Never worry about usage limits again! Grab all you can eat in gigabytes with a connection that will satisfy even your biggest download and upload requirements.
With the ability to quickly download movies and music directly from the internet it is easy to understand why many broadband subscribers now require large monthly download limits. Most internet service providers offer large download quotas on fast broadband plans to meet the demands of these heavy internet users. However, many of these plans are split between on and off-peak quotas that need to be considered when deciding which broadband plan is appropriate. For example, TPG's ADSL2+ Ultimate Super 5 broadband plan has a huge 200GB download limit with a large 140GB off-peak usage quota between the hours of 4am and 9am. By offering large off-peak download quotas internet service providers attempt to discourage file downloads during peak times that would slow connection speeds to other users. Instead, they want to encourage large file downloads to take place at night when there is little demand on their networks.
The only unlimited broadband plans currently available in Australia are on speeds too slow for a large amount of file downloads. TPG offers an unlimited broadband plan for $39.95 at speeds of 256 kbps. Dodo also offers an unlimited plan on a 256 kbps connection for $39.90. At this speed it would be difficult to download the large quotas available on broadband plans at speeds of 1500kbps or higher. For example, a 60MB music album would take approximately 5 minutes to download on a 1500kbps connection but over 31 minutes on a 256kbps connection. Bigpond boasts an ADSL2+ connection can download an 850MB movie in less than 10 minutes.
Download usage will depend on the type of file downloaded: an average music track is 4-5MB and an average full-length movie is 600-900 MB, depending on quality and duration. This means on an iPrimus Big Kahuna plan, you could download over 200 movies a month and still be able to browse the internet at fast ADSL2+ speeds. Download limit requirements will also be affected by the number of files downloaded, hours spent surfing the internet, listening to internet radio and streaming online video.
The amount of files you want to download will affect what broadband plan suits your needs. Where available, ADSL2+ broadband plans generally offer higher download limits to match the faster connection speed. For example, iiNet offers a large 130 GB download limit on its home 6 Naked broadband plan which is ideal for users who want a large download limit and a fast ADSL2+ connection without having to pay a monthly home phone rental.There also several ADSL broadband plans with high download limits, generally on speeds above 1500kbps.
When deciding which broadband plan is best for your download requirements you need to consider a number of factors. Off-peak quotas often make up a large part of the download limit and the convenience of these times will need to be considered. If you are not able to do most of your downloading during the night then some plans may not be suitable. If you exceed the monthly download limit some providers will charge an excess download fee (Exetel, Dodo,) while others will limit connection speed until the end of the month (TPG, iPrimus, Netspace.)
If a fast connection is your priority, compare the following ADSL, Cable Satellite and Wireless plans.
