Smart launched their free internet a couple of weeks ago for prepaid subscribers. Now it’s open to all Smart subscribers!
To get free internet, just text FREE to 9999
This gets you free 30MB of mobile internet valid for 24 hours. You have to register again every day you want to avail of the free internet.
I tried it on my Smart Postpaid Freedom Plan on my Note 2, and the internet was really fast. Not sluggish at all. I was amazed by how almost instantaneous websites showed up on phone. I was even able to watch a Yahoo video without lag. Good stuff.
I then tried to do a Speedtest to see how fast the free internet actually was. I was getting more than 7 Mbps download speed when the internet suddenly cut off and I received a text telling me that I had already used up my free internet.Well, that was fast. Barely 20 minutes of usage. I suspect the Yahoo video and Speedtest used up most of it.
All in all, the free internet was better than expected. I think it’s enough to keep me online for a whole day just syncing my emails and chat apps. Just no streaming video, obviously.
I’m also glad that they sent a text letting me know that I used up my internet. So I quickly turned off mobile data and switched to back to wifi. Take note that when I received the text, they cut off the free internet, and my phone quickly switched to regular mobile data since mobile data was still turned on. So if you are not on any other data plan, it means you might get charged P5 or something when your phone reconnects to Smart’s regular internet before you switch data off.
P.S.
I registered to the free internet on my Smart Prepaid too, and although it’s not as fast as on my postpaid, it’s still fast. I admit, I half-expected the free internet to be crawlingly slow, imagining that everyone and his grandmother would be subscribing to the free internet everyday. But wonder of wonders, the speed is actually pretty good!
UPDATE!
I was able to confirm with Smart’s customer service that messaging services like Viber, Wechat, etc.. are not included in the Free Internet.
@baratako Hi! Messaging apps like Viber and WeChat are excluded from the free internet promo. 🙂
— Smart Communications (@SMARTPromos) October 13, 2014
More info from Smart:
With the FREE INTERNET offer, what can subscribers access for free?
Subscribers using their mobile phones can access their favorite Internet sites or apps for free, including:
- Browse through or post photos and status updates on their social networking sites (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram)
- Read news and entertainment sites (Rappler, CNN, and the like)
- Stream music through the likes of Spinnr
- Shop online (Zalora, Lazada, eBay, Amazon, etc.)
- Search for information (Google, Wikipedia, Yahoo!, etc.)
- Send and receive emails (Gmail, Yahoo! Mail)
- Visit their favorite blogs and update their own
- Use navigation apps like Waze
Is UNLI FACEBOOK available even after the 30MB free internet promo?
Yes, unli all-you-can access to Facebook is available even if you have consumed the 30MB allocation.
Update – Facebook Messenger is included!
What sites/apps are EXCLUDED from the free internet promo?
The FREE INTERNET special offer EXCLUDES the following:
- Download, stream and watch videos (Youtube, Vimeo)
- Use VOIP apps (FaceTime, FaceTime Audio, Skype, Viber, Tango)
- Use messaging apps (Whatsapp, WeChat, Line, Viber)
- Peer-to-peer file-sharing sites and apps like Bittorrent
Promo runs until January 15, 2015.
What’s your experience with Smart’s free internet? Let us know in the comments!
