Opinions please - Capped vs Uncapped

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Dubes

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I've been an MWeb user for many years. No loyalty but no issues so I have been happy. Part of the reason for my happiness is that I am on a 1Mbps uncapped account which is regarded as premium and I rarely get anywhere near the 100GB danger zone for throttling.

Current usage is:
News server downloads. Speed does not bother me as I happily leave them running over night.
Wifi to all the computers, phones and iPads in the house for whatever data needs they have (browsing, emails etc).
Just recently there has been a lot more YouTube usage at fairly low res so as to avoid buffering.

But I have an Android Stick PC arriving shortly and, due to this, amongst other things, I am considering a faster line speed. I'll probably only go to 2Mbps for now.

My usage thus far has been as follows but may well increase with a 2Mbps line:

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I am wanting opinions please on the following options (I am going to use Afrihost as an example as research seems to show they offer the least stringent AUPs for uncapped).

Option 1
Afrihost 2Mbps Uncapped R397 incl line rental

PROS - "Unlimited" data. Based on what I see on their site there are people doing 100s of gigs on this account. I am unlikely to increase my usage that much as even now I do not use my line for 24/7 downloads but streaming on the TV stick may change this.

CONS - "Dynamic" shaping based on network usage. Reading these forums leaves you even more concerned as different folks have different experiences. Am I able to stream, D/L etc at full speed during business hours if needed?

Option 2
Afrihost 2Mbps + 75GB capped R397 incl line rental

PROS - Only two months in the last year have I done more than 75GB. As above, this may change with streaming. As far as I understand capped accounts have no shaping, throttling etc (Am I correct?).

CONS - Limited data. If I do happen to suddenly use more I will need to pay to stay connected.


Anyone else been through this decision making? What decision did you make? Would you do it differently now?
 
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If MWEB works for you, I'd recommend just getting the 2Meg premium.

Throttling only happens at 200Gigs which is no where near your current usage.
 
Thanks again, Chevron, unfortunately that suggestion does not factor cost in. I would be going from R397pm to R509, a substantial monthly increase.

My current spend is R364 so the two options given would only mean an extra R33pm spend.
 
You seem to have researched well, have you heard of hellkom.co.za to do comparisons?
 
Afrihost just got a bunch of extra capacity.

Might as well use their uncapped.
 
Batista said:
You seem to have researched well, have you heard of hellkom.co.za to do comparisons?
Click to expand...

Yes. The point here, as clearly stated in the OP, is to get opinions from those who have perhaps used these accounts or made the same decision. Or for someone to perhaps point out something I may have overlooked. As far as I am aware Hellkom gives price only which, as you can tell, I already know.
 
The Afrihost capped/bundled packages run very with with zero shaping/throttling, thats correct.

Id go with the Afrihost capped package and see how it goes, if you find you are running out of gigs then switch to their uncapped package with just requires logging into your client zone and selecting the new package (very easy) which will take effect from the following month.
 
One tends to forget what a good connection really is when you sit on a uncapped package as you assume you have the best and don't look further.
I was on Mweb Premium uncapped and was very happy, well, so I thought.
As line speeds went up, the ISP uncapped prices became too heavy so I had to make a plan.
Like you my average useage is around 45 GB per month.
I'm now on a AfriHost 50 GB capped and man things just rock, YouTube is as smooth as silk, torrents rock during the day.
The AfriHost 50GB Capped + 2 MB Line is R348, try it, you'll be very pleasantly surprised just how much better a capped verses uncapped package is :)
Only problem being capped again requires much discipline :)
 
I would recommend Afrihost, you can also turn off the traffic prioritization in the clientzone and torrents work 100% Im downloading a torrent atm and getting about 300kb while im working as well (the torrent most definately has nothing to do with work).
 
2Meg Line via Afrihost = R149
2Meg uncapped account from Connection = R99
R248
Don't forget the Telkom Line @ R157
TCO = R405

You won't be sorry. Even on 1 Star Torrents and NNTP run full tilt after 17:00 on weekdays and weekends. If you want to keep your star rating at 4+, download your NNTP/Torrent contend between 00:00 and 06:00.
 
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ProAsm said:
I was on Mweb Premium uncapped and was very happy, well, so I thought.
As line speeds went up, the ISP uncapped prices became too heavy so I had to make a plan.
Like you my average useage is around 45 GB per month.
I'm now on a AfriHost 50 GB capped and man things just rock, YouTube is as smooth as silk, torrents rock during the day.
Only problem being capped again requires much discipline :)
Click to expand...

Thanks, these are the sort of first hand accounts I'm after. It is the discipline part that concerns me... Ha ha. I want an ISP that cuts me off. I see @lantic don't and then charge you R40/GB out of bundle!

Afrihost was top of the capped list until I saw the WebAfrica capped offerings. 60GB for R199 with another 60GB between 12am and 6am. I can schedule my downloads for those times...
 
Afrihost Business is a little bit more expensive. But there's no throttling or shaping on the accounts.
 
lcbxx said:
2Meg Line via Afrihost = R149
2Meg uncapped account from Connection = R99
R248
Don't forget the Telkom Line @ R157
TCO = R405

You won't be sorry. Even on 1 Star Torrents and NNTP run full tilt after 17:00 on weekdays and weekends. If you want to keep your star rating at 4+, download your NNTP/Torrent contend between 00:00 and 06:00.
Click to expand...

These star ratings concern me. Part of my concern with upgrading to a 2mbps standard Mweb account is the lack of total transparency. Star ratings make me feel I'm going from the fat into the fire.

Connection? Is that an incredible connection offering? I thought their name was a swear word around here :) What is their uncapped like during the week for streaming? Remember that is what I am considering as a possible use going forward.
 
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