We have been told by iPrimus that we cannot connect to broadband because no ports are available. Where do we go from here?
23/12/2010
Fortunately for you, just because iPrimus doesn’t have any available ports for ADSL or ADSL2+ broadband, it doesn’t mean another provider won’t be able to offer you a service. Each Internet Service Provider is allotted a specific amount of ports to offer customers ADSL at a phone exchange, so numerous other companies will most probably still have connections for you.
Your best option is to call around and see who has a service at your local phone exchange and then compare prices between the different providers. Some of the best companies to call are TPG (1300 764 000), iiNet (1300 137 765), or Optus (1300 137 897).
If you are in a regional area, Telstra BigPond could own the entire phone exchange, with other providers reselling off of its equipment. In this instance if there are no ports available, no one will be able to provide you a service until a customer leaves. You can either wait for this to occur, or you can look at the fallback option of mobile wireless broadband, which works off of the mobile phone towers.
If you do have to go for mobile wireless broadband, some of the best providers to go for are Vodafone (1300 764 000), Optus (1300 768 194), Virgin (1300 768 103), or Westnet (1300 768 134). Make sure you have coverage from the provider’s towers before signing up to a plan. Vodafone uses its own towers in regional areas, but Optus’s in metropolitan locations, while all other providers bar Telstra BigPond use the Optus towers.
If you can’t get coverage from these two types of towers you can pay extra and get Telstra BigPond. Telstra actually has the best speed and coverage in Australia, but its prices are much higher.