Local foreigner look for a bit of assistance

Hi there,

I've been living aboard for quite awhile now, and im experiencing the same shock as most people do when they move back to SA when it comes to internet.

I have a few issues that i need some help with. Basically, my mother owns a business that requires internet but she doesn't use it excessively. And then i, of course, need internet at our home. Currently we are running one iBurst account through 2 separate iBurst modems. One at home and one at the office. Its costing use R199 for the 1GB package.

Basically what i need is to find an alternative that is around R500 or so a month for the 2 separate locations. I was looking at something like a prepaid iBurst account for my mothers office and getting an ADSL line installed at my house. But as a silly foreigner, i have absolutely no clue as to whom are tops in the ISP world now days or what the decent deals are.

If anyone could give me afew suggestions, it'd be much appreciated.

Thank you.

telkom does the DSL infrastructure so you have no telco choice there. As for ISPs the 2 major isp dsl backbones in this country would be IS and SAIX - and 99.9% of the ISPs will re-sell either of these accounts. So in the end it boils down to price, since I have not seen anything to say that a SAIX or IS account is faster. OF course, either-or do experience problems sometimes.

It all depends on where you need internet access, and which operators provide coverage of your area.

I would recommend ADSL, especially for business use, since it is (generally) the most stable, reliable, and affordable.

Remember, the cost of ADSL for internet connectivity is made up of 3 individual costs.

1. Monthly line rental (if you have a fixed telephone line used for voice, then you are already paying for this).
2. Monthly ADSL access portion, which comes in 3 flavours (speeds) - 384kbps, 512kbps, and 4096kbps. You can purchase the ADSL access portion directly from Telkom, or from many of the ISPs, but not all ISPs support this.
3. Bandwidth, or data usage, which you purchase from an ISP (such as Axxess, Openweb, WebAfrica, TelkomInternet, etc..)

If you choose ADSL, you need to determine if Telkom is able to provide you with ADSL in your area. If you have a Telkom phone line already (if you have a fixed line, it is 99.9% likely to be a Telkom phone line), then getting ADSL shouldn't be too hard. All you need to do is phone 10219 (resedential) or 10217 (business) free from your Telkom phone, and ask them for help.

If Telkom is not able to provide you with ADSL, then your other options are all wireless:
- iBurst Wireless (up to 1mbps)
- 3G/HDSPA from either Vodacom or MTN (up to 3.6mbps, some areas 7.2mbps).
- Neotel (CDMA 2000 EV-DO) (up to 3.1mbps)
- Wimax (frpm iBurst, Telkom, Neotel)

If mobility is a requirement, then 3G/HSDPA is recommended, especially in terms of coverage. iBurst also provides limited mobility (no roaming around while connected), but has less coverage than Vodacom's and MTN's 3G/HSDPA.

Wimax I believe is the most expensive option.

Personally, I'd really recommend ADSL.

Thank you so much. But! I have a few reservations.

Things start getting extremely expensive when you have the 2 lines and 1 ISP account. Because the business is at a separate location. The reason why iBurst is working at the moment is because the 1 account is being split so we arent playing huge amounts.

Any recommendations on ISP? The home line, where im looking to replace the iBurst, would be used for a little gaming, browsing and downloading. I wouldnt say im a heavy user but moderate sounds about right.

Thank you once again for all the advice thus far.

i have a queston too, does iburst still throtle your connection speed when you reach the 1gB? if so, it must be considered, because ADSL is hardcapped which means you get cut off till the next month or a topup is brought, when you reach the limit

Srack0verflow said:

i have a queston too, does iburst still throtle your connection speed when you reach the 1gB? if so, it must be considered, because ADSL is hardcapped which means you get cut off till the next month or a topup is brought, when you reach the limit

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Yes I believe iBurst does not cut you off, but throttles your connection speed. No hard capping.

DaEvAnAm said:

The reason why iBurst is working at the moment is because the 1 account is being split so we arent playing huge amounts.

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I presume you mean paying, above??

You can do the same with ADSL. Have 2 seperate ADSL lines sharing the same bandwidth/usage account from an ISP. Most ISPs allow multiple concurrent connections in this way. You just need to specify the same username/password on each ADSL modems.

If you already have iBurst, and it's working out well for you, then stick with it. If you're getting good signal and good speed, and you aren't having issues, and you're happy with the price, then stick with it. You've probably signed a contract anyway. If not, then you've probably purchased the modem up front. Make sure you are on the month-to-month contract. Prepaid iBurst is more expensive per GB.

DaEvAnAm said:

Any recommendations on ISP? The home line, where im looking to replace the iBurst, would be used for a little gaming, browsing and downloading. I wouldnt say im a heavy user but moderate sounds about right.

Thank you once again for all the advice thus far.

Click to expand...

AfriHost have been making waves in the last few weeks, with the cheapest ADSL packages in RSA. You can purchase data/usage at R29 per GB. All other ISPs are charging anywhere from R50 to R100 per GB. But you need to sign up ASAP, is this is only a special which will expire soon. Once you've signed up, you are guaranteed the price of R29 per GB on your package, forever, even when the special expires. Check it out at http://www.afrihost.co.za/adsl-broadband-internet.php

Other ISPs to look out for, in terms of pricing and customer support, are Axxess and Openweb. WebAfrica also provide excellent customer service and support, but their prices are out of tune with current market rates.

DaEvAnAm said:

Thank you once again for all the advice thus far.

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You're welcome. It would be easier for us to help you if you had more specific questions, or would like more specific help.

Any more questions, just post them here, and we'll try to help.

maybe stayng with iburst for now is best, because i imagine your mum wont be too happy if she can't use the internet because you downloaded something over the weekend

Srack0verflow said:

maybe stayng with iburst for now is best, because i imagine your mum wont be too happy if she can't use the internet because you downloaded something over the weekend

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Yeah.. one of the very few nice things about iBurst is that you don't get hard-capped. I know of people who have downloaded up to 15GB on a 3GB account. Not sure how they did this, but I think it was local content, most likely local news servers or local FTP sites.

One of the other nice things about iBurst is that you pay only once for what you want. With ADSL, there are 3 seperate charges - line rental, ADSL access portion, and bandwidth/data.

Also, for smaller packages, like 1 or 2GB, iBurst competes fairly well when compared to ADSL. But for bigger packages, anything from 5GB upwards, there is just no reason to stick with iBurst.