NBN Update: What to look for if you’re Considering Moving

The NBN rollout is winding its way across the country, a networking technology that seeks to provide higher-speed internet than its ADSL predecessor. However, the NBN is not without its problems. Today we take a closer look at what’s currently going on with the NBN, some issues, moving considerations, and setup options.

If you’re considering to switching to NBN for your business, you can also check out our article, The Problem/Risk with NBN: What Your Business Needs To Be Aware Of Before Changing To NBN.

NBN Availability Across Australia

The NBN is slowly being rolled out around the country – both in regional and metropolitan areas. The NBN is already a fixture in many homes and businesses around Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Darwin, Canberra, and regional centres like Newcastle, Mandurah, Cairns, Mackay, and Ballarat – along with plenty of towns in between.

The NBNCo Roll Out Map gives a clear indication of NBN availability, current infrastructure build, and even other fibre provider availability (for high-speed internet not covered by NBN tech) across the country. All you need to do is type in your address or drop a pin. The alternative is accessing the NBNCo’s Business page and typing in your address there.

Here’s the current Sydney map. Purple areas are NBN ready, whereas those marked brown are in progress. So, for instance, if you’re in St Leonards then you should be able to get NBN, but if you’re in Chatswood then you’ll have to keep waiting and check out other options in the meantime.

If you want to know exact time frames, then you can either try giving NBNCo a call – or you can ask us instead and we can do the legwork for you!

Reported NBN Problems

There’s always a long list of NBN reported problems. These are usually to do with speed. Low NBN speed can be attributed to a number of issues:

• Type of NBN technology: Fibre to the Premises (fastest), Fibre to the Curb, Fibre to the Node, etc.
• Misunderstanding of NBN plan speed expectations: Max speeds are generally unavailable, median speeds are just a median, speeds slow at peak times due to network load.
• ISP: Not all ISPs are the same. While NBNCo wholesales NBN to providers, some of these providers also wholesale to other ISPs. Telstra, Optus, TPG, and Vocus Communications are the main ISPs to consider – others buy their NBN off these players.
• The type/brand/model of modem/router used: Yes, this matters, as does your equipment placement and housing – including further building networking infrastructure beyond the modem/router.

Issues with your NBN should always be directed to your ISP first. Whirlpool Forums have a great in-depth guide to how to deal with complaints.

NBN problems beyond the consumer level

You may have noticed in the news recently that providers, like Optus and Telstra, have been attributing the NBN to large year-on-year profit drops to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars.

Now this might make you chuckle a little (they are, after all, hugely successful large businesses that have at times been accused of unfair pricing due to monopolies), but when these players are experiencing financial downturns because of the NBN it points to a more serious issue.

ISPs are calling for the NBN to reduce wholesale costs to absorb these losses; if this doesn’t happen, then it’s likely that they’ll look to cost cutting at the consumer level instead, or invest more heavily in the coming 5G technology instead. Just something to think about… it doesn’t hurt to always look at the bigger picture!

What do I do if I’m moving?

If you have an NBN connection and you’re moving premises, then your first stop should be checking whether NBN is available in your new location. If not, then you could check on whether it’ll be coming soon – but don’t hold your breath, dates can change and be pushed back – and often are.

If it’s not available, the next stop is checking out what other options are open to you at the type of speeds you require. You can check what the current tenants or owners of the property already have set up. You may find there’s an existing cable connection, or they’ve already been through the rigmarole of finding the best solution that works for them.

If this isn’t satisfactory, contacting your current ISP (if you’re happy with their service) to see what’s available to you is another option.

If you want to start afresh, finding the optimal solution (and, let’s face it, who doesn’t want an optimal solution?) then you can call us up for advice. Finding out the best technology, ISP, plan, and building networking infrastructure for businesses is part of our core offering.

You can think of us like networking rubix cube solvers. We evaluate all the best options that fit within your location, building, network availability and speed, as well as budget specifications, and provide a detailed list of your best options. If you decide to pick one, then we can help get it all set up, including fitting out your premises. We really do take the pain out of the complex process of internet connectivity and service. Dealing with us instead of ISPs can take minutes instead of hours (or days!)

Need help?

We know NBN back to front, so if you’re sick of Google searching, browsing ISP sites, and rollout maps, then have a chat with us instead. We can get to the crux of your issues and find a great internet solution quickly, get in touch today and discover how A1 can help you get connected quickly, easily and cost-effectively!

Julia Sinclair-Jones

Tech writer and ex-software developer with a penchant for travel, techno, and data. Spreading the word of secure, manageable, optimised IT solutions for everyone.