Help:ADSL without Telkom line

[Fern9do]

Hi guys
I have a problem. I got telkom adsl installed 3 months ago but cable thiefs have stolen the damn cables twice already. Now telkom says that it may take months for them to replace the cables.(I know people who have been waiting 6 months!)

Which brings me to my problem. I run a website and need an internet conection that will not require a telkom line.
What are the best options available in a case like this?

Any help will be appreciated.

 

[grim42]

Well 3G of some sort would probably be the 2nd best option.

Followed by things like iBurst and WiMAX (?).

 

[Fern9do]

3g as in using your celphone as a modem?
I have tried this but its really slow and eats my airtime!

 

[grim42]

No, I mean 3G as in getting a dedicated 3G modem (USB, Ethernet and PCMCIA card modems are all available) from Vodacom, MTN, etc.

These should provide a more reliable connection than using your cellphone, but will still be vulnerable to weak signal and dropping connections.

However HSDPA 3G is available at speeds of up to 3.6Mbps (or even more maybe?) so if the signal is good it should be quite fast.

You pay data package rates which work out to about 20c per MB last time I looked.

 

[Fern9do]

Im looking into that grim. See i can get a laptop with 500Megs pm for about R460 pm for 36 months.
Hows that iBurst thing?

 

[charlbronn]

Iburst is really Isuck. I was an Iburst subscriber for 18 months and towards the end their service and throughput was dismal to say the least. Now with Vodacom 3G and quite satisfied. They have problems now and again, but most of the time it's really good compared to Iburst. I can download at 200+Kb on good days, compared with the 40Kb I was getting with Iburst towards the end.

A good deal is to take a TopUp 315. I paid in R179 and got a Nokia E51 + a 3G USB modem at a Vodashop. You can then convert your airtime to data bundles as you please. I add some money every month so I can buy a 2G bundle @ R389 (1G@289, 3G@589). Also with the TopUp you can't get a nasty R1000+ suprise bill at the end of the month. When the money in your TopUp is done, your access is stopped unlike the R249 etc data contracts where you get charged R2/Meg till the end of the month (once your 500MB is done)!

 

[hoegh]

Wimax is looking like a pretty good option at the moment, also I think it's a fair bit cheaper than the 3G route and you can choose your own ISP, also no contract.