Hit The Fast Lane

Sydney Morning Herald

Saturday July 1, 2006

David Flynn

David Flynn shows how to leave behind slow dial-ups and enter the speedy world of broadband internet.

Sydney's property market isn't the only place where buyers are (at long last) calling the shots. Broadband internet has stepped down from its "power user" pedestal of geeks and speed freaks and entered the realm of the general masses - those of us who simply want a better, faster and smoother online experience.

Sure, broadband is faster than dial-up. It's the web without the wait but it also opens up a way to enjoy the internet at its fullest, from viewing trailers for the latest movies to browsing online property listings.

Broadband has also boomed thanks to the number of people now using the internet to slash their phone bill with VoIP services such as Engin and Skype, along with an increasing number of ISPs that offer VoIP networks with discounted rates for broadband customers.

In addition to those making the move from dial-up, there are more experienced broadband customers switching across (also known as "churning") to a different ISP in order to benefit from better-value plans, especially where greater speeds, higher download limits and extras such as VoIP calls are concerned.

Speed and downloads remain the bookends of broadband. Even entry-level plans, which are rated at 256 kilobits per second (Kbps) are about five-times faster than a conventional dial-up modem, thanks to their use of digital technology known

as ADSL. The fastest ADSL plans hit 1500Kbps (or 1.5Mbps).

Foxtel-Telstra and Optus also offer internet services which piggyback on their respective pay TV cables. These require a different type of modem than for ADSL but run up to 10 times faster, between 10Mbps and 15Mbps. Naturally, you can get cable internet only if you've got access to cable pay TV services.

Many internet service providers have wired up newer and more advanced ADSL2 and ADSL2+ lines, which rocket up to 24Mbps, although this figure can easily be halved by the time the signal reaches your PC.

Not every home is within the reach of ADSL - you can check if you are, and which ISPs service your area, through the Broadband Choice website (www.broadbandchoice.com.au). However, if you can access ADSL2 or ADSL2+, it may be worth signing up even if you're not a speed hound.

Some ISPs that have set up ADSL2 systems can offer lower rates than regular ADSL plans, which must rely on (and pay a surcharge for) sharing Telstra's network.

For example, the popular ISP Internode has an ADSL2+ plan which is $10 per month less than an otherwise identical ADSL plan.

Where most new broadband customers trip up is not speed but downloads. It's easy to underestimate how much data you'll be using on the internet, but this is crucial to choosing the right plan.

For rudimentary surfing and email we recommend at least 300MB per month, this also gives you enough headroom for fetching updates to your software and indulging in some "streaming" content such as movie trailers and online radio stations. Be warned that some ISPs (Telstra is foremost among them) will also add your uploaded files into the tally, so using file-sharing programs such as BitTorrent will quickly gobble up your monthly allowance.

What happens if you accidentally step over your monthly download limit? Some ISPs will reduce the speed of your connection (this is called throttling or shaping) to 64Kbps until the next month begins, so you can at least keep surfing and emailing. Others charge an excess fee, such as $5 per gigabyte, or let you "buy" additional data blocks (which is really just another way to package an excess download fee).

Shopping list

What do you really need?

Casual users and those making the move from dial-up will be satisfied with 256Kbps speed and anywhere above 300 megabytes (300MB) of downloads per month, preferably with speed throttling instead of excess fees if you go over that limit. Plans that include a basic modem can help smooth the set-up process. Families needing to share the broadband connection will value faster speeds and higher download limits, along with multiple email addresses so that everyone has their own private email address and inbox.

Ask around

Australia has more than 600 ISPs, so how do you find one that won't let you down? Ask friends and workmates who have broadband, which ISP they use and what their experiences have been. Consider factors such as technical support: is the help line free or a local call, and is it open on evenings and weekends? Also browse the Australian broadband community site Whirlpool (www.whirlpool.net.au) and look at what broadband users have to say about their ISP.

Read the fine print

The better a deal looks and the closer to zero the price tag gets, the more carefully you need to read the details, especially if there's a long-term contract involved. Some ads border on being deliberately misleading. Watch for unrealistically low download limits (anything under 200MB is a farce) matched with high excess download fees. Some high download allocations are split into peak and off peak times, in which case you'll want to use download manager software (such as Download Accelerator, Fresh Download or GetRight) to schedule large download sessions for the wee hours.

The wireless way

There are some parts of Sydney, even inner-city suburbs, where ADSL is not available. In these cases, your only option may be a wireless broadband ISP such as Unwired or iBurst. Wireless plans cost more than their landline counterparts, as well as being typically slower and requiring relatively expensive wireless modems. You should also ask for a trial of the service to ensure you can get a sufficiently fast signal to your home.

Light users

Internode HOME-256-Starter

$30 a month (cheapest set-up fee, $258), ****1/2, www.internode.on.net

A dollar a day is all it takes to get into broadband with this value-packed plan. The 256Kbps speed and 500MB quota are ample for basics such as email, surfing and light downloading, while shaping back to 64Kbps protects over-enthusiastic users from being hit with excess data charges. There's no contract, although a $65 early-termination fee is charged for cancellation within six months. We also liked the free streaming content from more than 50 internet radio stations, including the ABC. Flexible payment options include BPAY, cheque and direct debit.

Exetel S 1U (6-month contract)

$30 a month (cheapest set-up, $200), ****1/2, www.exetel.com.au

The minimum six-month contract, excess usage charges ($3 per GB) and $1.10 per month charge for credit-card payments are drawbacks for new players. However, the monthly allowance of 3GB on top of "uncounted downloads" from 2am to 10am provides plenty of headroom if you're bitten by the download bug. Other pleasing offerings of this 256Kbps plan include 60MB of web space, free spam filtering and multiple email addresses. In all, it's a superb starter for those who are worried about exceeding their monthly limit on other plans

Chilli Internet INTRO Standard

$45 a month (cheapest set-up, $199), ****, www.chilli.net.au

While not a replacement for ADSL, Chilli's wireless broadband plans prove a useful supplement for notebook users who are out and about. Chilli uses the iBurst network to span metropolitan Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Canberra and the Gold Coast. The monthly quota is a generous 1GB of which 500MB is available during "off-peak" hours between midnight and 6am. Users can choose shaping or pay excess usage charges. Note that $199 gets you a desktop-style modem but laptop users will prefer the $299 PC Card wireless modem.

Families

iiNet Medium 1500

$80 a month (cheapest set up, free on 24-month contract), ****1/2, www.iinet.net.au

If you're willing to sign on the dotted line, there's no cheaper way to get your family onto the internet fast lane. A 24-month contract gives you free set-up (including modem) plus 1.5Mbps speed, 10 email addresses and free spam filtering. The 20GB download quota (10GB of which is available off-peak between midnight and 8am) should satisfy teenagers. Bundle this with your landline phone service to get $10 off the monthly fee plus 40GB of downloads (20GB of which is off-peak).

Optus DSL Advantage

$60 month (cheapest setup, $159 on 24-month contract), ****

There's a lot to like about this solid all-rounder scheme. The speed is a zippy 1.5Mbps and you get 7GB of downloads with no excess charges. There's also 50MB of web space and five email addresses with spam filtering. Bundle this with an Optus landline or mobile phone service and the price drops to $50 per month with an additional 14GB of downloads between midnight and noon. If your street is cabled for Optus Pay TV, the plan's peak speed can jump to a lightning-fast 24Mbps.

Telstra BigPond Unlimited 512

$80 a month (cheapest setup, $90 on 24-month contract), ***1/2, www.bigpond.com/broadband/access

Telstra's selling point for its BigPond broadband is the raft of exclusive and free online content - music, movie trailers, computer games and even live sports coverage - none of which counts against the 10GB monthy download limit. If you don't care for those extras, however, BigPond simply isn't worth the plunge: not when you're limited to a lowly 512Kbps, a single email address and have to fork out an extra $2.50 per month for spam filtering.

Heavy-duty users

iiNet Medium

$70 a month (cheapest set-up, free on 24-month contract), ****1/2, www.iinet.net.au

Bundle your home phone line with iiNet (which, like many ISPs, now operates as a landline carrier) and you've got an ADSL2+ version of the family-friendly iiNet Medium 1500 plan. This means speeds to 24Mbps, 40GB of downloads (half of which is reserved for off-peak usage between midnight and 8am) and 10 free email addresses with spam and virus filtering. There's also no-cost access to iiNet's VoIP network, which allows free calls to other iiNet users and 10c calls to local and capital city landline numbers.

Internode HOME-Extreme-Standard

$80 a month (cheapest set-up, $258), *****, www.internode.on.net

Take a round-the-clock 40GB monthly download quota with ADSL2+ speeds up to 24Mbps, add 140 gaming servers and 5600GB of files shared on local servers and you've got heaven on a joystick for online gamers. Internode also enjoys the super-fast response times which gives gamers the edge when battling foes from around the globe, which is why this ISP has one of Australia's largest online gaming communities. There are no contracts and tech support is available around the clock for the cost of a local call.

TPG Internet Heavy

$60 a month (cheapest set-up, $140), ****, www.tpg.com.au

TPG has reasonable coverage with its own high-speed equipment in metropolitan Sydney. The high speed (24Mbps) and good quota without time restrictions (30GB), free spam filtering and shaping are great features. Users must sign a 12-month contract. TPG runs 14 gaming servers including Counter Strike, Half-Life 2 and American's Army, but usage is counted against the data allowance. A static IP address is standard. Anecdotal evidence of poor tech support won't bother tech-savvy users, but slow response times when gaming might.

© 2006 Sydney Morning Herald

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