ADSL speed issues

[Max Sparta]

37mb?

Albert you sound very angry for what ever reason...

From what I can gather, you get a 2year contract included. This contract gives you 37.5mb of upload data included in a single month.

If the above is not sufficient, because you send 10mb clips to your friends then you have the option to load additional data bundles. What is the requirement on requesting a webpage? 5k?

Albert, do you know of any other Pre-Paid internet providers out there whom do not charge a fixed recurring monthly fee + additional costs if you go over your mb limit?

From your post it appears that any credit balance is also carried over.

What other alternatives do you think there is that give the same options?

 

[hj2k_x]

email i got from them:



so basically you can upload about 37MB. ROFL

That does indeed suck. And so does this offering IMO.

 

[.geek]

Haven't used Telkom/SAIX mail servers since I got my first TelkomInternet account that was FULL of spam before I'd even used it, let alone knew what my email address was.

 

[Max Sparta]

Sky Connect Service Offer?

Can anynoe out there (ADSL Masters in the know) let me know if there is a similar broadband service which offers pre-paid internet?

Is the service offer from sky connect really that expensive, or does the apparent argument go beyond the superficial borders of "apparent" high cost?

Are the so called "ADSL Masters" not perhaps covert mouth pieces for ISP service providers whom do not want to contend with a better service offer which may see a loss of service in their business?

Albert?

Moederloos?

You are quick to deny a company, but fail to make available comparative pricing analysis.

What other offers are available???

 

[krycor]

I look for the cheapest service for a reasonable amount of data(ie not cheap cause you get 1 GB data) and also on a entry level but you have to look at the broader picture for this solution, after all this is for RURAL areas. From what I can tell this is the older sat solution of sending request via land network be it pots/ adsl/ wifi/ cellular technology unlike the 'newer' v-sat 2-way solutions.

The solution this company provides seem to be for real rural area's where there is still cellular coverage but nothing else. So basically the seem to have an agreement with mtn to handle requests thru their network via gprs or edge.

The cost of a new ADSL installation roughly amounts to R2,258-24 for the first month.
Thereafter R867-44p/m for 1GB Data at 1,024kbps.

No mention that the cost of adsl router + installation cost(optional in some areas/self-install) which i am not sure comes to that price.. i know install was R404, router about R750?(the usb and other prices i could not find) to 1.3k(wifi+adsl) for a avg one thru telkom, external for R500. Monthly cost is NOT R867 per gig as it in someways misleads reading that line, but culmatively lower. more you buy less effective cost it becomes per gig. This solution simply cannot be compared to ADSL, cause it will work out more expensive.

Points of iffiness for me is that it is not very explicit as to upload/gprs cost which amounts to anything from about(bad rough estimate) 40? to 80MB+ per gig when downloading more in a non-p2p manner, ie just surfing + downloading usage. No mention of roaming costs.. cause vodacom has a better coverage of SA than mtn perhaps, so that may have to be factored in. Question is.. 'Is the gprs coverage area large enough into rural area's to make this option really viable?'

Now.. The real comparison for a service like this would be where only gprs and perhaps egprs is available(cmp unbundled data rates and real possible gprs + egprs speeds) and would most likely be compared to v-sat. Using Telkom vsat product as a benchmark for expesiveness..(cause they always have a nice profit% ) it seems to be cost effective and from cheaper to more expensive due to upload channel.(Telkoms vsat works on a basic bundled allowance that increases wrt effective speed.. ALSO Telkom solution is contract based). Vsat max is also 512kbps where as this solution goes way beyond it, I wonder whats the contention for this service btw

So.. if you have no access to fixed line technology but can get a basic gprs signal it may work out ok for a othwise unattainable fast downlink but watch this space as WiMax comes..

** I have no idea of how effective coverage of other wifi, iburst, mywireless is but i think these are more in developed areas. shrug, if i am wrong correct me, i don't mind.. its all a learning experience

Busy looking thru Sentech.. looks expesive too(vsat) and again contract bound.

btw i'm trying to think of another company that offers a similar solution albeit via dial-up but i can't remember.. :/ best way to compare is with same access tech.

 

[albert123]

What other offers are available???

we compare apples to apples. i think sky connect compares sortof with diginet, but still not really as with diginet you have unlimited usage, with sky connect you have 37mb of upload data? which is really nothing, the average person will get to that within about 24hours at most. you send 40 emails you have "reached your cap". the installation charge on sky connect is R3250. you HAVE to sign a 24 month contract to get the MTN EDGE modem. compared to adsl where the installation is R400 odd with no modem charge or anything if you take out a similar 24 month contract. you say compare to other "prepaid offers" ? why would you pay R3250 installation if you dont want it long term? why then also would you want it prepaid? but say you do, compare it to a vodacom bundle. you buy the datacard for under R2000 cash. you get a faster speed to start off with. there is no installation as its a mobile data card. If you were to take out a 24 month contract you get that R2000 free also. so after day 1 with vodacom hsdpa you have spent R3250 less than at sky connect, for a similiar, yet MOBILE service. i dont see how you can defend sky connect? also with vodacom you can upload and download at the same price ....

the only place i'd say sky connect can be a option is where you can have no adsl, 3g, edge, diginet and need something faster than isdn....

your comments?

 

[Max Sparta]

Krycor Response

KRYCOR
I understand that a person would look for the cheapest option available. However SC does not specifically aim at the rural market. Their website says “especially beneficial to rural and non-dsl areas”

It is an older type of technology than two-way, but it is also a much cheaper technology to use.

Is the use of this technology really that expensive if one takes into consideration that the average user uses 1.5gb of data in a month? If you take 1.5GB a month and work it out according to their speeds it works out as follows…

1.5GB at 64k = R268-50
1.5GB at 128k = R358-50
1.5GB at 256k = R448-50
1.5GB at 512k = R538-50
1.5GB at 1024k = R658-50
1.5GB at 2048k = R748-50
1.5GB at 3072k = R823-50
1.5GB at 4096k = R898-50

If you compare 1GB data from SC @1mbps and 1GB data from Telkom at 1mbps then you get.
SC= R439
Telkom= +- R800

However for high usage users this would be more expensive.

Furthermore, this is Pre-Paid internet and it is carried over, therefore if you do not use all your data it is carried over to the following month.

I believe that the comparison was made with a 1MB adsl line and a 1GB ISP account. If this is the case then it is round about the indicated pricing as they must have specified the cost of an adsl router and monthly line rental which is included by default.

The gprs/edge upload is primarily for the request portion of site requests and this should not amount to more than 5k. Obviously of one sends e-mail that is a couple of mb’s in size then the included 37.5mb will be used quickly. However, the company specifies that if this is the case then you can purchase additional gprs/edge data by loading a virtual voucher which is available at most outlets.

All cellular towers have gprs functionality as standard or in many areas edge.

With skyconnect you also do not have any long term contracts, or month to month contracts due to the pre-paid nature of this service.

Previous similar services were done by Siyanda and Infosat. But these failed to make the grade due to additional costs such as isp account and dial-up account.

iBurst, MyWireless, 3G, HSDPA etc are only available in major metro areas.

Regards
m

 

[albert123]

If you compare 1GB data from SC @1mbps and 1GB data from Telkom at 1mbps then you get.
SC= R439
Telkom= +- R800
m

please compare apples with apples boet. you say the average usage is 1.5gb? lets go on your figure, say for example the person user 2/3 download and 1/3 upload. this means 500mb upload. included is 37mb upload. (bear in mind the upload is at GPRS rates, meaning EXTREMELY slow. but forget about speed for now, 500mb upload at MTN rates = R2/meg. = R1000 pm just on the upload part. plus the 1.5GB at 1024k = R658-50 give you R1658.50 compared to adsl 1mbps of +- R800 ( i used all YOUR figures on pricing so you cant argue any of these facts. so basically it will be double the price of adsl.

iBurst, MyWireless, 3G, HSDPA etc are only available in major metro areas

the SC will be available only where you have gprs coverage, so is 3g, and so is HSDPA, so what your point on that?

 

[Max Sparta]

Albert Response

ALBERT
As I understand from website data, you purchase the “singlebox ontegrated satellite and edge modem for R3250” Included in this price is a 24month contract which has already been paid for. You also do not reach a ”cap” after 37.5mb as you have the option to top-up with a virtual voucher.

Vodacom’s data card only allows for 3G \ hsdpa access in certain areas. If outside a area then it is gprs only. Also remember you never get nothing for free from anyone. If you stay with in your bundle limit perhaps it is not that expensive, but you do pay a premium out-of-bundle.

SC is not based on any contract term. They are purely pre-paid. Whats more they offer a person up to 4mbps speed. When will Telkom or iburst offer this and at what cost?

I am not defending SC in anyway, I do however think they should be given a fair opportunity. I want to determine if your argument holds water when you compare cost of hardware, with cost of service (data), with quality of service (speed), national availability, and how long it takes to install the solution. Better than waiting months\years for telkom if available.

Perhaps you and I are not seeing this through the same window. Please entertain me and let me know what your cost of access amounts to? Speed, ?gb data, rental etc…

Do you think that sc will have unlimited service download available in future? It would only make sense that they do in order to compete with others isp's.

Regards
m

 

[albert123]

SC is also subject to coverage by MTN. if you are outside the major centres you will lose the EDGE coverage as far as i know so you will upload at gprs rates (this is the same as with any 3g or hsdpa offering)

where do they mention the R3250 includes the 24 month contract? what does the contract then serve a purpose for?

sure they offer 4mbps in the middle of the kalahari, but at a upload speed of less than 64k ? sortof defeats the point to me? broadband means up and download abilities. that satelite offering mweb had where you upload via modem seems more worth the effort than SC. you can get a landline also just about anywhere.

 

[Max Sparta]

Originally Posted by Max Sparta
If you compare 1GB data from SC @1mbps and 1GB data from Telkom at 1mbps then you get.
SC= R439
Telkom= +- R800
m

OK, Albert, I see what you are getting at. How many users upload 500mb worth of data? Perhaps you do, so I agree, this would not be a cost effective option. However for those users whom primarily download, surf and limited uploads(occasional e-mail, etc) this would work. Firther more, one can get 1GB gprs data for R500.

iBurst, MyWireless, 3G, HSDPA etc are only available in major metro areas
Albert: the SC will be available only where you have gprs coverage, so is 3g, and so is HSDPA, so what your point on that

iburst, eg and hsdpa only available in major metro areas. However gprs is availble to 99% of all populated areas. Therefore SC would have access to 99% of all populated areas in SA. There would be the 1% that is not covered at certain obscure places that have no humans alive.

 

[Max Sparta]

24month contract/edge

SC is also subject to coverage by MTN. if you are outside the major centres you will lose the EDGE coverage as far as i know so you will upload at gprs rates (this is the same as with any 3g or hsdpa offering)

MTN has 99% coverage over South Africa. 3G \ HSDPA is only available in MMA. GPRS available everywhere. EDGE available in most towns in South Africa, even some major/national routes. EDGE hardware is much cheaper to use/implement than 3G / HSDPA.

where do they mention the R3250 includes the 24 month contract? what does the contract then serve a purpose for?

SC state included in this (R3250) price is a paid 24 month contract which includes 37.5mb gprs/edge data per month. If it is not used then it is carried over to the next month, and so on.

sure they offer 4mbps in the middle of the kalahari, but at a upload speed of less than 64k ?

Sure if the area only has GPRS (85k) access. However with EDGE at 230k this is much better and close to telkoms 256k. However this is never 256k because of 128:1 or higher contention ratio.

broadband means up and download abilities. that satelite offering mweb had where you upload via modem seems more worth the effort than SC. you can get a landline also just about anywhere.

Does the Sc offer not make this available? With the defunkt mweb offer you had a max of 56k or 128k isdn. Also you needed an isp dial-up account (R50-R200p/m). So you had line rental (R80-R230p/m) on analog\isdn. You had per unit call charge (50c-99c per unit/minute) for analog/isdn.

Comments?

 

[krycor]

Dude, i wasn't saying its a bad deal, on the contrary compared to options in rural area's it good for low to medium usage . The other main attraction i see for this service is the prepaidness compared to other sat services. I said rural (or non-dsl places as you point out, then why compare to adsl?) cause its unlikely they will have even wisp's, some of which thankfully offer really nice cheap deals[uncapped too nogal] but also when you have access to other tech i believe it begins to look a bit expensive comparing just latency even. Not focused to rural you say but this is a gap in the market that it just so happens this fills nicely, if they ignore this gap like most providers do it would be silly[low usage+low cost+prepaid+out somewhere there].

Comparison @ 1Mbps adsl line for low usage is plain silly in some repects. Sure its true in factual terms but is a low usage person really gonna need 1Mbps when you can save alot of money and go for something slower? Sure some services require fast downlink low bandwidth usage(i can think of a few) BUT if you gonna compare like that remember the latency difference + uplink speeds, 85k is downlink (a high one too but anyways) wikipedia on gprs. Contention on uplink will however be excellent.

No offence here, but marketing IT stuff in SA to normal consumers annoys me to no end everyday which is why i don't really want to work here, that and DoC

 

[albert123]

No offence here, but marketing IT stuff in SA to normal consumers annoys me to no end everyday which is why i don't really want to work here, that and DoC

now there is something we agree on! and i dont think its only IT, i think marketing in general rips people off because people believe whatever they hear. you tell them something they believe it, they dont think ahh maby this guy just want to make money? there is a camera shop in Fourways mall. the day after they opened, they put a huge banner up "massive final clearance sale - up to 75% off!!" they have been open now for like 5 years, the banner is still there. i dunno but somehow they should have to be forced to not talk a whole lot of nonsense in commercials....

 

[Max Sparta]

Makes Sense

Thank you for your input. What you mention makes sense. From what I can gather out all of this is that it could be a great product for areas that battle with slow connection speeds.

All the best to you.

m