Hi,
We are planning our move and am wondering what system is in place in Aus for Broadband and what systems are used. Is it adsl? will our wireless routers work on the ozzy system or should we leave them behind and start again???
Thanks Dawn

I'm on ADSL2+ in sydney 24Meg connection (faster than I could get in the UK 3 years ago) however Port Macquarie may be on yoghurt pots and string for all I know.

lol, thanks for that. Just had to pick oh up of the floor, he cant believe the speed! But i bet the yoghurt pots are a bit smaller!
Being nosey, how much does that set u back?
DAwn

Have a look here: http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-threads.cfm?f=92

ADSL2 (and pretty much all the other funkier forms of broadband) are only available in the large cities. I explain in greater depth on my blog.

We use Telstra and they have been good so far.

Great blog Hutch, really simple and easy to follow breakdown of all the options for the nubs. I have to take a small issue though with one section

I have been on several services since we arrived but have been on 30Mb/1Mb Cable Extreme from Telstra with a 60GB monthly allowance for the past 12 months and the service has been outstanding. Not a single Indian call centre, always an intelligent helpful Australian on the other end willing to help out. I have had three call outs during this time, two related to cable damage from the house being built next door and one bizarre latency issue which my analyser insisted was upstream of the house. In all three instances a knowledgeable engineer was on the doorstep within 24 hours and they didn't treat you like a nob. The latency issue was due to a tree whacking the overhead line before it came to the end of the loop in another street (resolved within 4 hours with a scissor lift and a saw!).

Granted the service is expensive ~$150 a month, mostly a company expense, but the service has been great and I regularly get in the region of 3.5MB/s downstream. and 800Kb/s upstream

All that said the support for their Telephony services are pathetic, as is Optus. I understand that some people work in call centres and some enjoy it (?) but do Optus and Telstra really have to lobotomise their operators during their enrolment.

Al

Well, yes and no.

If you have a RIM (http://whirlpool.net.au/wiki/?tag=RI...ed_Multiplexer) sitting between your exchange and your termination point in your house (i.e. phone socket) then unless you want to go with Telstra (and probably achieve about 10% of potential maximum speed - due to back-hauling issues) you are limited to choosing ADSL.

I found myself in this situation when we moved to our new house (new build). Telstra provided ADSL2 (whilst pro-actively preventing the competition from gaining access to the RIM cabinet - space is an issue anyway from what I know) but in practice it was a non-starter

In the end I went with iiNet (ADSL) but the good news is that I consistently top-out at very close to my theoretical 8Mbit throughput.

RIM's are all about saving Telstra money and their official line is that they are a phone line provider first and not data provider. How short-sighted!

Yea, I suppose there's no blanket answer. I based my comments on the feedback I get from people who use their services (I'm an onsite computer guy) and find people consistently bemoaing Telstra. Not just because of the call centres, but due to the draconian 24 month contracts, the high prices and the meagre download rations. Unless you're in a large conurbation, you're not going to get access to ADSL2, but we who live semi-rural understand that that's one of the downsides. It was no different whatsoever in the UK.

Yea - 'short-sighted' could be Telstra's slogan. I'm in a similar situation - but with no likelihood of ADSL2 whatsoever. I'm about 1.5km from the exchange and I regularly max out my 8Mb line and consistently get 7mb download speeds from the larger server farms - about 400kb/s on the return loop.

Well I've just bought iinet ADSL2+ and installed it all today. I get free calls! No line rental and super fast internet, it all works great and the mere idea of not paying line rental and then again for broadband is excellent. The quota is a bit pants compared to what I was used to 4 years ago in the UK but hey ho you can't have it all. I'm saving at least $60 a month over my old telstra/netspace setup, and with free voip calls I expect to use the phone heaps more. Check out iinet naked DSL plans, such a good idea.

Yep - one of the advantages of city living - would love to get naked DSL, but with a town with a population of 3400 - it's not likely to happen any century soon ...

Hope not as I am moving there in August!