Speed increases?

Hannibal_12

Just wondering if there are any speed increases on the way for us DSL users languishing at 3mbs for the princely sum of ~€50 pm when are European counterparts are blazing away at 8mbs for less.

Irishpimpdude

Not that anyone knows of yet :P

thefinalstage

Hannibal_12 wrote:

Just wondering if there are any speed increases on the way for us DSL users languishing at 3mbs for the princely sum of ~€50 pm when are European counterparts are blazing away at 8mbs for less.

3mb to a French man is worse than dial-up!

"Why doz it take 1/5th zecond four my zite to load?"

dlofnep

6meg here from NTL. Max out at about 718KB/s - Tis decent.

AlmightyCushion

College spoiled me. I think I was getting around 70mbps at times. Now I'm on 1mbps eircom. It sucks balls.

Gonzo

I reckon there will be nothing happening till at least next year sometime if at all, we got no upgrade this year at all from Eircom, we got upgrade to 3mb way back in January 2006 which was great back then but now heading into 2008 the rest of the world has passed us out by miles and the 3mb now doesnt seem so fast.

spurious

The Eircom upgrade only came about as a reaction to Smart.
They probably don't see the need since so many people who can get faster providers like Smart choose to stay with Eircom. The mind boggles.

AlmightyCushion

spurious wrote:

The Eircom upgrade only came about as a reaction to Smart.
They probably don't see the need since so many people who can get faster providers like Smart choose to stay with Eircom. The mind boggles.

The moment I can get smart eircom can kiss my as goodbye.

kaizersoze

spurious wrote:

The Eircom upgrade only came about as a reaction to Smart.

Correct, coupled with the fact that most phoneline wouldn't handle more that 3 meg.

AlmightyCushion

kaizersoze wrote:

Correct, coupled with the fact that most phoneline wouldn't handle more that 3 meg.

Does it cost much to enable an exchange with ADSL2?

paulm17781

AlmightyCushion wrote:

Does it cost much to enable an exchange with ADSL2?

You would need different hardware (unless it is adsl2 capable and they are not using it).

I'm hoping (probably naively) that UPCs (Not NTLs) first increase will be soon and hopefully quite large.

kaizersoze

AlmightyCushion wrote:

Does it cost much to enable an exchange with ADSL2?

Fcuk all I'd imagine. Most, if not all, of their gear would be ADSL2 compatable so a firmware upgrade is all that would be required. All the resellers have also been supplying ADSL2 modems for at least 3 years.

Cabaal

I heard a number of months back NTL were due to upgrade this summer, however this has come and gone so I'm doubting that now

Hannibal_12

Just looked at smart site now, had no idea they offered up to 7mb and still cheaper than whor€ircon's 3mb package. Anyone any experience with this?, reliable?, I think NTL is upgrading my area at the moment so I may try them, but DSL would be more convenient. Is smart available in the Drumcondra area?

spurious

I know someone off Griffith Avenue has it.
I know there was a post here recently that listed all the Smart enabled exchanges, but I can't find it now.
You can check here: http://www.smarttelecom.ie/howtoorder.html
Rock-solid connection here (North Strand).

Hannibal_12

Cheers, will look into, was just worried about transition time going from €ircon to Smart i.e. would really not want to wait 2 weeks without the net.

Soundman

Damn. Smart isn't available in Balbriggan! :mad:

AlmightyCushion

kaizersoze wrote:

Fcuk all I'd imagine. Most, if not all, of their gear would be ADSL2 compatable so a firmware upgrade is all that would be required. All the resellers have also been supplying ADSL2 modems for at least 3 years.

So why don't eircom upgrade the exchanges? Are they deliberately trying to piss people off?

thefinalstage

AlmightyCushion wrote:

So why don't eircom upgrade the exchanges? Are they deliberately trying to piss people off?

Deliberately trying to save money. They are six billion euro in debt after all.

Grommet

I don't think that most of eircom's kit is ADSL2 capable - at least half of it probably is not if you think that they started rolling out DSL in earnest 4 or 5 years ago (before ADSL2 kit was the norm). So any upgrade to ADSL2 (or ADSL2+ more likely) would require new kit and re-jumpering of customers. So it's not as cheap as is being suggested above.

Still - I do know that they are planning a 12Mbps service for launch some time in the new year in the main Dublin exchanges (it's on trial now). The product will be aimed at Business users, but of course there is nothing to stop any user buying it if your line qualifies.

I understand that they they plan to upgrade their 3 and 4 Mbps products a few months later.

AlmightyCushion

thelastangryman wrote:

Deliberately trying to save money. They are six billion euro in debt after all.

Are they really that much in debt? I didn't think it was that bad.

lucernarian

I remember kaizersoze posting about this, and I was also of the idea that the majority of DSLAM equipment would only need a firmware upgrade to handle ADSL2+. Remember that virtually all of the DSLAMs outside of Dublin were put there in 2003 or later, the year ADSL2+ was finalised.

Manufacturers were aware of its developments before that, and I expect they tried to make their equipment future-proof, much like the way there are HSDPA 3G modems out there, which can be upgraded for a faster version of HSDPA or HSUPA.

Praetorian

I've been travelling around the world since the start of the year and I've experienced true broadband!

24mbit in Sydney roughtly the same in Melbourne
10 x 10 mbit on a number of occasions in Japan
10 + mbit in a few homes in South Korea (48mbit in one net cafe)
8mbit in NZ
5 + mbit in China!!!
Upto 3x3 in parts of South America...

I can't believe I'm going to get back to Ireland at the end of the year with 3mbit

ArseBurger

If you need that sort of 'speed' you don't need DSL...

spurious

In 1997, Telecom Éireann classed anyone using the net more than one hour a day as 'a heavy user'.
They have always had their finger on the pulse.

smellslikeshoes

spurious wrote:

In 1997, Telecom Éireann classed anyone using the net more than one hour a day as 'a heavy user'.
They have always had their finger on the pulse.

Eircom did have their finger on the pulse back then, back then someone who used more than an hour a day was a heavy user. Most people wouldn't have used to for much more than just email and some surfing. There wasn't things like youtube and bebo back then.

dingding

AlmightyCushion wrote:

The moment I can get smart eircom can kiss my as goodbye.

I have Smart in Sligo, The Rathedmond exchange, got the 6 Mb package and very fast, no contention.

spurious

smellslikeshoes wrote:

Eircom did have their finger on the pulse back then, back then someone who used more than an hour a day was a heavy user. Most people wouldn't have used to for much more than just email and some surfing. There wasn't things like youtube and bebo back then.

It took 15 minutes to download a 1MB file though - those sort of speeds kept you online for a while.

For an internet user, phone bills of IR£700 were not unusual back then.
Of course now I have left that shower and pay hardly anything for faster speeds and unlimited downloads on Smart. If others would do the same maybe Eircom would lift their game, but as I said before, while people who can get faster and cheaper suppliers choose to stay with Eircom, there is no impetus for them to provide a better service.

Eircom/Telecom Éireann, had they had any vision whatsoever, would have foreseen the demise of landline services and the rise in on-demand TV - they could have invested all that line rental in a fibre optic network and right now rivalled Sky and NTL as a premier entertainment provider, but no, they thought 'sure what would ye be doing on the internet for more than an hour a day?'

thefinalstage

spurious wrote:

It took 15 minutes to download a 1MB file though - those sort of speeds kept you online for a while.

For an internet user, phone bills of IR£700 were not unusual back then.
Of course now I have left that shower and pay hardly anything for faster speeds and unlimited downloads on Smart. If others would do the same maybe Eircom would lift their game, but as I said before, while people who can get faster and cheaper suppliers choose to stay with Eircom, there is no impetus for them to provide a better service.

Eircom/Telecom Éireann, had they had any vision whatsoever, would have foreseen the demise of landline services and the rise in on-demand TV - they could have invested all that line rental in a fibre optic network and right now rivalled Sky and NTL as a premier entertainment provider, but no, they thought 'sure what would ye be doing on the internet for more than an hour a day?'

Pffft! If smart rolled out their broadband in more exchanges more people would. (Me included)

singularity

thelastangryman wrote:

Pffft! If smart rolled out their broadband in more exchanges more people would. (Me included)

Hear! Hear!

AlmightyCushion

dingding wrote:

I have Smart in Sligo, The Rathedmond exchange, got the 6 Mb package and very fast, no contention.

I think it says I'm on the HPO exchange when I checked on their website. It said it would contact me when it's enabled. Hopefully soon.

spurious

thelastangryman wrote:

Pffft! If smart rolled out their broadband in more exchanges more people would. (Me included)

Why do you think Smart encounter difficulties getting their equipment into Eircom's exchanges?

Xennon

because it would be stupid of eircom as a company to make it easy for them

spurious

Xennon wrote:

because it would be stupid of eircom as a company to make it easy for them

Welcome to LLU - Irish style.

smellslikeshoes

spurious wrote:

It took 15 minutes to download a 1MB file though - those sort of speeds kept you online for a while.

For an internet user, phone bills of IR£700 were not unusual back then.
Of course now I have left that shower and pay hardly anything for faster speeds and unlimited downloads on Smart. If others would do the same maybe Eircom would lift their game, but as I said before, while people who can get faster and cheaper suppliers choose to stay with Eircom, there is no impetus for them to provide a better service.

You must have been an exceptionally heavy user because most people simply would not have used it as much back then. Most business's hadn't realised its potential yet and most home users wouldn't have had much to do.

Eircom/Telecom Éireann, had they had any vision whatsoever, would have foreseen the demise of landline services and the rise in on-demand TV - they could have invested all that line rental in a fibre optic network and right now rivalled Sky and NTL as a premier entertainment provider, but no, they thought 'sure what would ye be doing on the internet for more than an hour a day?'

Back then Telecom Eireann were a company owned by the Irish people and before they were flogged off to investors who were there to strip assests. Telecom Eireann did have one of the most up to date infrastructures in the world during the 80s and most of the 90s. The Telecom Eireann company you mention of in 1997 were not the same as the Eircom of today, simply because the bosses today are there to assest strip rather than make a viable telecoms company.

dingding

AlmightyCushion wrote:

I think it says I'm on the HPO exchange when I checked on their website. It said it would contact me when it's enabled. Hopefully soon.

The HPO exchange is the one behind the post office in o'connell st.

HPO = Head Post Office, services cartron, town centre and most of the older phones in Sligo.

Not sure how quickly they plan to update this exchange.

AlmightyCushion

dingding wrote:

Not sure how quickly they plan to update this exchange.

Aaaaahhhh nuts.

Gonzo

I would give anything to get Smart Broadband but unfortunately like almost every other exchange in the country with the exception of a handfull of lucky exchanges, we cant get anything other than eircom broadband and eircom's resellers. No cable in the area either and wireless is unstable and expensive for what you get.

Hannibal_12

Anyone migrate from eircom to smart broadband?, I'm curious as I would prefer not to be without the net for 15/20 days if possible and also I have Eircom phonewatch at home, would that be affected?

Clash

Hannibal_12 wrote:

Anyone migrate from eircom to smart broadband?, I'm curious as I would prefer not to be without the net for 15/20 days if possible and also I have Eircom phonewatch at home, would that be affected?

I don't think you'd be without a line. The changeover happens when it happens and you continue to use your existing provider until it does.

kaizersoze

Clash wrote:

I don't think you'd be without a line. The changeover happens when it happens and you continue to use your existing provider until it does.

Not the case with broadband unfortunately. The line must be clear of broadband before the transfer can go ahead. That means no BB in the interim. I'm not too sure how fast/slow the transfer time is at the moment but the last I heard it was 4 - 6 weeks. That may have come down recently.

Hannibal_12

kaizersoze wrote:

Not the case with broadband unfortunately. The line must be clear of broadband before the transfer can go ahead. That means no BB in the interim. I'm not too sure how fast/slow the transfer time is at the moment but the last I heard it was 4 - 6 weeks. That may have come down recently.

4-6 weeks!Well then no smart for me, I couldn't be without the net for that period of time, I'll give NTL a try.

spurious

It was about four hours for my brother when he switched at the start of the summer.

I've never heard of anyone else getting it that quickly - he couldn't believe it.

rc28

thelastangryman wrote:

Deliberately trying to save money. They are six billion euro in debt after all.

Umm, WTF- that's total nonsense!!
http://rte.ie/business/2007/0828/eircom.html

thefinalstage

rc28 wrote:

Umm, WTF- that's total nonsense!!
http://rte.ie/business/2007/0828/eircom.html

Obviously you have never heard of loans! You pay them off in chunks not all at once.

NullZer0

spurious wrote:

The Eircom upgrade only came about as a reaction to Smart.
They probably don't see the need since so many people who can get faster providers like Smart choose to stay with Eircom. The mind boggles.

Can you get this on an average phoneline?

I have Eircom at the moment.... but woah... I would pay for this!

AlmightyCushion

iRock wrote:

Can you get this on an average phoneline?

I have Eircom at the moment.... but woah... I would pay for this!

If you're exchange is adsl2 then yes.

NullZer0

AlmightyCushion wrote:

If you're exchange is adsl2 then yes.

How can I find out that?

I would guess that mine is though. Its the Crown Alley exchange, Dame St.

That would serve Trinity College and alot of Businesses.

AlmightyCushion

iRock wrote:

How can I find out that?

I would guess that mine is though. Its the Crown Alley exchange, Dame St.

That would serve Trinity College and alot of Businesses.

Smart and magnet do adsl2. Check you're number with them (through their website) and see what they say. If magnet says you're able for broadband basic then I'm pretty sure this means they don't have adsl2 in you're exchange. BT also have adsl2 enabled some exchanges but I don't know how you would find out.

NullZer0

AlmightyCushion wrote:

Smart and magnet do adsl2. Check you're number with them (through their website) and see what they say. If magnet says you're able for broadband basic then I'm pretty sure this means they don't have adsl2 in you're exchange. BT also have adsl2 enabled some exchanges but I don't know how you would find out.

When I try it, it just tells me what exchange I'm on.

I think I'll give them a call after work, could be worth it!

paulm17781

iRock wrote:

When I try it, it just tells me what exchange I'm on.

I think I'll give them a call after work, could be worth it!

The Smart one should say if your exchange is enabled too. I'm on Crown alley and Smart is available (though I'm with NTL) so you should be able to get it.