Inside Telstra's secret speed testing facility

Telstra has been putting phones through their paces at a secret lab in Western Sydney since 1993.

The lab was founded alongside the launch of Australia's first digital mobile network (2G).

Every device that passes through the labs is subjected to a battery of 8,713 tests.

An anechoic chamber is used for Telstra's Blue Tick certification.

It's based on testing the receive and transmit strength of any given phone.

Foam triangles can look terrifying.

Blue Tick certification means a phone will work better in rural areas than competing devices.

Stalactites grow on the ceiling. Stalagmites are on the floor.

I didn't ask about the hand.

There's a "dead room" that filters out all external radio noise for speed tests.

Tests use model networks, the live network and also things like drive testing and testing for Telstra apps and video streaming.

The end result of the Blue Tick testing for the Galaxy S8.

Using software, Telstra can simulate network traffic.

The Galaxy S8 got hooked up to a network speed test.

It's pretty fast, I guess.