Fibre internet in Gauteng on Openserve (Telkom) network

[jacosmit]

I have learned a heck of a lot from reading this thread.As I'm STILL waiting for FTTH I might as well read it again to kill the time!!
Thanks to all the contributors, especially jcheek.

Ditto

 

[Zarnicate]

Sometime over the weekend, this thread clocked up its 100 000th view :

View attachment 402182

Over the thread's 22-month lifetime so far, that's an average of about 150 views a day, which makes this one of the most viewed 'Fibre' threads on MyBB, second only to Fibre Secunda Community. (And as far as I can tell, Secunda has no fibre to speak of .. so how does that work ?! :wtf

Thanks to MyBB and to everyone who's supported this thread by reading, and - more especially - by contributing. You guys rock!

Reading and re-reading in the hope that my suburb gets a mention. Waiting and waiting for somebody to install fibre but nobody interested in residential areas only complexes and estates : (

 

[jacosmit]

Reading and re-reading in the hope that my suburb gets a mention. Waiting and waiting for somebody to install fibre but nobody interested in residential areas only complexes and estates : (

I search the OpenServe Fiber page twice a week for Telkom updates. I have also selected a view providers lower down that page and registered to get spammed once the fiber goes active.

 

[Zarnicate]

I search the OpenServe Fiber page twice a week for Telkom updates. I have also selected a view providers lower down that page and registered to get spammed once the fiber goes active.

I did the same registered on all the sites. Also started a topic here mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthread.php/846738-FTTH-Montana-Park?p=18456634#post18456634

 

[ebendl]

WebAfrica just terrible

So if anybody's still considering WebAfrica, I would really suggest you look somewhere else first.

I'm now waiting for a call from WebAfrica's Operations team as well as the Telkom/OpenServe Networks team. The difference between the two?

* Telkom did actually phoned me on Friday (but I was out of town).
* Telkom's technician actually knows me and what problem I have and is (hopefully) still trying to get the Networks team to come and test my fibre for breaks.

After multiple tickets, a couple of emails, calls and tweets, WebAfrica have not yet phoned me back. My problem (month-long wait for OpenServe to come and fix my fibre installation) is just forgotten -- I basically have to explain to them every time from scratch.

It's been sent to the Operations team in 5 different ways:
1) By one of the guys running the WebAfricaHelper twitter account
2) By a phone call I had earlier today with the same guy I had a phone call with previously (but he didn't remember me)
3) By another phone call I had to day after the first phone call got cut off when he tried to put me through to operations
4) By a reply (eventually) on one of my tickets
5) By a previous ticket 3 weeks ago.

So my question: if I cancel my order with WebAfrica at this point, what is the risk? Will it become even worse (i.e. my ticket escalated to OpenServe Networks get cancelled) or will another ISP (I'm leaning towards ISPAfrika) be able to just pick up were WebAfrica left off and get OpenServe to perform?

 

[jcheek]

So if anybody's still considering WebAfrica, I would really suggest you look somewhere else first.

I'd have to agree, at this point.
My WebAfrica connection's OK for now (thankfully), but I'm still none the wiser about the possibility of 50% upload speed. And that question's on a ticket that's now 10 weeks old. Apparently nobody at WA is listening, or nobody cares.
I suspect all that's necessary at the technical level is for Telkom re-configure the connection for 50% (as opposed to 20%) upload speed, as they already seem to be doing for new connections. But WebAfrica clearly don't know where to start :



"Stuck in the Inbox" ? Seriously ?? :crylaugh::crylaugh::crylaugh:

So my question: if I cancel my order with WebAfrica at this point, what is the risk? Will it become even worse (i.e. my ticket escalated to OpenServe Networks get cancelled) or will another ISP (I'm leaning towards ISPAfrika) be able to just pick up were WebAfrica left off and get OpenServe to perform?

I'd say kill it and move on with another ISP, provided you won't lose too much money. Sounds like you have ample grounds to prove non-performance.
At worst, ISP #2 might put the squeeze on Telkom and cause them to start the fibre install from scratch (seems unlikely).
At best, the same ISP will cause Telkom to find an essentially-completed installation that just needs fixing.
Doesn't sound like you'll be any worse off than you already are!

 

[ebendl]

I haven't spent a Rand yet - nobody has charged me for installation or anything.

Busy chatting to Garth at ISPAfrika - his feedback is just excellent, even at 21:00 (even though he can't promise me much more and warned me that Telkom is just Telkom).

 

[ebendl]

So WebAfrica's Operations team did phone me today. Said very sorry, agreed that it has been very long, re-iterated that they are reliant on Telkom/OpenServe and at their mercy but also that they are losing revenue. Promised me an update in 24 hours.

So I'll give them 24 hours and then well see what happens.

 

[Verde]

I would like some advice regarding my Fibre installation through Telkom in The Wilds estate.
My free 2 month trial period has come to an end and I have to weigh my future options.
Telkom's service has been diabolical so far, so I don't want to stay with them.
The only alternative I know of is Vox-telecom. I am interested in their 20Mbps 75Gb package at R788pm.
Are there other alternatives I should look into?

 

[jcheek]

I would like some advice regarding my Fibre installation through Telkom in The Wilds estate.

Hi Verde, welcome to the thread.
Nice to finally hear from someone actually using Telkom-based FTTH inside an estate!

My free 2 month trial period has come to an end and I have to weigh my future options.
Telkom's service has been diabolical so far, so I don't want to stay with them.

I'm interested in that perception (not a loaded question). What problems have you had ? Were they technical ones (ie service disruptions, low speeds etc), or more to do with customer service issues ? (the latter I'm sure we can all fully empathise with!).

The only alternative I know of is Vox-telecom. I am interested in their 20Mbps 75Gb package at R788pm.
Are there other alternatives I should look into?

As part of a "Gated Community" Telkom FTTH installation, you're actually in a slightly unique position when compared to those of us in free-standing residential houses : you have the ability to get a "naked fibre" (line only) service on the Telkom FTTH network. As yet, there are no independent ISPs (that I know of, anyway) who are able to provide that. Most are providing the line plus some amount of data (can be quite small, in some cases).

Edit : I've since become aware that Axxess are now offering "naked fibre" products on the Telkom FTTH network : see here. Example : 20Mbps naked Telkom fibre line (no data) for R599pm.


Since your estate chose Telkom as its fibre provider, if you want a fibre line, you're pretty much constrained to use the Telkom fibre line. Based on the info I have for The Wilds, and as I understand it, that means you'll have to pay Telkom a monthly fee for connectivity on the "naked line" at the speed you want. The fee table for Telkom FTTH in The Wilds appears below :



In your case, if you want the 20Mbps service, my understanding is that you'll have to pay Telkom a fixed monthly fee of R735.15 (R204.06 "active port fee", plus R531.09 for 20Mbps connectivity fee). That's in addition to any fees for fibre-based voice services, and the R150 flat monthly fee that the estate charges for intra-estate voice calls, ie "intercom services".

By way of comparison, if you were not in the estate, taking a 20Mbps Telkom FTTH line from ISPAfrika with 10GB of data (ie pretty close to a "naked FTTH" line) would cost you around R549pm, I believe.
Edit : ... and like the edit up above, this would compare to a 20Mbps "true" naked FTTH line from Axxess, currently priced at R599pm.


The good news is that once you have the required connectivity, you can get your data from whatever ISP you want, and there you would have a lot more flexibility (and probably better data pricing) than Telkom offers. To illustrate, a 100GB "ADSL" data package from Vox (their "Fatpipe" product) will currently cost you just R99 on top of the R735.15 Telkom connectivity fee, for a total of R834.15 pm.
That would compare to R799.10 (R204.06+R595.04) for a 20Mbps/50GB capped service from Telkom itself.

As regards an ISP, you could choose from any one that offers data services over a Telkom access network. You've already mentioned Vox, you could also look at Afrihost, Axxess, Crystalweb, ISPAfrika, MWeb, OpenWeb, RSAWeb, WebAfrica, etc. Many of those are offering both capped and uncapped services over fibre now.

Good luck with your decision - let us know what you decide, and how you do!

 

[Verde]

I'm interested in that perception (not a loaded question). What problems have you had ? Were they technical ones (ie service disruptions, low speeds etc), or more to do with customer service issues ? (the latter I'm sure we can all fully empathise with!).

Thanks for the info. I would also like to know if there are not cheaper VOIP options with a fibre line than the Telkom landline.

To answer your question regarding my frustrations with Telkom, see my email correspondence with them below. It took them 7 weeks to sort out my problems.

From: xxxxxxx
To: lcapps@telkom.co.za; nxumaln2@telkom.co.za; naudeap@telkom.co.za; riaan.johnson@huawei.com
Subject: FW: FTTH application
Date: Thu, 1 Sep 2016 13:56:51 +0200
Hi

I am trying to find someone at Telkom who can sort out my problem.
The attached application for a fibre installation at my home in the Wilds estate Pretoria refers.
The installation was done 3 weeks ago - the copper line was removed and the fibre installed. A Telkom contractor tested the speed yesterday using another account on his laptop and it works. Nevertheless I am still on 4mbps on my adsl package. I cannot get anyone at Telkom to sort this out, as they can't find the order on the system. (Spent 2 hours this morning on the line with Telkom call centre) According to them there was no fibre installation, and they know nothing about a promo offer. They also can't load promo offers telephonically, but they do not know who to refer me to. I have been struggling to sort this out for 3 weeks now, and Telkom just sends me around in circles.
Please help.
PS. My phone line is also not working.

Xxxxxxx
Contact no: xxxxxxxxxxx

The contact no for the installer is:
Steven : Huawei 0813899562 He can't help me to get the TIN no. Only Telkom can, but they need an order on the system.
From: xxxxxxx [mailto:xxxxxxx]
Sent: Monday, September 05, 2016 11:47 AM
To: Gated Communities
Subject: RE: FTTH application

From: gcs@telkom.co.za
To: xxxxxxx
Subject: RE: FTTH application
Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2016 13:38:20 +0000
Please send me the application again or ID in order to check if it was captured correctly.

Thanks
Fiona

From: xxxxxxx
To: gcs@telkom.co.za; naudeap@telkom.co.za
Subject: RE: FTTH application
Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2016 16:29:32 +0200
Hi

Please find attached my Telkom account for Aug 2016.
This is more info related to the problem with my Fibre installation. The account reflects 2 charges labelled GC consumer softcap 100GB for R471 in total.
I lodged a dispute with Telkom about this 2 weeks ago, because I have an uncapped ADSL service with them and I could not understand why I was being charged for softcap. I just realised now that this is for the new Fibre TIN number xxxxxxx and not my adsl TIN no xxxxxxx.
So I am being charged for a service which was deactivated by Telkom, and which is supposed to be free for 2 months - this is just unbelievable.

I have experienced such enormous problems with Telkom over the past month. I have spent hours on the phone trying to explain my problem to the call centre to no avail. I have had several technicians coming to my house accomplishing nothing. When I get through to someone who seems to know what they are doing, they make promises, but then fail to get back to me or answer my calls.
- My number has been changed, and the new number does not work. I have lodged several queries with Telkom to have my old number changed back - with no result thus far.
- Fibre was installed to my house a month ago - but I still can't use it, because it was deactivated.
- I am being charged for the fibre service which is not in use.
-I suspect that I am being charged for two lines - I never requested a new line and the one I have does not even work.
-I suspect when everything finally does get resolved Telkom will tell me that the the free 2 months fibre service I was promised started on the installation date, and even though I have not been able to access it, I will lose out.

I am so disgusted with the service from Telkom, I have no words.

Xxxxxxx

From: xxxxxxx [mailto:xxxxxxx]
Sent: Tuesday, September 06, 2016 2:18 PM
To: Gated Communities; Antony Naude (AP)
Subject: RE: FTTH application

Following up on below mail. Can I have a response please.

From: gcs@telkom.co.za
To: xxxxxxx
Subject: RE: FTTH application
Date: Tue, 6 Sep 2016 12:28:01 +0000
Good Day Mr xxxxxxx

Commercial Team is looking into this

Thanks
Fiona

From: xxxxxxx
To: gcs@telkom.co.za; naudeap@telkom.co.za
Subject: RE: FTTH application
Date: Thu, 8 Sep 2016 14:43:11 +0200
Can I please have an update.

xxxxxxx

From: xxxxxxx
Sent: Monday, September 12, 2016 8:48 AM
To: Gated Communities; Antony Naude (AP)
Subject: RE: FTTH application

Feedback please.

From: gcs@telkom.co.za
To: xxxxxxx
Subject: RE: FTTH application
Date: Mon, 12 Sep 2016 10:42:22 +0000
Good Day Mr xxxxxxx

This is still with Commercial Team

telkom
Mon 12/09, 13:04
RE: FTTH application
xxxxxxx
Gated Communities (gcs@telkom.co.za);naudeap@telkom.co.za;riaan.johnson@huawei.com
Hi Telkom Robot

That is not good enough after 5 weeks of me being without the service I was promised, and the frustration of banging my head against the Telkom brick wall with zero results. You are utterly incompetent, you do nothing to resolve a simple issue which I have reported through every channel I am aware of, and followed up countless times. You only respond to every 5th mail, and fail to answer your phone for a week at a time. You never give me progress reports, and only respond occasionally when I follow up.
I want this "commercial team's" name and phone number so I can find out what they are doing to solve my problem, and what the huge obstacle is that is making it so difficult for them.

I will cancel everything with Telkom at the end of this week and get a competent service provider if everything is not resolved to my satisfaction by then. I will also report this disaster to my estate manager, and insist that all residents be informed how incompetent Telkom is, and that there are other providers they can use for their fibre subscriptions.
By resolved I mean:
- my speed test must show 100mbbs.
-I will have an assurance in writing from Telkom that I will get this speed for free at the 100gig/m cap for 2 months from the date when my speedtest 1st shows 100mbbs and not from the date of installation, as promised by Telkom.
-you will resolve the mess on my account, where I am charged for line rentals and data usage when I did not have access to the services you charge me for.
xxxxxxx

 

[jcheek]

Thanks for the info. I would also like to know if there are not cheaper VOIP options with a fibre line than the Telkom landline.

Sure there are. See this post to get started, or search the thread for other references to VoIP and voice.

I suspect that "dedicated Telkom VoIP" via the voice port on the ONT might provide the best VoIP performance, but "normal VoIP", ie VoIP off the LAN should give adequate performance too.

[ PS : It would be good to hear from our pal Brolloks about how his Telkom dedicated VoIP has treated him so far. Also, is anyone on the thread using VoIP intensively from the open LAN side of a Telkom FTTH connection, ie not via the voice port(s) on the ONT ? If so, let's hear from you please! ]

To answer your question regarding my frustrations with Telkom, see my email correspondence with them below. It took them 7 weeks to sort out my problems.

Ok, yes, I see the issues! :crylaugh:
If it's any consolation, I had a kinda similar experience commissioning the FTTH connection for the elderly couple referred in this post, also in The Wilds. That one took about a month to get sorted, with many emails and calls to those self-same people. The connection also went down for about 4 days just 1 week into the trial, so not a great experience for them either, so far. I feel your pain!
What added additional enjoyment is that the fibre voice line number allocated to them turned out to be a re-cycled 012-991-xxxx number that had formerly belonged to both a physiotherapist and a cellphone repair shop, both of whom still had current listings - giving that number - on the open 'Web. So dozens of 'nuisance' calls to add to the fun.

Something interesting is that if you make use of the Telkom self-service portal to manage your Telkom account(s), you will see whatever Telkom accounts you used to see before (eg analogue landline and Telkom mobile), plus a new, separate account for the broadband trial. You will also see two landline voice numbers associated with the accounts, one being the "normal" fibre-based landline number, and the other being the number allocated to the intra-estate intercom system. These all appear under cryptic - and unexplained - codes like "GRIV" (Gated Residence Intercom Voice), TIN, TISP, WCDT, GTRA etc.
I'm awaiting the first bill with great interest and not a little trepidation.

 

[jacosmit]

Hi Verde,

If you are able to select a different ISP, look at the bottom of this (telkom Subsidiary) site --> http://www.openserve.co.za/open/fibre/

Edit: My area still not turned dark. Yes, I check it twice a day...

 

[APoc184]

Lucky enough to have gone live a few days ago in Garsfontein X10.

After reading all the struggles with WebAfrica on here I skipped straight over their offers.

I've decided to go with ISPAfrika 10mbps Uncapped at this stage. Application submitted and now just waiting for Openserve to install to home.

The other option I was looking at was getting just the line from Axxess and using my current Vox Fatpipe Data. But not sure if that was going to work.

 

[Verde]

Hi Verde,

If you are able to select a different ISP, look at the bottom of this (telkom Subsidiary) site --> http://www.openserve.co.za/open/fibre/

Edit: My area still not turned dark. Yes, I check it twice a day...

Vox confirmed that I am not currently able to use a different ISP. So I am stuck with Telkom.
I selected the 10Mbps + 100GB option for R649.10 pm. This includes the landline (and the landline fee or active port fee is fixed for 10 years). So it seems like a good deal.
I chose not to sign the 2 year contract, so I will have to pay R500 for the router. Is this a good idea?

 

[biena]

I chose not to sign the 2 year contract, so I will have to pay R500 for the router. Is this a good idea?

If by router you mean the one you connect your PC to then yes, the huawei they gave me was replaced asap, know of at least 2 that had to be replaced out of the box.
Don't even buy the one they want to sell you, get a decent one. Personal preference a mikrotik but there are others.

e.g. this was replaced

 

[jcheek]

Vox confirmed that I am not currently able to use a different ISP. So I am stuck with Telkom.

Slightly mixed messages there, I suspect.
You are pretty much stuck with Telkom for the provision of the line (ie connectivity), but my view is still that you can select any ISP you like for data, including, but not limited to, Vox.
Telkom's own rate card for The Wilds confirms this; ie in this mode, the fees shown in the "Broadband Standalone" section of the table would apply :



So if you go for a 10Mbps line, you'd have to fork out R204.06 (the port fee) + R416.04 (10Mbps line fee) = R620.10 for the provision of a 10Mbps line only. Then you'd need to add the monthly fee for data services from whatever ISP you want.

I selected the 10Mbps + 100GB option for R649.10 pm.

If you're referring to the same Telkom rate table, R649.10 would buy you the same 10Mbps line from Telkom, plus 50GB (not 100GB) of softcap data, also from Telkom. Free "Midnight" data would be additional to that.

This includes the landline (and the landline fee or active port fee is fixed for 10 years).

Double check that ? My understanding is that the charge for a fibre-based voice landline is additional to the active port fee. You also have to pay (Telkom) for the calls themselves, or take a package deal that includes some calls already. So a minimum of R17 for the Telkom "Evening & Weekend" option.

So it seems like a good deal.

Remember to factor in the medical costs associated with using services from Telkom!

I chose not to sign the 2 year contract, so I will have to pay R500 for the router. Is this a good idea?

Probably wise, yes. As biena says, rather get the router you want. All the "free" (or nearly free) ones are pretty basic.
Also check if you're liable for any installation cost (usually about R1750 ?) if you go month-to-month.

 

[ebendl]

Lucky enough to have gone live a few days ago in Garsfontein X10.

After reading all the struggles with WebAfrica on here I skipped straight over their offers.

I hope yours are an easy install. Just got my reply back from WebAfrica. They forwarded a mail from the Telkom/OpenServe account manager:

Hi <WebAfrica Account Manager>

Order is busy at installations.

Fond Regards
<OpenServe account manager>

So no follow up, no details, no timeframe, no indication what's wrong, not even an apology for the delays.

 

[Verde]

If you're referring to the same Telkom rate table, R649.10 would buy you the same 10Mbps line from Telkom, plus 50GB (not 100GB) of softcap data, also from Telkom. Free "Midnight" data would be additional to that.



Double check that ? My understanding is that the charge for a fibre-based voice landline is additional to the active port fee. You also have to pay (Telkom) for the calls themselves, or take a package deal that includes some calls already. So a minimum of R17 for the Telkom "Evening & Weekend" option.



Remember to factor in the medical costs associated with using services from Telkom.



Probably wise, yes. As biena says, rather get the router you want. All the "free" (or nearly free) ones are pretty basic.
Also check if you're liable for any installation cost (usually about R1750 ?) if you go month-to-month.

Thanks for the reply.
Telkom confirmed that:
-The data on all their packages have now doubled - so it is 100GB. (seems the midnight 50GB fell away)
-The R17 fee for the Evening/weekend plan is waived, and there are no other costs for the landline except call charges.
-There are no installation costs.

Do you think I can do better than the Zyxel router from them for R500?

 

[APoc184]

I hope yours are an easy install. Just got my reply back from WebAfrica. They forwarded a mail from the Telkom/OpenServe account manager:



So no follow up, no details, no timeframe, no indication what's wrong, not even an apology for the delays.

Really hope so too.

When they were busy trenching and pulling the fibre months ago they asked to access our property one day and then installed something on the pole in the corner of our yard. Hopefully that means installation will be quick and easy for us. Grabbing at straws, I know, but my ADSL has been so buggy lately that I'm desperate now.

Garth from ISPAfrika has really impressed me with his quick, detailed and friendly service so far. Unfortunately we are in the hands of OpenServe now until installation is complete.