I went to what my wife calls my downtown office for a coffee this afternoon and read the latest copy of Here magazine. It featured an article on Moncton’s Red Ball Internet. Based on iBurst technology, Red Ball offers wide area wireless Internet access. Subscription fees range from $12.95 to $54.95 per month.
There is a definite appeal to having no cables and an always-on, dedicated wireless connection. Advertised download speed is 1 mbps which is not anywhere near as fast as ADSL (~ 3 mbps), Aliant’s Ultra service (~ 5 mbps) or cable (~ 8 mbps). If you are constantly traveling around the city and need internet access, then Red Ball would be a good service. This iBurst technology also has potential as a service offering for conferences and conventions. I could see bloggers wanting continuous access during conferences.
What really caught my eye is that this service is available only in Atlantic Canada:
“This is definitely a wonderful story; it is a North American first,” gushes C. Sean Adams, leader of business development for Red Ball. “This service is not yet available in New York, Los Angeles, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, only in Greater Moncton. We see this service doing for the Internet what the mobile phone did for telecommunications. It is a cost effective, mobile option for Internet users who want the high speed without the high prices.”
Yeah, but it is available in South Africa, where I used the Vodacom iBurst wireless access. Having internet anywhere was definitely nice, having it at 250 kps was less so (and that’s about what Red Ball delivers, and why I haven’t purchased an account).
WiMax would be better, and what I hope is that Red Ball is positioning itself to be a WiMax service provider.
And in Fredericton, Fred E-zone is a free wireless access, almost everywhere downtown and other public places. Great back-up when meeting out of the office (read : coffee shop, park bench…)
I hear that if you live in the Jemseg area that Red ball internet maybe available. How can I comfirm this and who do I contact about getting this product. Thanks
I’d just contact them through their website or as they recommend: “All questions and concerns should be directed to 800.755.4595. (Ext 1”
Hey Folks!
It’s so great to see everyone discussing Red Ball Internet. Great forum!
In comparison to wi-fi, (ie: Freddy e-zone) iBurst provides mobility. (think portable phone versus cell phone) No problem to use iBurst while driving down the Transcanada near Moncton doing 100+km/h. Wi-fi is great, but this should be the next generation.
I’d like to invite everyone to stop by our office (18 Botsford Street; 3rd Floor, Moncton) and try the iBurst system first hand and free of charge. (PC on site) We operate on a pay-as-you-go basis which means that our customers pay only for what they use. (ie: Nobody downloading movies and slowing down the network) It’s for these reasons that our customers see consistent speeds of 1 Mb / second anywhere within range of our towers. No joke. Stop by or call us directly @ 800.755.4595 EXT 301 with questions / concerns.
Again, great forum!
C. Sean Adams
Leader: Sales & Marketing
Red Ball Internet
Are you guys still looking for a sales staff?
i live out in the country and only have dileup very slow and would like to know if i could get serfice up here . the town is called fords mills north east of moncton . if not is there any plans to delive servic up here . thanks for taking the time to read this .