigpond][] to [Internode][]. If you’re currently a Telstra Bigpond user, and I know there are a lot of you out there, and you’re wondering why I made this decision, a quick heads up on what facilitated the change.
### 1. Value
This is a big one. Telstra’s plans are close to the worst, if not the worst, in the business when it comes for cost/megabyte download. I cannot stress this point enough. Lets do a rough comparison of the [top five][1] ADSL providers that [Whirlpool][] users are signed up to. Take into account we’re only comparing ADSL1 not ADSL2+ and these are only the home plans, not Small Office/Home Office (SOHO) or business ADSL.
#### Single Student ($30)
iiNet: 600Mb prepaid, shaped, 512/128 (iiPhone bundled)
Internode: 500Mb prepaid, shaped, 256/64
Telstra Bigpond: 200Mb prepaid, excess $150/GB, 256/64 (uploads counted)
OptusNet: 300Mb, shaped, 512/128 (600Mb off-peak)
TPG Internet: 1 Gb, shaped, 256/64
#### High Flyer ($90)
iiNet: 10 Gb, shaped, 1500/256 (10Gb off-peak, quota doubled w/ iiPhone)
Internode: 40Gb, shaped, 1500/256
Telstra Bigpond: 10Gb, shaped, 512/128 (uploads counted)
OptusNet: 20Gb, shaped, 1500/256
TPG Internet: 25Gb, shaped, 1500/256 (+VOIP)
Looking at those figures it’s not hard to see that Telstra Bigpond is lagging in the bang for buck area. It’s a good thing they’re providing everyone else on the list with wholesale ADSL isn’t it …
### 2. ADSL2
ADSL2 is a relatively new thing around these parts. Theoretically you can get some insane speeds if you’re leaching off a wireless connection adjacent to the ADSL2 enabled phone exchange, but realistically it will at the very least kick the pants off ADSL1. The [graph][2] on this page should give you a pretty good idea on what you can expect in terms of speed when it comes to ADSL2. Currently Telstra Bigpond doesn’t provide ADSL2 services, only ADSL1, and when it comes to the geekage that’s happening around this place - that just don’t sit right.
### 3. Free Stuff
Any ADSL provider that doesn’t provide “free” downloads should never be considered - and Telstra Bigpond, while providing this facility seems to have the crappiest free service in ADSL land. For the non-geeks reading this article, “free” downloads are those that don’t count towards your monthly quota. As an ADSL provider when you’re letting people download at speeds faster than Granny’s dial-up account, you should be providing them with as much free stuff as possible so they don’t go busting that quota in the first couple of weeks after updating their Debian distribution.
### 4. Reputation
Now this is probably the most subjective point on this list, but probably close to one of the biggest. Telstra Bigpond, or Telstra in general, really seems to have a bad attitude when it comes their customers - be that the average Joe or businesses. Due to how they were started (government based and funded) they’ve been the biggest provider of telecommunication services in Australia. This gave them a virtual monopoly over this industry, stifling competition. I like competition. It makes for lower prices, sometimes better service, and a fair go.
So basically that’s the list. If I think of more points I’ll tack them on, but if you’re still using Telstra Bigpond broadband after that … have fun parting with your hard earned cash. I know someone’s laughing at you, and it isn’t me.
[Telstra Bigpond]: http://www.bigpond.com.au/ “Telstra Bigpond”
[Internode]: http://www.internode.on.net/ “Internode”
[iiNet]: http://www.iinet.com.au/ “iiNet”
[aaNet]: http://www.aanet.com.au/ “aaNet”
[Whirlpool]: http://www.whirlpool.net.au/ “Whirlpool Forums”
[1]: http://bc.whirlpool.net.au/
[2]: http://www.internode.on.net/adsl2/graph/index.htm
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Come in from the cold my boy and warm your feet on the Internode fibre.
On the broadband saga, have you thought about AAPT? The high use deal isn’t too bad. Check it out at AAPT You have to bundle with the home phone, but its worth a look.
@Psynix: Cheers mate :)
@Nigel: AAPT like to tie you into large contracts if you want the cheap stuff (12 months, you pay all if you leave early), and they don’t have bundled VOIP available either. Also, where’s the free stuff?
I’m switching to Internode shortly as well robs! TPG’s 50gb for $70 plan is gone… So node SOHO 90gb here i come (i’m not going backwards no sir-ee!)
And yes Bigpond sucks… I’m still on bigpond dialup at work (and a lot of people around the community are as well) and its gotten worse… worse for everyone all in the same week - i recon they’ve rigged it to force people to ADSL (which as you said is a joke in terms of value for money)
@Charles: Nice work mate. I’m sure we can get some node to node transfer’s going on there :) Do you know if node to node is un-metered traffic? I know with iiNet it certainly is.
Internode is great value for money! I joined up with them a couple of months back and haven’t had a problem at all. They’re also expanding their ADSL2 network soon so keep an eye out. I thought Internode had the best all round value when I joined them and compared plans with other ISP’s via http://www.broadbandguide.com.au
Yeah, I’m still waiting for my ADSL2+ email from Internode so we can get connected. Wow, looking at the date on this post it’s almost been a year since we signed up with them. Not and issue with the service at all. Yay, Internode!