Telstra’s just announced a new addition to its lineup. It’s a combination 4G+WiFi USB modem product which will (hopefully) deal with the biggest issue that its predecessor had.
The Pre-Paid 4G USB+Wi-Fi will set you back $119 (with 5GB of included data on 30 day expiry) and more or less replaces the existing Telstra Pre-Paid 3G USB + Wi-Fi modem, which was substantially cheaper at $59. Telstra’s still listing the 3G device online and hasn’t listed the 4G version as yet, but the smart money suggests you’ll be seeing the 3G version in supermarket clearances soon if there’s actually any left.
The inclusion of 4G may well fix up one of the pressing problems I had with the Telstra Pre-Paid 3G USB + Wi-Fi when I reviewed it for CNET a month ago; namely that while it could hook up to 3G speeds, those aren’t terribly quick and the Wi-Fi sharing function becomes a bit redundant if you don’t actually have much capacity to share. If you just wanted the 4G USB aspect of the device, it’s well worth noting that it’s actually cheaper (at the time of writing) than Telstra’s own dedicated 4G USB modem, which retails at $149 outright.
Source: Telstra