The website www.speedtest.net shows the average Internet speeds for most counties in the world, and a recent check of my own speed showed me how Australia and the UK compare.
This chart shows the two countries, with their respective average speeds. These averages are based on users excluding education facilities and large corporations, to enable a realistic normal user average.
ADSL2 is available in many areas of Australia, allowing speeds up to about 24Mb/s, although due to Telstra restrictions, there are exchanges that do not yet permit ADSL2, or they restrict to only Telstra services.
This restriction can cause severe price differences, with one suburb getting ADSL2 for $35pm, and the next one, restricted to Telstra only, having to pay nearer to $90 for the same service.
Many normal households will probably still be using the standard ADSL at a speed of 1.5Mb/s or 8Mb/s. Hence causing the average to be about 5.4Mb/s.
You can enter your phone number, to check ADSL2 availability in Australia, here: http://www.adsl2exchanges.com.au
In my area, in a Telstra restricted exchange, the best option seems to be:
Internode Easy Broadband 50GB $49.95 pm, however, on further checking, it isn’t actually available on my exchange!
So, for one that IS actually available, I am looking at:
Beagle Internet ADSL2+ Capped 50GB $85.95 pm.
One thing to be aware of with the high speed ADSL2, is how far from the exchange you are:
If you live less than 1 kilometre from your local telephone exchange you may get an actual speed of about 20Mb/s.
But, if you are more like 4 kilometres from the exchange, you may only get an actual speed of less than 4Mb/s
Estimated ADSL2+ speeds, based on your distance from the Telephone Exchange, with a theoretical 24Mb/s maximum:
- 0 – 2km = 12-20Mb/s
- 2 – 3km = 8-14Mb/s
- 3 – 4km = 4-8Mb/s
- 4 + km = 1.5-4Mb/s
My own current service is an 8Mb/s Fast ADSL1 connection and my actual speed is 6.52Mb/s:
I appear to lose about 20% of the speed due to my distance from the exchange being 1.2km, following the road, and the assumed cable path.
Update November 2011
I upgraded a while ago and my results from a 24Mb/s ADSL2+ service is now:
This one is for an ADSL2+, also in Victoria Point, about 1.4km from the exchange, by road, but with another ISP, and an actual speed of 8.66Mb/s speed or about one third of the rated maximum 24Mb/s.
Updated speedtest.net results as at August 2010
The changing face of Internet Connection Speeds in Australia
| Internet Speed and Number of Users | Jun-08 | Jun-09 | Jun-10 | change since June 2008 |
| speed of 24Mbps or greater | 262,000 | 443,000 | 635,000 | up 142.4% |
| speed between 8Mbps and 24Mbps | 1,390,000 | 1,800,000 | 2,600,000 | up 87.1% |
| speed between 1.5Mbps and 8Mbps | 1,440,000 | 2,529,000 | 3,553,000 | up 146.7% |
| speed between 256kbps and 1.5Mbps | 2,551,000 | 2,546,000 | 1,979,000 | down -22.4% |
| speed of less than 256kbps | 1,581,000 | 1,103,000 | 803,000 | down -49.2% |
| Total | 7,224,000 | 8,421,000 | 9,570,000 | up 32.5% |