Smart Internet Unlimited

Tired of using lame Indosat 3.5G Unlimited, I searched for alternative and cheap Internet mobile solutions. Tried Telkomsel Flashvolume based (300MB for IDR 100K) it worked pretty good aside from its price.

Since May 1st, 2009, Smart Telecom launches new Internet unlimited packages with affordable price. Smart nge-Jump Unlimited Internet is their full name. Wow, I should try then... FYI, Smart Telecom is a CDMA mobile phone carrier therefore its Internet feature requires CDMA mobile phone or CDMA Modem phone to operate, in short:you cannot use GSM-based modem like Huawei E220.

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Smart Jump Packages

Smart Internet Unlimited has some packages to choose:

Package	Downstream (up to)	Upstream (up to)	Price (per month)
Regular	153.6 Kbps	128 Kbps	n/a (15,000 / week)
1\. Silver	512 Kbps	128 Kbps	75,000
2\. Gold	1 Mbps	384 Kbps	120,000
3\. Platinum	3.1 Mbps	384 Kbps	150,000
4\. Ultimate	3.1 Mbps with public IP	1.8 Mbps	225,000

Those packages are available for postpaid and prepaid customers. For prepaid, even there are 1-day, 7-day, and 1-month packages.

So if you prefer prepaid, just grab a Smart starter pack, buy its voucher, top-up the balance, then just dial "*333*X*Y", whereas "X" is number of day (1,7, 30 for 1-day, 1-week, and 1-month respectively), and "Y" is package number (1,2,3,4). For example: dial *333*7*4 to subscribe to 1-week Ultimate package, and your balance will be charged 75,000 for 1-week use.

Be aware that speed can be very different in different location. You have to be EV-OD coverage to take advantage of those 4 packages, otherwise you only get 153.6 Kbps bandwidth. Go to their gallery and ask for coverage map before deciding buying.

Smart Unlimited Internet promotion

Smart launched free internet unlimited promotion. Just top-up your card balance IDR 50,000 in a month you will have free and unlimited Internet access for the whole month with speed up to 153.6 Kbps. A very basic but enough for mobile chatting and browsing. Your top-up balance can be used to call or sms, so internet usage will not be charged. Valid Until 31 July 2009 only.

Where to find CDMA Modem?

If you have very basic CDMA phone, your best chance is it supports up to 153.6 Kbps speed, don't dream about high speed. To get to the highest speed, you need an EV-DO capable phone or modem. EVDO phone is very rare in the market, but EV-DO modem is common.

Smart also sells EV-DO modem in their gallery shop (I bought at Citraland Mall, Jakarta). The modem is bundled by Smart Telecom, its model is Axesstel MV140B. You can purchase with 2 options:

1. IDR 689,000 , cash or credit. You will be given 30-day unlimited free internet under Platinum package.
2. IDR 189,000 in 12-month payment (total 2.268.000). 12-month free unlimited Internet under Platinum package. You have to use BCA credit card to entitle for this offer.

See? the best value package is the second. Platinum itself is IDR 150,000 per month, so you only pay the modem IDR 39,000 per month.

Smart Internet Test Drive

I tried Smart Internet from 3 different places: Wisma Pondok Indah 2, Meruya Ilir area, and Apartemen Mediterania Garden Residences 2 at Tanjung Duren area.

Using speedtest.net, from WPI2 building I test local speed. Speedtest reported download speed is 1.61 Mbps and upstream is 0.48 Mbps. This means I got EV-DO signal in this location. Wow! (imagine I only pay less than 200,000 for this speed, mobile!).
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Moved to my office at Meruya Ilir area (near Kebon Jeruk Jakarta Barat), I managed to try local and international bandwidth. See below result for detail, but I am quite happy for this speed despite its variance from advertisement.

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Axesstel MV140B Modem Driver and Installation Guide

The Axesstel modem model-numbered 140B bundled by Smart CDMA Internet is surprisingly very good in terms of design and performance. It supports up to 3.1 Mbps data speed, comes with two different color (white or black). I can say that it is almost become a mobile phone, just lack of keypad. Its dimension is as big as SonyEricsson Walkman Phone and it has a small LCD screen to indicate signal strength, TX/RX speed, any outstanding call or SMS if you have one.

It supports Windows XP, Vista, and Mac OS X. Apart for what the customer service tell you (that driver is already provided in the modem, just like Huawei E220), you have to download Axesstel driver Windows or Mac from Smart website.

Axesstell modem installation guide for windows XP

1. Make sure you have downloaded the driver
2. Run Axesstel Manager Setup.exe, follow installation until complete.
3. Plug the modem into USB port
4. Windows will yell at you : "I found a new hardware : Axesstell Data Modem", follow the screen
5. Change to option to find driver to specific location, then point it to your-downloaded "Axesstel Driver Setup\Install 32\drivers\32bit" folder.
6. Click Finish if it really finish
7. Windows will yell again, it finds Axesstel Diagnostic Port, follow the screen and point it to find driver in the same location as number 5.
8. Click Finish again.
9. Now your modem is fully functional. Run Axesstel Manager program from Start Menu

10. Setup new modem by clicking small gear icon

    1. Phone Number: #777
    2. Username: smart
    3. Password: smart

11. Click Connect icon to connect.

Axesstell modem installation guide for Mac OS X

1. Make sure you have downloaded Axesstell modem driver for Mac
2. Run AxesstelMSPDriver.pkg
3. Follow the setup screen until finish. Weirdly, it ask you to restart your Mac. Do it.
4. After restart, plug the modem into USB port
5. Wait 5 minutes (this is my experience)
6. Open System Preference - Network
7. You should find a new device there : Axesstel USB Modem, if this is true skip to number 10
8. Click + sign to add a new device
9. Select interface: Axesstel USB Modem, give it a name
10. Set the modem using #777 phone number, and username-password: smart
11. Click Advanced button, set vendor : Other, model : Axesstel Modem Script
12. Click Ok, then Apply to save changes
13. Try to dial

happy surfing...