Surfing the internet looking for facts and information has become second nature to most individuals. With the rise of e-commerce your trips to the local stores have been minimized. Hell yeah, you can even order your favourite dish from the comfort of your couch. One thing remains constant for you to achieve all the above results. You need an internet connection. Not just any internet connection but a fast internet connection.
A large part of the population depends on their Mobile Service Providers for internet connection. This is because, as of now, of their presence in almost all the towns in Kenya. Wherever you are you are mostly assured of a cellular network.
We cannot talk about cellular networks without touching on the Airtel UnlimiNet plan. The UnlimiNet plan promises full speeds to a number of social networks once you deplete your allocated bundles. The social sites are namely Whatsapp, Facebook, Gmail, Instagram and Twitter.
Woe unto you if you try to access any other sites once your purchased bundles run out. They promise that you will continue to access the other sites at cupped speeds of 256Kbps but I doubt if you will be able to clock those speeds. The best that I have managed is 50Kbps but mostly I get served an average of 15Kbps. There even comes a time when a Google search takes eternity to load. Waiting for a mere text page to load is just absurd. Don’t even mention how long you have to wait for Google Image results to load.
The same experience is prevalent when you try to access any other sites. The speeds are so slow that they make your browsing experience horrible. If you are used to fast internet and you try the Airtel Internet you will feel like you are going back to the Stone Age period.
The only way to avert this situation is to purchase a new UnlimiNet plan. But this will mean that you fail to utilize your previous UnlimiNet plan for the full duration.
If Airtel are really serious with the UnlimiNet internet then I guess the time has come for them to make massive investment on their Internet Infrastructure. This will not only boost their UnlimiNet plan but its internet offering in general. The results from this research showed that their internet speeds lagged behind those of Safaricom in most of the towns in Kenya.
A cap speed of 512Kbps at peak hours will be in order. Let our browsing and e-commerce experience be smooth both before and after the depletion of the allocated internet bundles. Better yet you can come with a new and better offering that is specifically tailored towards the unlimited users.
