Imagine launch Midband Ripwave Replacement - WiMAX

The accusations that any poster has a vested interest, or works for Imagine, end here. These unfounded accusations only derail the thread (more than it generally is anyway) and will not be tolerated any further. If you suspect a poster, report the post. Don't backseat mod.

Cryos wrote: »

There is several thing's people have to concider and this is a constant theme throughout this thread and indeed other threads relating to WiMax, and this is around.

There are undoubtably many people who have the service and it probably works just fine for them, this is based on a number of conditions (Contention on the Cell(s), Usage and Environmental Conditions).

These conditions do contribute to unpredictable results and as such it isnt a "Fits All" implementation of the technology, it is like the argument over vdsl technology that eircom are pushing, yes its probably going to be amazing for people within 1km of exchanges but pretty useless / even more useless than ADSL in some varients.

While i do applaud what Imagine has done, i see the side that it is potential lost; If they Went Fixed WiMax as opposed to the current Nomadic/Mobile the conditions which effect the technology wouldnt be as bad and a higher quality of service(s) could be distributed.

In context what imagine have done is great, but in area's there is clear issues of capacity (Marketing 1 - Infrastructure Engineers 0), this issues may spread over time to other parts of the imagine service if not maintained and planned correctly.

The reason for mobile versus fixed is simple - no installer to pay for the install, no delay, can ship out the modem tomorrow. The fact is that it does yield a better network (fixed, if planned correctly).

warlikedave wrote: »

Aye - Fixed wimax would have being awesome

Seems with Nomadic WiMax however:

If you are not reliant of consistancy across the country - its a good mobile product but to be selling it as an alternative to fixed line services misrepresents its quality as a product as a whole - its a nomadic/mobile wimax - its primary use is as it says on the tin.....mobile usage

only reason why its being marketed as a fixed line alternative is because it is a cheap setup....

still you get what you pay for in this country! :mad:

Yep, you have it spot on. A common thing to sell mobile devices as DSL replacement circuits but you have to have the network topography and density to support it.

T-Mobile did it in Czech / Slovakia with 2 different technologies and very successfully (hundreds of base stations and 10s of thousands of users).

can anyone tell me whats the range of wimax

Inspector Gadget wrote: »

Might I suggest that just changing specifically to OpenDNS, that you try out namebench to see what DNS servers are actually fastest when dealing with your connection? Versions for Windows, Linux and Mac available. It'll give you concrete figures showing which DNS systems are fastest for you.

Thanks, works a treat, never would have found it on my own either so actual thanks!

It did list Imagine as one of the best as it responds fast but it isn't reliable enough to actually use and it didn't seem to pick up on its lack of reliability.

dondwyer157 wrote: »

Hey,

This is a mega-thread, so I'm not gonna read through every page and apologies if I'm asking questions that have already been answered!

I live in the sticks in Cork and with no wired bband around, I currently have Vodafone 3G. Speedwise I've no real complaints. Consistantly 1.5-2 Mbits during the day and 3 late at night. Ping times are typical 3G though. It's fine for general browsing, but streaming and Xbox live take a hit.

I'm coming up to the end of my Voda contract and I'm looking into Imagine's Wimax as a better alternative. Key question is though - would it be a better alternative?! I have 3G signal fine, so what are the odds I'm covered by Imagine? Do they come out and test your area or do they just let you order and return the stuff if it doesn't work?

Cheers.

I've used all the mobile broadband providers dongles and I'm using Imagine and for me at least it is miles above any of those products but not as good as a fixed wireless or landline/cable alternative if one is available.

Just make sure you get the outdoor antenna. You almost certain to need it if you live any distance from the mast anyway so they'll probably recommend it to you.

Gaming is okay on it, I have had some problems if you read the past few pages you'll probably seem lots of me posting :P but they are mostly resolved now whatever Imagine did. They block torrents which maybe an issue for you if you want to use them. I usually get at least 1.5Mbps with Imagine, most of the time its closer to 7-8Mbps but the service does have random problems every now and again but a lot of that seems to have been down to some problem on the local mast here as they almost all went away the same time as my steam issues.