NBN Co and Ericsson have successfully conducted live field trials of the latest 5G millimetre wave (mmwave) technology in parts of the nbn Fixed Wireless network.
This initiative saw NBN Co achieve wholesale download speeds exceeding 1Gbps and wholesale upload speeds of more than 100Mbps at a distance of approximately 10km.
The trials are parts of NBN Co’s ongoing efforts to enhance broadband connectivity for eligible homes and businesses in regional and rural Australia. By testing both the speed and extended range capabilities of 5G mmwave, NBN Co and Ericsson aim to significantly improve broadband performance for eligible homes and businesses over time.
So far, 5G mmwave equipment has been deployed to approximately 850 of the 2300 network sites within the nbn Fixed Wireless network. This new technology allows NBN Co to increase the effective range of the 5G mmwave sites from approximately 6.9km to 10km and beyond.
The higher speed, longer range capabilities remain in the testing phase for now and have not yet been made available to customers at scale.
Approximately 10,000 premises across Australia are currently actively using 5G mmwave. NBN Co said it expects this number to grow as more devices are upgraded.
NBN Co Chief Development Officer, Regional and Remote, Gavin Williams, said, “We look forward to realising the full potential of our Nokia Wireless Network Termination Devices (WNTDs or nbn premise antennas) and engaging with Ericsson to expand the reach of 5G mmwave, we plan to make higher speed fixed wireless broadband available to more customers. We will make further announcements throughout the year.
“We have pushed the boundaries of 5G mmwave with Ericsson, testing and validating their latest software now matching the limit of NBN Co’s current WNTDv4.
“We are very pleased to see that at a range of just under 10km our network and WNTDv4 is proven to accommodate download speeds well over 1Gbps and upload speeds in excess of 100Mbps.
“This points to an exciting future network capability for business and enterprise grade services or higher speed services for residential customers.”
NBN Co also recently completed a $750 million upgrade to its fixed wireless network using the latest 4G and 5G mmwave technology.
The upgrades, completed by 31 December 2024, have expanded the transmission radius of around 2300 fixed wireless towers using mid-band spectrum from 14km to 29km, increasing the network’s coverage footprint from 220,000 to 345,000km2.
The upgrades to the nbn Fixed Wireless network now provides higher-speed, future-ready broadband to an addressable market of some 800,000 homes and businesses in parts of regional and rural Australia.
1. Your experience, including the speeds actually achieved over the nbn network, depends on the nbn network technology and configuration over which services are delivered to your premises, whether you are using the internet during the busy period, and some factors outside our control (like your equipment quality, software, broadband plans, signal reception and how your service provider designs its network). Speeds may be impacted by the number of concurrent users on nbn’s Fixed Wireless network, including during busy periods.
2. Fixed Wireless Plus, Fixed Wireless Home Fast and Fixed Wireless Superfast are also subject to policer settings which overprovision those services by 50 per cent. This means even faster speeds are possible when network conditions allow (in particular, up to Layer 2 data download rates possible on Plus, Home Fast and Superfast are 150Mbps, 375Mbps and 600Mbps respectively). Please note that nbn has not committed to maintaining these policer settings or to achieving overprovisioned speeds. Actual speeds experienced by end customers are affected by many other factors, including your internet provider’s shaper policies and network and equipment configuration. Eligibility for the two high-speed plan options in upgraded areas will depend on a range of factors, including your location. Contact your participating provider to find out if you’ll be eligible to upgrade your plan.
