Vodafone 'guarantees' no internet dead zones in your house

'Wall to wall' - that's how Vodafone is describing its latest home internet offering, which is essentially a mesh network that aims to provide internet in every corner of the house.

Vodafone is calling this latest offering 'SuperWifi', which is available to Unlimited Broadband or Wireless Broadband 600GB on a 12-month term. The offering includes two customised TP-Link DecoX20 mesh devices, and a guarantee that promises wall-to-wall coverage, or users get $100 credit.

Vodafone's bundling of mesh devices into a little package like this isn't new, although it is one of the first companies to guarantee performance (but only after a month of troubleshooting)-  or the company could face losing a lot of $100 credit to customers.

Vodafone explains how it works:

"Once the devices are connected, if a customer doesn't think they have wall-to-wall wifi coverage, Vodafone's guarantee will see the Vodafone team work with them for up to 30 days to ensure coverage reaches every room. This includes cloud-based remote support, an extra device if needed and even an in-home technician to assess the SuperWifi experience if necessary. If, after Vodafone has tried to fix it, the customer still doesn't have full coverage within the home, the company will credit $100 to their Vodafone broadband account.

The mesh devices work together to provide blanket wifi coverage, which means better performance throughout a home and it means that wifi 6 devices are better supported.

Vodafone's chief consumer officer Carolyn Luey says that many New Zealanders experience poor wifi performance in their homes. 
"Thick walls, building materials such as concrete and ceramic tiling, other electronic and wireless devices, mirrors and even the neighbours' networks can cause problems with wifi in the home.

She says Vodafone just wants people to optimise their in-home coverage and performance, so they can work, play, or learn from home.

For the more technically-minded, the mesh devices have settings including the ability to prioritise devices on the network. That means, for example, that if a work video call comes through, its performance will be prioritised over, say, someone binge-watching their favourite shows on streaming sites.

Luey adds, "Or that tense online PlayStation game won't suddenly start lagging when someone begins uploading holiday pics onto their social media. The control is in the hands of the user."

Vodafone customers will also receive free three-year access to the DecoX20 TP-Link Homecare suite of services, which includes parental controls and antivirus protection, as well as device prioritisation.