Australia set up questions

[Fuego]

I have been given the opportunity to travel to Australia for 4 months for my company and I will be taking my family with me. We will be arriving in Feb 2015 and staying near Newcastle.

There are a lot of variables right now that I am trying get figured out now instead of while I am there.

The plan right now is to rent a furnished house for our duration Down Under. So, the first major question is about internet access. Right now, I don't have to worry about data caps, or paying by the Gb. I have been in Australia once before and where I stayed, I paid for a bundle of data, instead of an all-you-can-eat plan you paid per month. Any thoughts/suggestions? I don't really know what to expect or what options there are.

One of the things my kids (and my wife and I) like to do is stream videos from Netflix, PBS Kids, and Disney Junior. As I understand it, these are unavailable in Australia. I have read about using a VPN service to allow these apps to run properly. We will have several devices, both iOS and android, that will be running these apps. Is there some way to set up a wireless router with the VPN service running so that all we have to do is connect to that network for it to work "like at home"? I realize that if there are data limits (per my first question), that this option may not be utilized much.

This leads to another question that if streaming is not likely, or cost prohibitive, I would like to load up an external HD with lots of movies/TV shows and be able to have the various devices play them. Thoughts on how to get this to work? I have a pogoplug device I just bought, so I was thinking that could work.

If we bring our own electronics, like a DVD player or xbox, will they work fine with the Australia TVs? I am mainly thinking about the US 60 Hz interfacing with the Australia 50 Hz. Anything I am missing?

Power conversion. I know they use different plugs, so I will be getting several adapters. is there such a thing as an adapter power strip? Ie, it has an Australia plug, but the strip has all US plugs. I am also thinking about getting one of those USB charging hubs, to help reduce adapters. Any suggestions on this?

Sorry for the long post. I am just trying to be as proactive as I can be so that our time there can be spent enjoying the country (when I get off of work) and not stressing out over other stuff. I'll probably have more questions, but I appreciate any feedback and experience!

 

[Jamsan]

soon to be US ex-pat moving to Australia here..

For internet, there's really 2 primary options for you. You can go with Telstra or Optus' widely available ADSL offering which will most likely be readily available in Newcastle. Check their site for speeds and bandwidth availability offerings, but all plans come capped in data. Your second option is NBN (National Broadband Network) - this is not as widely available and would depend on where you decide to rent. You can go to the NBN site to check availability at a particular address (http://www.nbnco.com.au/). You'll usually get higher speeds and more bandwidth alottment at slightly higher costs.

When I travel down under and move permanently, I use Unblock-US. To see which services they support, check here: http://www.unblock-us.com/supported-services - the way it works is by changing the DNS servers you utilize (whether on your individual systems or you can change it at the router level as well), and when your system attempts to resolve a website of a service it supports, it responds with the IP address of their own proxy servers which then funnel the traffic to the 3rd party website to appear in the US to their geolocation services. Once the geolocation check is done, the rest of the traffic bypasses their proxy and is directly between your own ISP and the 3rd party site. This has the benefit of not adding an extra hop / layer of encryption over traditional VPN services that tunnel all of your traffic. Some notes... I personally don't "trust" that they'll resolve the websites that they only support and who's to stop them from passing bank, shopping, etc. traffic through their proxy servers. With that, I apply only the DNS changes on the devices I stream from to avoid that risk.

For streaming services off external drives, I use a Western Digital HDTV Live hooked up to a USB drive. This is an Australian purchased device, so can't comment if a US one would work. Not 100% certain on DVD players, Xbox's, etc. I haven't tried them.

I've never had a problem using electronics in Australia. Double check the voltage rating on each of your devices to ensure they can step up to 240v. If so, a standard power plug converter will work just fine. Otherwise, you'll need to purchase a step up transformer to go from 110/120v to 240v. The biggest things that usually have problems are hair dryers, electric shavers, etc. Laptop power plugs, cell phone chargers, and so forth are generally fine. I typically use the OREI power adapters from Amazon - they can convert a standard 3 plug US device in addition to a 2 prong (no ground) on top - 2 devices in one. I use Anker (or similar) 5 port USB adapters so a single unit/plug can charge up to 5 devices at once without the need for anymore more.

I've never tried the power strip idea. Again, it would depend on whether it can interchange between 110/120 and 240. You might be able to find specific "travel" marketed power strips that feature that, so i'd suggest using those in place of anything else.

Let me know if you have any other questions about tech or the country itself!

 

[Fuego]

Thanks for the reply Jamsan!

For the data caps, if you go over your cap, can you buy another "bucket" of data or are you just out of luck until the next month?

Do you have any experience with streaming stuff from one device, like an external HD, to multiple other devices, like iPads? I know there is something that goes between the HD and the iPad, but I am trying to figure out the best solution. I like your idea of the WD TV Live box, which I have been looking at, but that only allows for streaming to that box and whatever TV is connected to that box.

Where do I find the information on the voltage ratings? Is it on that "block" that is part of the power cable? I see a bunch of numbers on that, but I am not sure how to interpret what I am seeing.

Non-tech related:
We will be in Newcastle, so what do you recommend doing/seeing there? Especially for 4 and 2 year old boys. We've seen a museum and zoo on Google maps, but having an insider opinion would be great!

 

[richaron]

Most residential plans rely on a 12-24 month contract and they absorb the hardware costs (?$) and "setup" fees (roughly AU$200). Specifics depend on where you are, and the feasibility of a short term connection. Best would be some form of the "NBN"; currently in construction and ranges from fibre to adsl and "fixed wireless" (cat4 LTE? with permanent external antenna).

NBN is re-sold through the usual carriers on top of their own products, most commonly adsl although there is some fibre & cable around. Biggest players are Telstra and Optus; good service but overpriced. Other good companies are Iinet (my provider: the best), Internode, TPG and maybe a couple more with their own infrastructure. Dozens of other smaller resellers but I wouldn't bother with them.

Broadband Choice at Whirlpool has more information than you'll ever need in relation to different plans. In fact I would point you to the Whirlpool Forums for any Australia specific questions. NBN roll-out map and ADSL2 Exchanges could also be useful resources.

Re appliances: I wouldn't bother bringing anything which is strictly 120V; too much trouble. Many/most products these days run 110-240V AC and are turned into DC anyway, so a simple plug adapter is all you need & frequency is irrelevant*.

And there are plenty of ways to make use of VPNs so I would look into it, but I heard Netflix is starting up over here soon anyway

*Don't trust some git on the internet with your expensive stuff. Learn if it's safe yourself.

 

[Jamsan]

Hi Fuego, sorry, I don't know the Newcastle area very well (I'll be living in Sydney). I've been up to the Port Stephens / Bay areas, which is maybe 30-45 minutes northeast of Newcastle - there's some good little areas to visit there (beaches, boating areas, etc.) that are good for weekend trips. A little over an hour's drive south on the M1 from Newcastle is Australia Reptile Park. Very cool idea especially for the kids your age. Our 3 year old loved it.

For the data cap issue, not sure if all providers are like this, but with Telstra, if you go over your cap for the month, your capped at 256kbps transfer speeds until the next month's cycle begins (similar to how transfer capping rates apply here in the US with mobile providers now a days).

For the HD streaming to multiple locations, that shouldn't make too much of a difference whether you're here or in AU . For streaming to TVs, I would use something like a Chromecast, Roku, etc. that allows access to network shares easily. For streaming to iPads, you could google around for some options, but you can try VLC Streamer or FileBrowser - they allow you to provide the credentials to network shares (whether on a computer or networked attached external hard drive) and you can play easily from there.

For the power voltages, here is a sample of a laptop power brick: http://laptopnepal.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/laptopadoptor.jpg

If you look toward the upper left under "Input", it'll state the range is 100-240v, which means it can accept inputs from US power sources (120v) or AU power sources (240v). Your devices should have something simple. If they don't, I'd recommend leaving them behind and just buying new ones down there (there honestly shouldn't be very many things you CAN'T take).