Which way to go? Telkom is useless!

[That_JC]

Thanks J, a REAL solution! I'll definitely be investigating Bitco!

No luck for Bitco in Kuils River, bummer. No fiber, no wireless.

 

[Foxhound5366]

*shrugs* Don't suppose you have LTE or at least 3G out there, unless you need a lot of data?

I'm in the process of switching from Telkom 4Mbps uncapped to WebAfrica 10Mbps capped, so I expect to see at least *some* improvement real soon. Price-wise, WebAfrica was actually marginally cheaper than Telkom, which was a nice bonus (strangely you end up paying R400 for your line rental and like R150 for the actual data).

 

[That_JC]

*shrugs* Don't suppose you have LTE or at least 3G out there, unless you need a lot of data?

I'm in the process of switching from Telkom 4Mbps uncapped to WebAfrica 10Mbps capped, so I expect to see at least *some* improvement real soon. Price-wise, WebAfrica was actually marginally cheaper than Telkom, which was a nice bonus (strangely you end up paying R400 for your line rental and like R150 for the actual data).

Lol, "out there" is right next to Bellville. The problem is with the hard line, we're VERY happy with the pricing and service from Web Africa. The original massage we posted here:

After enjoying stable 10mbs ADSL speed for more than a year in our area, we officially have no further use for Telkom. Our ADSL drops frequently (1-3mb connection on a 10mb line), and the line is so noisy that phone calls are pointless.

We've replaced modems/routers, adsl filters, ISPs and even landline phones... nothing works. Numerous Telkom faults reported (lately after waiting 1-2 hours on the phone to report it), then the fault reports are just closed with no solution, feedback, result or explanation. One Telkom techie just told us that there's too much line degradation.

Any reliable wireless alternatives? We use about 400GB a month and need at least 6MBS at no more than R1400pm total cost. Looking at Neotel Wireless, but word is that it's useless for gaming.

 

[That_JC]

Just an update: No luck yet on either the Telkom solution or finding a wireless provider that fits our needs in our area.

http://bitco.co.za/internet-solutions/home-internet-solutions/
Stretch your budget by R100 and you get 10Mbps. Think in Terms of conditions for each hour you max you get half throughput the next hour. So you will get at least 5Mbps constant.
That is without install costs though, but good luck.

No Bitco Wireless in Kuils River (or in the Western Cape by the looks of the coverage map), and according to this thread, fibre is WAY out our price range... bummer, they looked like a viable solution!

 

[aborg]

Hehe, glad I am not alone on this...Telkom's residential services have gone down the toilet in recent years. Connected at a stable 3 Mbps for the last 3 years, in the last 3 months they managed to stuff it up completely and after many many calls I can barely manage 1 Mbps, averages out at 400 kbps. We will be going fibre in our neighbourhood and then good riddance Telkom.

 

[That_JC]

We will be going fibre in our neighbourhood and then good riddance Telkom.

Urgh if only! Fibre is just out of our reach, physically and financially. We seems to be in technological limbo over here... meh!

 

[That_JC]

What I've learnt about wireless alternatives

Ok, just logged a 5th fault report after previous reports were closed by Telkom without any resolution.

What I've learnt about wireless alternatives:

• Neotel is available in my area, bu a 2 year contract is required and it's aparently useless for Gaming... I might just be prepared to live with it.
• Bitco Wireless isn't available in my area, and Bitco fibre is crazy expensive, so not an option.
• iBurst is so useless I don't even want to go there - used them before.

Yes, after all this talk, this is all I've learnt, but I thought I'd share it anyway.

A Telkom techie told me that the line drops because a new, much more sensitive system was implemented these past few months. As soon as it picks up even the slightest bit of noise, it terminates the connection and reconnects (at a lower speed). Bring back the old system dammit!

 

[Johnatan56]

Ok, just logged a 5th fault report after previous reports were closed by Telkom without any resolution.

What I've learnt about wireless alternatives:

• Neotel is available in my area, bu a 2 year contract is required and it's aparently useless for Gaming... I might just be prepared to live with it.
• Bitco Wireless isn't available in my area, and Bitco fibre is crazy expensive, so not an option.
• iBurst is so useless I don't even want to go there - used them before.

Yes, after all this talk, this is all I've learnt, but I thought I'd share it anyway.

The Tech told me that the line drops because of a new, much more sensitive system that was implemented these pasts months. As soon as it picks up even the slightest bit of noise, it terminates the connection and reconnects. Bring back the old system dammit!

Agreed. If they keep closing your faults, go to a Telkom store and ask for the number of the provincial manager, keep trying to go higher.

 

[That_JC]

Agreed. If they keep closing your faults, go to a Telkom store and ask for the number of the provincial manager, keep trying to go higher.

Great, we're back to standing in queues... that's why I use the internet for everything: to avoid them! I might just become too confrontational, so I will probably ditch Telkom before spending time in a store...

 

[That_JC]

I've officially gone from frustrated to angry. I can't make phone calls, I can make skype calls, I can't upload my client files. Telkom, please get the hell out of my life. Neotel it is. Not because I want to, but because I'm utterly desperate.

 

[maikeru86]

Ok, just logged a 5th fault report after previous reports were closed by Telkom without any resolution.

What I've learnt about wireless alternatives:

• Neotel is available in my area, bu a 2 year contract is required and it's aparently useless for Gaming... I might just be prepared to live with it.
• Bitco Wireless isn't available in my area, and Bitco fibre is crazy expensive, so not an option.
• iBurst is so useless I don't even want to go there - used them before.

Yes, after all this talk, this is all I've learnt, but I thought I'd share it anyway.

A Telkom techie told me that the line drops because a new, much more sensitive system was implemented these past few months. As soon as it picks up even the slightest bit of noise, it terminates the connection and reconnects (at a lower speed). Bring back the old system dammit!

So this is whats happening? A telkom techie has been coming out every month to "fix" my line and it just drops to a lower speed every time. (In Kuilriver also)

Did you ever come right with your internet, did you end up going to neotel?

 

[kaufen]

I had a similar problem and he helped me get my line back to max speed without any disconnects.