A WiFi mesh network went live yesterday in Pretoria`s Hatfield area, as part of a proof-of-concept project by wireless and networking company Neology, conducted on behalf of Tshwane municipality.
Neology joint technical director Regardt van de Vyver says the service, available since noon yesterday, attracted its first 40 customers that afternoon.
An open-access WiFi network in many of the city`s suburbs complements the "MetroMesh Zone" in Hatfield, but Van de Vyver cautions that, while the service is commercially available, the project is purely in proof-of-concept stage.
"We have to prove its commercial viability to Tshwane [municipality]," he says.
Municipal infrastructure
He says if the municipality sees encouraging uptake, the project should go into a full roll-out stage, with expansions and density increases.
Tshwane municipality has allowed Neology access to fibre optic cables, hosting facilities inside network operation centres, and lampposts on which to position the nodes.
The services range from a free service giving users access to the local Tshwane community IP network, to a 3Gb monthly account for R350.
"NeoGo Daily" at R50 for a three-day usage and a cap of 150Mb, and "NeoGo Weekly" at R150 for seven days of usage and a 500Mb cap, are also available.
Internet speeds
The services, on average, offer downlink speeds of 128Kbps and uplink speeds of 64Kbps, due to restricted bandwidth in the proof-of-concept.
Van de Vyver expects these speeds to increase if the project is expanded, promising the capacity to provide a true broadband service in the future.
The MetroMesh Zone, covering about one-and-a-half to two square kilometres, should support about 5 000 customers.
"As utilisation goes up, we can provide additional nodes to increase the density of coverage," he says.
Neology also aims to attract Internet service providers (ISPs) to offer services on its infrastructure. "Any ISP is welcome to offer services on the network - our main goal is to manage the service."
Share