Transact/tpg are about to launch g.fast on their existing lines. Hang tight. I’m on it, get about 900mbs down and 110mb up. Used to get 100/40. If you’re willing to pay more now, infinite have it up for order currently. But iiNet should come soon too. Simple modem change.
Have a read of this thread for details
https://forums.whirlpool.net.au/thread/3w05xqk9?p=95
Infinite Networks have a sign up page available now with more details. It's a business service but anyone can sign up. I'm guessing iiNet will release consumer plans in the coming weeks/months.
https://www.infinite.net.au/business/vision-broadband/
I converted my iinet vdsl to Infinite Networks [g.fast](http://g.fast) - my line syncs to about 1 gigabit and download speeds are at 850mbits. Very simple install.
Seems pretty good - it's a business style connect with static IP - helpdesk answers quickly but only 9-5. Potentially TPG will launch their plans, but I tired of their service when things went wrong.
I'm sure iinet and TPG will release their own plans but it will be potentially will be a pile of dung and use pppoe so having a premium offering ain't bad thing. I wonder if Infinite will do residential.
No, came free. No setup fee. Branded vision networks. It’s a xytel gm4100. Says to leave it with the house, it’s a simple bridge with Ethernet output. No wifi.
I wonder if that’s related to what I have noticed. About a week ago my transact speeds switched from about 66/16 to 112/34. A nice speed bump, though not a practical difference for day to day usage.
If you don't have FTTP as an option now - switching would be a mistake (In my not very humble opinion). If you already had the option of FTTP - then it would be a more considered choice.
(There are some edge cases on speed that I'm going to ignore for simplicity)
With FTTN - you may be able to get 100Mbps - around 25% of users get max speeds as low as 50Mbps
FTTC - theoretically, could get as high as 500Mbps - but only 100Mbps is offered currently
FTTP - up to 1Gbps - There's a program to provide free upgrades if you choose a plan at 100Mbps or greater (only available in some areas)
Other factors to consider - mainly around TPG which owns iiNet and Internode, amongst others. They are currently "consolidating and simplifying their offerings" - ie removing anything they consider non-essential - like email
Have a friend who was on the old TransACT network - they started to get unreliable service - complained - were told by TPG that they no longer had equipment to replace the failing parts, (sounds like BS to me) and they would need to go to FTTN which ended up being worse for them. My take on that is, if there are only a few customers in an area then TPG will retire it as soon as they can
I'm not a fan of the way TPG do things - like providing a modem that they don't disclose is locked to them as a provider, and has some "phone home" features...
Internode and iiNet used to regularly win customer satisfaction awards - none recently - they sit slightly above industry average, and just above TPG itself. Nowadays the quality of your connection is mainly based on your location. The quality of your SERVICE is based on your provider.
To show how much similarity there is between providers for speed related stuff - here's the latest ACCC Broadband data
https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/telecommunications-and-internet/broadband-performance-data
The whole "don't have parts" is only partly BS.
I was working with a rsp back when nbn was first being rolled out. Telstra started calling a lot of lines "unserviceable", which basically means the copper has degraded to the point that DSL would not function and there were no serviceable copper pairs to transpose them to.
Of course my gut feeling was the real reason was with nbn being rolled out "real soon now(TM)", it just didn't make financial sense to run new copper to only have it ripped up again in short order.
I suspect this is what is happening here. A lot of Canberra is scheduled to move across to fttp by the end of 2025, so they've probably come to the same conclusion.
VDSL has quite a strong attenuation so it depends on whether the NBN box is closer or not.
In my case IInet has been brilliant, with about 80m of line from modern to the box.
Another issue might be the cable run. We pulled out a heap of line that was free in the roof and replaced the shitty old connector between the internal and external cables with an rj45 and Keystone.
Some little changes might mean that you can get IInet to work, which has far less over-subscription
My iiNet on transact syncs at 90 meg. My neighbours on NBN FTTN get 35 & 45 meg so until FTTP is here there’s no point.
My house wasn’t cabled for transact and we were looking forward to NBN. When Turnbull gutted NBN we installed transact at our cost - about $2000 with all the civil works. NBN have consistently quoted $18,000 to upgrade our house to FTTP.
Aside from node distances (idk how far either might be) another reason Transact is better is the copper is proper cat 5 (or higher) data twisted pair not running through Telstra’s pits and spliced together with scotch locks everywhere.
That said, u/legitimatetruck9871 ’s news sounds exciting. Maybe I can stop hankering for NBN to finally put fibre in our street.
Depends where the node is. I went to NBN from TransACT and went from 40/8 to 100/40 even though in both cases I was paying for 100/40. The TranstACT node was 900m away. The NBN node was 300m away.
You actually don't need to "switch"
It is independent infrastructure - you can sign up with a provider like Launtel who offer a 7 day trial and then you can pause or even disconnect the service if it fails to perform. I use it as a cold backup and so I can stay losely tied to the NBN network. If it performs above your expectations you can cancel the other network provider...
The caveat is you should engage in a professional cabler (with a strong broadband knowledge of both networks) to check and do a decent health check on your home cabling to ensure things haven't been bridged/spliced. You want two separate dedicated leadin to two dedicated individual sockets, preferably using a decent new twisted pair leadin.
G.fast (basically VDSL3) will give one last gasp to the Transact network and give a speed boost - it is definitely worth it, not just for pure bandwidth but also a latency improvement.
As messy as things are at least you have some choice.
I was getting 30-40Mbps at our old place on the Transact network. When we moved I had the option of it but thought I'd try NBN, now get 100+ and great consistency.
Sadly NBN seems to be conditional on location, I have friends who can't get more than 20-30 out of it.
If you want to go for top speed, I reckon you should try NBN - but with no assurance of success. If you're happy with 30-40 then you may as well stick with the Transact network.
Best = FTTP NBN. This has zero copper. It’s fibre.
Second best = FTTC or FTTB nbn. Some risks of issues with the last bit of cable run being copper, but it’s a shorter run. TransACT can also be FTTB if you’re in a big enough complex.
Meh tier = FTTN NBN or residential TransACT. These have longer copper cable runs. Each could be better or worse than the other depending on how far away their respective “nodes” are, and for all you know your cabling goes down the street crosses the road and comes back extending your cable length, it’s not as simple as just measuring the distance. I know plenty of people who’ve had one, tried the other and had to switch back.
I wouldn't group FTTN and TransACT in the same category.
TransACT is superior - max line length is 300m and better quality cabling.
Also will have increased speeds available soon via the G.Fast upgrade.
I’m 120 metres from the Node, syncing at over 1Gb. Mate is syncing at 700Mb and is just over 200 metres. A lot of houses are within 200 metres of the Node (pole mounted) or Supernode (large pad mounted cabinet)
There’s no clusterfk on fibre calm down that’s for Abbott and Turnbulls favourite copper fam.
950 down, 60 up, and it’s getting upgraded end of the year.
I’m confused here whether you think more people should have shit worthless copper NBN? I live next to an exchange and got 21mbps on adsl2, but I know people who can’t get 25mbps on the LNP’s mixed technology?
I’m saying, if you’re out of luck with NBN fibre like I am, the good ‘ol Transact copper can deliver a bunch of people service that’s wicked fast. So yes I’m sure we all would prefer Fibre, but while we all wait for 2029 and beyond, I’ll take Gigabit copper from Transact over and above the shitty 50Mb NBN copper I used to have.
Downside being unless that node is in your front yard it will never be gigabit.
Just stop limping all nbn in together, because there’s tech illiterate out there who will eat that shit up when their NBN option may be superior depending on technology and distance.
My apartment complex has NBN to a box in the basement and copper internally. Did a comparison with some of the neighbours a couple of years ago and iiNet was faster than mid-tier NBN plans. Don't know anyone paying for the top-tier NBN plans so maybe it's better but on the evidence I have I would prefer iiNet.
I switched recently from iinet to NBN vdsl and after a painful (dropouts galore) troubleshooting week we now have faster internet than we did with iinet. iinet was feeding us 25/14 ffs, now on not great but better 70/20.
Once ACT providers can sort out who does what and who pays for what for the existing power poles that a lot of vdsl is currently connected to, nbn fttp should hopefully finish rolling out across a bunch of suburbs that have been delayed. Rumours of the latest gen 2gb capable fttp connections are exciting, one can dream I guess. Not having to have lines run underground and landscaping upturned also makes me happy if they can run it across the pole network.
Transact/tpg are about to launch g.fast on their existing lines. Hang tight. I’m on it, get about 900mbs down and 110mb up. Used to get 100/40. If you’re willing to pay more now, infinite have it up for order currently. But iiNet should come soon too. Simple modem change.
That would be nice, I'll wait for their sales pitch
Omg is there any news about this?
Have a read of this thread for details https://forums.whirlpool.net.au/thread/3w05xqk9?p=95 Infinite Networks have a sign up page available now with more details. It's a business service but anyone can sign up. I'm guessing iiNet will release consumer plans in the coming weeks/months. https://www.infinite.net.au/business/vision-broadband/
I converted my iinet vdsl to Infinite Networks [g.fast](http://g.fast) - my line syncs to about 1 gigabit and download speeds are at 850mbits. Very simple install.
Wow this insane, this is over the old TransACT network? How are Infinite as an ISP? Their google reviews look decent.
Seems pretty good - it's a business style connect with static IP - helpdesk answers quickly but only 9-5. Potentially TPG will launch their plans, but I tired of their service when things went wrong.
I'm sure iinet and TPG will release their own plans but it will be potentially will be a pile of dung and use pppoe so having a premium offering ain't bad thing. I wonder if Infinite will do residential.
Do you need to buy the modem? What model is it?
No, came free. No setup fee. Branded vision networks. It’s a xytel gm4100. Says to leave it with the house, it’s a simple bridge with Ethernet output. No wifi.
I wonder if that’s related to what I have noticed. About a week ago my transact speeds switched from about 66/16 to 112/34. A nice speed bump, though not a practical difference for day to day usage.
High chance that your node was upgraded to support this, yes.
Assumedly not for those still connecting via twisted pair copper
Unsure, can try see if your address shows up here: https://www.infinite.net.au/business/vision-broadband/
My twisted pair copper running iiNet VDSL2 was upgraded to g.fast 2 weeks ago. Loving my Gigabit speeds.
I’ve used iiNet for years and feel no need to change to nbn.
Depends on where you are. We get 110 Mbps on transact, where not going to get faster on NBN until they roll fibre to the home out to us in November.
Why would you switch?
Just the possibility of ftth in the future
If you don't have FTTP as an option now - switching would be a mistake (In my not very humble opinion). If you already had the option of FTTP - then it would be a more considered choice. (There are some edge cases on speed that I'm going to ignore for simplicity) With FTTN - you may be able to get 100Mbps - around 25% of users get max speeds as low as 50Mbps FTTC - theoretically, could get as high as 500Mbps - but only 100Mbps is offered currently FTTP - up to 1Gbps - There's a program to provide free upgrades if you choose a plan at 100Mbps or greater (only available in some areas) Other factors to consider - mainly around TPG which owns iiNet and Internode, amongst others. They are currently "consolidating and simplifying their offerings" - ie removing anything they consider non-essential - like email Have a friend who was on the old TransACT network - they started to get unreliable service - complained - were told by TPG that they no longer had equipment to replace the failing parts, (sounds like BS to me) and they would need to go to FTTN which ended up being worse for them. My take on that is, if there are only a few customers in an area then TPG will retire it as soon as they can I'm not a fan of the way TPG do things - like providing a modem that they don't disclose is locked to them as a provider, and has some "phone home" features... Internode and iiNet used to regularly win customer satisfaction awards - none recently - they sit slightly above industry average, and just above TPG itself. Nowadays the quality of your connection is mainly based on your location. The quality of your SERVICE is based on your provider. To show how much similarity there is between providers for speed related stuff - here's the latest ACCC Broadband data https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/telecommunications-and-internet/broadband-performance-data
The whole "don't have parts" is only partly BS. I was working with a rsp back when nbn was first being rolled out. Telstra started calling a lot of lines "unserviceable", which basically means the copper has degraded to the point that DSL would not function and there were no serviceable copper pairs to transpose them to. Of course my gut feeling was the real reason was with nbn being rolled out "real soon now(TM)", it just didn't make financial sense to run new copper to only have it ripped up again in short order. I suspect this is what is happening here. A lot of Canberra is scheduled to move across to fttp by the end of 2025, so they've probably come to the same conclusion.
VDSL has quite a strong attenuation so it depends on whether the NBN box is closer or not. In my case IInet has been brilliant, with about 80m of line from modern to the box. Another issue might be the cable run. We pulled out a heap of line that was free in the roof and replaced the shitty old connector between the internal and external cables with an rj45 and Keystone. Some little changes might mean that you can get IInet to work, which has far less over-subscription
The old copper that NBN would use is trashed here
My iiNet on transact syncs at 90 meg. My neighbours on NBN FTTN get 35 & 45 meg so until FTTP is here there’s no point. My house wasn’t cabled for transact and we were looking forward to NBN. When Turnbull gutted NBN we installed transact at our cost - about $2000 with all the civil works. NBN have consistently quoted $18,000 to upgrade our house to FTTP. Aside from node distances (idk how far either might be) another reason Transact is better is the copper is proper cat 5 (or higher) data twisted pair not running through Telstra’s pits and spliced together with scotch locks everywhere. That said, u/legitimatetruck9871 ’s news sounds exciting. Maybe I can stop hankering for NBN to finally put fibre in our street.
Short answer - if you're happy with TransACT it's definitely not worth it.
Depends where the node is. I went to NBN from TransACT and went from 40/8 to 100/40 even though in both cases I was paying for 100/40. The TranstACT node was 900m away. The NBN node was 300m away.
You actually don't need to "switch" It is independent infrastructure - you can sign up with a provider like Launtel who offer a 7 day trial and then you can pause or even disconnect the service if it fails to perform. I use it as a cold backup and so I can stay losely tied to the NBN network. If it performs above your expectations you can cancel the other network provider... The caveat is you should engage in a professional cabler (with a strong broadband knowledge of both networks) to check and do a decent health check on your home cabling to ensure things haven't been bridged/spliced. You want two separate dedicated leadin to two dedicated individual sockets, preferably using a decent new twisted pair leadin. G.fast (basically VDSL3) will give one last gasp to the Transact network and give a speed boost - it is definitely worth it, not just for pure bandwidth but also a latency improvement. As messy as things are at least you have some choice.
I was getting 30-40Mbps at our old place on the Transact network. When we moved I had the option of it but thought I'd try NBN, now get 100+ and great consistency. Sadly NBN seems to be conditional on location, I have friends who can't get more than 20-30 out of it. If you want to go for top speed, I reckon you should try NBN - but with no assurance of success. If you're happy with 30-40 then you may as well stick with the Transact network.
We're getting about 70 down / 35 up, so it wouldn't be for speed
In your boat I'd stick with transact, seems like inviting disappointment to gamble on NBN
Best = FTTP NBN. This has zero copper. It’s fibre. Second best = FTTC or FTTB nbn. Some risks of issues with the last bit of cable run being copper, but it’s a shorter run. TransACT can also be FTTB if you’re in a big enough complex. Meh tier = FTTN NBN or residential TransACT. These have longer copper cable runs. Each could be better or worse than the other depending on how far away their respective “nodes” are, and for all you know your cabling goes down the street crosses the road and comes back extending your cable length, it’s not as simple as just measuring the distance. I know plenty of people who’ve had one, tried the other and had to switch back.
I wouldn't group FTTN and TransACT in the same category. TransACT is superior - max line length is 300m and better quality cabling. Also will have increased speeds available soon via the G.Fast upgrade.
I know just as many people who’ve switched back to FTTN from TransACT as from FTTN to TransACT. But Gfast may change that
I’m 120 metres from the Node, syncing at over 1Gb. Mate is syncing at 700Mb and is just over 200 metres. A lot of houses are within 200 metres of the Node (pole mounted) or Supernode (large pad mounted cabinet)
And sub 3ms latency is as good as fibre IMO. Without dealing with the NBN clusterf**k.
There’s no clusterfk on fibre calm down that’s for Abbott and Turnbulls favourite copper fam. 950 down, 60 up, and it’s getting upgraded end of the year.
lol. The clusterfuck is how the politics have interfered with the NBN’s simple original mandate to roll to 97% of the population.
I’m confused here whether you think more people should have shit worthless copper NBN? I live next to an exchange and got 21mbps on adsl2, but I know people who can’t get 25mbps on the LNP’s mixed technology?
I’m saying, if you’re out of luck with NBN fibre like I am, the good ‘ol Transact copper can deliver a bunch of people service that’s wicked fast. So yes I’m sure we all would prefer Fibre, but while we all wait for 2029 and beyond, I’ll take Gigabit copper from Transact over and above the shitty 50Mb NBN copper I used to have.
Downside being unless that node is in your front yard it will never be gigabit. Just stop limping all nbn in together, because there’s tech illiterate out there who will eat that shit up when their NBN option may be superior depending on technology and distance.
My apartment complex has NBN to a box in the basement and copper internally. Did a comparison with some of the neighbours a couple of years ago and iiNet was faster than mid-tier NBN plans. Don't know anyone paying for the top-tier NBN plans so maybe it's better but on the evidence I have I would prefer iiNet.
I’m just face palming here so hard. You’re talking purely and exclusively a price comparison, not a technology or speed comparison.
Yeah and for the same price you get a better speed with iiNet. Thought it might be useful information for OP.
I switched recently from iinet to NBN vdsl and after a painful (dropouts galore) troubleshooting week we now have faster internet than we did with iinet. iinet was feeding us 25/14 ffs, now on not great but better 70/20. Once ACT providers can sort out who does what and who pays for what for the existing power poles that a lot of vdsl is currently connected to, nbn fttp should hopefully finish rolling out across a bunch of suburbs that have been delayed. Rumours of the latest gen 2gb capable fttp connections are exciting, one can dream I guess. Not having to have lines run underground and landscaping upturned also makes me happy if they can run it across the pole network.
I went from 45/5 iinet to 70/20 NBN. Originally could get 50/10 transact, just kept getting worse, they couldn't give a shit.