Compare Australia's Best Mobile Broadband Plans

Fast Mobile Broadband

Mobile broadband may not be as fast as high-speed home broadband, but there are some genuinely fast mobile broadband plans available to give you broadband speeds on the move

Be sure to check signal strength of the areas you will be mainly using mobile broadband, and make sure that you select a dongle that enables you to access the providers full network speeds. Below we have listed the top 20 fast mobile broadband plans with speeds ranging up to 14Mbps.

Fast Mobile Broadband

As you would probably expect fast mobile broadband plans are the highest sought after package in the mobile broadband market. Everyone wants to surf the net, send e-mails and play games just as they would if they were at home. Of course, speed comes with a price. So let’s take a look at what’s possible and what it might cost you.

How Fast Is Fast?

Most 3G Mobile broadband plans offer a speed of around 3.6 Mb per second, which up until recently has been regarded as fast enough for most users. The latest technology however has introduced speeds of almost 3 times faster than anything else in the world market at 21 Mb per second! This is a scorching pace claimed to be the fastest in the world.

So how fast is this? Well, you could download an average MP3 in just four seconds!

Unfortunately this will not be available to the average user for some time yet. This speedy spectrum is being introduced initially into universities, hospitals and some schools, with the main target being the business market.

What Speed Can I Expect?

The fastest speed quoted in the market at the moment is 8 Mb per second. Although this is bound to increase in the near future, it still means you can download a 4 MB song in seven seconds. Or a 1 MB e-mail attachment in about four seconds. Of course what this means is that you will use up your download limits very quickly, so you will probably need a larger data allowance to go with this speed.

What Devices Do I Need?

In order to achieve these speeds you will need a special USB or data card. The data cards fit into most laptops and of course a USB will certainly fit into every laptop on the market. The beauty of these devices is that you can also plug into your home computer, so you can maximise the use. USB devices are generally faster than data cards, up to twice as fast in fact, so speed is what you’re looking for this is the device for you!

What Should I Look out for?

With the range of services available for fast mobile broadband users, it is easy to imagine that the heaviest users will swallow up their data allowances quicker than you can think. Naturally, you’ll need to get the largest package you can afford, so plan your budget carefully. You can save yourself some money nevertheless by following a few pointers.

• Look for plans that don’t charge for excess usage, but will offer you a throttled service where you have your speed reduced after you have reached your limit.
• Go for the maximum data limit you can afford, but plan your usage before you choose. There’s no point paying for something that you’ll never use.
• Don’t be seduced by cheaper large data allowances if the coverage is insufficient for your needs, particularly if you travel a lot.
• Don’t get sucked into a long-term plan if you think your needs are going to change. At least check to see how easy it is to upgrade or downgrade the plan before you decide.

Fast mobile broadband will soon become a thing of the past as today’s fast becomes tomorrow’s slow. So if you’re looking for speed you can always expect something faster and better, probably sooner than you think.