Commerce Commission Measuring Broadband NZ results 2019

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freitasm

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#261827 17-Dec-2019 08:32

Just received:

The Commerce Commission’s latest Measuring Broadband New Zealand report, from independent testing partner SamKnows, shows that Fibre 100 broadband plans are offering high speeds and reliable internet performance across all tested providers and regions.

As a result of more volunteers coming online, the latest report from SamKnows breaks down Fibre 100 plans by service provider and regions for the first time.

“The report shows Fibre 100 plans are delivering 99% of advertised speeds with all reported providers performing well. Overall, Fibre 100 plans are delivering a great internet experience to consumers,” Head of Telecommunications Simon Thomson said.

Meanwhile, the more expensive and faster Fibre Max plans are delivering average download speeds of 658 megabits per second. This is more than six times the speed of Fibre 100 and significantly faster than copper (ADSL and VDSL) and fixed wireless technologies.

“While Fibre Max plans are achieving fast download speeds, we are concerned that they are only delivering 72% of providers’ advertised speeds. We caution providers to ensure they can back up their speed claims and will be monitoring this closely in future reports.”

The testing month for the latest report was 15 September to 14 October 2019, coinciding with the Rugby World Cup.

“All our measurements indicated that despite heavy demand during the testing period, including during the All Blacks vs South Africa game, there was little impact on consumers’ experience of the wider internet,” Mr Thomson said.

The enhanced broadband monitoring programme is helping to build a picture of what broadband is best for different households:
• ADSL: supports basic web browsing and video streaming.
• Fixed wireless (4G): higher download speeds than ADSL. However, can experience stuttering and drop-outs for video calls and gaming.
• VDSL: supports more intensive internet use, but not as reliable as fibre. Households with multiple users should consider fibre if available.
• Fibre 100: much better for ultra HD streaming and intensive applications like gaming for multi-use households and will accommodate the demands of most heavy users. All tested providers offer reliable service across the country.
• Fibre Max: highest speeds but unlikely to provide a noticeable difference over Fibre 100 unless 6 or more users are streaming video at the same time.

“The more volunteers that sign up to take part in the programme, the more detailed we can make our reports. We’re still on the lookout for volunteers on Vodafone’s cable products, and volunteers on all technologies, plans and providers in Christchurch, Hamilton and in rural areas.”

Read the latest report and find out more about the programme, including registering to become a volunteer at www.measuringbroadbandnewzealand.com

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#2376747 17-Dec-2019 08:43

I see they still want volunteers in Christchurch.

We are on MyRepublic's gig plan in Christchurch, so might see if they want us this time around. Didn't get chosen last time I tried.

Any downsides to getting a white box?

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chevrolux

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#2376751 17-Dec-2019 08:46

I'm surprised by the Fibre Max results. As we have seen countless times on here, it's certainly achievable to hit peak rates with the correct set up. So are the "white boxes" up to spec for testing Gigabit speeds? And how well does their "cross traffic" detection really work?

dolsen

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#2376761 17-Dec-2019 08:55

Saw this comment in the report

Note that, for YouTube performance, HD and UHD have been combined into a single category. This is because the most popular content on YouTube may not be available in UHD (the most popular video in New Zealand could be a HD movie trailer or a low quality video filmed from a smartphone). By comparison, Netflix always makes its content available in Ultra High Definition.

I do not think that everything is available in Ultra High Definition. Just High Definition for some of them.

hio77

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#2376762 17-Dec-2019 08:56

https://comcom.govt.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0032/196709/MBNZ-Spring-2019-report-17-December-2019.pdf

encase anyones like me and waking up trying to find the link..

#include <std_disclaimer>

Any comments made are personal opinion and do not reflect directly on the position my current or past employers may have.

hairy1

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#2376765 17-Dec-2019 09:03

Interesting reading. I wonder what role end user equipment is playing in the Fibre Max results.

There is no point in getting anything above Fibre 100 I guess unless you are worried about downloading/uploading huge amounts of data.

My kids will be disappointed we will be staying on Fibre 100 for now.

My views (except when I am looking out their windows) are not those of my employer.

hio77

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#2376766 17-Dec-2019 09:04

Quite a few providers did not have fibre results included.

looks like tp order the non bs2a or provide 100mbit WAN ports?

the max results i suspect are CPE related, I've seen the results on these go from pretty variable to rock solid, with just a change of router.

Both routers were well within spec of gbit and the end user was more than capable of full gig on tests, the one swapped out probably one that's rated near the best around here... for a RSP device.

otherwise it basically reads as networks here are pretty good..

#include <std_disclaimer>

Any comments made are personal opinion and do not reflect directly on the position my current or past employers may have.

surfisup1000

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#2376773 17-Dec-2019 09:23

Apart from stating the obvious (faster plans are faster and that fibre is better than dsl), how is this report of any value to consumers who are trying to choose a new ISP?

The one ISP comparison for fibre100 shows the difference between slowest and fastest ISP is negligible.

It is somewhat interesting that ISP's cannot deliver full speed all of the time on fibremax. But 72% of max is still 6 or 7 times faster than the fibre 100Mbps so it is still worthwhile to buy the faster product.

I would like to see the pings/average speeds at peak / off peak for each plan across the different ISP's .

Do they not have the data?

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#2376815 17-Dec-2019 10:08

chevrolux:

I'm surprised by the Fibre Max results. As we have seen countless times on here, it's certainly achievable to hit peak rates with the correct set up. So are the "white boxes" up to spec for testing Gigabit speeds? And how well does their "cross traffic" detection really work?

It's hard to comment on the Max results specifically, as we know that some people who choose to use third party routers with Fibre Max may not get the full speeds. We'd need to have a closer look at the data.

Cheers - N

Please note all comments are the product of my own brain and don't necessarily represent the position or opinions of my employer, previous employers, colleagues, friends or pets.

Talkiet

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#2376822 17-Dec-2019 10:10

surfisup1000:

Apart from stating the obvious (faster plans are faster and that fibre is better than dsl), how is this report of any value to consumers who are trying to choose a new ISP?

The one ISP comparison for fibre100 shows the difference between slowest and fastest ISP is negligible.

It is somewhat interesting that ISP's cannot deliver full speed all of the time on fibremax. But 72% of max is still 6 or 7 times faster than the fibre 100Mbps so it is still worthwhile to buy the faster product.

I would like to see the pings/average speeds at peak / off peak for each plan across the different ISP's .

Do they not have the data?

Any comparison data released must meet statistical and methodological standards. Unlike previous providers who were prepared to release comparative data with scant concern for accuracy, Samknows and the Comcom have so far been steadfast in only releasing a comparison that stands up to analysis.

Like most good science, it's really boring :-)

Cheers - N

Please note all comments are the product of my own brain and don't necessarily represent the position or opinions of my employer, previous employers, colleagues, friends or pets.

allan

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#2376827 17-Dec-2019 10:23

surfisup1000:

Apart from stating the obvious (faster plans are faster and that fibre is better than dsl), how is this report of any value to consumers who are trying to choose a new ISP?

The one ISP comparison for fibre100 shows the difference between slowest and fastest ISP is negligible.

It is somewhat interesting that ISP's cannot deliver full speed all of the time on fibremax. But 72% of max is still 6 or 7 times faster than the fibre 100Mbps so it is still worthwhile to buy the faster product.

I would like to see the pings/average speeds at peak / off peak for each plan across the different ISP's .

Do they not have the data?

From Page 3 of the report "In future reports, we will aim to include results for Cable, and to break results down by provider for more products."

gaddman

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#2376829 17-Dec-2019 10:24

surfisup1000:

The one ISP comparison for fibre100 shows the difference between slowest and fastest ISP is negligible.

Is that a surprise? You'll always find some small differences in routing (often temporary), but for the major content it's going to be pretty consistent. Bigger differences are in the router and home environment, especially wifi. And putting aside the technical stuff, then it's price and service. How much of a speed difference between ISPs would there need to be to swing your choice?

Hammerer

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#2377407 18-Dec-2019 00:54

I'm on Vodafone Ultrafast HFC Max with advertised speeds of "up to 700-900 Mbps and upload speeds of up to 90-95 Mbps." In practice I'm getting 600 down and 100 up.

Sam Knows are using the lowest advertised figures to calculate the "% of advertised" stats. They're currently showing 267/90.5 which is 38%/101%. Their stats have wild fluctuations in speeds 160-340/71-98

In summary, Vodafone stats in the reports aren't going to look very good if it stacks up like this:

700/90 Vodafone advertised
600/100 Vodafone speedtest measured
267/90.5 Sam Knows measured

Hammerer

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#2379347 20-Dec-2019 19:33

I've run the Instant Test from the SamKnows dashboard and it gives very different stats that are much the same as the Vodafone speed test.

Oh well, I guess it will get sorted out eventually.

Sideface

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#2379375 20-Dec-2019 20:28

Page 4 of the report reads:

"Peak hours are the times when people typically use the internet; in New Zealand this is 7pm to 11pm on Monday-Friday.
Average speeds for all technologies do not decrease substantially during the peak."

This report excludes HFC cable.

Here is my SamKnows time-of-day local downstream speed graph for December ("UltraFast HFC Max").

This shows a significant peak-hours drop - although this is not obvious to a single user.

(click to view)

Sideface

Hammerer

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#2379397 20-Dec-2019 22:10

Why are there a couple of hours missing from that graph? It starts at 1am and ends at 10pm instead of 12am to 12pm.

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