Spain has gone from being a country where Internet access and data rates were poor to one where today we have one of the best fiber networks in the world and great mobile coverage in 4G and increasingly with 5G. That does not mean that the base prices of the products, without offers and promotions, continue to be high in the main operators. Although there is such a price war, particularly in the second brands of the big ones and in companies like Digi that in the end You can pay little if you look well.
When I moved to the United States, I expected things to be better in terms of price and service. I was very wrongat least with the experience I have where I live, Dallas, a city of 1.3 million inhabitants.
First steps, first disappointments
Google Fiber availability is limited
Before going into the experience, I’ll tell you where I started. From Spain, I had read many times about the good service provided by Google Fiber, Google’s fiber operator. And I was doubly disappointed. The first was that they don’t provide service in Dallas. In fact, availability in the country is far from what one might expect.as we see in the list, as it would be if they provided service in Dallas or Houston as large cities in Texas.
Even so, considering the prices, which, as we will see later, are competitive, the service is not very attractive from a Spanish perspective. What do I mean? The minimum plan involves 1 Gbps for $70a speed that I don’t need at all. I don’t play games or download huge amounts of content, and for two people, I’m convinced I could live perfectly with a symmetrical 100 Mbps connection. The key? A good router.
After ruling out Google Fiber, I considered another operator that I knew, AT&T, which, compared to most operators, which still offer cable (like the old Vodafone HFC in Spain), offered fiber in my home. However, without even adding a mobile line, The base price they gave me for 300 Mbps was $55, promising a discount if I got a mobile line. I needed two extra mobile lines, which was also going to be disproportionately expensive, without the amount of data we are going to need for travel, etc.
Some friends told me about the operator Spectrum as a cheaper option. So I ended up signing up with them after seeing the conditions. However, they are really disappointing, again, with Spanish optics. If you want to pay “little” ($30) they give you Internet via coaxial cable with 100 Mbps non-symmetrical (10 Mbps upload). First big disappointment: in Spain, although Vodafone does not offer symmetrical HFC, it has been offering 100 Mbps upload for some time. The worst thing is that Those $30 don’t include a router, which you have to pay for separately..
So I decided to upgrade to the plan that includes “everything” for $50. Cable Internet with 300 Mbps download speed and a paltry 10 Mbps upload speed. The good part is that it included a mobile line with unlimited calls and data (with the biggest asterisks you can think of).
The download speed is more than promised, but the upload speed is pitiful. It would help to have a real unlimited upload on the phone to go with it, but I only have 30GB.
The bad news is the asterisks. First of all, they don’t service any cell phone over the mobile network they use. The terminal has to be compatible with CDMA networks. My iPhone is compatible but my partner’s Galaxy is not. So There was no solution for her, we had to look for another operator.People here even change terminals to ensure availability.
The second big asterisk is the unlimited data. Knowing that in Spain there are really high limits, which are not really unlimited either, I expected something similar here, but no. What they call an unlimited data rate is nothing more than a 30 GB data rate after which the speed is reduced to 1 Mbps download and 512 Kbps upload. You can pay 10 dollars more and go up to 50 GB, but then the download is the same. Even tethering to any device is capped: After exceeding 5 and 10 GB respectively in these two rates, the speed will drop to 600 Kbps.
In Spain we also call unlimited rates that are not, but not the higher-range rates of the operator, which actually give you 50 GB at most.
In other words, it’s only unlimited in name. And in Spain we complain about unlimited data rates that are capped at 400 GB. Nothing to do with it. On the other hand, although we still have pending trips to draw conclusions, there have already been several times when mobile coverage has left something to be desired in the city centre, even with 5G (using the Verizon network). In the month we’ve been using it, I think the service is worse than the one I have with Vodafone in Spainwhere with promotions I pay less than 30 euros for 600 Mbps symmetrical fiber and 30 GB of data. At my parents’ house, a little more than 300 for the same and unlimited data at maximum speed.
Beyond this, The experience with the Internet at home is not badThe WiFi 6 router works well in a small apartment like ours, and the connection is stable. With 300 Mbps and my usage, it’s fine, but uploading videos to Google Photos takes hours (literally) with the 10 Mbps upload. If I were working by sending files, I wouldn’t be able to have this connection.
The experience with 300 Mbps download is excellent. I will die thinking that in most homes and cases you don’t need more than that with a good router, as much as it is appreciated.
In the end, 50 dollars for Internet and mobile. It’s not that much, you might think, until you compare it with Spanish prices. You get something better with O2 from 30 euros for fibre, and completely better for everything for 35. The same with Digi and its own network, from 21 euros with the same conditions that we have here. For 25 euros a month, you would have 500 Mbps and 200 GB. And without its own network, 35 euros a month with the 200 GB. More than reasonable prices.
After the odyssey of the first line, the second remained
My partner desperately needed an American number, as they ask for it for many tasks. Vodafone roaming has helped us a lot since we arrived, but the Spanish number is not valid for most procedures. So we went to another operator compatible with his phone, T-Mobileand we signed up for a prepaid eSIM with the cheapest plan (thinking we could use data with Vodafone). The price is also shocking: unlimited calls and 5 GB of data for $15 a month.
For a similar price in euros, O2 gives 75 gigas in Spain. Digi gives 15 GB for 7 euros, and if you go prepaid, Vodafone gives 50 GB cumulative for 10 euros. every 28 days, including roaming in the EU, UK and US. Service is good on T-Mobile, but again, prices are inconsistent.
Images | Xataka Smart Home and Mika Baumeister on Unsplash