Yes, you’re reading it right. I get like 40+KB/sec but that’s PEAK. That’s when things are going well. Up here in Njeru, with the huawei e220’s internal antenna, I can only seem to manage a consistent WCDMA connection. When I use a long USB cable and hang the modem by the window, I get HSPDA which is when my speeds really start to crank.

So, I have two options. One is this: http://www.poyntingdirect.co.za/ProductInfo.aspx?productid=ADPT-026, which does not involve opening the modem. I’m going to try to get my friends in SA to buy three and bring them to DEFCON. I’ll also put out a call for some antennas. Now, even at it’s best, HSPDA here may not be enough sustained bandwidth, especially considering the fact that I’m sharing that with the rest of Jinja. Theoretically, HSPDA has bandwidth capability of ADSL, but I’m not sure how much they have implemented here. The fact that WCDMA is rolled out and HSPDA is even available is a good sign.

The other is a “Real” bandwidth landline provider. I’m researching that. I’ve gotten some info that UTL, which lots of people (many Internet cafes, especially) seem to favor, is teh suck. Two providers seem to offer more speed: “More telecom” and “Datanet.com” (written by one of the fastest cafes in town but I’m running into a brick wall researching those. I’ll spend some time this week doing real research on these (ie I’ll pay a few bucks, sit in a chair and pillage as much info from the cafe computers as humanly possible…or I’ll just ask more questions.)

There is also rumor of a fibre channel running from Mombasa. That will bring REAL broadband. I haven’t gotten a good lead on that yet though.

But I am thankful that I’m on a decent starting spot. The UTL connection is much better than what I had. I average 10k down, but can never get more than 4k up. That’s an issue. Now with antennas and some hacker magic we’ll see what we can do. Also, we’re WAY up on a hill here in Njeru, so we have a great line-of-site to Jinja, where the majority of wireless services operate. Maybe we’ll get a hacker team to pull a real signal from Kampala. =)

More on this later.

Johnny