Telkom LTE Advanced

R

redcliff

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Received an email from Telkom

"Parkview and Parkhurst are the first suburbs in Jozi to have access to the fastest internet in Mzansi. Telkom introduces LTE Advanced, giving you up to 150Mbps+ superfast next generation internet technology.

Have you already connected your home with ADSL? Then experiencing LTE Advanced is only a few clicks away. We’re talking faster than fast - the kind of speed that makes for great gaming and seamless streaming in HD. You can:

download a 4GB movie in just 8 minutes,
40 photos in 5 seconds,
a 200MB music album in 10 seconds, and
4D HD movies in 4 minutes!

If you’re in Parkview or Parkhurst, we invite you to trial our speed revolution. We’ll contact you within 48 hours and set it up for you, no strings attached, for a 14-DAY FREE TRIAL. After a 14 day sprint on the information highway, sign on the dotted line so that we can officially welcome you to the hood with 100GB a month at R1399"

Have asked for trial, they coming around later in the week.
 
The Telkom guys have phoned me a number of times to try and sell me LTE routers.

But in spite of what their maps say, there is zero TM around here.
 
So had representative come over.

The device is they are offering is the Huawai e5186-61a and they provide 20Gb of data for you to use during the 14 day trial.

I'm pretty impressed by the speed/reception - nowhere near the 150Mbps claimed, but pretty decent still. By moving the router around a little I was getting ~50Mbps down and about 7Mbps up. What makes this noteworthy is that this was achieved with the router all by itself with no external antenna (not even those bunny ear paddles) - for comparison I currently have the B593 also on Telkom LTE and that is connected to a Poynting Antenna mounted on a 3m pole pointed straight at the tower which allows me to get just over 40Mbps.

I did try connecting the 5186 to the antenna but that dropped the speed down to 12Mbps - not sure why since the placement of the router by itself to get the 50Mbps speeds indicates it's using the same tower location. Thinking that perhaps the router, whilst connected to the antenna is maybe not using the external antenna (no setting to select antenna...)

The UI of the router is VERY basic - pretty much everything is locked down / not available. No Dyndns, no diagnostic screen (to see Cell ID, RSRP, RSRQ etc.) so basically you are flying blind. Even IP address is locked down - 192.168.x.x... you get to play with x.x but you are locked to 192.168

In terms of reception though, as a standalone device it is clearly superior to the B593.

Interesting to note is that in the information pack supplied they also have a leaflet with prepaid offers: R2,699 for 2+1 up to R4,299 for the router plus the 60+60 package.

I definitely think the router is a good upgrade and tbh the R1,399 / 100GB is a very decent deal but it is a 36 month commitment which does kinda put a damper on things (particularly with the FTTH mere months away)

I'll play some more on the weekend, different SIM cards etc. to see if it supports Voda/MTN etc.
 
Thread moved at the request of sajunky
 
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but why?

What i dont understand is, majority of cities doesnt have lte.or just a small part of the city has.

Why not ensure that the original lte coverage is nation wide like 3g before releasing an even more limited lte service
 
DANNLER said:
What i dont understand is, majority of cities doesnt have lte.or just a small part of the city has.

Why not ensure that the original lte coverage is nation wide like 3g before releasing an even more limited lte service
Click to expand...

It's called innovation, it has to start somewhere and unfortunately the technological rate of progression doesn't allow for adoption on a 100% scale, especially in a society supported by the minority, but regardless... it is the fact that their advertisements are all live and running, but to date I am yet to find a Telkom store who can actually provide the advertised product. For now it appears to simply be hype aimed at promoting a product that has yet to see the light of day.
 
That's pretty shoddy.

I suppose internal communications problems are not as bad as deliberate deception by management. Hope it's the former. Nothing kills an organisation faster than rot from the top. A failing Telkom added to a failing Eskom added to a failed SAA added to a failed Post Office added to ... etc. Headless chickens can't be reigned in and fixed.
 
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Anybody had any joy with getting this product? The call centre thinks I am on crack and tells me to go to a Telkom Direct store and I am sure you can picture the blank stares I get when trying that route.
 
rtzouves said:
Anybody had any joy with getting this product? The call centre thinks I am on crack and tells me to go to a Telkom Direct store and I am sure you can picture the blank stares I get when trying that route.
Click to expand...
Contact the representative on here. Let her source the product and confirm with the branch iif stock is available
 
Franna said:
What is the upload speed on LTE Advanced?
Click to expand...

Unanswered question. It's the same as on LTE. The issue is more a question of which LTE technology was chosen by the provider. Telkom chose TDD and, as such, upload speed is asynchronous and typically 7Mbps with 12Mbps max (as observed on the forums). MTN and Vodacom LTE use FDD which is more synchronous but typically limited to 20Mbps upload. The OP's results are promising and a nice comparison of LTE vs LTE-A. It would be nice to have some signal values if the router allowed it. :(

The key technology advancement that LTE-A brings is increased performance at the cell edge, as well as better speeds for users even with a heavily loaded tower.

Can't wait for my area to be upgraded but this E5186-61a won't do - far too limited it seems.
 
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