There's a reason people become excited when they find out that Fibre is rolling out in their area – Fibre internet has a ton of perks and benefits for the home internet user. But when it comes to individual Fibre internet plans, how do you choose which one is the best for you?
Here are six questions to ask when buying a fibre plan for your home:
1. Is Fibre available in your area?
You should first check whether Fibre coverage is available in your area or whether you live in a future Fibre area. If your area has Fibre available, you can immediately take out a Fibre internet plan and simply wait for your router to be installed.
If you live in a future Fibre area, Vodacom offers LTE plans on a month-to-month basis (free for the first month) until your area becomes available with Fibre. Click here to find out if Fibre is available in your area.
2. What do you mainly use the internet for?
The right internet plan for your home depends on what you do and plan to do on the internet.
Gamers will require higher speeds, usually with uncapped internet plans. The exact speed depends on how quickly you want game updates to download and how many people are gaming or downloading on your network. A 10–20Mbps connection is perfect for a lone gamer, while 40Mps can support a household with two gamers easily.
Meanwhile, people who download and upload a significant amount of data or use a video streaming service might want to consider a plan with enough data to meet their monthly requirements. Many people opt for uncapped Fibre if they download or stream a lot during the month.
If you mainly use your internet connection for social media, you won't need a heavy-duty connection with high speeds – a lower-speed, capped plan should be more than enough.
3. How many devices will you connect to your network?
Fibre has the benefit of not being as prone to congestion as ADSL, thanks to its better bandwidth. But you still need to make sure that your Fibre plan's bandwidth is enough for the number of devices and users that will be connected in your home.
The more devices connected simultaneously on a network, the more bandwidth you will generally need. While one device with a 40Mbps connection will experience fast speeds, 10 devices all downloading and using the internet heavily will split this bandwidth between these devices and slow down individual connections.
Know which Fibre package best suits your household needs. Things to take into account: number of mobile devices, TVs, gaming station, CCTV/home security system, streaming services, smart home (Alexa, Google Home and Amazon), home school e-learning and working from home dependencies. If you have a large family that uses the internet heavily, you will usually need a higher speed plan than someone who lives alone.
4. What is the size of your property?
Take into account the size of your property, i.e. single-story home/double storey home/ apartment complex, will help determine whether the Fibre package you've chosen will ensure you have a strong enough WiFi signal in every room of the house. Should you live in a bigger house, consider adding a Wi-Fi extender to your Fibre line.
5. How soon do you need to be connected to the internet?
Installation is depended on the infrastructure provider and can take a minimum of 14 days once the booking is confirmed. Should you need to be connected quicker, consider taking Interim LTE while you wait for Fibre to be installed.
6. Should you add a VOIP?
Consider adding VOIP to save on landline costs – Save money, don't lose your landline, don't pay a rental (Porting your number). You can retain your current number, and the prices start from as little as 23cents per minute to landline and mobile. Calls are free for Vodacom Fibre to Vodacom Fibre calls.
Check out Vodacom's internet plans.
Vodacom offers a variety of home internet solutions, including Fibre-to-the-home and LTE plans. Please find out more about our Fibre offerings on the Vodacom Fibre website. Visit the Vodacom LTE site to see our LTE internet products.
