Cell C 4GS broadband

[Dave A]

South Africa's third mobile operator, Cell C is blazing a trail in local broadband connectivity after the launch of Africa's first HSPA+ 900 network in Port Elizabeth on Friday.

The company officially switched on the high-speed network offering data speeds capable of up to 21.6 Mbps, dubbed 4GS - 4 Great Speed and 4 Great Service as part of its nationwide network rollout.
full story from Business Report here

Has anyone tried Cell C's new broadband offering? Just how fast is it?

[Chatmaster]

Mmmmmm, Dave, I believe it isn't rolled out country wide yet, It is as far as I know only available in certain parts of the Western Cape.

[Chatmaster]

I also think that this press statement would explain a bit more... http://mybroadband.co.za/news/cellul...-explains.html

The truth is that it is currently impossible to roll out a 4G network as the 4G standards have not been ratified yet. To call a network 4G means that it must support a peak data rate of 100Mbps for high mobility applications and 1Gbps for low mobility applications such as nomadic/local wireless access.

[Dave A]

Probably why they're calling it 4GS

Still, at up to 21,6Mbps it's faster than what Vodacom is putting out at the moment, isn't it?

[Chatmaster]

As far as I know Cell C is actually rolling out the 3.75G and not the 4GS as they claim, Vodacom as far as I know will roll out the 3.9G which makes a bit of a difference, besides that I believe Vodacom already has a tower in Midrand running on 3.9G. That is as far as my knowledge based on some business discussions I've had (Hearsay).

[Dave A]

While I was browsing last night it really struck home what the problem with V3G really is - it's the lag, not the download speed. If you're pulling a big file, it downloads at some pretty serious speeds. But pull a whole lot of little files and you're tapping your fingers.

[SilverNodashi]

so we need to upgrade these pretty expensive "white elephants" again. Sigh, why couldn't they just use upto date equipment from the start?

[twinscythe12332]

It's a great concept, but the latency is still going to suck =/