It really is worth checking Starlink. From what I have read it’s $147pm and $199 connection and equipment fee for rural customers. This gives you unlimited downloads, VoIP mobile phone calls and very fast download and upload speeds. The cost is competitive with nbn plans that offer comperable speeds.
Welcome to the community, @wazza999.
It’s always an option. Hopefully the OP @drcool can get a reliable answer from the NBN or their RSP as to the time before service is available. There’s an assumption or not the NBN service will be full fat fibre to the homes .
For the interim if data demands are not high a mobile data plan as others have suggested may be adequate for a more reasonable cost than StarLink. We’ve experience with Telstra, Optus and several others on their networks. Unless one has very poor signal, I’ve found both more than adequate for email, browsing, and banking.
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If NBN Co based connection and considered a new development area (Greenfield) as determined by NBN Co, it will also have a “Greenfield” charge added to the connection fee. Currently this fee stands at $300 and while the Retail Service Provider (RSP) can adsorb the cost most if not all choose to pass the fee onto the end user.
This can make the Starlink upfront cost much more palatable in this type of case.
The Australian Government Policy about this charge as explained by NBN Co
Australian Broadband (ABB) help page on the charge is seemingly in conflict with the policy as it seems to state the charge must be passed onto the consumer, whereas the policy allows the RSP to not pass it onto the consumer. Other RSPs may have similar possible conflicts.
NBN Co “A phone and internet provider has the choice to on-charge this amount to the end user at their discretion.”
ABB “No, you can’t dispute the New Development Charge with us. The reason for this is it is an Australian Government Policy directive which requires the NBN Co to pass on the cost onto households which have been identified by the NBN Co as a new development area. In other words, the Australian Government has directed the NBN Co to charge retail service providers like us and we only pass this cost onto you in accordance with the Australian Government Policy directive.”
