Wireless Broadband in Darwin

27 public posts in this discussion.

Post 1

The internet situation at my place is going critical. I *need* broadband.

When I'm in Darwin, I live with my family; this makes four heavy internet users. My sister is a heavy downloader and browser, my brother is a gamer, my mum runs a buisness and I use Linux *and* game- this is a problem. The suburb of Bayview has pairgain- so we can't get ADSL, ISDN is simply not fast enough still, satellite lags, and our narrowband connects at 28.8k mostly. I've been screaming at Telstra for four years to get us broadband- just the day before yesterday I dropped into the Telstra shop and asked when Bayview was getting ADSL. They couldn't even get us an estimate... so...

I need wireless broadband. It's the only solution I think. So, are there any viable wireless internet carriers in the Darwin area? I know there's lots in Sydney, but I also heard Telstra was rolling out wireless broadband nationwide... anyone know anything about this?

Post 2

Unseen would be the man to speak to about wireless in Darwin.

Pm him mate.

Post 3

i suspect he means like, just normal wireless internet. not actually getting connected to darwin wireless.

only mob i know of are arafura connect

also be prepared to pay - wireless broadband is not cheap

Post 4

Ahh sorry didn't read the whole thing thru thouroughly....

Mungus is right tho, it's terribly expensive

Post 5

its either that or you get on something like Darwinwireless like I have and find a mate to connect through ..

OR

Find your rim and destroy it. Telstra will then update it so its not pair gain.

Post 6

Yeah, I know about Arafura connect... :(

About the Rim- yeah I heard about that story, hehe... <glances to crowbar> ... so tempting...

So bloddy annoying. I checked Whirlpool ISP search, lots of the wireless ISP's listed arn't even in the NT, and those that actually *are* are in Alice Springs...

Post 7

pairgain goes to the same play your local exchange .. break it and u will get a new CMUX.. ahh I would but mines out in the open :(

Still trying to work out how too do it.

Post 8

pay a homeless person

/me shrugs

Post 9

Gimme a plane ticket, a bottle of bourbon and some sort of bludgeon and I'll do it.

Post 10

well, it is the wet season.... and it can get pretty windy out...

Post 11

that would work if there were trees near it

Post 12

Ill be there in a 2 and a half weeks...Ill oblige ;) :p

Post 13

if there are any power poles nearby ram one of them down into the RIM with a shitbox car and make sure the roads wet after rain or something..
That way you get a new CMUX and some sort of excuse for that kind of crash :P

Post 14

or get a very big lightening rod....

Post 15

Quote from Unseen:
pairgain goes to the same play your local exchange .. break it and u will get a new CMUX.. ahh I would but mines out in the open :(

Still trying to work out how too do it.

just bomb it.. fck i'd do it for free - gimme the address and it's done.

Post 16

I have a full system for sale in running order.
PM me for more,

Post 17

yeah how fing hard can it be. dont go elaborate just get a rock or a block buster or something :P whos feeling sensible here

Post 18

Quote from K_I_Z_A:
yeah how fing hard can it be. dont go elaborate just get a rock or a block buster or something :P whos feeling sensible here

Do u have any idea what we are talking about .. ?? most probably not ..

Post 19

Wireless

Guys first post just moved here found this site scrounging for ADSL options in Durack.

I am plain outta luck, need some alternatives.

Wireless here is unreasonable even if I was gaming only I would expect to use near 500mb or more the 2 gig plan is not desirable sorry if anyone here works there. But compared to prices in other parts of the country this seems a little costly. I assume it is due to lack of a competitor in the market, can't be all capital recovery costs can it?

Anyway I won't dwell but if anyone has any more up to date info in this regard being a local filter it on please and thanks in advance.

Just another thing. I seem to be in a pair gains area so it runs on a RIM system yeah. But I get 49k to 52k dial up. What does this mean? Does it mean there is a bypass around the RIM and that I may not get a connection because of the lack of Copper.

Can't say I am an expert but most guys who have said they are on RIM get 28k or there abouts.

Any advice would be appreciated

Post 20

visit www.darwinwireless.com and ask a few questions there regarding wireless options..

otherwise, put in an application and see what happens.

Post 21

Thanks for your help already been rejected by Bigpong few months ago but I did notice a Telstra truck at our Rim the other week which before I resorted to dial up for news. Have just put in a app with TPG bigpong can bite me so see how we go with a third party asking em to do it.

What upsets me the most is that there are 1760 free ports at the palmeston exchange. If they had them up in Durack with 1020 house in the estate they could be getting another 300k - 600k a year in turnover, dills.

Post 22

A few suburbs within palmerston were just upgrade. Bakewell and Reseberry same problem you are on, but they have had copper run to them so that everybody if wanting too can tranposition over to copper.

2 of us in bakewell myself included will be on adsl by the end of the month due too this upgrade.

Post 23

WOOT :-D WOOT

Then we may have just got an upgrade TPG have accepted my request, just sweating on the line check.................. :-D

Post 24

For your sake, I'm hoping I'm wrong....

BUT...

I used to live in Durack (about a year ago now), and shared your frustrations - a relatively new suburb, and I couldn't get ADSL.

One of my mates works with Telstra doing ADSL installations, and he checked into it for me at the time, and said that Telstra had no short-term plans for upgrading Durack.

It IS part of their long-term strategy to upgrade all exchanges to be able to support ADSL, but Darwin (and the Territory in general) was way down the list on their plans, and he didn't see it happening within 2 years ( so another year to go at least).

I signed up on line anyway (as the phone line check showed me as being able to get it), but after the line-checks, I got the ***** sorry message.

I tell you this to try and soften the blow when it comes, but as I said, I hope I'm wrong in this, and things have changed.

Post 25

Morbeous has been waiting 3 yrs for the exchange to be upgraded .. Lucky that I moved in they must have been afraid or something as now we get DSL in 2 weeks time :)

So yeah maybe I should move to durak to speed things along :)

Post 26

Durack rims have only just had copper added as I know a guy who just got ADSL there.
Your line check will probably require transpositioning - which will take a few weeks..good luck.. but yeh as Unseen said I have been waiting 3 years...

Post 27

Well I have got an email saying my line Qualification has been done and am now awaiting Telstra activation.

Which I know is the KEY to the jigsaw. One can only hope as I am indeed in online gaming withdrawal.

Not to mention file sharing.

But I do realise that I may just get the sorry nice try message any day too.

From there I guess I will just have to galvanise some support from the locally elected authorities who by the mere fact should be off their collective butts lobbying down at the bigsmoke.

Yes Idealist, but thats their frecken job and I don't mind pumping out letters to do just that, its not like I have a online gaming to go to does it.

Fairly selfish but we all have an agenda