Neotel NeoConnect put to the test

I was expecting (international) pings to be improved, but I am still interested to know what cap quotas will be in place.... here's hoping ;)
 
The fact that the CDMA converged device only has a USB connection – and no Ethernet ports - may not go down well with some consumers looking to share the connection.

Another drawback is that the device can not be used simultaneously for voice and Internet access. While the device does not disconnect the Internet access, it discontinues the Internet session when making voice calls.
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No! This is a step back from ADSL technology wise. I can't use it now because I can't plug it into my router. Weak!

Can I buy my own equipment from the States and use it here or is their device specially tweaked for their network?

Speeds were a little disappointing too...
 
pkid said:
No! This is a step back from ADSL technology wise. I can't use it now because I can't plug it into my router. Weak!

Can I buy my own equipment from the States and use it here or is their device specially tweaked for their network?

Speeds were a little disappointing too...
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but still what if they give you a 10gig int cap for R499???
 
matrixweb said:
but still what if they give you a 10gig int cap for R499???
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It still doesn't help me because I will then have to manually run around and plug the modem into the five computers that share my Internet connection via WiFi :(
 
pkid said:
It still doesn't help me because I will then have to manually run around and plug the modem into the five computers that share my Internet connection via WiFi :(
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Would it not work to plug it into a 'hub' like I do with my ADSL line?
 
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pkid said:
No! This is a step back from ADSL technology wise. I can't use it now because I can't plug it into my router. Weak!
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Yes, this is no good at all. Makes it totally useless for me.
 
While R499 unlimited is nice, it still is pricy and I would like to see a basic internt and telephone prices.

Also do you pay rental? and how much to buy the phone or how does that work?
 
For R500 I am quite happy to get an uncapped solution...Though the fact that they say it's uncapped until the product gets released officially is a bit worrying. Hopefully they take into account how much everyone is starved of bandwidht in ZA....riiiiight :/

Hmm, it seems that the easiest for me will be to put the connection on an old p3 and share it through there...Mikrotik ftw :)
 
USB to Ethernet converters are available for +- R400 and they seem to work really well.
 
Nice to see.
But still a few months to go before all our questions are answered.

I wouldn't rush out to buy this just yet.
 
I'm not as excited about this as I used to be...the work "cap" is a very big contributing factor. The pings were also a bit of a disappointment.
 
Would sharing the connection via Internet connection sharing in Windows work? So the modem connects to my desktop which shares to an access point or router and hey presto, all my devices have an internet connection. Will this work?

Also, if the R499 is going to change, is going up or down?
 
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I will wait until I see what the commercial released product looks like with caps before I get excited... and if the caps are not acceptable I will be letting Neotel know that they have not done enough to entice me to use them as a service provider, and I would urge everyone else to do the same instead of just not taking the product we need to let them know they've fscked up and how many clients they haven't been able to attract by not being "innovative" enough.
 
The average speeds achieved on international web based speed tests were 397 Kbps, higher than the 373 Kbps on similar local tests. Upload speeds ranged between 40 Kbps and 100 Kbps with no discernable difference between local and international speeds.

The general NeoConnect Internet experience is good with web based speed test results ranging between 93 Kbps and 700 Kbps. For multi-threaded downloads the speeds typically ranged between a few hundred Kbps and one Mbps, peaking at 1.3 Mbps.
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Okay, for those of us that that dont undertsand "kbps!" :D

397kbps = 48.46 kB/s
40kbps = 4.88 kB/s
100Kbps = 12.21 kB/s
700Kbps = 85.45 kB/s

Another drawback is that the device can not be used simultaneously for voice and Internet access. While the device does not disconnect the Internet access, it discontinues the Internet session when making voice calls
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:( Suppose you can't have it all, Still it's uncapped now but what happens in the future? uncapped local and capped int? atleast give us enough then...

Some broadband users – typically 4 Mbps ADSL and HSDPA subscribers – may find their surfing and download speeds sluggish at times, but most other Internet users will be more than happy with the NeoConnect speeds.
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Wait till you use 64k for 3 years anything is better than that... :rolleyes:
 
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Nothing to get too excited. If anything it raises more questions than answers.

No ethernet, wifi. Bad.
No calls and surfing at the same time. bad.

20 gig soft cap????

How much is the hardware?
 
Local latency ranged between 150 ms and 700 ms, with most high latency results coming from Verizon servers. Ping times to servers on the Internet Solutions, MWEB and Telkom networks were typically between 150 ms and 200 ms.
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The fact that the CDMA converged device only has a USB connection – and no Ethernet ports - may not go down well with some consumers looking to share the connection.
Click to expand...
Another drawback is that the device can not be used simultaneously for voice and Internet access.
Click to expand...
EPIC FAIL, Sorry anything above 50ms is way too much.

The trial price for the service is R 499.00 per month for unlimited usage, but this will change when the service is launched commercially to a wider audience in May.
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Double EPIC FAIL. R500 for unlimited would be alright except for the concerns raised above. R499 for a limited offer with all those issues. Go away and come back in a few years with a proper offer NeverTel.
 
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