racoma.com.phJ. Angelo Racoma on technology, economics, writing, problogging, and getting things done

Last time I reviewed a Smart Bro plugit prepaid kit, with the intent of trying it out first before plunging into a postpaid subscription. I had submitted documents for an unlimited subscription last week, but I’m having second thoughts already at this point.

First, I’ve been submitting all kinds of financial documents, but the approving officer/s don’t seem to consider my finances enough to sustain the unlimited PhP 1,500 plan (or even the lower plan, for that matter). Not only is it disheartening, but for someone who pays for almost everything in cash, this is really frustrating. I even asked if I could pay for the subscription for the entire two-year lock-in period in outright cash (which translates to PhP 36,000) and they said I couldn’t do so.

I’m somehow glad I didn’t get approved. At least not yet. Reading around and from my own tests using my 3.5G-enabled Nokia E51, I’m thinking Globe Visibility is the better option.

I picked up a prepaid kit for PhP 2,500. This came with PhP 30 in prepaid load.

Here’s a comparison with Smart, based on my experience.

Pros

Convenience. For me, Globe is the more convenient option, since I use a Globe prepaid as my main mobile phone line (my alternate phone is a prepaid PLDT wireless landline). Smart BRO can only be loaded either via electronic load, or by scratch card. With the scratch card option, you can only reload by texting some codes using a Smart cellphone.

With Globe Visibility, I can just pass (or “share”) credits from my phone’s own. This simplifies things, and this is probably cheaper in the long run, if I’m just a light user. Also, I’m a big fan of Globe’s share-a-load because of its flexibility.

Speed. Based on my speed tests, Globe 3G and 3.5G connections are generally faster than Smart’s. I read somewhere that Globe’s 3G network is a “true” 3G network, whereas Smart’s is not (or something to that effect). So this means that while the point-to-point connection may be the same for both, the actual throughput is faster from Globe’s network. Speed test results below.

Hardware. Smart’s black USB dongle looks sleek (it seems to be made of aluminum or some light metal alloy, too!), but I generally find Globe’s ZTE MF626 better because of the brand and support. Because these are more widespread, you have better support (both official and community-based) for ZTE, in terms of firmware upgrades, driver upgrades, and even drivers for open-source OSes.

Also, the Visibility package’s ZTE MF626 has a slot for a micro-SD card. I know most laptops and netbooks these days come with multi-card readers, this can be handy for those who don’t have a micro-SD to SD converter, or those who don’t have a slot at all.

SIM Functionality. The Visibility bundled SIM card can be used for calling and texting. Smart Bro’s SIM can not. And so while the bundled software cannot let you make calls from your Globe Visibility SIM, you can use it to send and receive SMS. I doubt if you want to do this, though, since I think receiving SMS or calls can usually cut off data connections.

Cons

Now Visibility has some disadvantages over Smart BRO.

Time-based charging. Globe does offer time-based charging, so you don’t get charged according to the amount of data transferred. With Smart, the charge is PhP 10 (or about $0.20) per 30-minute block. For Globe, the charge is PhP 5 per 15-minute connection period. Now with Smart, the moment you connect is considered the start of a 30-minute block, and you can reconnect an indefinite number of times within that 30-minute period, and you will only be charged once. So this means you can use your Smart BRO connection on different devices and you only get charged PhP 10 for a 30-minute period.

With Globe, you get charged each time you connect. So if you get disconnected in the middle of a session, you start with your PhP 5 per 15 minutes again. The moment you connect, that’s PhP 5. If you get disconnected after 5 minutes, and reconnect again, you get deducted PhP 5 again for the first 15 minutes.

This is generally good for those who only need quick bursts of connectivity through a day, like for checking emails, twittering, or the like, since you only spend PhP 5 for that 15 minute period. But if you tend to get disconnected a lot, then it will end up more expensive.

Update: Since early 2009, Globe has implemented block-based charging. You only get charged PhP 5 per 15 minute block, regardless of how many times you re-connect during this period.

Image compression. Globe Visibility uses image compression technology to make downloads and page loading faster. The downside is that you sometimes get ugly, pixelated images! Sometimes images even get resized so websites look bad. One workaround is by using tunneling software or local proxy software such as toonel.

Software Overhead. In general, Globe Visibility’s dialer takes longer to load than Smart BRO’s. and the footprint of the Globe connection manager is about four times that of Smart’s. Globe’s will eat about 20 megabytes of RAM, while smart will only take 5 megs.

Other observations

From my tests, it seems that both Smart and Globe allow access to non-HTTP ports like FTP, telnet, and IM ports. But I haven’t tried downloading torrents from either.

Price-wise, both prepaid kits seem at par with each other:

Globe Visibility
* Kit price: PhP 2,500
* Inclusive of PhP 30 prepaid credits

Smart BRO Plug-It
* Kit price: PhP 2,500
* Inclusive of PhP 100 prepaid credots
* Must purchase a PhP 300 prepaid card along with kit

So Smart BRO ends up more expensive nominally, because you are required to purchase a PhP 300 prepaid card. But the kit itself has more inclusive credits out of the box (PhP 100 for Smart and PhP 30 for Globe).

A PhP 300 load from either network would expire within two months if not used. The good thing with Globe is that you can transfer credits to another Globe prepaid subscriber (whether Visibility or not). Also, if you decide to load thru card, you can actually use the free SMS credits that come with PhP 300 or 500 cards (you would have to load by plugging in the Visibility SIM on a regular phone, though).

Images

3G connection earlier today:

HSDPA connection from my home office:

Globe Visibility dialer:

Globe Visibility prepaid pack:

Globe Visibility MF626 plugged into Compaq B1200:

Plugged into HP mini note:

Smart BRO plug-it USB dongle and Globe Visibility prepaid USB dongle:

SIM card just peeking out:

My verdict

Having been a longtime Globe user, I would go for Globe Visibility. The image compression issue is bad, but it’s not a dealbreaker for me, since there are workarounds. But if you require raw access–perhaps you’re into graphics design or web development–then maybe you would want to think twice before going for Visibility, unless you are okay with tweaking your system a bit. Speed-wise, Globe is generally better, with more 3G-enabled cell sites. Smart may have a wider coverage, particularly in the provinces, so you might want to take this into consideration if you’re outside of the metro areas.

Globe Visibility does not have an unlimited postpaid subscription, but the closest is the PhP 1,499 plan, which gives you 100 hours mobile connectivity per month plus unlimited Globe WIZ WiFi access. Perhaps this is worth looking into. If Globe launches an unlimited account, then that would be better.

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