Super Fast Broadband coming soon!

[popayetwo]

News today from the UK's Daily Mail is to the effect that Britain will soon get a superfast broadband network accessible to 90% of the population.

"Already, more than 70 per cent of UK households have broadband and nearly 50 per cent have access to a superfast 50 Mbps service."

Boy, have they got a long way to go to catch up to our BROADEST BAND from Telkom. A mind-boggling 384!

(kilobits per second)

Makes you sick, doesn't it?

[solweb]

Broadband in South Africa

It is all relative, I suppose. I suffered through a year of hell with Neotel, and went back to Telkom. My 386 line through Telkom was like a Porsche compared to the almost always broken Neotel.

By the way, you can get faster speeds than 386kbs, check with Telkom if your line supports it and you can get up to 10 mbps which is not at all bad.

Remember it is not Telkom's fault we are so behind, blame the Ministers of Communications who did not understand why we need better connectivity in all parts of the country if we are to prosper and take our rightful place in the developed world.

[twinscythe12332]

It is all relative, I suppose. I suffered through a year of hell with Neotel, and went back to Telkom. My 386 line through Telkom was like a Porsche compared to the almost always broken Neotel.

By the way, you can get faster speeds than 386kbs, check with Telkom if your line supports it and you can get up to 10 mbps which is not at all bad.

Remember it is not Telkom's fault we are so behind, blame the Ministers of Communications who did not understand why we need better connectivity in all parts of the country if we are to prosper and take our rightful place in the developed world.

it's not that they don't understand, it's that they and a number of other people would prefer us to remain this way.

[irneb]

I think even the UK has their problems. That 90% story is a bit more like propaganda, than a true reflection of how much connectivity is available. Check this poor guy's meanderings:

http://www.reghardware.com/2010/12/03/not_spot_diary/

[popayetwo]

Remember it is not Telkom's fault we are so behind

But Telkom is a government owned company that has the monopoly on internet infrastructure and should be telling the minister what is required, not the other way round. Remember, Telkom is in BUSINESS whereas the minister is in POLITICS.

Also, I am aware of Telkom's 10meg lines IN CERTAIN AREAS, but nowhere near even 50% of the market. Also consider the relative cost of Telkom's offering compared to the rest of the world. The 384k offering is their basic service compared to 2 meg basic for the UK at a much lower cost per megabyte. Also consider the capped service from Telkom as an added "bonus" and you can see how far behind we really are in this country. I agree with the sentiments expressed elsewhere as to the reason for this lagging behind - you can't expect to take someone from the kraal and expect them to be world-class business savvy for at least another ten million years.

Finally, a Mr. J Zooma stood up in parliament in Feb this year and said that we would soon be enjoying an internet that was up to "world standard". Methinks he was blowing it out of a rear-facing orifice.

[solweb]

My my...

We have a problem, you can either work around it, fix it or ignore it. Are you part of the problem or part of the solution.

Bandwidth in has improved quite a bit and will improve further, Watch the talk Arhtur Goldstruck gave at Net Prophet last year where he talks about the new cables that will be bringing additional bandwidth You should also read the various articles about the new Minister of Communications on TechCentral

If we all do our bit, instead of waiting for the government, things will improve faster.!

[popayetwo]

We have a problem, you can either work around it, fix it or ignore it. Are you part of the problem or part of the solution.

I have been part of the solution for years and was responsible for constructing a significant portion of the digital network for Telkom.

You should also read the various articles about the new Minister of Communications

I did. This is the sort of drivel he spouts. "The digital technologies such as broadband are increasingly becoming an instrument to achieve the national development goals. They offer opportunities to create a variety of new applications. Broadband, and its faster ―always-on‖ connections, is serving to accelerate the process of integration of Internet technologies into everyday life."
Notice he says nothing about how and when this will take place.

If we all do our bit, instead of waiting for the government, things will improve faster.!

I agree, I've done mine. SA is STILL 10 years behind the rest of the world.