Are Dodo's NBN plans good value?

Dodo’s pushed its beak into the NBN space, offering “unlimited” plans at low prices. But is there a catch?
Unlimited NBN has for a while been something of a holy grail for broadband consumers. Not necessarily because they actually need a permanent pipe; for many it’s the security of knowing they can’t hit excess usage charges or speed shaping. It’s something I’ve written about before, but with Dodo announcing plans — and unlike TPG, which intends to roll its own metro network, these are actual NBN plans — it’s going to get a much wider push.
This in itself is a good thing, because competition always is. But are Dodo’s plans actually worth it? Here are the baseline plans.
[table]
Dodo NBN Plans,,,
Plan Name,Line Speed,Data (Peak/Off-Peak),Monthly Cost
Lite Fibre (Speed 1),12/1,5GB/5GB,$29.90
Lite Fibre (Speed 2),25/5,5GB/5GB,$39.90
Lite Fibre (Speed 3),50/20,5GB/5GB,$49.90
Lite Fibre (Speed 4),100/40,5GB/5GB,$59.90
Big Fibre (Speed 1),12/1,25GB/25GB,$39.90
Big Fibre (Speed 2),25/5,25GB/25GB,$49.90
Big Fibre (Speed 3),50/20,25GB/25GB,$59.90
Big Fibre (Speed 4),100/40,25GB/25GB,$69.90
Mega Fibre (Speed 1),12/1,100GB/100GB,$49.90
Mega Fibre (Speed 2),25/5,100GB/100GB,$59.90
Mega Fibre (Speed 3),50/20,100GB/100GB,$69.90
Mega Fibre (Speed 4),100/40,100GB/100GB,$79.90
Ultra Fibre (Speed 1),12/1,Unlimited,$59.90
Ultra Fibre (Speed 2),25/5,1TB/1TB,$69.90
Ultra Fibre (Speed 3),50/20,1TB/1TB,$79.90
Ultra Fibre (Speed 4),100/40,1TB/1TB,$89.90
[/table]
So how do they stack up? Taking one each from the low, medium and high speed/usage plans offerings, and comparing them against a few other NBN providers, the picture looks like this:
[table]
NBN Plans Entry Level,,,,
Provider,Plan Name,Line Speed,Data (Peak/Off-Peak),Monthly Cost
Dodo,Lite Fibre (Speed 1),12/1,5GB/5GB,$29.90
iiNet,20GB/20GB,12/1,20GB/20GB,$49.95
Exetel,NBN 1-50,12/1,50GB/Unmetered,$49.50
Optus,Casual,25/5,50GB,$55
[/table]
If you were just after a basic service, Dodo’s pricing is solidly competitive, although 5GB of data will vanish astonishingly quickly, even on a 12/1Mbps line.
[table]
NBN Plans Mid-Level,,,,
Provider,Plan Name,Line Speed,Data (Peak/Off-Peak),Monthly Cost
Dodo,Big Fibre (Speed 2),25/5,25GB/25GB,$49.90
iiNet,100GB/100GB,25/5,100GB/100GB,$64.95
Exetel,NBN-2-50,25/5,50GB/Unmetered,$54.50
Optus,Social,25/5,120GB,$75
[/table]
Around the mid-level, that disparity opens up quite a bit, with a lot more data for not much more money at all.
[table]
NBN Plans Heavy Usage,,,,
Provider,Plan Name,Line Speed,Data (Peak/Off-Peak),Monthly Cost
Dodo,Ultra Fibre (Speed 4),100/40,1TB/1TB,$89.90
iiNet,500GB/500GB,100/40,500GB/500GB,$99.95
Exetel,NBN 4-500,100/40,500GB/Unmetered,$139.50
Optus,Ultimate,100/40,500GB,$120
[/table]
At the heavy end again, Dodo’s plans pick up value given the data inclusions. Dodo’s also offering an actually “Unlimited” plan — Ultra Fibre (Speed 1) — but the catch there is that it’s at the slowest NBN speed tier, so you might need some patience. You can add unlimited capability to any other plan for $15 per month, but that applies only to off-peak periods, something that Exetel, for example, provides as standard.
There’s only one other unlimited NBN player, and that’s AusBBS. Here’s how their plans compare:
[table]
Unlimited NBN Plans,,,
Provider,Plan Name,Line Speed,Monthly Cost
Dodo,Ultra Fibre (Speed 1),12/1,$59.90
AusBBS,NBN Unlimited 25,25/5,$90
AusBBS,NBN Unlimited 50,50/20,$100
AusBBS,NBN Unlimited 100,100/40,$110
[/table]
Again it’s tough to fault Dodo’s plan if all you want is an unlimited pipe, and it’s interesting that this is a space that AusBBS doesn’t even play in. Its slowest plan starts at 25/5, something that Dodo doesn’t do in a fully unlimited sense.
So are Dodo’s plans good value? As always that’s relative, but there’s some solid competition here given that the fibre NBN infrastructure in the ground now should be the same for each provider at a base level, and especially for those who want just a simple connection. Dodo hasn’t always had the best reputation when it comes to customer service, and all those plans are listed without phone service — which Dodo offers as an extra. At the heavier usage end of town, though, it’s a little more open.