Advertisement
If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on hello@boards.ie for help. Thanks :)
Hello all! Please ensure that you are posting a new thread or question in the appropriate forum. The Feedback forum is overwhelmed with questions that are having to be moved elsewhere. If you need help to verify your account contact hello@boards.ie
Hi there,
There is an issue with role permissions that is being worked on at the moment.
If you are having trouble with access or permissions on regional forums please post here to get access: https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058365403/you-do-not-have-permission-for-that#latest

What Broadband suppliers are good at

  • 16-07-2009 12:19am
    #1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 16


    I would like to say that after years of Internet experience and dealing with the various I.S.P's , Eircom, NTL ( now Chorus/NTL) BT, Esat, Ireland online -you remember.

    Well, I can't ever remember getting a proper service, Eircom appeared not to know what a decent connection was till recently. and they didn't have to care because they had the monopoly.
    I had to fold a start-up company because of not getting a proper service from Eircom.
    BT - I was sick of spending up to 2 weeks going through invoices each time I got a statement and explaining to them that they had charged me too much, ( did get re-imbursed when I spent a lot of my time, proving to them they were wrong) They sent debt collectors, even though I was not in arrears, I won't bore you with the gross situation, One of their own employees agreed with me that they had no integrated system. I asked him "What System " They slyly billed me for an insurance paid to a company in Scotland to endemnify them (Bt) and not myself from lapsed payments. I eventually copped it and got away from them.

    NTL - one day or night I hope to reach their planet and see whatever they see. i'v had enough problems with the TV. I get on average at least one person a week knocking on my door and offering me fantastic saving from their brilliant new, never to be re-peated offer that no one else can give me.
    However, I went through all the changing to this and that company and it cost, and cost always , no savings only more costs and anoynance.

    Oh Yes, changed to Perlico and they billed me for one month, They signed me up even though they knew they could not give me coverage in my area, but they still got thier little whack out of it.

    In Ireland they call this commerce, fair trading, in New York they would be honest and call it gangsterism.
    I hate complaining , I detest it, but it is the only way.
    Hello, H-e-l-l-o, Is any decent providers out there ?, Shooks ! :eek:

    Ah I feel better now. Ya just got to laugh or you'll crack
    Have a nice day :) Oh yeh, there good at taking your money !


Comments

  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 32,417 ✭✭✭✭watty


    Sadly CAI and ASAI are quangos and don't help much. The regulators are only interested in some mythical level of "competition" and not mis-selling or consumer rights/protection/standards.

    eircom's main difficulty these days is crushing debt caused by so called "investors" (asset strippers really), over €4B inc pension shortfalls, maybe over €5B.

    UPC is working hard to upgrade a rubbish network that saw little investment over 20 years to a high standard. They will get there eventually. However they "inherited" NTL's and Chorus's CS depts and kept the Chorus one. That will take a bit of work.

    BT took over Esat's infrastructure and Culture.

    Magnet & Smart are too small. Magent relies on fibre and Smart on LLU.

    Perlico (owned by Vodafone, bought for Customer database?) is just an eircom reseller. Not a real ISP IMO.

    Imagine is mix of three things: IBB ripwave (poor), IBB Breeze wireless (OK) and reselling eircom DSL. They are probabily still fixing up IBB's network and digesting it.

    Digiweb, where you can get Metro is not bad. They are a real ISP and Hosting Centre and their billing seems to mostly work. They also resell eircom DSL and can provide Satelite and fibre too.

    There are threads on Clearwire, Permanet and Ice. :(

    The Mobile operators are flogging Mobile Internet Data package that sits on their Phone network. It will never be Broadband. (Meteor, 3, O2, Vodafone and eircom selling Meteor).

    Most of the rest are either very regional wireless operators (often better than many of the "National" ISPs) or resellers of eircom (utv etc).

    Virtually no-one using phone lines (DSL, LLU) is making any money. eircom gets all the "profit" from that, but it goes down the black hole of their debt repayments so nothing is invested.

    ITR sold IBB to Imagine because it had taken over €50M losses and made no profit. Smart is for sale as it has debt of over €50M and makes no money.

    Magnet is only going invest in N.I. in future as infrastucture is too poor here. BT may concentrate on Commercial & Corporate, not Domestic Retail. Read this to see why Broadband is going to get worse in Ireland.
    http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055619459

    Who are you getting Broadband from at the minute?


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 16 juan2b


    watty wrote: »


    Who are you getting Broadband from at the minute?

    Thank you Watty for your very helpful information.

    I went back to Eircom as they ironically were the only company that could give me the broadband coverage.
    I tried Clearwire wireless, very nice people to deal with, but sadly they were just not able to give me the speed.

    I would love to get 10 or 20 mbs but at the moment the packages are still too dear.

    Maybe the market forces will cause someone to do a Ryanair strategy sooner or later.
    More info...
    Esat spent 5 years laying fiber optic around Dublin, the result was that if Eircom wanted to dig a hole they had to get permission from Esat. Told to me from the horse's mouth.

    bye and thanks :)


  • Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators, Regional South East Moderators Posts: 28,536 Mod ✭✭✭✭Cabaal


    juan2b wrote: »

    Esat - well I had a co-located server with them and their staff hacked into it, these are the boys that look after you. :mad: A-R-R-h !

    BT bought Esat, saying their employee's "hacked" your server is a pretty big claim, I hope you can backup such a claim with proof for your own sake


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 16 juan2b


    Cabaal wrote: »
    BT bought Esat, saying their employee's "hacked" your server is a pretty big claim, I hope you can backup such a claim with proof for your own sake
    Thanks


  • Moderators, Motoring & Transport Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators Posts: 23,279 Mod ✭✭✭✭bk


    juan2b wrote: »
    NTL - one day or night I hope to reach their planet and see whatever they see. i'v had enough problems with the TV. I get on average at least one person a week knocking on my door and offering me fantastic saving from their brilliant new, never to be re-peated offer that no one else can give me.
    However, I went through all the changing to this and that company and it cost, and cost always , no savings only more costs and anoynance.

    Have you actually tried NTL (UPC)?

    Because there BB service is actually very good and it is cheaper then anyone else.

    I realise you may have had bad experiences with NTL in the past, but since UPC took over, they have been spending an absolute fortune upgrading the network and improving CS, though they aren't all the way there yet.


  • Advertisement
  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 16 juan2b


    bk wrote: »
    Have you actually tried NTL (UPC)?

    Because there BB service is actually very good and it is cheaper then anyone else.

    I realise you may have had bad experiences with NTL in the past, but since UPC took over, they have been spending an absolute fortune upgrading the network and improving CS, though they aren't all the way there yet.

    I looked at it the other day and was tempted to change, I just couldn't see a current positve update on the forums, but on what you say, I will give them a go .
    There is nothing like a "Happy Camper"
    Thanks again you have been very constructive, I really appreciate it


  • Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators, Regional South East Moderators Posts: 28,536 Mod ✭✭✭✭Cabaal


    To be honest having used
    BT Business
    NTL
    and Bit-Stream Resellers (UTV)

    I have to say I'd rate them in ther above order as well, BT Business was by far the best package I've ever used but it was extremely costly but in over two years of using it I only experienced approx 15min downtime.

    NTL I used for approx two years and I found them pretty good, ok downtime was pretty high but thankfully most of this happened while I was at work so it didn't really affect me, cap was decent (had no cap previously on BT) and even though its supposed to be a dynamic IP I had the same one for two years which was handy.

    UTV, downtime hasn't been much to date but speed varys alot more then NTL ever did (appears to be mainly due to throttling of P2P), I'm on their 3MB package but if you asked me in the morning to switch to NTL I'd do it in a heart beat.

    So thats from my own personal home use experience, from a job point of view...if cable works it works brilliantly but if it goes to crap its a pain to fix it sometimes.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 16 juan2b


    Thanks Cabaal
    I am considering the idea of going over to NTL. I hope things really are better now.
    Thanks it is great to get unbiased opinions as I have gotten here.


    This is a very healthy board ;-)


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 3,558 ✭✭✭netwhizkid


    Eircom with OpenDNS always seems to be ok for me and I for one won't complain about the speeds.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 16 juan2b


    juan2b wrote: »
    Thanks Cabaal
    I am considering the idea of going over to NTL. I hope things really are better now.
    Thanks it is great to get unbiased opinions as I have gotten here.


    This is a very healthy board ;-)

    Hi
    I went over to Chorus NTL.......
    here are some speeds
    Download = 6.40
    Upload = 1.33
    Ping = 26
    24-07-09
    I upgraded from 10 to 20 hoping to improve the situation.
    I went worst.
    today I was waiting 40 seconds to downlaod a page using a 20 Mbs package.
    Here is today's disastrous speed reading:
    Download = 3.95mb s - paying for 20mbs
    Upload = 0.44mb s
    Ping = 1136ms
    25-07-09
    I rang up to be told they are or will be doing work in the area.(couldn't tell if or when it would be started or finished) i was told the same story years ago and it seems the haven't updated it yet. that's why I got away from them.
    I hope it is not the nightmare I went through before.

    I really have lost all trust in what I am told by any company as they will never run out of excuses.
    Someone should come in here and really show them how it should be done.
    Here are global speed tests
    DOWNLOAD SPEED
    20.04 Mb/s Korea, Republic of
    15.93 Mb/s Japan
    15.22 Mb/s Aland Islands
    12.81 Mb/s Lithuania
    12.71 Mb/s Sweden
    12.18 Mb/s Latvia
    12.01 Mb/s Romania
    11.31 Mb/s Bulgaria
    10.59 Mb/s Netherlands
    9.10 Mb/s Moldova, Republic of
    8.39 Mb/s Slovakia
    8.25 Mb/s Hong Kong
    8.18 Mb/s Germany
    8.06 Mb/s Russian Federation
    4.17 Mb/s Ireland
    UPLOAD SPEED
    8.75 Mb/s Lithuania
    2.7.21 Mb/s Japan
    3.5.59 Mb/s Aland Islands
    4.5.35 Mb/s Bulgaria
    4.90 Mb/s Latvia
    4.82 Mb/s Romania
    4.58 Mb/s Russian Federation
    4.52 Mb/s Hong Kong
    4.43 Mb/s Sweden
    4.26 Mb/s Slovenia
    3.65 Mb/s Andorra
    3.46 Mb/s Moldova, Republic of
    3.05 Mb/s Netherlands
    3.04 Mb/s Asia/Pacific Region
    .77 Mb/s Ireland
    Successive governments and companies have failed us miserable
    we might be able to lead in technology, but we need to get rid of the Aliens in charge of Infrastructure.


  • Advertisement
  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 9,487 ✭✭✭banquo


    What the hell is going on in Korea?!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 16 juan2b


    What the hell is going on in ireland, or more to the point Chorus NTL.
    Where is Eddie Hobbs now?; when we need him.
    We should be paid to allow these experiment with us.
    We certainly are not getting what we pay for, not by a long, long, l-o-n-g shot !
    This is one of those situations that they can make any excuse and there is no organisation that will be able to take them to task, welll it seems that way, at least.

    It's like if you took €3.95 out of your account and on your statement it shows €20.00
    Check out this article http://www.independent.ie/business/technology/struggling-with-new-year-broadband-blues-1262108.html
    My only question then is why can companies offer customers a product that they know they just cannot provide, as in my case


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 13,016 ✭✭✭✭vibe666


    banquo wrote: »
    What the hell is going on in Korea?!
    north or south? :)

    seriously though, what's going on is state of the art fibre infrastructure and investment in the future. i.e. everything that's not going on here. :(

    stick with ntl mate, they'll come good.

    i had a few problems with mine when i first got it and it was just that people were signing up quicker than they could provide the capacity, so it took a little while for the speeds to pick up, but they did and it's all good.

    you have to remember they are currently investing millions in upgrading their infrastructure (about the only people in ireland who are) so it might take a while for them to upgrade the back end so you get your full speeds as they can only do those upgrades when they reach capacity on what's there already.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 16 juan2b


    vibe666 wrote: »
    north or south? :)

    seriously though, what's going on is state of the art fibre infrastructure and investment in the future. i.e. everything that's not going on here. :(

    stick with ntl mate, they'll come good.

    i had a few problems with mine when i first got it and it was just that people were signing up quicker than they could provide the capacity, so it took a little while for the speeds to pick up, but they did and it's all good.

    you have to remember they are currently investing millions in upgrading their infrastructure (about the only people in ireland who are) so it might take a while for them to upgrade the back end so you get your full speeds as they can only do those upgrades when they reach capacity on what's there already.
    Ok Thanks for your welcome post. I will .
    I wish them well


Advertisement