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KiwiSurfer
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  #3491180 15-May-2026 10:45
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boosacnoodle:

 

Source for this? One NZ D2C is currently using b3 (5 MHz @ 1800MHz) and b7 (15MHz @ 2600 MHz) - as far as I'm aware, the largest allocation used anywhere in the world for D2C - and they are also sharing some of that b7 with Spark now, too. 2degrees' Lynk service, while it hasn't launched yet, is planned to use b8 (10 MHz @ 900 MHz).

 

 

As far as I know One NZ has moved to L2600 entirely for Starlink using a mix of 5 MHz and 15 MHz bandwidth around 2620-2635 MHz (or 2620-2625 MHz when limited to 5 MHz). My guess is older sateliites can only do 5 Mhz and newer ones can do 15 MHz? They did 5 MHz in 1800 MHz (around 1875-1880 MHz alongside 20 MHz terrestrial 1855-1875 MHz) previously but i believe the switch to L2600 was to take advantage of the bigger bandwidth avaliable in that band. I haven't looked at it for a while however.

 

2degrees said in a recently recorded presentation to NZNOG that they are only doing 5 MHz of L900 via AST. Presumely 935-940 MHz as that is currently unused with 940-945 MHz being used for terrestrial LTE service.




hio77
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  #3491305 15-May-2026 19:52
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KiwiSurfer:

 

2degrees said in a recently recorded presentation to NZNOG that they are only doing 5 MHz of L900 via AST. Presumely 935-940 MHz as that is currently unused with 940-945 MHz being used for terrestrial LTE service.

 

 

Pretty sure they also said that it would be A/B configured between each hexagon.





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pcman2000
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  #3493851 19-May-2026 18:42
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boosacnoodle:

 

pcman2000:

 

Starlink can't do lowband

 

 

Source for this?

 

 

You can check their FCC filings which mention 1429-2690 MHz. Also none of the currently deployed Starlink D2C services use lowband.

 

https://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/spacex-d2c-filing.pdf

 

 





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CtrlAltKiwi
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  #3496243 28-May-2026 15:15
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With 2G/3G spectrum being retired and newer networks being more spectrally efficient, do people expect mobile plans to eventually offer more data for the same price, or lower prices overall? Or will operators mainly use the extra capacity for congestion reduction and 5G growth instead?


Aucklandjafa
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  #3496244 28-May-2026 15:19
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CtrlAltKiwi:

 

With 2G/3G spectrum being retired and newer networks being more spectrally efficient, do people expect mobile plans to eventually offer more data for the same price, or lower prices overall? Or will operators mainly use the extra capacity for congestion reduction and 5G growth instead?

 

 

compared to other OECD nations, we have pretty good data caps/pricing. We’ll never be able to compete with the likes of Asia as they have the population and topography that’s much more forgiving to build out networks.

 

Telcos will be focusing on 5g


pcman2000
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  #3496245 28-May-2026 15:20
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CtrlAltKiwi:

 

With 2G/3G spectrum being retired and newer networks being more spectrally efficient, do people expect mobile plans to eventually offer more data for the same price, or lower prices overall? Or will operators mainly use the extra capacity for congestion reduction and 5G growth instead?

 

 

It really isn't that much spectrum in the grand scheme of things, just 5 or 10Mhz paired of FDD lowband.

 

I think Spark & One will use it to have a usable lowband NR carrier in order to launch 5G SA, and 2degrees will use it for their Direct to Handset with AST.





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#3496253 28-May-2026 16:19
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CtrlAltKiwi:

 

With 2G/3G spectrum being retired and newer networks being more spectrally efficient, do people expect mobile plans to eventually offer more data for the same price, or lower prices overall? Or will operators mainly use the extra capacity for congestion reduction and 5G growth instead?

 

 

@CtrlAltKiwi Lower prices with the way inflation is??? As inflation rises business cost rise in the real world


richms
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  #3496264 28-May-2026 17:10
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CtrlAltKiwi:

 

With 2G/3G spectrum being retired and newer networks being more spectrally efficient, do people expect mobile plans to eventually offer more data for the same price, or lower prices overall? Or will operators mainly use the extra capacity for congestion reduction and 5G growth instead?

 

 

As a lot of their costs are not from spectrum but from having call centres and stores and other things to cater for the less technology capable, you will find the better deals and packs are from the MVNOs that don't waste money on flash head offices and paying to run offshore call centres and high rent stores in malls to help people decide what phone to buy.

 

Mighty mobile and kogan are already offering better value so why use the networks own brand at a worse price and lower caps?





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CtrlAltKiwi
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  #3496270 28-May-2026 17:42
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richms:

 

CtrlAltKiwi:

 

With 2G/3G spectrum being retired and newer networks being more spectrally efficient, do people expect mobile plans to eventually offer more data for the same price, or lower prices overall? Or will operators mainly use the extra capacity for congestion reduction and 5G growth instead?

 

 

As a lot of their costs are not from spectrum but from having call centres and stores and other things to cater for the less technology capable, you will find the better deals and packs are from the MVNOs that don't waste money on flash head offices and paying to run offshore call centres and high rent stores in malls to help people decide what phone to buy.

 

Mighty mobile and kogan are already offering better value so why use the networks own brand at a worse price and lower caps?

 

 

 

 

I'm a big believer in ''you get what you pay for''

 

So there will be trade offs perhaps it's slower speeds when network is busy I'm sure the main brands prioritize their own customers first. With something as important as a primary phone connection it's not something I would want to take a chance on. Haven't seen anything in the MVNO's fineprint regarding traffic shaping. With One NZ it just works years ago I tried the smaller companies and didn't like the trade-offs. 


quickymart
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  #3496276 28-May-2026 18:20
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CtrlAltKiwi:

 

So there will be trade offs perhaps it's slower speeds when network is busy I'm sure the main brands prioritize their own customers first. 

 

 

I think the MNVO's would get into some serious trouble if they tried to pull a stunt like this.


boosacnoodle
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  #3496290 28-May-2026 19:05
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quickymart:

 

I think the MNVO's would get into some serious trouble if they tried to pull a stunt like this.

 

 

Extremely common overseas and I would be more surprised if it weren't the case here. Wireless broadband traffic is already deprioritised behind mobile traffic. There's also the Public Safety Network (PSN) which has priority over general users, too. So there's at least three, if not four (or more), tiers:

 

     

  1. Public safety network
  2. General customers
  3. Wireless broadband
  4. All the others, where you pay by the megabit (Mighty Mobile) or "Endless" plans once the limit is exceeded (One NZ / Spark)

 

In the US, some providers even prioritise by plan (ultra premium postpaid vs everyday postpaid vs prepaid) and account type (consumer vs business).

 

You can check the QCI (Quality of Service Class Identifier) on a rooted Android phone with the Network Signal Guru app. I would be very curious to see that actually (can't recall it ever being published here).


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quickymart
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  #3496292 28-May-2026 19:15
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Having said that, I've never used an MNVO myself, but I thought the carriers had to treat all customers (either their own or an MNVO) the same - or maybe I'm thinking of something else.


alinz
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  #3496315 28-May-2026 20:07
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I think at some point local providers are going to be forced to offer better value as more people discover overseas roaming esims.

 

For example - 8.33gb/m for ~$8 from a 100gb 365 day esim @ $93.32. Local number gets parked with Warehouse Mobile for $5 a year.

 

All outbound calling/messaging via Signal, Whatsapp etc.

 

Occasionally a local app will take issue with the overseas IP, but that will probably change as they're more widely used.


yitz
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  #3496355 28-May-2026 22:52
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alinz:

 

I think at some point local providers are going to be forced to offer better value as more people discover overseas roaming esims.

 

For example - 8.33gb/m for ~$8 from a 100gb 365 day esim @ $93.32. Local number gets parked with Warehouse Mobile for $5 a year.

 

All outbound calling/messaging via Signal, Whatsapp etc.

 

Occasionally a local app will take issue with the overseas IP, but that will probably change as they're more widely used.

 

 

Parked as in dual SIM active/active? I'm curious as to whether can you run 2degrees WiFi calling in a setup like this? Any battery life considerations?

 

Are app-based MFA apps likely to be okay with this too?


alinz
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  #3496356 28-May-2026 23:09
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yitz:

 

Parked as in dual SIM active/active? I'm curious as to whether can you run 2degrees WiFi calling in a setup like this? Any battery life considerations?

 

Are app-based MFA apps likely to be okay with this too?

 

 

Yeah, physical WM sim + eSIM, both active. Depending on the phone that is definitely possible.
Battery life is affected to a small degree, but it's never bothered me personally with 5000mah.

 

 

 

I haven't tested app based MFA. Can't see why it would be an issue unless it had a problem with the overseas IP.


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