Highlights-
- 56 GB data at 4G Speed
- 2GB/day for 28 days
- Unlimited data after FUP data usage at lowered speed (around 128kbps but it is lower in actual use)
- Free incoming and out calls (made using VoLTE)
- Free Messages
- Validity of 28 days
- No roaming(all around India)
Never before there has been a mobile data plan so good. From any company. A few days ago when Jio announced its Prime Membership offer and said that all those who subscribe to it will be able to get a monthly recharge done for Rs 303 to enjoy unlimited data (4G speed limited to 1GB data per day), messages and voice, that seemed like one hell of a plan. But yesterday when Jio revealed it other plans, it seemed that the Rs 303 was just one of several such plans that the company has cooked up for its users. Almost all the plans that are available to Jio Prime members seem like great value for money. But the one that totally hits it out of the park is the Rs 499 plan. This is possibly the best wireless data plan available anywhere in the world right now.
All of this will cost a Jio user Rs 499 plus around Rs 9 per month (charged as Rs 99 annually) for the Prime membership. The cost of 4G data is this plan turns out to be less than Rs 10 per GB, which is definitely among the cheapest anywhere in the world when it comes to wireless data. In fact, it is cheaper than what many companies in India charge for the wired internet.
In comparison, most other phones companies anywhere from 2GB to 5GB for Rs 500, and then most of them also charge for calls and messages. Even Jio provides just 5GB data to non-Prime users. So essentially, Jio is offering 10 times more data with Rs 499 to its Prime members.
May be this is the reason why Airtel chairman Sunil Mittal has grudgingly acknowledged that Jio Prime plans are just too aggressive. He said that Airtel will respond but also notes that these plans are unsustainable.
There some flaws too-
Of course, the Jio Rs 499 plan is not without its flaws. It is not FUP-free. And that FUP limit kicks in daily, if you manage to finish your quota of 2GB per day. But frankly, this is nitpicking. 2GB per day on a mobile phone is a lot, even if you use the phone as a hotspot at your home. Unless you are downloading movies after movies on torrent, or streaming high-definition content, you will be hard pressed to exhaust the 2GB limit.
Although a bigger problem for many could be the quality of Jio service. In many areas the service has improved tremendously in the last couple of months. But in many places, people say that the Jio 4G is hardly any better than lower speed networks. They also talk about the reliability and the coverage area. The VoLTE calls now mostly connect, but they are still as seamless as the regular GSM calls.
But then no telecom network in India is perfect and if you are willing to live with some of the peculiarities that Jio network may have, the Rs 499 plan makes so much sense for all power users. It gives users so much data that most won't be able to finish it. And in a data-starved country like India, where wireless internet was prohibitively expensive until now, that counts for something.
So in our opinion Go for it!
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