[TelstraClear] Trying to figure out if i should stay with TelstraClear

Forums › One New Zealand (including Vodafone, WxC, Farmside) › [TelstraClear] Trying to figure out if i should stay with TelstraClear

davidcole

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#29218 29-Dec-2008 16:05

I recently upgraded my plan since I was going over the 20gb each month, so now of the 40gb.

For this and phone, tv etc, I pay $188 a month.

Looking around at Xtra/sky bundle I could probab ly get similar for $144 (only 20gb internet cap, rather than 40, but slow down when cap reached, no extra charges).

I'm trying to figure out if there are any other compelling reasons to stay. I wont be getting MySkyHDI since I already have freeview, and have no problems setting up my pvr to record off a STB.

Anyone think of any benefits for either that I should consider?

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#186588 29-Dec-2008 21:27

Are you on Cable or DSL with TCL? If you're on cable it may well be worth your while staying however if your using DSL the performance will be similar (perhaps favourable on Xtra) so really price may be the only deciding factor.

Please note: Any posts, comments, or contributions in this forum are posted by me as an individual acting in my own right and do not necessarily reflect the views of any company I work for, clients I've consulted for, or anyone else.

davidcole

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#186592 29-Dec-2008 21:38

On cable.

Dawg

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#186632 30-Dec-2008 09:49

Check out if you are in an ADSL 2 area - http://www.telecom.co.nz/broadband/speed/adsl2

Would make a difference if you are comparing price with speeds.

Could you handle the reduction in speed? Would cause me to bash my head in.
I have noticed the pricing structure does not encourage me to upgrade my TC cable plan as the price per GB over is only slightly more expensive than upgrading.

Remember sometimes its better the devil you know.

davidcole

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#186635 30-Dec-2008 10:00

I think i'm in an ADSL2 area.

I'm not overly speed oriented, I suppose as long as I can stream youtube type stuff then I'll be happy. I don't game any more so the low ping time isn't that important. I think the main benefit is that i can switch to these other adsl providers rather than being stuck on cable. And since tcl seem to be increasing prices rather than decreasing, there's not that much motivation to stay.

jfnz

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#186651 30-Dec-2008 11:34

This link is a better way to check whether your area is ADSL2+ capable (it will show you on Google Maps the area of the cabinet/exchange)

Keep in mind however, cable will be faster than ADSL depending on what plan you're currently on. For example, TelstraClear offer up to 25 Mbps / 2 Mbps. ADSL2+ is realistically only capable of 10-15/1mbit.

lchiu7

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#186827 31-Dec-2008 14:21

Anarkist: This link is a better way to check whether your area is ADSL2+ capable (it will show you on Google Maps the area of the cabinet/exchange)

Keep in mind however, cable will be faster than ADSL depending on what plan you're currently on. For example, TelstraClear offer up to 25 Mbps / 2 Mbps. ADSL2+ is realistically only capable of 10-15/1mbit.

25Mbs is only available in ChCh at the moment and even then the pricing is horrific!

I must admit each month when I pay my TCL bill which averages > $200 (triple play, two phone lines, 40G plan) I wonder if I could do better. I see folks who seem to be getting better rates on ADSL2 but then again I don't live in an area where the exchange has been upgraded yet so I suspect it would be a downgrade. I could always get the ADSL on the second phone line so that would not disrupt me too much.

Staying in Wellington. Check out my AirBnB in the Wellington CBD. https://www.airbnb.co.nz/h/wellycbd PM me and mention GZ to get a 15% discount and no AirBnB charges.

jfnz

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#186828 31-Dec-2008 14:26

lchiu7: I could always get the ADSL on the second phone line so that would not disrupt me too much.

You probably won't be able to get ADSL on a TCL 'on-net' phone line though, will you?

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sbiddle

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#186836 31-Dec-2008 14:59

TCL really do need to start looking at their pricing. The increase this year was steep and does make TCL cable quite expensive epending on your usage. Performance is fantastic but data cap wise things can be a bit steep and maybe TCL should be offering capped plans as an option for people or offering some form off offpeak usage plans.

It will certainly be interesting to see what happens when the Red Network and orcon hit Wgtn and Chch next year

lchiu7

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#186841 31-Dec-2008 15:28

Anarkist:
lchiu7: I could always get the ADSL on the second phone line so that would not disrupt me too much.

You probably won't be able to get ADSL on a TCL 'on-net' phone line though, will you?

No but I can switch the line to Telecom and because I am switching they waive installation costs. Of course they would have to use the Telecom wiring into the house, not the TCL wiring. Just considering options

Staying in Wellington. Check out my AirBnB in the Wellington CBD. https://www.airbnb.co.nz/h/wellycbd PM me and mention GZ to get a 15% discount and no AirBnB charges.

DeBoyWonder

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#191003 21-Jan-2009 11:16

davidcole: I recently upgraded my plan since I was going over the 20gb each month, so now of the 40gb.

For this and phone, tv etc, I pay $188 a month.

Looking around at Xtra/sky bundle I could probab ly get similar for $144 (only 20gb internet cap, rather than 40, but slow down when cap reached, no extra charges).

I'm trying to figure out if there are any other compelling reasons to stay.? I wont be getting MySkyHDI since I already have freeview, and have no problems setting up my pvr to record off a STB.

Anyone think of any benefits for either that I should consider?

Random suggestion:
If your happy to go to 20Gb and suffer throttling on reaching your limit then why not go back to a 20Gb plan with TelstraClear, continue to get a quality speed and also sign up for a dial up plan and use that when you reach your 20Gig limit.
I've heard of some pretty horrific stories of throttle speeds with Telecom but at least with dial-up in the cable area 56K is almost constant.

I know of a package with TelstraClear where you can get Phone, TV, 20Gb & unlimited dial-up access for about $155 per month.

jfnz

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#191017 21-Jan-2009 11:48

DeBoyWonder: I've heard of some pretty horrific stories of throttle speeds with Telecom

Really?

Each and every time I've been throttled on cap I've speed tested between 60-64kbps upstream and down.

DeBoyWonder

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#191018 21-Jan-2009 11:49

You must be one of the lucky ones.
I know quite a few Telecom customers who struggle to break 20K when throttled.

jfnz

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#191022 21-Jan-2009 12:10

Seen with your own eyes, or word of mouth?
Thought I would have heard about it should it be a widespread issue.

DeBoyWonder

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#191024 21-Jan-2009 12:17

Word of mouth.

I've no reason to doubt the people who have told me though.

They had nothing to gain by exagerating.

Maybe I have only spoken to the minority.

Regardless, the solution I offered still stands, saves a lot of hassle from switching companies plus you will still get 10Mbps download for a decent price!

lchiu7

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#191046 21-Jan-2009 13:38

I think TCL is trading on the good will of their customers and their usually better service (I don't mean CS but that's not so bad once they eased the hour long waits). The other day I got 230KBs upload (ftp) to my web server and was downloading over 1000KBs. I suspect many xDSL services might be able to match the download speed but how many could match that upload speed?

But the others are catching up and since some of us got TCL because we can't get good FTA TV (count me among them) now with Freeview, if all we want is FTA channels we could use Freeview and another company's DSL service and pay much less.

Staying in Wellington. Check out my AirBnB in the Wellington CBD. https://www.airbnb.co.nz/h/wellycbd PM me and mention GZ to get a 15% discount and no AirBnB charges.

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