Browsing On-the-Go and On the Cheap

As the cost of internet service gets cheaper year after year, it is now unwise to bind ourselves to a long lock-in period with any telecom provider. Take for instance the cost of mobile internet. Our postpaid plans used to come bundled with measly one-tenth of a gigabyte’s worth of internet allocation. With the consumers’ demand leaning toward higher utilization of data than of basic SMS and voice services, telcos now provide tons of choices to customize both postpaid plans and prepaid buckets.

Looking at Globe’s SIM-only plan offering, your Php799.00 can get you 11GB of mobile internet. But if you don’t mind the hassle of repeatedly registering for GoSURF50 every three days, your Php500.00 can already provide you with roughly 13GB of mobile internet for 30 days. That would suffice for an average consumer doing daily browsing, social media updates and a reasonable amount of video streaming.

The same is true if you are on the other side of the fence. Smart’s GigaSurf 50 has the same 13GB of prepaid data for the same price as Globe. Compare that with Smart’s postpaid SIM-only plans which offer lower data allocations.

So if you are dead set at maximizing your load allowance, your best option is to actually get two lines:

• Postpaid plan for your voice & SMS needs (so that you won’t need to worry about not having prepaid load during emergencies)
• Prepaid SIM for mobile data

For instance, if you frequently send text messages to friends on different networks, make a few minutes of calls a day and need to access the internet a few hours daily, you will just need to shell out Php750.00 per month for Smart (Postpaid Plan 250 plus continuous registration to GigaSurf 50 on a separate prepaid SIM).

SMS scheduler in Textra app for Android

TIP: If you tend to forget when to re-register for prepaid promos, automate it by using an SMS scheduler. Just key in the registration keyword, set the date and send it. Of course, make sure you have sufficient prepaid load during those scheduled registrations.

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Welcome WiMax

Globe Telecom is trailblazing another technology in the country. In the late 90s, it pioneered text messaging. This time, it’s WiMax.

March 25 formally marked the birth of this wireless technology in the Philippines although it has been pilot-tested in Cavite four years ago.

Based on the IEEE 802.16 standard (also called Broadband Wireless Access), WiMax (stands for Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) provides up to 3 Mbit/s wireless broadband speed and is meant to complement the Wi-Fi technology, if not to replace it eventually.

Under Globe’s promise of rolling out hundreds of WiMax sites, its latest offering of broadband network is deemed as the first and biggest 2.5GHz WiMax (802.16e, the current version) in South East Asia. The service is initially available in selected areas in South Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

The WiMax package is initially priced at P795 per month and comes with a money-back guarantee.