Telstra turning their unused phone booths into WiFi hotspots - Polidicks

[IMG]https://s.yimg.com/ea/img/-/140930/30sept_telstra_1280x720-1a2k1dp.jpg?x=656&sig=a5G456bHttGC5ZzNUQXe8Q--[/IMG] [QUOTE]Telstra's forgotten pay phone booths will be repurposed as Wi-Fi hotspots as part of a plan to blanket public spaces with internet. Telstra unveiled in May a $100 million project to establish an estimated two million Wi-Fi hotspots across the country over five years. Most will be created by Telstra home broadband customers who share their bandwidth with passersby, but the telco is also building some 8000 hotspots in public areas. The first 100 of these will be up and running on a trial basis within weeks, said Telstra group executive of retail, Gordon Ballantyne, on Tuesday. He also revealed that many will be repurposed pay phones. The booths have struggled for relevance in the smartphone era, but they are ideal hotspot sites because most are located in busy areas and connected to high-speed fibre cabling. "The use in some areas is diminishing. "Now we're really finding a new role, Mr Ballantyne said, adding that they will still work as phones. "We still value the payphone infrastructure and its role in the community, but we're building on that." The hotspots will transmit internet to about a 100 metre radius, depending on the surrounding environment, with typical speeds being about two megabits-per-second.[/QUOTE] [url]https://au.news.yahoo.com/a/25141706/pay-phones-to-become-wi-fi-hotspots/?cmp=fb[/url]

Best reuse of outdated phonebooths.

[quote]but they are ideal hotspot sites because most are located in busy areas and connected to high-speed fibre cabling.[/quote] [quote] with typical speeds being about two megabits-per-second.[/quote] ???

[QUOTE=NixNax123;46110098]???[/QUOTE] Australia. :C

[QUOTE=NixNax123;46110098]???[/QUOTE] Faster than my home internet, so I'd consider that high-speed haha.

[QUOTE=NixNax123;46110098]???[/QUOTE] Either 1. Telstra is going to cap the fuck out of them (like most hotspots do here anyway but it isn't too excessive) 2. Telstra is predicting the amount of traffic that will happen and the average speed as a consequence

[QUOTE=Antdawg;46110127]Faster than my home internet, so I'd consider that high-speed haha.[/QUOTE] That's megabits not megabytes. Unless you know that in which case I'm truly sorry

[QUOTE=NixNax123;46110098]???[/QUOTE] probably a fiber node, but copper going to the phone

[QUOTE=fruxodaily;46110132] 2. Telstra is predicting the amount of traffic that will happen and the average speed as a consequence[/QUOTE] I don't know, I thought 3g was usually above that (4g definitely), so most people would use their phone's mobile data instead of this.

As long as they don't pull the same shit Queensland Rail did when they introduced WiFi onto trains I really couldn't care [sp]QR put a 20mb limit on their wifi, you could blow that shit in a matter of seconds by listening to a few songs on Spotify/Soundcloud[/sp]

[QUOTE=Code3Response;46110143]probably a fiber node, but copper going to the phone[/QUOTE] Oh, that makes sense.

[QUOTE=NixNax123;46110153]I don't know, I thought 3g was usually above that (4g definitely), so most people would use their phone's mobile data instead of this.[/QUOTE] For people (like me) where their phone eats up 30% of their battery in a matter of 3 minutes when they turn on 3G/4G, I'd be using WiFi as much as I can since I don't encounter that

[QUOTE=fruxodaily;46110159]For people (like me) where their phone eats up 30% of their battery in a matter of 3 minutes when they turn on 3G/4G, I'd be using WiFi as much as I can since I don't encounter that[/QUOTE] Odd, it's the opposite for me.

Now only if US Telecoms/ISPs would do the same... [sp]They Won't[/sp]

[QUOTE=NixNax123;46110153]I don't know, I thought 3g was usually above that (4g definitely), so most people would use their phone's mobile data instead of this.[/QUOTE] unless you don't have unlimited data [editline]30th September 2014[/editline] [QUOTE=LoneWolf_Recon;46110494]Now only if US Telecoms/ISPs would do the same... [sp]They Won't[/sp][/QUOTE] honestly I haven't seen a single phone booth in Chicago, I feel like a lot of places just tore them down

[QUOTE=Lick;46110136]That's megabits not megabytes. Unless you know that in which case I'm truly sorry[/QUOTE] Yep. 1.5 megabit ADSL. If I want to watch a video like on YouTube I tether my laptop or tablet to my iPhone which has 4G and stream it through that.

[QUOTE=LoneWolf_Recon;46110494]Now only if US Telecoms/ISPs would do the same... [sp]They Won't[/sp][/QUOTE] I've seen exactly one phone booth in my entire state, and I'm pretty sure it was out of service.

[QUOTE=Antdawg;46110519]Yep. 1.5 megabit ADSL. If I want to watch a video like on YouTube I tether my laptop or tablet to my iPhone which has 4G and stream it through that.[/QUOTE] your 1g data cap must love that

This is a brilliant idea!

[QUOTE=NixNax123;46110098]???[/QUOTE] better than dial-up since I'm pretty sure those payphones are connected to power and a landline connection.

Fantastic idea in theory, but instead of "blanket coverage" it's going to be more like pimply spotted coverage since phone booths are few and far between in Australia these days. I wouldn't expect the WiFi service to be free though and if it was, people will rightfully complain about "Telstra steelin muh metadataz"

[QUOTE=Mr Flexi;46110120]Australia. :C[/QUOTE] Have a 100mbit down/1.5mbit up connection and all the Australian ISPs say that upload speed is normal and "we will never need any higher".

[QUOTE=Ardosos;46110542]I've seen exactly one phone booth in my entire state, and I'm pretty sure it was out of service.[/QUOTE] I saw a phone booth in my old neighborhood but the glass was shattered and the actual phone was missing.

[QUOTE=K1ngo64;46111600]Have a 100mbit down/1.5mbit up connection and all the Australian ISPs say that upload speed is normal and "we will never need any higher".[/QUOTE] That's my major grip with the current attitude of isp's here tbh, fast download speed is good but I'd love if they concentrated on raising the UL speed to something better than cripple turtle slow

[QUOTE=fruxodaily;46114076]That's my major grip with the current attitude of isp's here tbh, fast download speed is good but I'd love if they concentrated on raising the UL speed to something better than cripple turtle slow[/QUOTE] They'd have to dedicate extra copper to upload streams because they can't transmit information 2 ways at the same time like fiber can.