City to get 30 wireless network sites

By Graham Skellern
Telstraclear will be using 30 cell sites to deliver a new high-speed telecommunications service to Tauranga by the middle of next year.
The company, which will be unveiling its $50 million Unplugged service in July, has struck a deal with Ericsson New Zealand to design and build the latest third generation cellular network - that enables a customer to keep the same number for the home phone, mobile and internet.
Signal strength testing has been completed and TelstraClear is now working on securing the sites that will cover the city as far away as Papamoa.
The wireless network that lets a customer talk and use broadband at any time and in any place will operate off the existing fibre optic system.
Mathew Bolland, TelstraClear group manager communications, said the cell sites will be a mixture of slim mono-poles and small antennae on top of buildings. "I think there will be more poles than antennae. The first thing is we are building a broadband system that has more juice and can deliver higher speeds."
Part of the technology is HSDPA (high-speed downlink packet access) that allows audio, video and large files or attachments to be downloaded significantly faster.
Ericsson has worked with Telstra to install the latest mobile technology in Australia.
Tauranga will be the first city in New Zealand to test the Unplugged service. Customers will be able to take "home" or "business"calls and access broadband for the internet wherever they are in the city, by using their new 3G mobile like a cordless phone.
If they move out of the city-wide coverage, the same phone reverts to being a standard mobile. TelstraClear will set up its own stores in Tauranga to sell the advanced Unplugged equipment including phones.
Competitor Vodafone has also revealed plans to introduce a wireless service in Tauranga next year, after last month beginning the roll-out of its upgraded 3G network to Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch.
Tauranga people will get a lot of attention next year - they will have better services and more choices than anyone else in the country, he said.
The telecommunications companies are still remaining tight-lipped over their charges for the new services - but it's expected there will be one price for using the home, internet and mobile services.
Since it's a wireless system, there will be no line rental charges.
TelstraClear chief executive Dr Allan Freeth earlier told the Bay of Plenty Times that the Unplugged service will be as competitive as the current calls across the mobile network.