Spark Fibre or Vodafone Fibre

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#1729320 3-Mar-2017 10:35

My understanding is that Vodafone's FibreX is a service that's only available in a few places (Wellington, Kapiti and Christchurch), so for people like me in Auckland if we sign up for fibre on Vodafone then we'll get the same fibre service as everyone else in Auckland?

MikeHales

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#1729322 3-Mar-2017 10:38

Yes, Auckland is UFB (fibre end to end)

wazzageek

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#1729333 3-Mar-2017 10:47

One think I found extremely frustrating going from VF ADSL to VF Fibre (not Fibre X) was that there is a separate billing system - and my credits on the ADSL line where not automatically transferred to the Fibre account.

It would have been good if the VF salesperson who got me organised had made this clear - otherwise it's all working as it should.

I did try to upgrade to the 100 plan, but the CSR team weren't helpful, claiming I was already on a 1 year contract and couldn't get it.

I've that the service has been rock solid, but I avoid ringing the helpdesk - and thankfully I haven't had to.

jjnz1

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#1729336 3-Mar-2017 10:59

wazzageek:

One think I found extremely frustrating going from VF ADSL to VF Fibre (not Fibre X) was that there is a separate billing system - and my credits on the ADSL line where not automatically transferred to the Fibre account.

It would have been good if the VF salesperson who got me organised had made this clear - otherwise it's all working as it should.

I did try to upgrade to the 100 plan, but the CSR team weren't helpful, claiming I was already on a 1 year contract and couldn't get it.

I've that the service has been rock solid, but I avoid ringing the helpdesk - and thankfully I haven't had to.

It was a pain for me also, until Feb - I am now on the normal billing system, that the Vodafone mobile app is based on.

No longer on the old TelstraClear 'Customer Zone' system!!! Their customer zone system is so horrible from a user's perspective!

[Edit] Upgrading should always be possible - send a twitter message instead or visit a shop..

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#1729364 3-Mar-2017 11:59

Old cable customer moved away from cable area and went with 2 degrees. A year ago changed to Vodafone Fibre (UFB not Cable) and been very very happy. Got a great deal with discounted Sky over Fibre and the picture is better than direct from Sky. Saved over $75 a month. Deals not there now tho :(

frednz

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#1730659 6-Mar-2017 09:08

DarkShadow:

As mentioned FibreX isn't real fibre, if you want real fibre you'll want a company that isn't Vodafone.

Why not explore the other options out there as well? There's quite a few dozen ISPs you can choose from.

Can anyone explain please what the main advantages are of having "real fibre" instead of Vodafone's FibreX?

For example, can "real fibre" provide substantially faster speeds than FibreX?

Thanks

Fred

DarkShadow

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#1730668 6-Mar-2017 09:19

frednz:

DarkShadow:

As mentioned FibreX isn't real fibre, if you want real fibre you'll want a company that isn't Vodafone.

Why not explore the other options out there as well? There's quite a few dozen ISPs you can choose from.

Can anyone explain please what the main advantages are of having "real fibre" instead of Vodafone's FibreX?

For example, can "real fibre" provide substantially faster speeds than FibreX?

Thanks

Fred

On cable your connection might be shared with your whole neighbourhood, on fibre it's only shared with 24 users max, this means more consistent throughput in peak times.

With fibre you can easily switch between dozens of ISPs, on cable you're stuck with Vodafone.

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richms

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#1730723 6-Mar-2017 10:36

vodafones HFC network is dependent on power for the in street amplifiers. A power failure will probably take the service out, even if its not directly affecting you. With real fiber all the way back to the exchange, there are no active devices outside of the exchange or your place, so if you keep the ONT on, you have internet regardless of what is happening in the areas between you and the data center.

Plenty of times you see about "fiber x" outages because of power outages. Not a problem with real fiber.

Richard rich.ms

frednz

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#1732420 7-Mar-2017 12:27

DarkShadow:

frednz:

DarkShadow:

As mentioned FibreX isn't real fibre, if you want real fibre you'll want a company that isn't Vodafone.

Why not explore the other options out there as well? There's quite a few dozen ISPs you can choose from.

Can anyone explain please what the main advantages are of having "real fibre" instead of Vodafone's FibreX?

For example, can "real fibre" provide substantially faster speeds than FibreX?

Thanks

Fred

On cable your connection might be shared with your whole neighbourhood, on fibre it's only shared with 24 users max, this means more consistent throughput in peak times.

With fibre you can easily switch between dozens of ISPs, on cable you're stuck with Vodafone.

Although people here say that FibreX isn't "real fibre", doesn't it do the same job as "real fibre"? For example, the FibreX Max Plan is advertised as giving up to 700-900mbps download speed. Can "real fibre" match those speeds?

And Vodafone said they would give me the FibreX Max plan for $90 per month ($20 off advertised $110 per month) , can "real fibre" match that?

Sure, I would have to go on a minimum 12-month contract which has a cancellation fee of $199, but I guess "real fibre" plans also have a minimum contract period? A 24-month contract gives you the first 6 months at half price, but it does increase the cancellation fee to $299.

A Vodafone technician also told me that with the FibreX Max plan, it provides very consistent throughput in peak times (it's only some of the slower plans that might experience difficulty).

And with "real fibre" if you are not quite close to where the fibre is connected, you can't get the service. For example, see the Geekzone thread about a client being 100 metres away and having to pay a huge amount to have the cable extended! How close do you have to be to the "real fibre" connection to avoid additional charges?

Incidentally, can anyone tell me whether a Vodafone home user would really notice a difference (with say only 2 devices on at a time) between the 200mbps max plan and the 700-900 mbps max plan.

Thanks

Fred

jjnz1

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#1732435 7-Mar-2017 12:37

If you're not downloading a lot, with only two users, 100Mbps/20Mbps UFB plan would suit you fine.

This is interesting if somewhat relevant:

http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/90132203/spark-fails-to-field-call-from-former-all-black-adam-thomson-before-hooter-blows

DarkShadow

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#1732436 7-Mar-2017 12:37

frednz:

Although people here say that FibreX isn't "real fibre", doesn't it do the same job as "real fibre"? For example, the FibreX Max Plan is advertised as giving up to 700-900mbps download speed. Can "real fibre" match those speeds?

Of course. Up north they've even started experimenting with 10Gbps fibre.

And Vodafone said they would give me the FibreX Max plan for $90 per month ($20 off advertised $110 per month) , can "real fibre" match that?

Cable is cheaper, no question about that.

Sure, I would have to go on a minimum 12-month contract which has a cancellation fee of $199, but I guess "real fibre" plans also have a minimum contract period? A 24-month contract gives you the first 6 months at half price, but it does increase the cancellation fee to $299.

There are no contract plans available on fibre.

And with "real fibre" if you are not quite close to where the fibre is connected, you can't get the service. For example, see the Geekzone thread about a client being 100 metres away and having to pay a huge amount to have the cable extended! How close do you have to be to the "real fibre" connection to avoid additional charges?

Same goes with cable, if you're not in coverage area you can't connect.

frednz

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#1732468 7-Mar-2017 13:16

On Spark's web site it says that if you're new to Spark, you'll need to sign up for a 24 month unlimited broadband plan. But Stuff Fibre advertises no fixed-term contracts.

So why would Spark require a 24 month plan when Stuff advertises no fixed-term contracts? Which provider would be the better choice?

Edit: Spark advises that fibre plans with a 12 month contract are also available. They do also offer a "no contract" plan, but you have to pay a non-refundable one-off $299 connection fee to get this.

DarkShadow

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#1732514 7-Mar-2017 13:55

frednz:

On Spark's web site it says that if you're new to Spark, you'll need to sign up for a 24 month unlimited broadband plan. But Stuff Fibre advertises no fixed-term contracts.

So why would Spark require a 24 month plan when Stuff advertises no fixed-term contracts? Which provider would be the better choice?

Edit: Spark advises that fibre plans with a 12 month contract are also available. They do also offer a "no contract" plan, but you have to pay a non-refundable one-off $299 connection fee to get this.

That's the advantage of fibre. There are dozens of ISPs, each with their own plans and prices. You can choose one that suits your needs.

For example if you want free Lightbox and Netflix, you might want to sign up to Spark. If you want no contract and a lower price, you can sign up to Stuff. Which one is "better" depends on you.

Pumpedd

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#1732527 7-Mar-2017 14:09

You could try someone like Skinny Fibre....24months plan..$58 for first 12 months then $88 for last 12.

Vodafones FibreX is also sunbject to congestion on nodes whereas Fibre isnt as bad. I am on VF FibreX and already noticed congestion at peak times.

Jase2985

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#1732828 8-Mar-2017 07:57

also compare the upload speeds in your comparison, fibre offers greater upload than cable

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