If you're living in a household full of people, it is important to identify your family's broadband needs to ensure that all members of the household are up-to-date with their homework, business needs, gaming and social networking. One, two, three kids? No problem! Find a broadband plan which will suit your information hungry family, suitable for all your downloading needs, gaming, business solutions and home networking!
Top Broadband Bundle Packages
A Family Friendly Broadband Plan Needs Careful Planning
If you plan it right you can also get a family friendly plan that will give you cheap phone calls through VoIP and any mum and dad, no matter where you live, will appreciate how important free phone calls are when you have a teenager, or two, in the house. Many plans are cheaper when you bundle them with other devices various family members have such as mobile phones, even the household land line telephone. There is the
naked broadband plan to consider when trying to keep broadband prices down as this is another important issue when it comes to family broadband plans generally. Naked broadband means you will no longer have to pay any phone rental costs to enable you to access the internet and you can then take advantage of putting calls through your internet connection, at a far cheaper rate. In fact some plans will actually offer you free local and national calls.
It is Important to Include a WiFi Family Network
Family broadband plans will also benefit from you purchasing a router so you can set up your own family wireless, or WiFi, network. Once you have your WiFi set up each family member will be able to go online whenever they wish without having to share the connection with others. They will even be able to walk from room to room taking their laptop with them, without having to go off line to do so , then logging on again when at another location.
Comparing the Different Family Friendly Broadband Plans
Once you see what is available you can then start comparing all the different family friendly broadband plans that are currently on offer in order for you to get the best deal possible. Things to consider when searching for family friendly broadband deals can therefore include the following:
- Your school age children. Young primary and secondary school children need to be able to access the internet for both study and recreational purposes. This means you will need a reasonable amount of data downloading allowance as well as cheap phone calls. The type of broadband plan to provide this would preferably be one that has ADSL2+ technology and purchased with a bundle deal. If no ADSL2+ technology is available in your particular location you can get a very good download speed with an ADSL bundle.
- The benefit of buying a bundled plan. Internet service providers (ISPs) often give discounts if you are prepared to bundle your home and mobile phone in with your broadband plan. Families get an added benefit in that all your phone and internet costs will arrive on the same bill each month. This makes it much easier with your budgeting. When you make a bundle arrangement you can often negotiate a certain number of free phone calls to be included.
- Make allowances for family members' online habits. No matter how often you remind anybody you are sharing the internet with that you have to keep a watch on your download quota, somebody will always take advantage of the situation and go too far. Video's on YouTube, downloading music tracks, streaming, watching catch up TV shows. All these things take up lots of data downloading. Especially if you are in the habit of watching Foxtel on your child's Xbox. If any of these are a favourite with any of your family members you will need to buy a broadband plan with either quite a large data downloading capacity, or one with unlimited data download.
What should I pick?
Selecting the right broadband plan for your family means selecting something that is good value and gives a solid data allocation. Here, we’ve provided you with a number of tips we use to select our favourite family broadband plans:
when determining which type of broadband to select, consider the needs of your family.
- Bundle and save – today, many family broadband plans offer discounts when bundling in services like cable T.V., mobile and home phone. If you're looking for the full multi-media experience, bundling your services together on the same provider may save you some money and make your bills easier to manage. If you’re looking for a great home phone and fixed broadband deal, Optus’ Fusion plans are unbeatable, starting at $64.95 for 120GB of data and unlimited phone calls to fixed lines.
- Unlimited plans – unlimited broadband plans have no data limits. That means you can download, stream, game, and surf with complete peace of mind! Unlimited broadband plans are a great choice for large families with multiple users, as you can surf to your hearts’ content. Never worry about exceeding your data usage or surfing with laggy capped speeds again. Unlimited broadband plans typically start from $50, unbundled.
- Cable, ADSL2+, or wireless – when determining which type of broadband to select, consider the needs of your family. If you are between houses and constantly on the move, or you have a small family with relatively light usage, a wireless broadband plan could be the right plan for you! Wireless plans are relatively cheap, portable and often do not include fixed term contracts. Alternatively, if you have multiple children and have no plans on moving, a fixed ADSL2+ or cable broadband connection is definitely the option for you. Depending on your location, some cable and ADSL2+ services may not be available to you, so make sure you check with your service provider to see if you are eligible. For example, cable services are not available to those in an area without cable lines, while ADSL connections vary depending on the distance to the telephone exchange.
- Wi-Fi – Wi-Fi broadband is crucial in the modern family today, supporting multiple users on the same wireless network. Wi-Fi can be accessed through any fixed or wireless broadband connection where a wireless router is connected. The router “routes” or networks the connection, creating a wireless network which requires no cords or cables. Instead of only having a single access point in the computer room for example, the wireless network allows you to access the internet wirelessly on multiple devices, within a range of approximately 20 m. Additionally, residential Wi-Fi networks are free; all you need is a router! Thus, for large families, it is imperative to purchase a router upon connection of the Internet.
The final word
Shop, shop, & shop! At the end of the day, it is very important to analyse the needs of your household before making any decision. At the moment, ADSL2+ and cable broadband are the most popular choices in Australia, with many service providers offering great discounts on home phone and pay T.V. bundles! If you are a heavy user, definitely head towards the unlimited broadband plans! But if you hardly use your home phone anymore, naked broadband may be a better option for you, saving you line rental fees every month! Alternatively, for those who have a small budget and don't mind not being hooked up to the fixed internet connection, wireless mobile broadband may be your calling!
