Among all mobile devices, a tablet computer is better suited than others for watching movies/series, surfing the net, playing games, working with documents and using social networks.
For all this, one way or another you need access to the Internet: either a home Wi-Fi network or mobile Internet. And since this type of device is mobile, it is often used outside the home. Therefore, most users need unlimited Internet for a tablet.
There is a wide choice of mobile network operators in Russia, and some of them have unlimited tariffs. This is exactly what is said in my article, as well as how to choose a suitable operator and approximately how many gigabytes will be needed for the Internet for the gadget.
Important: before looking for the best tariff or choosing among many brands, make sure that your tablet has a SIM card slot. Some devices do not support the mobile network and do not have the appropriate connectors or the necessary communication modules.
Internet for a tablet: what are its features?
To begin with, let’s say a few words about how the tariff intended “for a tablet” differs from the usual tariff for a mobile phone.
- The “tablet” tariff is designed for the SIM card to be used for surfing the Internet, and not for making calls. Therefore, mobile minutes and SMS packages are not connected to it.
- As for the Internet, for a tablet it is paid for by traffic: a package of gigabytes of a certain volume is connected to the SIM card. As a rule, it varies from 7 to 30 GB.
- In addition, on “tablet” tariffs it is possible to connect unlimited Internet for certain services - instant messengers, social networks, YouTube, watching television. The range of offers varies greatly from operator to operator.
Summary
We compared the Internet for tablets from 5 popular operators: MTS, Megafon, Beeline, Tele2 and Yota.
To the question of which one is better in 2021, the answer will be ambiguous:
- Megafon has a large set of unlimited services for all kinds of services, which do not need to be paid for separately;
- Tele2 has large traffic packages at reasonable prices;
- MTS has the most stable Internet connection, but extremely unfavorable prices;
- Yota has a small coverage map, but the lowest price tags and complete unlimited coverage on everything.
When purchasing a SIM card for a tablet for the Internet in regions where Yota operates, it makes sense to choose this operator. Otherwise, you will have to compare and decide which option is best suited for your needs.
Yota for tablet
Price per GB: 19.6 rubles
And we won’t start with the “big three” at all: the cheapest “tablet” tariff in Russia is currently offered by Yota. As part of the Yota for Tablet tariff, you can get 30 GB of Internet for 590 rubles per month.
The tariff itself is quite tasty: it works on the principle of a designer. Depending on your preferences, you can connect 0 or 500 minutes of calls, 7, 15 or 30 GB of Internet, as well as a number of unlimited options:
- Unlimited SMS/MMS package - 50 rubles per month;
- Twitter, Odnoklassniki, Instagram, Facebook or Vkontakte - 20 rubles per month for each social network;
- Skype, Viber or WhatsApp - 10 rubles per month;
- Unlimited Youtube - 60 rubles per month.
Empirically (in the picture above), we have collected the best tariff for a tablet from the point of view of the average user from Moscow and the region. No calls (there is a phone for calls), but a lot of gigabytes, music, social networks, instant messengers and, of course, YouTube. It cost us 750 rubles a month.
There is only one disadvantage of this proposal: Yota has a small coverage area.
“Internet for tablet” from Beeline
In terms of the quality of communication services, Beeline lags behind previous operators. Its Internet connection is less reliable than MTS, and at the same time slower than Megafon.
A study by Roskomnadzor showed that among the top five operators in Russia, Beeline has the lowest speed of downloading and uploading data. In Moscow, the operator may have problems establishing a connection, failures in buildings, especially in basements, or a complete shutdown when in the metro.
The “Internet for Tablet” offer from Beeline is a postpaid tariff plan. That is, the subscription fee for it is not charged at the beginning of the month, but on the last day.
As in the case of Megafon, the tariff here does not initially include Internet options. Traffic is added separately by connecting to the Highway service.
As a result, the tariff includes the following:
- 6 or 12 GB of cellular Internet traffic using the “Highway” service;
- Free package of Beeline TV channels, which is connected on a permanent basis;
- Free incoming calls and SMS messages;
- Calls to all local numbers for RUB 1.73. in a minute;
- Calls to any Russian phones for 2.95 rubles. in a minute;
- SMS to numbers of any operators in Russia for 1.98 rubles.
The connection fee is 500 rubles. This money remains on your balance until you are billed at the end of the month, and then is debited as a subscription fee.
There is no cost for switching to the tariff itself.
The subscription fee depends on the Internet volume: 6 GB costs 406.78 rubles, 12 GB costs 600 rubles. per month of connection.
Packages of minutes and SMS cannot be activated. When your traffic runs out, 150 MB will be automatically added for 20 rubles. If the account balance is less than 20 rubles, the speed will drop to 64 Kbps.
“Internet for a tablet” is not the best internet plan for a tablet. It has a rather high price tag, and there is no unlimited communication service at all.
Internet M
Price per GB: 25 rubles
Megafon offers a wide range of Internet options for the tablet. Several of these options - Internet S, M, L and XL - are available on the Megafon-Online . Depending on the selected option, you can connect for your tablet:
- 7, 18, 25 or 30 GB of internet + unlimited internet at night (for option XL );
- unlimited Internet for navigation services, email, cloud storage, social networks, music and video (for option S - only the first three);
- access to Megafon-TV .
The middle option from this line is Internet M. 18 GB of traffic, all unlimited options, as well as 1 movie and 50+ TV channels from the Megafon-TV collection - all this will go to the user for 450 rubles per month. But calls on the Megafon-Online tariff are not available in principle - although, perhaps, this is for the better.
Megafon has another tablet tariff - “Internet without worries for a tablet” . A SIM card with this tariff will most likely be inserted into your iPad, which you will buy at a mobile store from Megafon’s partners.
The meaning of its existence is not entirely clear. The essence of the tariff is that you are given a tiny limit of 600 MB of Internet per month - but completely free.
Every day you can spend 20 MB , after which paid packages of 150 MB worth 20 rubles each are connected to you. The number of connected packages is not limited. In a word, everything looks like a well-veiled play on the technical illiteracy of tablet users - after all, recently they are increasingly gaining popularity among the older generation.
“Megafon - Online” from Megafon
According to Roskomnadzor, the Internet connection from Megafon in Moscow and the Moscow region is high speed, but does not always work stably.
The signal may not work well inside buildings, especially on the ground floors, as well as in the underground. However, not all users experience such problems.
The “Megafon - Online” tariff plan is an offer without a subscription fee, which is created for tablets, modems, routers and other devices that use the Internet. By default, 1 MB of traffic on this tariff costs 2.5 rubles, and there are no Internet or other service packages.
Internet traffic for the tariff plan is connected using a separate option “Your Internet”. It includes 7, 15 or 30 GB of mobile Internet traffic, as well as complete unlimited:
- For navigation services: Yandex.Maps, Yandex.Navigator, Yandex.Transport, Google Maps, 2GIS, AppleMap;
- To cloud storage: iCloud, Dropbox, Mail.ru Cloud, Yandex.Disk;
- To mail services: Yandex.Mail, Mail.ru, Gmail;
- On social networks: Odnoklassniki, Instagram, Facebook, VK;
- For music services: Yandex.Music, Sound, BOOM, VKontakte Music;
- To watch videos on YouTube.
In addition, you receive unlimited traffic to Megafon TV, as well as a package of TV channels, films and series for every taste.
The subscription fee depends on the volume of traffic included in the service. 7 GB of traffic will cost 450 rubles. per month, 15 GB - 550 rubles, 30 GB - 900 rubles. per month of use.
If you compare the Internet for a tablet from Megafon and the MTS offer, it becomes obvious which option is better. For the same 500 rubles. Megafon offers 50% more traffic per month and many unlimited services. The only drawback may be that calls and SMS messages are not available on the Megafon - Online tariff.
However, most often they are not needed on tablets.
EVERYTHING 2 for tablet
Price per GB: 31.5 rubles
In third place in terms of price is the tariff from the “stripe” operator. As part of the “EVERYTHING 2 for tablet” , Beeline gives subscribers 19 GB of Internet for a fixed subscription fee of 600 rubles per month .
In addition, within the tariff you can free of charge and without restrictions:
- view social networks VKontakte, Odnoklassniki, Facebook, Facebook.Messenger, Instagram and Twitter;
- listen to music on VKontakte, Yandex.Music, Zvooq services - but only through official applications.
You cannot activate a package of free minutes, nor can you activate SMS. One minute of a call and an SMS from a Beeline tablet tariff will cost the same 2 rubles in your home region. The offer, in a word, is quite poor, although relatively cheap. Another caveat is that the offer is not available in all regions.
“For tablet” from MTS
MTS has the most stable mobile Internet. A study by Roskomnadzor over the past year showed that in Moscow and the Moscow Region it least often experiences connection problems.
The Internet of this operator is excellent at “catching” on the streets, in buildings and even in the subway, which not all competitors can boast of.
The “tablet” tariff plan from MTS has the simple name “For tablet”. The subscription fee for its use is 550 rubles. per month.
For this amount, the tariff includes 10 GB of Internet traffic for any purpose, as well as unlimited options:
- “Unlimited Videos”: allows you to watch videos on YouTube without traffic restrictions;
- “Unlimited social networks”: allows you to communicate unlimitedly on Facebook, VKontakte and Odnoklassniki;
- “Unlimited video calls”: calls via WhatsApp, Viber and Skype do not consume your Internet package.
You can activate only one unlimited option for free. The second and third unlimited options connected to the tariff will add another 75 rubles to your subscription fee.
When the Internet traffic comes to an end, you will automatically be connected to a 500 MB Internet package for 95 rubles.
All calls and messages within the tariff are paid:
- Calls to MTS subscribers on the home network will cost 1.5 rubles, to other regions of the country - 3 rubles. in a minute;
- Conversations with subscribers of other operators in the connection region will cost 3 rubles, in Russia - 14 rubles;
- SMS to numbers in your home region - 1.5 rubles. a piece;
- Messages to numbers within Russia - 3.8 rubles. a piece.
The ability to connect packages of minutes and SMS messages is not provided - at least, the operator does not inform about it.
The “For Tablet” tariff does not qualify for the best mobile Internet. The traffic volume is modest, the price is quite high, and the unlimited options are quite limited.
Internet on a tablet from Tele2
Price per GB: 33.2 rubles
The young operator Tele2 also offers a pretty good Internet option for a tablet compared to Beeline - which one is better is up to you to decide. Within Tele2, 15 GB of Internet will cost you 499 rubles per month.
In addition to this, the operator offers its own range of interesting unlimited options:
- unlimited traffic on the social networks VKontakte, Odnoklassniki and Facebook;
- unlimited use of Yandex.Maps and Yandex.Navigator programs;
- free viewing of about 20 thousand films and 50 TV channels in the Tele2 TV application.
In addition, the remaining unused traffic for the month is carried over to the next month. Unburnable gigabytes are a proprietary promotion of Tele2, which is not offered by any other operator.
The service is available when you subscribe to the “Internet for Devices” .
One call and one SMS within this tariff will cost 1.8 rubles, respectively. Connection of packages of minutes and messages is not available.
How to connect
Signing up for tablet plans is very easy. Place your order on the website or call the number provided. When you connect a tariff plan to your number, it is transferred to the service of our company. If you also purchase a number from us, a package of documents can be delivered to your address. The cost of the service is 300 rubles. within the Moscow Ring Road, from 500 rub. outside the Moscow Ring Road + 25 rubles/1 km.
If you want to activate options or suspend any service, you just need to call the contact center and voice your wishes. The service operates 24 hours a day.
SIMPLE INTERNET on a tablet
Price per GB: 33.2 rubles
Rostelecom, known as a broadband Internet provider, has been selling SIM cards for a long time and has its own mobile tariffs. On two such tariff plans - “SUPER SIM FREE” and “For the Internet” option is available in the tablet .
As part of the tariff, users do not receive anything special - just 15 GB of Internet traffic for 499 rubles per month. Like Tele2, whose capacity is used by Rostelecom, now you will see that their tariffs, in general, are no different.
Internet use is not charged on the social networks VKontakte, Facebook and Odnoklassniki, as well as when using Yandex.Maps and Yandex.Navigator. The remaining unused gigabytes are carried over to the next month.
At the end of the 15 GB package, you can purchase one of three additional ones - 500 MB for 50 rubles, 3 GB for 150 rubles, or 5 GB for 250 rubles. Really, just the Internet.
“Internet for devices” from Tele2
Tele2 is a strong average in terms of Internet connection quality. It cannot boast of high speed, but there are practically no problems with the connection.
In Moscow and the Moscow region, the Internet connection from Tele2 works stably and often “catch” even where MTS fails.
The “Internet for Devices” tariff plan is an offer without a fixed subscription fee. Internet traffic is not included by default, so it is added as a separate service.
In total you have 4 options:
- 15 GB for 400 rub. per month;
- 25 GB for 600 rub. per month;
- 40 GB for 900 rub. per month;
- Internet on a tablet for 499 rubles. per month.
At night, that is, from 00:00 to 06:59 local time, you can use unlimited traffic.
All Internet traffic that remains with you at the end of the billing period will be transferred to the next month. In addition, you can exchange it for minutes, SMS or cash using the Tele2 Exchange.
Calls and SMS messages are not included in the tariff plan, so their cost is calculated per minute/piece.
As with other options for tablet computers, you cannot connect packages of minutes or messages here. But you can always buy them on the Tele2 Exchange: unlike adding services, this is not prohibited by the tariff rules.
As a result, this plan is one of the best internet deals for a tablet. They are captivated by the full unlimited service at night, fireproof gigabytes, as well as a large volume of Internet traffic at relatively low prices for Moscow.
What is the difference between a tablet with a SIM card and a tablet without it?
The first tablets with SIM card support appeared at the beginning of the 21st century. At that time, Internet tablet technology was just in its infancy. The manufacturer of these mobile devices was the famous company Nokia.
New types of gadgets never became popular, so after a few years their development died down, and only smartphones remained.
In the 2010s, following the success of Apple's iPad, tablets gradually became fashionable and all major manufacturers began producing them. In the first years of the “comeback”, gadgets did not support mobile communications, so there were no problems with how to set up or how to remove the SIM card.
Then came tablets with the ability to insert a SIM card, and soon tablets with dual SIM card slots (hybrid slots that support both SIM and SD cards).
So far, demand for tablets has decreased, but only slightly. Users are still interested in questions such as: what to do with a damaged SIM slot, how to activate a SIM card, how to connect the tablet to the Internet and many others.
Now about the differences between tablets with and without a SIM card. All differences lie in the presence or absence of mobile communications.
How does a tablet work without a SIM card:
- it is impossible to make calls from the tablet to phone numbers and have your own number (unless you use third-party programs such as Skype);
- Lack of connection to 3G and/or 4G networks (this means that you can only access the Internet via Wi-Fi, which means that you will not be able to use the Internet on the road, outside the home, etc.).
- You cannot send standard SMS and MMS messages as this requires a registered mobile phone number;
- Some applications that only work with a SIM card do not launch;
- Some applications that require a SIM card for registration (WhatsApp, Viber) must be launched using an external device with a mobile connection.
The last point is important for many users from Russia and the CIS, so I will focus on it. It is not possible to register or log in to Viber or WhatsApp on a tablet without using a third-party device with a mobile connection, such as a smartphone.
WhatsApp on a tablet without a SIM card is then connected by downloading the app from the Play Store and then when asked to enter your phone number, you enter your smartphone number. It receives a message or a call in which numbers are dictated. These numbers must be entered on the tablet in WhatsApp.
Now the messenger is connected and there is no need to use another device. The same steps are followed if you need to launch Viber on a tablet without a SIM card.
How to choose the best tariff?
At the moment, each provider has about 3-4 tariff plans. They differ in speed, cost and other characteristics. Of course, no one wants to overpay for poor internet that works very rarely. In order not to make a mistake when choosing a tariff, you should consider the following points:
Speed. As you know, there is a reception and transmission speed. When the operator uses FTTH technology, they will be the same, but in the case of ADSL, transmission can be no more than 3 Mbit/s. This speed will allow you to load pages of social networks and various sites, but you will have to wait a very long time to view photos and videos.
Traffic volume. Recently, more and more providers are no longer limiting traffic and offering users unlimited traffic. Thanks to this, a person gets the chance to use the Internet at any time of the day, paying for it only once.
Payment. The price for the service directly depends on the traffic speed, as well as additional services. When ordering a whole package, you should not hope for a cheap offer, since in total they are quite expensive.
Where to start choosing
Each mobile operator has tariff offers for tablet users, but most of them have a monthly fee. The choice of tariff plans for tablets is small, and even less without a subscription fee. This is explained by the fact that operators often equate tablets with routers and modems, which consume a much larger amount of data than a smartphone. However, new tariff packages with unlimited Internet can be used not only on smartphones, but also on tablet computers.
To select the optimal tariff, you can use not only special offers for Internet users, but also other tariff plans without a monthly fee. To use traffic in them at a favorable price, you need to connect traffic packages of the required volume.
If you use the Internet on your tablet rarely and in small volumes, then standard offers without monthly payments are also suitable. A number of tariff offers use a flexible tariff system, in which traffic is paid for in small packages at the optimal cost. Thus, the subscriber does not pay per megabyte, but the savings are less than when connecting to an additional package.
Results
For budget-conscious tablet users, there are several ways to connect to the Internet at an attractive price and without a monthly fee. The choice depends on the parameters of traffic consumption and the frequency of its use.
The minimum cost per megabyte payment is offered by MTS and Tele2. The ability to purchase packages of different sizes is available in the offers of all operators. Intermediate tariffs include offers from MegaFon, Beeline and MTS with traffic packages for a month when using additional options with daily payment.
