Testing of Telecom’s new XT Cellular Network
Telecom’s new XT Cellular Network is being heralded—for its better performance, coverage and pricing, but best of all, its fast wireless broadband—but not by all of Golden Bay.
The company’s claim that it would “extend to 97% of where New Zealanders live and work”, along with the reassurance that, “Many rural and holiday areas will now receive world class 3G coverage for the first time,” doesn’t ring true for much of Golden Bay. That’s according to Dave Williams from Hire A Geek who, on the day of the XT launch, rushed out and bought Telecom’s branded wireless broadband T-stick with the intention of testing the new network’s performance throughout the Bay and publishing the results for all to see.
“The results speak for themselves,” says Dave. After meticulous testing of both the download and upload rates at 59 sites throughout the Bay, from Farewell Spit to Tata Beach and East Takaka, he found that whilst broadband performance was excellent in high-signal-strength areas, there was generally little to no improvement in signal coverage, with inconsistent results over the whole Bay.
Telecom’s claim of extending coverage to holiday sites hasn’t borne true either. None of Golden Bay’s holiday parks or camping grounds has benefitted from the advent of the XT network. In fact, it doesn’t seem anyone else really has either.
Dave concludes: “If you get average to good coverage from your existing CDMA Telecom Network, then you’re probably going to get much the same from the XT network. The same goes for poor to no coverage.” It would seem that what has changed most is the marketing ploy.
Still, with download speeds averaging 1.3 Mbps, it has to be admitted that the new XT Network is 25 times quicker than that of dialup, if you are still so stricken. And by comparison, XT is only around three times slower than existing (down the phone line) ADSL broadband where that’s available in Golden Bay. This does make it a realistic alternative where ADSL broadband is impossible to obtain.
But wait, there’s more! Starting in November this year, Telecom will begin rolling out an upgrade to further increase the speed of its already fast wireless broadband on its new XT Network.
According to Dave, there’s just one catch. Telecom provides two wireless T-sticks: their own branded model, which was used for testing, and the Sierra model. The difference is that the branded model will not benefit from the upgrade. It was only introduced, as Telecom explains, “to provide a choice where the model of T-sticks price was a deciding factor over its performance.”
Dave’s advice is if you can afford it, go for the Sierra T-stick. If you are in the market for a new phone as well, then consider getting one of the more expensive handsets that provide dual capability, allowing the phone to also be used as a wireless broadband modem via either a USB or Bluetooth connection to either your PC or laptop. “This is exactly what I’ve done,” says Dave, “and I’m very pleased with the results.”
Because it’s impossible to provide a 100% measure of internet capabilities across the Bay, or to estimate the environmental factors like buildings that could enhance or degrade the Network’s performance, Dave is offering (for just $10 plus travel costs) to visit onsite to assess your broadband situation and give you an on-the-spot and impartial assessment as to whether Telecom’s XT Network will be of benefit to you. His number at Hire A Geek is 0800 773 583.
In addition, the full results of the testing conducted at the 59 sites throughout Golden Bay can be found under solutions on his website <www.hireageek.co.nz>. Dave welcomes any feedback that anyone would like to give regarding the information reported.
Gerard Hindmarsh
