Re: [luv-talk] Firefox OS and ZTE phone
On Fri, 6 Dec 2013 10:31:24 Aryan Ameri wrote:
Just to add, the 2100 Mhz 3G spectrum was the 3GIS network that "3" built and Telstra bought into as it didn't have a 3G network at the time. The network had had no investment in it for years and was very slow and coverage was very poor outside inner cities. This was the reason behind the "NextG" branding as Telstra went about building its own superior network on the 850 Mhz frequency and wanted to differentiate it from "normal 3G".
I used Three for just over 6 years and it worked well for me. I could make phone calls everywhere I visited in that time (roaming to GSM) and got 3G data almost everywhere I wanted it. Speed was OK by the standards of the day. Before Android phones came out 3G was generally only used for checking mail, MMS, and the occasional video call. In an emergency I'd tether my phone to my laptop (or use a 3G dongle) but that was a major PITA so I didn't do it often. Now my Android phone is checking email, Hangouts, and some news sources all the time. I play Ingress every day, and turning my phone into a Wifi hotspot is easy and something I do very often. The modern 3G needs are a lot greater than the 3G needs of 3+ years ago. That said, my parents used Three for their home Internet connection for 2 years and it worked well enough for them. -- My Main Blog http://etbe.coker.com.au/ My Documents Blog http://doc.coker.com.au/
On Fri, Dec 6, 2013 at 10:38 AM, Russell Coker <russell@coker.com.au> wrote:
I used Three for just over 6 years and it worked well for me. I could make phone calls everywhere I visited in that time (roaming to GSM) and got 3G data almost everywhere I wanted it.
Speed was OK by the standards of the day. Before Android phones came out 3G was generally only used for checking mail, MMS, and the occasional video call. In an emergency I'd tether my phone to my laptop (or use a 3G dongle) but that was a major PITA so I didn't do it often.
Now my Android phone is checking email, Hangouts, and some news sources all the time. I play Ingress every day, and turning my phone into a Wifi hotspot is easy and something I do very often. The modern 3G needs are a lot greater than the 3G needs of 3+ years ago.
That said, my parents used Three for their home Internet connection for 2 years and it worked well enough for them.
Oh yes, I know 3 had many happy customers for many years, and I give Hutchison a lot of credit for being ahead of the game and introducing 3G before everyone else to Australia. Pity they could never make any money off it and had to sell. But my point was that the 3GIS network last had any investment in it around the 2005-2006 timeframe. While at the time it was a very respectable network (if you happened to live in its coverage area), unfortunately Hutchison stopped investing in it afterwards (anticipating a sale or closure of business in Australia), and once the merger with Vodafone was done, it was decided to decommission the network. By that time it made no sense for Telstra either as it already had its superior 850 Mhz NextG network up, and most handsets and devices started supporting 850 Mhz around 2008-2009. As you mention, our devices changed a lot between 2006 to 2012. We started using our handsets more, and transmitting an order of magnitude more data on them. And there were also many times more 3G subscribers. So the 3GIS network became this sad crippled slow thing, unloved by both of its parents and unable to cope. I actually locked one of my devices to it last year before the shutdown to give it one final hurrah, but it was a excruciatingly slow experience. Anyway, I'm afraid I've gone quite OT now, since this has nothing to do with Firefix OS or ZTE anymore (best of luck to both of them, but they are going to go nowhere ;-) ) Cheers Aryan
participants (2)
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Aryan Ameri -
Russell Coker