Our March NBN cover story: continue the discussion here

Friday 3 February 2012
Our March NBN cover story: continue the discussion here

Read our feature on connecting to the NBN in this month's March issue of PC & Tech Authority? Join the discussion here.

The National Broadband Network (NBN) has sparked a debate on this site in the last 12 months more fierce than just about any other topic.

To satisfy your appetite for all things NBN, the March issue of PC & Tech Authority magazine is our NBN issue. We look at pricing, the criticisms and the nuts and bolts of what you need to know about actually plugging your gear in - if and when you ever the NBN ever arrives in your street. Plus a few juicy photos of the equipment.

If you have your hands on the magazine, you can continue the discussion in the comments area below. We know there's a huge number of questions surrounding this project, more than we had room to cover in the magazine. So what's on your mind? Join the discussion below.

Haven't seen our NBN issue? Grab the magazine at your newssagency (read more here).

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Comments: 7
daniel2501
3 February 2012
 As a member of the Technical Community, I saw the need and desirability for Optical Fibre connected homes and businesses back in the mid 90's. I was hoping for a much earlier rollout of the NBN as it has been named, which I believe should have been the National Communications Network instead. As an NBN consumer for some months now, I must say that I am absolutely pleased with the quality of the service that my wife and I have received. One of the first things that I did was a test download from a local server, with 4GB in less than 10 minutes using http, a known slow way to go about large downloads. Tests to the nearest speedtest site, Optus, Sydney, yielded speeds of 95Mbps down /33Mbps up. Even during heavy usage periods, like just after children get home from school, and early evening just after tea, still give what I regard as good speeds. The way I see it, the benefits that will develop and flow from this fibre network just cannot be ignored any longer. It is time for the people who think that the cost is too high, to step outside and consider the potential benefits, instead of repeating the negative mantra that it costs too much. Since the project was presented to the public, I have heard a number of people who believe that wireless towers would serve the needs of the people sufficiently, and that new wireless technologies will even surpass the carrying capacity of fibre, but I really cannot believe that so many people can accept the premise. With fibre capable of multi terabit per second transfers now, how can wireless transmissions approach that sort of bandwidth? Then, how many towers would be needed to give a good quality service to people concentrated into city and urban areas? Even now, when a telco wants to put up another mobile phone tower, a lot of people don't want it anywhere near their home, even if they are not getting a good quality mobile service.



Comment made about the PC & Tech Authority article:
Our March NBN cover story: continue the discussion here?
Read our feature on connecting to the NBN in this month's March issue of PC & Tech Authority? Join the discussion here.

What do you think? Join the discussion.
rubaiyat
3 February 2012
 As official Liberal spokesperson for Technothingstuff and the Interneverwork I say we should wait, which has always been our position.

Wait until New Zealand has finished theirs and then borrow it when we want to watch something.
jg
3 February 2012
 In the not too distant future the decision to build the NBN will be seen as the great achievement of the current Government. I am not a Labor supporter but I'm with them on this one. My only concern is that because I can't get ADSL now, I probably won't be able to get fibre to my home. I wonder what the pricing will be like for NBN wireless. 20x ADSL as it is now?
darren42
4 February 2012
 In my house I currently can not get any form of ADSL as my phone line is on a pair gain system, this means that I can only have Cable internet. I can only wish that I could sign up for one of the numerous ADSL plans out there that offer a larger download quota at a much cheaper price.

Not to mention that the quality of my connection degrades during peak times to the point where it only usable for simple web browsing, forget about watching youtube videos or playing online games.

I can't wait to be able to connect via the NBN so I can have more choice of who I sign up to for my broadband interent connection.
MasterShrive
5 February 2012
 My major concern is that Labor will screw up their chances of winning the next election by their actions in other areas, which in turn will mean the NBN will be scraped once the Coalition gets in. And that is certainly not a good thing.
amcmo
5 February 2012
 The CONCEPT of NBN is great, however like all government run monopolies, it's being bastardised, used for political gain (marginal or independent electorates first etc) and the contract system was typical stuff up.

darren42, it is possible to get ADSL on a pair gain system if Telstra install Pair Gain compatible DSLAM's. I had thought they had done that in recent years. Of course, now Telstra have agreed to abandon their infrastructure there's little incentive for them to roll out such gear (between now and 2025?). One of the (unintended?) consequences of the whole NBN debacle is that no one wants to spend any money on new or upgraded gear that will be obsolete in a few years. New subdivision developers are screaming foul over it.

I'd still talk to Telstra. I've seen instances of reasonably quick conversion when enough people in an area have put in the demand. Of course, distance from exchange is still an issue.

As for the thought of the Coalition scrapping NBN, they're making all those noises, though unless private enterprise guaranteed equivalent or better performance, I can't see them actually going through with it.
rubaiyat
5 February 2012
 The new subdivison people could lay the infrastructure themselves as it would add big bucks to the value of the suburb.

It is actually where most of the rollout should be happening anyways, on green fields sites.

The NBN can then buy it back, once done.

The developer probably can get it in cheaper than NBN can themselves. Hardly a major obstacle.
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