With 1000 Mbps NBN now down to AU$79 a month, the new broadband price wars continue to be a boon for Aussie gamers

(Image credit: Valve)

I've been reporting on the recent NBN speed upgrades and all attendant pricing shenanigans for months now, and just as I felt like things were winding down a touch, Black Friday kicks in. Internet providers don't shy away from big sales events, and Superloop has gotten in early with a range of pretty generous deals, the likes of which we'll probably feel nostalgic about in two-to-five years when the pricing arms race is over.

What stood out to me was the ISP's introductory NBN 1000 offer: at the moment you can get 1000 Mbps download speeds for AU$79 a month for six months, after which the price will rise to AU$109 a month (the advertised evening download speed is 860 Mbps). Depending where you look, that introductory price is slightly cheaper than what other providers are asking for NBN 500—you can see that in the table below.

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NBN 500 plans
Provider	Introductory price (six months)	Regular price	Total per year
Tangerine	AU$68.90	AU$88.90	AU$946.80
Spintel	AU$64	AU$86.95	AU$905.70
Exetel	AU$80	AU$80	AU$960
Superloop	AU$65	AU$95	AU$960
Dodo	AU$62.99	AU$92.99	AU$935.88

Obviously Superloop is not the cheapest in that list, all things considered, but there are other factors worth consideration when it comes to this particular ISP. The ACCC puts Superloop and Exetel roughly equal in terms of the lowest average ping rate (8.2ms during peak hours), so that's a boon for online players. Superloop also ranks #2 on Steam's ISP speed comparison chart for Australia, just behind Aussie Broadband. If those factors matter to you, Superloop is a wise option.

Superloop | NBN 500 | AU$65p/m with no lock-in contract (AU$95p/m after 6 month introductory offer)
According to the ACCC's broadband performance report, Superloop is currently the very best low-latency provider, with a low average ping rate of 8.2ms during peak hours. That makes their new introductory deal on NBN 500 quite attractive, even if it isn't strictly the cheapest on the market. It offers 50 Mbps uploads. This plan has an advertised typical evening speed of 500 Mbps downloads and 40 Mbps uploads, which means it offers consistent download rates even during peak hour.

First year price: AU$960

While the NBN 500 price feels insignificant if Superloop's particular strengths don't mean much to you, the NBN 1000 deal is a pretty extraordinary opportunity to taste test ultra-fast downloads. Just don't get used to it, I suppose.

As always, speeds of above 100 Mbps require either FTTP or HTC connections. If you're still on a FTTN connection, you'll need to wait until you've upgraded to take advantage of the high-speed competition currently on display.

Shaun Prescott is the Australian editor of PC Gamer. With over ten years experience covering the games industry, his work has appeared on GamesRadar+, TechRadar, The Guardian, PLAY Magazine, the Sydney Morning Herald, and more. Specific interests include indie games, obscure Metroidvanias, speedrunning, experimental games and FPSs. He thinks Lulu by Metallica and Lou Reed is an all-time classic that will receive its due critical reappraisal one day.

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