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Anyone using konnect satellite midband?

The Continental Op

I've a neigbor on twoway broadband and they are going to change to konnect (https://europe.konnect.com/en-IE). Konnects claims seem to be too good to be true. They are going for the €70 package which gives them twice as much as twoway for half the price. No other possible service providers in the area, no mobile phone 3G or 4G and no fixed line. Fibre stops about half a mile up the road with no chance of a connection.

I'm trying to persude them to have a word with the farmer nextdoor and run PoA up to a highpoint that can get Wireless broadband and good 4G but they don't like to ask the farmer :rolleyes:

Anyway just interested in anyones experience with konect, the relevant bit of the small print seems to be.....

With the konnect Easy, konnect Zen and konnect Max Packages, You have internet data consumption for which the traffic is prioritized up to 20Gb, 60Gb and 120Gb respectively, without guaranteed capacity. If You exceed 20Gb, 60Gb or 120Gb of data consumption, Your consumption may be prioritized after the consumption of other users of the Eutelsat S.A. network in case of congestion.

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ED E

Cush is really well informed on the product.

The Cush wrote: »

Just on the satellite broadband, a family member is also using this service but a business package from the KA-Sat satellite. The capacity on this satellite is over-subscribed due to Covid/WFH.

Some changes that happened late last year, Eutelsat sold its reamining interest in this satellite to US satellite operator Viasat and BigBlu's retail satellite division was purchased by Eutelsat.

BigBlu/Eutelsat continues to support their legacy KA-Sat customers but will not contract new customers to KA-Sat.

BigBlu/Eutelsat's retail arm now named Konnect, offers a satellite broadband package from the new Eutelsat Konnect satellite. The biggest difference between the KA-Sat and Konnect offering is the free install and equipment with Konnect. A new dish and modem are required for the Konnect service.
https://europe.konnect.com/en-IE

It seems like its probably semi vacant thus has capacity to go around. Per !Wikipedia! the total capacity of the new sat is less than KA-Sat. So itll be fine until enough new platform ground stations arrive.

Greenpuppy

I’m also looking into getting konnect satellite. Similar situation, no access to broadband and 3G/4G is not available so it’s really the only option. Did you go ahead and sign up with them or get feedback from anybody using the service?

The Continental Op

Greenpuppy wrote: »

I’m also looking into getting konnect satellite. Similar situation, no access to broadband and 3G/4G is not available so it’s really the only option. Did you go ahead and sign up with them or get feedback from anybody using the service?

Yeah they did and its working fine no problems so far certainly better than there previous Satellite connection except they can't get a VPN to work but they haven't really made an effort to get that sorted yet.

Speeds better and the cost is less plus so far there doesn't seem to be any/much throttling as I'm quite sure they have used their monthly limit up already.

But I'm getting them to keep trying the link for Starlink (Starlink now open for pre-orders.) to see if they can get on the list as I suspect it will be a better service.

Greenpuppy

Brilliant, thanks so much for the feedback. It definitely seems to have it’s limitations but when you have no other options I think it could be a good temporary solution for me.

Starlink could be a game changer for rural Ireland so hopefully can get on the list at some point.

The Cush

ED E wrote: »

It seems like its probably semi vacant thus has capacity to go around. Per !Wikipedia! the total capacity of the new sat is less than KA-Sat. So itll be fine until enough new platform ground stations arrive.

Hadn't seen your post until earlier today, the current Konnect 75 Gbps (65 Ka spotbeams) satellite is an interim solution until Eutelsat launches its Konnect VHTS satellite with a 500 Gbps throughput (~230 Ka spotbeams), due to launch in H1 2022.

The current Konnect satellite started out as the African Broadband Satellite solely to provide 75 Gbps internet access capacity in Africa but when the JV between Eutelsat and Viasat, to invest in Viasat’s 1 Tbps throughput ViaSat-3 EMEA satellite collapsed, the African Broadband Satellite was renamed and repurposed by splitting the satellite's capacity to cover Western Europe and get a head start over Viasat. Its footprint covers 15 countries in Europe and 45 countries in Africa. The satellite’s coverage can later be reallocated fully to Africa.

The Cush

Greenpuppy wrote: »

Brilliant, thanks so much for the feedback. It definitely seems to have it’s limitations but when you have no other options I think it could be a good temporary solution for me.

Starlink could be a game changer for rural Ireland so hopefully can get on the list at some point.

Free installation and equipment is the main benefit of Konnect over Starlink right now. Starlink costs €500+ without installation.

Hermy

We recently tried Konnect and it was a disaster from the start.

So within the cooling-off period, and after several phone calls and emails, we managed to get it cancelled.

Now they are refusing to come out to remove the dish from the wall and demanding that we send back the box.

Can anyone tell me what are our rights and responsibilities in this situation?

The Cush

Hermy wrote: »

Can anyone tell me what are our rights and responsibilities in this situation?

That would be in the terms and conditions of your contract with them.

Hermy

Funny thing is we never received a contract which was one of the concerns which led to us cancelling.

The Cush

Hermy wrote: »

Funny thing is we never received a contract which was one of the concerns which led to us cancelling.

Who did you sign up with, Konnect directly or one of their resellers?

Resellers I found - https://digiweb.ie/konnect/, http://irishsat.ie/, https://muntec.ie/broadband/, https://ruralwifi.ie/broadband/ruralwifi-satellite/

Konnect terms and conditions here - https://europe.konnect.com/sites/europe/files/2020-12/ir_contract3.pdf

Section 5.05 ...

(b) In case of exercising the right of withdrawal

In case of exercising Your right of withdrawal (under the conditions of Article 12), You are responsible for returning the Modem (with its cables and power supply, etc.), using the returns document provided to You by Eutelsat S.A., within thirty (30) days of Your decision to withdraw.

The Modem (and its cables and power supply, etc.) must be returned in suitable packaging such as to allow them to be transported safely and cleanly and to ensure the protection of the Modem (and its cables and power supply etc.), identical or equivalent to that used when it was delivered to You.

In the event of failure to receive the Modem and its cables (and power supply etc.), by Eutelsat S.A. within the aforementioned period of thirty (30) days (and if You are unable to provide Us with proof that the package was sent within the aforementioned period), You will be invoiced in accordance with the financial conditions stated in the konnect Price Guide.

Section 5.03 ...

in case of withdrawal or termination, the cost of removing the satellite dish, the mounting, the HA200 transceiver head, the power supply unit, the penetrating mast and coaxial cable shall not be borne by Eutelsat S.A. (see Section 5.05(b) and 5.05(c) for more information).

From the website FAQ

What are the terms and conditions when purchasing a konnect product?

View the Contractual Conditions within the "Shop with confidence" section on the konnect.com website. If you sign up to a konnect package you will receive a copy of the Contractual Conditions attached to the Contract which you will need to sign and return to us.

Hermy

Thanks for those details Cush - it's fairly clear cut that the onus is all on the customer.

We signed up directly with Konnect.

I managed to get the thing down off the wall yesterday and the whole lot was collected by courier today.

Hopefully our paths never cross again - they were just awful to deal with.

MrCross

Hi Hermy,

What issues did you encounter with it? I just signed up through a reseller (currently using a modem with SIM card, which is also hit and miss in my area).

Thanks,

The Continental Op

News from the neighbors they have managed to sign up to Starlink. They have only had konnect for less than a month and had connection issues today with no connection most of the morning and another period of a 6 hour outage just over a week ago, really not good enough.

Hermy

MrCross wrote: »

Hi Hermy,

What issues did you encounter with it? I just signed up through a reseller (currently using a modem with SIM card, which is also hit and miss in my area).

Thanks,

Overall I just found them very unprofessional to deal with.

The guy who came to install the dish arrived without phoning to say he was on the way - not acceptable in these times - and had to be told to put on a mask.

When he was leaving he said it was still updating but that it should be fine but it stopped working shortly after that.

Customer service were hopeless, our initial complaint wasn't logged, and a week after install we were still none the wiser as to what went wrong and when it would be addressed.

We never received a contract.

And we weren't told if we cancelled it was up to us to take down the dish and arrange its return (albeit couriered at their expense).

We've been with Rural Wifi for a few years now who are not great but the devil you know and all that!

mmc2010

I signed up with Konnect and have it installed a week at this stage. I'm happy so far. A couple of glitches initially but these seem to have worked themselves out. I had terrible latency issues with my previous supplier and while there is still a small delay with my TEAMs calls, it is manageable and much better than before. My speeds are at around 50-80Mbps download and around 5 upload. I'm pretty happy so far. I went for the biggest package at around 70eur p.m. but am happy to pay that for a consistent service. I do have a 12 month contract so am screwed if it doesn't work out after my 14 day cooling off period!

amber2

Should have checked here for feed back first, I just signed up a few minutes ago with Konnectme I’m assuming the same company and regretting it now. Current service is absolutely appalling. Anyone long standing customer with positive feedback.

I just rang the agent back to enquire regarding the return of modem etc if I was not happy with the service and was told that an engineer would call and remove the dish & modem if I wasn’t satisfied. I too don’t have a contract and won’t receive same until after the cooling off period.

mmc2010

Hi Amber2, I wouldn't be too concerned yet. I have it installed 2 weeks now and I'm pretty happy with it so far. Like I said earlier, there were a couple of glitches at the start, but the engineers are coming back out to ensure the modem is working properly and no adjustments are required. I haven't had the experience described previously. Hope this helps!

amber2

mmc2010 wrote: »

Hi Amber2, I wouldn't be too concerned yet. I have it installed 2 weeks now and I'm pretty happy with it so far. Like I said earlier, there were a couple of glitches at the start, but the engineers are coming back out to ensure the modem is working properly and no adjustments are required. I haven't had the experience described previously. Hope this helps!

Fantastic to hear mmc2010 appreciate the reply, fiber in our area stops 1km away and our other option is ivertec. I’ve let the order run and will wait and see how it pans out.

Can I ask if you find it lags a lot as I’ve teens who play online, netflix and would also have been using for teams online class which hopefully won’t be an issue after the 12th, but you never know.

MrCross

Hi - I have it now a day, very early days but so far so good, depends where you were coming from/what you had before. My previous connection was up and down 0.5MB/sec one minute then 15 the next, so very unreliable. So far with this one I am not getting below 10MB/sec but I need to give it a full 2 weeks to know for sure. The weather is good at the moment which I am sure is also helping with the stability

The Continental Op

mmc2010 wrote: »

Hi Amber2, I wouldn't be too concerned yet. I have it installed 2 weeks now and I'm pretty happy with it so far. Like I said earlier, there were a couple of glitches at the start, but the engineers are coming back out to ensure the modem is working properly and no adjustments are required. I haven't had the experience described previously. Hope this helps!

Neighbors are waiting over a week for an "engineer" to call. Very iffy. They now drive up the road where they can get mobile phone coverage for any important work.

mmc2010

amber2 wrote: »

Fantastic to hear mmc2010 appreciate the reply, fiber in our area stops 1km away and our other option is ivertec. I’ve let the order run and will wait and see how it pans out.

Can I ask if you find it lags a lot as I’ve teens who play online, netflix and would also have been using for teams online class which hopefully won’t be an issue after the 12th, but you never know.

I don't really notice it but I'm the only person using it during the day for work. It isn't perfect and can drop the odd time but in comparison to what I had, its much better. But its all relative.

MrCross

Has anyone reached their priority allowance ? With the various packages there are different allowances for the month e.g. 60GB , 100GB. There is no easy way yet to see how much you have consumed. I’ve had it a week but want to know what peoples experience is after you have reached the priority allowance you signed up for. Would be horrible if this leads to constant drops, very slow speed as so far it’s been good.

amber2

MrCross wrote: »

Has anyone reached their priority allowance ? With the various packages there are different allowances for the month e.g. 60GB , 100GB. There is no easy way yet to see how much you have consumed. I’ve had it a week but want to know what peoples experience is after you have reached the priority allowance you signed up for. Would be horrible if this leads to constant drops, very slow speed as so far it’s been good.

I’ve enquired re priority allowance from two different sources customer service and original rep I signed up with and here’s the reply :

The priority data does not apply since it is a brand new satellite system. It will take another 2 years atleast before that is applied so don't worry about it.

I’ve only signed up, not received my equipment as yet, also enquired re the cooling off period and the removal of equipment and have been told they will retrieve it should I decide not to go with them. I signed up with konnect themselves and not a third party. Also night time usage doesn’t apply to your priority data when it is introduced.

The Cush

amber2 wrote: »

I’ve enquired re priority allowance from two different sources customer service and original rep I signed up with and here’s the reply :

The priority data does not apply since it is a brand new satellite system. It will take another 2 years atleast before that is applied so don't worry about it.

There is no mention of this on their website or in their contract, so I assume this will be the case until they fill this satellite. Considering that this satellite isplanned to cover up to 15 European countries and 45 African countries that could come sooner rather than later. A higher capacity replacement satellite is due to launch this time next year with entry into service in late 2022 following successful launch and commissioning.

amber2 wrote: »

I’ve only signed up, not received my equipment as yet, also enquired re the cooling off period and the removal of equipment and have been told they will retrieve it should I decide not to go with them.

Depends on what they mean by retrieve and your understanding of retrieve, removal of equipment is at your expense and collection at their expense, see this post from earlier in the thread https://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=116659050#post116659050

Section 5.03 ...

in case of withdrawal or termination, the cost of removing the satellite dish, the mounting, the HA200 transceiver head, the power supply unit, the penetrating mast and coaxial cable shall not be borne by Eutelsat S.A. (see Section 5.05(b) and 5.05(c) for more information).

amber2

Attached is their reply on the equipment, I will clarify once the engineer arrives but as I’m within the cooling off period as such I don’t have a contract as yet.

The priority data does not apply since it is a brand new satellite system. It will take another 2 years atleast before that is applied so don't worry about it. Also if you cancel within 14 days cooling off period konnect will organise to get the equipment back.

Regards

The Continental Op

Neighbors were given the same story about data limits (there weren't any currently) but I did wonder if the reason they were being cut off so often is because they had gone over their limit.

First couple of weeks were fine then the trouble started.

MrCross

Hi - After all the good promise, its not been working at all since early this morning, the weekend it was just up and down constantly. I need to call the support desk, will let you know and see if its a case I am over my allowance.

The Continental Op

A quick follow up here. Neighbors got their konnect satellite fixed. The problem was the dish kept moving and wasn't tightened up properly by the installer. They eventually got someone out to look at it who said he would get the dish moved from an I beam to a wall but didn't bother fixing the issue. The owners then found some loose nuts on the bracket and managed to move the dish back in line themselves. Two weeks on and no sign of anyone from konnect coming back to move the dish and reinstall it.

There is some form of connection monitor on the satellite decoder/router so the neighbor connected to that via their home wireless network, got the interface up on their mobile phone and moved the dish slightly into the slackness allowed by the loose bolts and the signal came back. Tightened everything and been working since.

amber2

Just an update on this, got konnect installed on a Friday pretty much the same glitchy service as we had from our previous provider and wouldn’t run more than one connection at a time in the house. So Monday morning I rang cancelled and returned the modem via UPS with an emailed Returns label. Three weeks later I still hadn’t received a refund so I rang and received a refund that evening. Was worth a try.

The Continental Op

Neighbors set up is still a work in progress. Funny, one installer came out to fix the first install and said it was done all wrong by the previous installer without realising it was his company that did the original. So the original installer comes out again and can't do the suggested install that second installer said needed doing (no line of site). The issue could have been fixed with a short 60mm mounting bracket (too much leverage on the mounting point when they reused the one that Digiweb installed and had been fine for the last 10 years) but they don't have a short one. In the end neighbor left to do a load of work so the dish won't move about so much and the installers have to come back for a 4th or maybe 5th time to align the dish.