iPrimus Broadband: Comprehensive Guide to the internet provider

Review was updated on 22 July 2020

The name iPrimus might seem relatively new, so it might come as a surprise to learn that the company recently celebrated their 23rd birthday. Through a combination of investment in networks and nodes, forward-thinking and offering a wide variety of plans that suit almost every user, iPrimus has emerged as one of the bigger players on the Aussie market. Their move into the Vocus group stable only served to further cement their status as one of Australia’s leading lights.  

What Makes iPrimus Broadband Unique?

iPrimus has over 20 years experience in the broadband business, but they still operate like a new provider. They’ve also grown rapidly, largely due to ambition and an understanding of the direction in which the Aussie market is headed. Crucial in their growth was their desire to think over the horizon. As a provider, iPrimus Broadband made one crucial step early on – they got their own broadband hardware into as many local phone exchanges as possible. They could then offer dedicated Primus services, bundling broadband and home phone – all without the cost of renting exchange capacity from Telstra. Given that most providers still rented some or all of their capacity, this gave iPrimus a huge advantage. iPrimus has been part of the Vocus group since 2016, which gives them access to a broad international network which few other Aussie providers can match.

What Plans Does iPrimus Broadband Offer?

iPrimus Broadband’s plans are organised in a different fashion to the traditional Aussie telco. While they offer both NBN and ADSL plans, they now only offer ADSL to those without access to the NBN, and don’t advertise their ADSL plans online (you need to call iPrimus’s sales line to connect via ADSL). The sole ADSL plan is a $60/month plan available on contract that gives you 100GB of data per month.

iPrimus’s NBN plans are divided into three speed tier choices – NBN 25, NBN50, and NBN 100; and two data limits – 250GB and unlimited. Customers have the option to go month-to-month or lock in for 12 months. They’re also fond of a special deal or two, so be sure to keep an eye on their seasonal offerings in order to pick up something special.

250GB Plan

iPrimus Broadband’s entry-level plan for NBN comes with a 250GB data limit. It’s only really suitable for light internet users though if you don’t do much video streaming it should be more than fine, and is well priced. If you’re game on gaming or keen to stream, then go unlimited.

Choosing one of the NBN plans on a 12-month contract keeps things nice and simple. You won’t need to shell out for an upfront fee for the plans, and iPrimus includes a free wi-fi modem/router so you can get up and running without having to own or buy additional hardware (there is, though, a $15 shipping charge for the modem/router – still a lot cheaper than buying your own!) The no lock-in contract option, meanwhile, comes in very handy if it’s flexibility you’re after, but that’ll mean $99 in upfront costs for setup and modem.

Unlimited Plans

If you love a good download or just don’t want to come to the end of the month worrying about every megabyte, iPrimus’ NBN unlimited deals are the perfect fit for you. The NBN25 plan delivers 20Mbps typical evening speed, the NBN50 plan is quoted as having a 41Mbps average sampled evening speed while the NBN100 plan (not available on FTTN connections) quotes 82 Mbps typical evening speed. The deal includes line rental, with pay-as-you-go calls.

Again, these plans are available on a 12-month or a month-to-month contract, but only the former can be connected with no setup fee, and a free wi-fi modem/router is provided. There’s a $15 postage and handling fee for the modem, but it’s yours to keep.

Entertainment plans (Unlimited NBN only)

Are you not entertained? If not, then iPrimus has something for you (and if yes, you might not be as entertained as you can be… so read on). iPrimus offers entertainment options on the two NBN unlimited plans from above, with both optionally able to include Fetch TV. Starting at $10 a month, the Fetch add-on includes a Fetch Mini set-top box and your choice of one premium channel pack. As it uses a steady stream of broadband data, the option to add Fetch TV is not available on the 250GB plan.

iPrimus Service and Customer Satisfaction

To get in touch and know more about what iPrimus offers, call 13 17 89. iPrimus customer service can be reached between 9 am and 6 pm Monday to Friday, while technical support is available 9 am to 9 pm weekdays and 9am to 6pm on weekends. If you’re not keen to call, their Live Chat option also operates during these hours, while emailing customerservice@iprimus.com.au will get you a response quick smart. If you’d like something a bit more casual, the company also keeps a strong presence on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube — just head to the social media platform of your choice and search for ‘iPrimus’. Before you do, though, a fair warning — it’s mainly memes and videos.

Although the company is Australian owned and headquartered in Melbourne – and international parent company Vocus is headquartered in Sydney – the iPrimus call centre is split between Australia and offshore. As with plenty of the other providers who have based their call centres overseas, this does usually mean savings for the customer – although it can also be inconvenient in some instances.  

Awards and recognition

Aside from being a ‘middle-aged’ Aussie internet provider in a time of tweens, iPrimus is also recognised as being family-friendly. Their ‘internet pause’ option allows you to temporarily cut your broadband while you enjoy a family meal or listen to mum’s birthday speech – which is a welcome addition for plenty of families and their device addicted kids. They’ve also got the ‘bill pause’ option, which lets you pause your bill for up to a month – i.e. for a family holiday, or if mum’s speech is really taking a while – which is perfect as you won’t need to pay for what you don’t use. This means they are the ideal family broadband provider.

The Pros and Cons

Summary: Is iPrimus Right for You?

Compared with their stable-mate Dodo, iPrimus is more expensive – but only by a few dollars, and you get more for your buck. iPrimus has gradually established an extensive network, which has only increased since the acquisition by Vocus. They get a rating of 81 per cent from us, while ranks them highly among their competitors. Their bundles are where it’s at, while the addition of Fetch TV means that on the whole, you’ll be getting plenty of entertainment with the one deal. While we still think the 250GB limit is a tad too low, if you’re a light internet user it might be the ideal one for you.