Broadband in a remote area (Bohola, Mayo)

geuro

Hi folks.

I need to get a decent broadband service up and running for a friend of mine, who lives in remote Mayo and is outside the coverage zones for Eircom, NTL etc.

Looks like the only feasible options for getting her online are eiter 3G or Satellite broadband. I don't know anyone who subscribes to there services, so i was hoping that someone might be able to help me out a little bit.

My friend will be taking a job in Dublin, and requires the broadband in order to connect over a VPN to a desktop in an office here in Dublin. So i suppose she will need a decent connection in order to work efficiently.

So - a bunch of questions:

With the 3G, is this likely to to provide a decent connection in a remote area.

With the 3G is the quality of broadband connection directly related to the quality of the mobile reception?

Do any of the 3G providers have a partricularly good reputation as internet service providers?

With Satellite, can one exoect a decent connection speed?

Again, are there and particular ISPs who provide a particularly good service?

Any answers to these questions, or any other advice on how i can sort this out would be very welcome.

Cheers..

zing

Have you looked into regional ISPs or Wireless ISPs in that area. A quick check shows that Westnet (www.westnet.ie) appear to cover that area so might be worth looking into.

Options are going to be very limited but you may find 1 or 2 other WISPs covering that area.

PogMoThoin

Yes, Westnet are in Bohola, there are a few access points nearby that cover that area, One on the Village Inn, One on the hills of Callow, Foxford and another in Caroward on the big hill overlooking Bohola. You'd need clear line of sight to one of these. Ring for a signal test.
http://www.westnet.ie/component/option,com_contact/task,view/contact_id,3/Itemid,37/

geuro

Westnet look like they may be a good option alright. I will check out the situation with regard to this service.

Does anyone know if the service is any good though? There is an expensive connection fee, and monthly costs are way higher than 3G options. I don't mind paying the extra if the service is better than the cheaper 3G options.

Anyone in a remote area with limited internet options using a 3G dongle? Is it good? Reliable?

Thanks again

G

Moonbeam

If a 3G dongle works there it is probably a better choice then satellite a lot cheaper too.

geuro

Moonbeam wrote: »

If a 3G dongle works there it is probably a better choice then satellite a lot cheaper too.

Thanks Moonbeam, that's what i was thinking too.

Anyone use a 3G dongle and spend any time in Mayo, or other areas with limited broadband options?
How reliable is it?
Can you predict it's reliability by checking the strength of the phone signal, are the two directly related?

MunsterCycling

Will you even be able to use a vpn properly through a 3g connection, do you have control over the ports or do they? Best option is Wesnet I would say, a real ISP with a real public IP and a stable connection.

MC

zugvogel

>"My friend will be taking a job in Dublin, and requires the broadband in order to connect over a VPN to a desktop in an office here in Dublin. So i suppose she will need a decent connection in order to work efficiently."

If you're talking about a remote login e.g. (Citrix, VNC, terminal services, remote desktop - anything GUI basedf etc etc) I doubt very much it will work with 3G. I tried something similar with Three mobile offering a few years ago and the service just wasn't reliable enough. Also a good signal does not automatically guarantee a good service with 3G.

geuro

Thanks all for the helpful replies..

Useful to hear that the 3G/VPN connection didn't provide the kind of reliability you required zugvogel. If a good phone signal does not necessarily indicate a good wireless internet connection, I don't think I'm going to go down this route at all.

I reckon i might just shelve this idea and start looking at the westnet option.

I thought it was difficult to get my Broadband sorted when i moved down to Ringsend a few years ago, but this takes the biscuit. I hope Mr. Lenihans budgetary cuts don't include any curtailment of investment in Ireland's technical infrastructure. It's a disgrace that in this day and age somebody in Mayo has to pay through the nose for a poor broadband connection in order to take a job in Dublin. When jobs are thinner on the ground, the importance of investment in this area will be felt.

Thanks again for the help with this..

Fighting Irish

http://speedtest.net/global.php

Galen

Hi Geuro,

Have you had any luck with Westnet yet? I live a couple of miles from Bohola and Westnet is my internet provider for over a year. Westnet are the best, their tech support is excellent (they have suffered a lot getting decent signal through my foresty).