Introductory Note: There are updated versions of overviews of mobile data plans for smartphone, notebook and netbook users. Please check:

Original Post:

Mobile internet price plans on a prepaid basis are interesting for users of mobile phones, notebooks, or netbooks, who are only sporadically online. Newcomers can choose between different offers in the networks of T-Mobile, Vodafone, E-Plus, and o2 Germany, in which the customer pays an one-time fee for one day or for one month of surfing the internet via GPRS or UMTS.

Data transfer speeds are still highest in the UMTS respectively HSPA networks of T-Mobile and Vodafone with up to 7.2 mbps download and 2 mbps upload speed. However, in several mobile internet price plans on a prepaid basis data transfer speed is limited, especially when the mobile internet user has transferred more than 1 GB respectively 5 GB data volume. With almost all of these prepaid price plans services such as internet telephony (voice over IP), instant messaging or peer-to-peer-services are not allowed.

Here is a list of all current prepaid plans for mobile internet access via GPRS and UMTS in the German market. Almost all prepaid starter packages in this overview come with a SIM card and an UMTS surf stick. The purchase price in this overview is made up of the purchase price of the UMTS surf stick and/or the SIM card as well as the charge for delivery. Sometimes the user receive a starting balance by the mobile phone provider. Maximum data transmission rates refer to network or surf stick performance.

The prepaid starter packages of Ja!mobil and Penny Mobil do not include an UMTS surf stick, the user gets just a SIM card. Data transmission rates in these two offers in the network of T-Mobile are limited to 384 kbps.

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(Last update: May 6th, 2010)

Other overviews of current price plans in Germany:
Prepaid Price Plans with Single Tariff for Mobile Phone Calls
Prepaid Price Plans with Community Tariff for Mobile Phone Calls
Prepaid Price Plans with Flat Rate Tariff for Mobile Phone Calls
Home Phone and DSL Packages with Double Flat Rate

Related Links:
Mobile Access to Broadband Internet in Germany