@cloudtrapezer. thanks for the china mobile warning.

I think Telecom has something similar to what tallamerican posted, but only for 50mb, and a 158 install fee, no TV box. I think if you pay more for the 100mb deal, they throw in a free smart phone. To get the deals you have to pay the full amount upfront, so it's like prepaying for a year. Also, telecom sims only work in telecom phones.

I noticed my Internet was faster during cny since most of my xiaoqu and kunming had left.

I was unable to connect to VPN through my China telecom mobile 4G service from Oct. 2017. Happily China mobile service is available at my area since last month. China mobile simcard works on iPhone bought outside of China but China telecom not.

Most operators now provide Fiber to the Curb/Home (FTTH) - so distance to switching center, which was copper cable based, is no longer an issue.

China Telecom generally has the strongest infrastructure, followed by China Unicom, and then China Mobile - this is a result of the M&A.

China Telecom is - well, they're China Telecom. China Unicom merged with China Netcom, the second most prolific provider of fixed line services and internet infrastructure. China Mobile M&A'd with China Rail Telecom services - which had a 2% market penetration several years ago.

For VPNs - you're playing whackamole. Once your VPN IP gets consistently blocked (sometimes it's just a traffic saturation issue) - you'll have to contact your provider for alternative access points or direct IP tunnels.

Bear in mind - most VPNs collapse annually around the national assembly meeting periods. Outbound traffic (ex China) gets throttled and more heavily scrutinized than usual.

Finally - just because a carrier is larger is no indication of local network management expertise. China has the appearance of world-class services - but management can still be at developing nation status, or worse.

Same everywhere, really.

if a wee pee end drops off, restarting router works for mee. if still not work, off then wait 5 mins then on

VPN connects well over the wireless network at home, both for my laptop and mobile phone. It stopped working completely over 4G for my mobile phone. My mobile number is attached to China Telecom internet package. I decide to switch to China Mobile after the package is finished.