What’s the difference between ADSL and NBN?

With Australia’s National Broadband Network (NBN) having been rolled out across the country, older ADSL and cable internet technologies have been largely phased out. So how exactly is your connection to the NBN an upgrade from the ADSL or cable service you used to enjoy?

What is ADSL?

Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) is the term for Australia’s main type of internet connection prior to the NBN. Using copper telephone lines, one of the main advantages of DSL and ADSL technology was that it uses a splitter to isolate internet signals from voice signals, so you could use your landline phone (remember those?) at the same time as the internet – something that wasn’t possible back in the days of dial-up modems (and their horrible start-up noises).

While ADSL was a significant step-up in speed and reliability compared to dial-up, it began to show its age in recent years with the wider adoption of streaming video and similar services requiring higher bandwidth uploads and downloads. Additionally, because the copper phone lines used by ADSL could lose signal strength over distance, the location of your home in relation to the nearest telephone exchange could make a big difference to your internet speed and reliability.

What is the NBN?

Australia’s National Broadband Network (NBN) is an upgrade to the country’s internet service. The NBN trades in much of the original copper telephone wires for fibreoptic cables, which transmit data using pulses of light rather than electricity. Because fibreoptic cables don’t lose their signal over long distance, this makes the NBN a faster option on average than most prior ADSL internet connections.

When the NBN was first rolled out, it used a Fibre to the Node (FTTN) system, where fibreoptic cables connected to nodes, often based out of old telephone exchanges, and the original copper wires linked the node to individual households. While this was a fast and efficient way of rolling out the service across the country, its reliance on the existing copper wire infrastructure led to inconsistent speeds for users, depending on their distance from the nearest node.

Since then, NBNCo has been rolling out Fibre to the Curb (FTTC) and Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) connections to many residences around Australia, depending on their location and local infrastructure. These connections are generally faster than the FTTN connection as they rely more on fibreoptic cables and less on copper wires, allowing users to benefit from improved internet speeds and reliability.

Which NBN plan should I choose?

With ADSL services being discontinued and switched off in most areas where NBN has been rolled out, you may have been automatically switched over to an NBN plan for your home phone and internet. However, this plan may not match the way you use your phone or internet, meaning you may be missing out on services you want, or you may be paying too much for services you’re not using.

You can compare NBN plans at RateCity to find a plan that works for you. Generally, the faster the speeds and the more data per month that’s available, the more a plan may cost. Remember that there may be other features and benefits that could help certain plans offer more or less value to you than others.

Once you’ve selected your preferred retail service provider, you can get in touch with them about becoming a customer. If the NBN connection at your address isn’t suitable for the plan you’ve selected, they can liaise with NBNCo to help organise the necessary upgrades (though this may involve more time and costs). If the local infrastructure means that an upgrade isn’t possible in your area, the provider can work with you to select an alternative plan that better suits the available NBN connection.

Compare NBN plans