High Speed Internet Access (HSIA): Mobile Internet

3 Mobile customers will soon have access to Vodafone’s 2G network. So far there hasn’t been an official announcement from Vodafone Hutchison Australia (VHA – the company that was formed when Three and Vodafone merged earlier this year). However, 3 customers are seeing a different display of available networks with an inclusion of “3 – 2G”. 3 Mobile don’t have a 2G network. It’s always only been 3G so customers are surmising that the 2G network is in fact Vodafone’s 2G network. There has since been a lot of discussion supporting this theory with some dates to the effect that 3 Mobile’s access to the Vodafone 2G network is currently being tested in South Australia and will be extended to the rest of Australia on 7 December 2009.

It looks like 3 customers will gain access to a much larger 2G coverage area than they previously have, without having to roam onto the Telstra Next G network as they currently do with the resulting roaming charges. Even though 3 Mobile recently entered into a deal with Telstra and roaming charges have been reduced to 0.10 per megabyte, customers still don’t like data roaming. The Vodafone option will be a win for them.

Three are not yet getting access to Vodafone’s 3G network. Outside the 3 3G zone and the Vodafone 2G network coverage then roaming will be available as now via Telstra Next G.

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• Mobile Broadband Coverage Extended
• Vodafone, 3 Mobile Merger: Existing plans will remain unchanged
• 3 Mobile and Vodafone Mobile Broadband Networks to Merge and Expand
• High Roaming Charges Spark an Enquiry
• Vodafone Reduce Mobile Roaming Charges