REVIEW: Reliance Netconnect Broadband+

[Kiran.dks]

Reliance Netconnect Broadband+

Extract from Blog: dkszone

Reliance Netconnect is a wireless broadband service based on the EVDO (Evolution-Data Optimized) standard and uses their CDMA platform. Reliance claims to offer download speeds upto 3.1 Mbps and upload speeds upto 1.8 Mbps.

They provide users with a choice of 2 USB devices viz. Huawei EC 168C and ZTE AC871.
Both devices work on the same technology; its just the look and feel of the devices that is different.
Our review is based on the ZTE AC871.
Price:
The connection costs Rs.3500 for the USB device. There are several monthly plans available as per the user's requirements.

In the box:




-Reliance Netconnect USB Modem
-CD ROM : Dialer software & Installation Guide
-Quick guide
-USB Extension cable

System Requirements:

-Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Vista
-Supports USB 2.0 standard and compatible with USB 1.1/1.0
-128 Mb RAM or above

The ZTE Modem:



This stylish black device plugs smoothly into your computer's USB port. It comes with a protective cap.

Installation:

Windows XP and higher versions: The device supports simple plug and play where by the software automatically starts the installation on your system upon plugging in the device. We found the set up of this device quite easy on our Windows XP system. The steps were self explanatory without any hassles.

Windows 2000 and lower versions need to install driver package from installation CD.

We couldn't find set-up software for non-Windows platforms.

Activation:

After buying the product from a Reliance store, it took us 24 hrs to get the connection activated. A single click on the installed software completed the activation process.

Connecting to the Internet:

You can go online simply by starting the Dialer software. A simple plugging of the device also brings up the connection dialog.

Though Reliance claims to give 3.1 Mbps download speed and 1.8 Mbps upload speed, the actual average speeds as found by us were 0.75 Mbps and 0.12 Mbps respectively. These figures may not be the same all over the country.



These are the speeds that you would get if you were connected in the Hybrid mode (the broadband mode). Netconnect provides a feature where in if the signals fall in their strength the connection would still be alive; albeit switching to the lower speed mode of 1x which gives 144 kbps. Currently, Hybrid mode is available only in major cities. This could be the fastest wireless internet in India currently.

Many times we found our connection dropping to the lower 1x speed suddenly and required reconnection to switch back to the Hybrid mode. If you are an avid browser, you will find yourselves reconnecting several times in a day to stay online! This could be a bit irritating.

Tariff Plans:

There are several tariff plans available. Unfortunately Reliance has not come up with any Unlimited plan. The highest bandwidth they offer is only 10GB/month which is very less for a broadband connection. Though it suffices the browsing needs, it is not enough for heavier downloads.

Tracking Usage:

We couldn't register online to track bandwidth usage through Reliance portal. This is due to wrong configuration of the dialer software which can no longer receive SMS for completing the registration. Upon consulting Reliance officials, we were told that they would fix this soon.

CONCLUSION:

We would recommend Reliance Netconnect Broadband only to frequently-on-the-move users who wish to stay connected to the net with high browsing speeds and do not mind the bandwidth limitations. It is expensive for avid users of internet who do lot of heavy downloads. Hence we would not recommend it to them.

[Coool]

Nice review... And wats the cost of 10GB/month plan?

[damngoodman999]

There is no 10GB plan in reliance in datacard

2GB max AFAIK

[damngoodman999]

sorry there is 10GB only @ night

[Kiran.dks]

10GB Citywide plan is available for Rs.1099. All tariff plans is available here.
Optionally you can have a add-on pack of 10GB (night hours) for 1 GB, 2.5GB, 5GB Plans.

[Coool]

Its too costly...Not for me!

[Rahim]

Look at the speed advertised and what actually one gets No wonder TRAI take the sides of these money-hungry companies.

[rollcage]

I tried it at friends place in Rohini (West Delhi), the speed was good, i was surprised at blazing speed that too for a wireless connection, what are they using for it // CDMA network that fast?

afaik.. I wont take it too expensive.

[Ponmayilal]

Thanks for the nice and compact review.

Speedwise Reliance Netconnect+ and Tata Indicom's Photon+ will no doubt be better since they use EVDO Revision A (500Kbps-
1,000Kbps Download; bursts to 3.0Mbps; 300Kbps-400Kbps Upload Speed; bursts to 1.8Mbps ) but the cost for the GB-limited downloads , is beyond the reach of ordinary folks.

I am afraid there are and will be no more competitors and we may have to live with it.