National Broadband Ireland : implementation and progress

TheSegal

I'm on the 500mbps package, I asked for a gig but the salesperson in Digiweb told me to go with 500 and see how I get on. I strongly suspect it's because of these issues where people aren't quite getting a gig leading to loads of complaints to the ISP! So far the 500 has been perfect, I haven't hit the limit at all yet with downloads or uploads due to limitations on the servers i'm using with work

TheBody

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117775400#Comment_117775400

Similar to that, my parents are paying for a 1gig ftth package with Digiweb. They best they get is around 550meg. Like you, it’s all over the place too. Can dip as low as 400meg at times.

listermint

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117775400#Comment_117775400

Something odd there though. On no metric should the phone WiFi best the laptop wired unless the laptop network card is not up to current standards. Apples and oranges comparisons there. Irrespective of there's issue on their line itself.

Pique

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117775496#Comment_117775496

Agreed, it makes no sense. It's been tested on 2 different laptops with gigabit ethernet cards in both. One using a usb-ethernet adapter and one direct into the ethernet port on the laptop and using multiple cables and various ports on the fritzbox. 2 different phones (iPhone and Android) also never reach close to 1gbps. All the above are across various speedtest sites/apps.

Pique

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117775473#Comment_117775473

Is that SIRO? Weird that the NBI/Digiweb connections are full throttle and these ones aren't.

TheBody

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117775675#Comment_117775675

It’s OpenEir rural ftth.

BArra

well you wouldn't max out a 1gbit connection with wifi, I have AX routers and can hit 750-800Mbps in the same room as the router on this wifi, but again my phones/tablets etc can support wifi 6 (ax), but if i go one wall away, this will drop the further you move away and more objects get in the way

standard wireless routers provided by ISP's wont be AX wifi, therefore at best maybe 300-500Mbps in the same room and again drops exponentially the more walls get in the way. Note also that i refer to 5ghz, if you connect via 2.4ghz you wont get anywhere near this, but it offers longer range but lower throughput

the key thing is, what wifi standard your router can provide and can your devices take advantage also, otherwise you are putting a square peg in a round hole. the only sure way to test is by ethernet with a compliant ethernet port

Gunner3629

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117774541#Comment_117774541

Usually upload is 10% of download so it makes sense. Unless you're webhosting or similar from your home, 50megs is more than enough.

Gunner3629

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117775884#Comment_117775884

Exactly, and make sure its a Gigabit ethernet nic, many smart tvs are only 100megs.

johnnyboy08

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117775884#Comment_117775884

Good point this. Digiweb are supplying the fritzbox 7350 but there's an ax version of that available. With dual band WiFi 5 you could theoretically get 866Mbps but is ax better with 1 gig fibre?

BArra

the fritz is decent per reviews and specs, id be happy with it if i wasnt a geek. at the end of the day even with ax you cant fully saturate 1gbps, you come close but only in the same room. id stick with the fritz and add further access points around the house, its the best free isp supplied router in my opinion

dont forget 866mbps is half duplex, so at best 400-500mbps but open to anyone familar with it in their own setup, i never took the one i got out of its box

ax offers more but at a price premium, is it worth it to you is the question

many people are gonna go for 1gb and then be wondering why they arent getting what they pay for as they associate wifi to the connection, its a minefield due to supplied isp router only being capable at full speed by ethernet, not possible over wifi on top of user devices potentially not being latest hi spec

just like how the fibre is delivered direct into your home, its not delivered wirelessly so connecting to router via ethernet is the gold standard

joe123

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117775400#Comment_117775400

Id argue talk of routers and ways of maximising your speeds are even more off topic than discussing OpenEirs 200k additional rollout and the encroachment on NBI's plan. Can we have all this in another thread? Its been done to death on this forum why 1Gb speeds cant be reached on certain devices etc.

oscarBravo

I'd also argue that if you can't explain why you need 1Gb/s then you don't need 1Gb/s.

SelfBuild2019

Hi there - we are in the process of building a house, and hope to move in after Christmas. I've signed up to the NBI alerts since last year, and the first couple of emails I got from them stated the expected connection date as being between August & October 2021. The last update I received has now has changed the anticipated connection date to between November 2021 & January 2022. I'm just wondering what people's experience is with them, and whether they are likely to stick to that timeframe? I tried to contact them, but they just repeated what was said on the email. We don't want to move into the house, and sign up to another internet provider on a 12 or 18 month contract only for the fibre to be connected a month later.

Orebro

Don't get too obsessed with the speed tests, you're not going to encounter any situation where you're going to need more than 10% of a 1Gbps connection. Just confirm your equipment is configured correctly and enjoy!

clohamon

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117780220#Comment_117780220

According to Junior Minister Ossian Smyth TD,

I am advised that NBI plan to update their website with further details on the NBP rollout plan for all counties including Dublin at the end of August.

https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/debates/question/2021-07-27/111/

Hococop

Hopefully won't be put back for us (limerick area) been on pre order 100+ days now, say on the small print you would be up and running but 90 days so just hoping it's not pushed back

heavydawson

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0308596121001312

Interesting read. The authors will be familiar to those of us following the NBP debate over the years

cargo

Testing underway on the Dundalk IA fibre. Seen a post from the contractor about it 2 days ago. Vans parked at the POP also so hopefully another few weeks should get it commissioned.

TheBody

Lots of pole being replaced in my area (Co. Longford) over the past number of days. I presume it’s NBI related. We are scheduled for March-May 2022.

ECO_Mental

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117780220#Comment_117780220

I was in the first roll out area and initially gave me Dec 2020 to Feb 21 connection it is now August 2021 and I can only order now...so about 8-9 months late.

What I suggest is get a 4g router from Three or similar as they do pay as you go and if you are near enough a tower (check with your phone) you can get decent enough BB until they connect you. I'm getting 50-60mb down (and better at night) and 20-30mb up. Only thing is you will have to pay for the router which is about €150 and it about €30/month. They also have a monthly limit of 750GB now.

Furze99

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117780220#Comment_117780220

If you're building in rural Ireland welcome to the world of promises and promises and broken promises. Don't believe anything from service providers of any sort till you see it done. I've had salespeople promising 'better broadband' since the early 2000s.. We waited maybe 10 years for a regular bin collection.. the school bus service only worked if you drove half way to meet it as they fixed the route 50 years ago.. and so on. As for NBI, they have run lines to within about 3 kms of us, but those last 3K could take years yet.

oscarBravo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117783888#Comment_117783888

The short version: if the government had taken a short-term view and invested in a network that would have been obsolete within a few years, it could have been done more cheaply.

heavydawson

Does anyone know what this is? I noticed it on the road in a few places after they had strung the fibre up on the poles last week

heavydawson

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117791526#Comment_117791526

Never mind, seems to be https://grassroutesgranfondo.ie/route/

SkepticQuark

So kinda a dumb question but curious, is the random rolls of cable left on certain poles along a road for the purposes of dropping to houses or connecting the gear for a drop point? This is the pole I was looking at in question which is the one where our telephone line is connected to. In the Tipperary area down for Nov-Dec 2021 still (though I don't see that happening considering the stage others were at around this far out and we're seemingly behind that, there's nothing fibre related from what I can see on the poles except cable).

BArra

the black cable looks to be fibre ducting, the actual fibre cable gets pushed within this, but yes its part of fibre rollout

they need to come along and blow in the fibre, then another crew will come along and install distribution points and another crew will splice the fibre into the DP, then they need to do the same for all eligible premises and finally provision/test before go live

cargo

No that's the actual fiber coils. They deploy it direct like this in an area where they are going overhead so no need for sub ducting. There will be a DP installed on that pole by another team shortly.

I'd say you are still on for a Nov-Dec go live. I'm just a few steps ahead of you and I'm down for Aug-Oct.

Fiber testing in the POP last week and guys out at each DP today along the backhaul route so hopefully I'm nearing the end

heavydawson

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117794017#Comment_117794017

Yup, that's fibre. Our road was done near Monard last week, and there are coils like that on a few poles. Fingers crossed the dates don't shift. I honestly can't see them getting the whole Tipp Town DA ready for that time. There still seems a large number of roads without any fibre runs (though fibre ducting is widespread). @cargo have you had the option to pre-order?

heavydawson

These popped up on the road in the last week. Anyone know why some poles would be designated RMO and/or Private? I assumed all poles would be Eir/ESB