Which ISP/package for new house?

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JEDENZED

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Topic # 113593 21-Jan-2013 19:55

OK so apologies for my amateur dramatics but I'm losing my marbles trying to decide which ISP/package to choose... PLEASE HELP!!!!

I've been posting on other threads re the fact that I am moving into a new house soon and am looking to sort my internet.

I've narrowed down to two ISP's and was *almost* 100% over the line with the following SNAP! VDSL2 option:

Naked VDSL2 with 300GB allowance + free Fritz!Box modem (subject to 2 year contract and $15 courier) for $120 per month.

Then, yesterday, out of the blue, I hear about Telecom offering the following:

ADSL2 broadband with 500GB allowance + basic phone-line package (line rental only, no calls included), with $10 credit per month applied for 12 months + FIRST TWO MONTHS FREE + free installation + free modem... all for $119 per month (I'm in Hamilton so this price includes the extra $10 p/m surcharge which applies outside of AKL, WTG & CHCH).

Now, the telecom deal is VERY tempting... The price is great, I've only used telecom ADSL2 in the past, have always been happy with them and have previously had a maximum of 80GB allowance.

"So, surely this is a simple decision..." I hear you say...

Well, it should be but here's the rub; I feel the need.... the need for SPEED!! Question is, do I really NEED the speed...? Probably not (does anybody??) but I *think* I want it reeeeeal bad.... Whay can I say?? I'm a fiend for wanting the fastest, shiniest thing on the block...

My new digs are about 70-100m from the VDSL cabinet so should be no worries regarding me getting the most out of the VDSL available. I'd also like to start doing more in the way of streaming (HULU/netflix/Amazon Prime/OnDemand etc) as I have a VPN subscription.

UFB is, according to the Chorus website, is not scheduled for my place until July 2014 - I'm not crazy about the idea of signing up with SNAP! for 2 years, this fact mitigates the decision somewhat...

Main point of consideration for me is really what I'm getting for my money. The monthly prices of these two custom packages are basically the same but overall, SNAP! works out quite a bit more expensive because of the 2 year contract to cover the cost of the fritz!box and the 2 month credit that telecom are offering ($238 value). PLUS, I'll probably need to spend a bit on getting a pro in to do some VDSL wiring tweaking - coffeebaron ahoy... ;)

So... what should I do?

What would YOU do?!?!?!

[Mod (N8): Maybe a good start would be having a relevant title?]

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Reply # 748414 21-Jan-2013 20:04

I love speed and better upload - so I will choose VDSL over ADSL

If upload speed is not a huge issue, then you are better of with ADSL and upgrade to UFB when it is available next year.

Lorenceo

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Ultimate Geek
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Reply # 748416 21-Jan-2013 20:04

Snap VDSL for sure. If there'll be no fibre at your place till 2014, you'd may as well go with the offering that'll give you the best speed. Also on that Snap plan you'd get unlimited off peak data, which is very nice for bulk downloads.
Something else to consider, the Fritzbox is massively superior to the free routers Telecom give out.

plambrechtsen

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Reply # 748433 21-Jan-2013 20:16

In my view which is of course biased ;) I would go with Telecom since who knows what the next few months may bring and with a 12 month contract you can move to UFB at that point and who knows what's happening with VDSL in the next few months.

JEDENZED

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Reply # 748445 21-Jan-2013 20:32

plambrechtsen: In my view which is of course biased ;) I would go with Telecom since who knows what the next few months may bring and with a 12 month contract you can move to UFB at that point

Fair points - any ideas though, what telecom's offering will be in terms of modem hardware for UFB customers? At least if I go with the SNAP option now, I know that the Fritz!Box will be UFB compatible...

and who knows what's happening with VDSL in the next few months.

What do you mean? Is there a risk of VDSL services being discontinued?

sonyxperiageek

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Reply # 748459 21-Jan-2013 20:42

JEDENZED:
plambrechtsen: In my view which is of course biased ;) I would go with Telecom since who knows what the next few months may bring and with a 12 month contract you can move to UFB at that point

Fair points - any ideas though, what telecom's offering will be in terms of modem hardware for UFB customers? At least if I go with the SNAP option now, I know that the Fritz!Box will be UFB compatible...

and who knows what's happening with VDSL in the next few months.

What do you mean? Is there a risk of VDSL services being discontinued?

I think he means that Telecom may be bringing out VDSL plans out in the next few months..

Matthew

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fellaintga

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Master Geek
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Reply # 748473 21-Jan-2013 21:02

VDSL every time if available once you taste the higher speeds you won't go back. I know everyone says its only upload thats a big difference but the fact you want that much data means you want to download a lot. When you are downloading 5MB/s you will be happy to pay that Snap bill.

Noodles

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Reply # 748617 22-Jan-2013 09:17

Another vote here for Snap.

- Fritzbox is awesome
- VDSL is great, better upload speeds help for online backups (we saw speeds of 5MB/s down, 1MB/s up)
- Free traffic between 1am and 6am everyday
- Unlimited Youtube/Google add on for $5 a month
- Local helpdesk 24/7
- Native IPv6

You can also switch over to UFB using the same PPPoE credentials on the Fritzbox and if you have a static ip it will follow you across to UFB. When we switched from VDSL to UFB recently it took 2 mins to migrate.

trig42

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Reply # 748661 22-Jan-2013 10:17

Also, with the Snap 2 year plan, I'm sure they'll let you upgrade mid-contract to UFB won't they?

If you go with Telecom, and sign up for 12 months, I'm pretty sure they will let you upgrade to VDSL if/when they release VDSL plans also.

sidefx

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Reply # 748671 22-Jan-2013 10:26

You know my votes for Snap. Also on a 2 year VDSL contract with them and loving it. Every time they upgrade their plans they seem to spread the love to their existing on contract customers which is great :)

Keep in mind that depending on the wiring in your new house there may be some cost associated with getting it up to scratch for VDSL though. If in Auckland or Waikato you can get it done by coffeebaron for around $150 I believe.

trig42: Also, with the Snap 2 year plan, I'm sure they'll let you upgrade mid-contract to UFB won't they?

I think you can upgrade from VDSL to UFB when on contract without any penalties, but maybe someone in the know can confirm. I think it's the other direction, i.e. UFB -> DSL that's not possible due to the contract the ISP has with chorus on UFB.

Hammerer

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Reply # 748689 22-Jan-2013 10:57

Snap for speed rather than waiting on Telecom. But, if you're into bargains then it might bother you that better deals will come out during the two year term. If so, go with the shorter term and cheaper cost of Telecom. Personally, I've never regretted multi-year fixed term commitments if the technical features stack up.

I have been on a 100Mbps plan with TelstraClear cable and was effectively getting 50-60Mbps down and 10Mbps up. I like to experiment so I've temporarily gone back to 15/2Mbps and found that there is no practical disadvantage for me. I don't notice that I am waiting any longer for anything: browsing, streaming video, downloading, etc. I can see that downloads are actually much faster but often there's no significant difference where international content is not cached here.

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JEDENZED

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Ultimate Geek
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Reply # 748716 22-Jan-2013 12:04

Cheers all ---- Bullet bitten - SNAP! VDSL it is... :)

Have tried to light a fire under their behinds regarding installation as I'm moving in on Saturday. Their CS guy, Gavin, was very helpful and said he'd do his best to organise everything that he could on SNAP!'s side but obviously couldn't guarantee the Chorus aspect of the schedule.

Anyone got any feedback on timings from ordering to activation? I know it will differ between customers but some actual experiences would be nice to hear.

Bee

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Reply # 748721 22-Jan-2013 12:15

Chorus activation schedule is a complete guessing game in my experience...

Pick a number between 2 hours and 10 days and see ...

There's a lot of factors that may determine this at any time ... "By Saturday" or "On Saturday" would be a reasonable expectation!

Edit: If you are waiting for someone else to move out of the house then thats another factor that could delay things slightly

HowickDota

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Reply # 748724 22-Jan-2013 12:21

From ordering vdsl to activation it took about 2 weeks 10 working days

JEDENZED

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Reply # 748729 22-Jan-2013 12:35

Edit: If you are waiting for someone else to move out of the house then thats another factor that could delay things slightly

Yep, Gavin at SNAP! checked this for me and there's an deactivation order request in the system from the current owners scheduled for Friday so shouldn't be an issue... :)

sidefx

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Reply # 748731 22-Jan-2013 12:37

I can't quite recall the details of my VDSL activation, but it's probably documented somewhere in these forums. I think there was an issue on the day of activation and I was without internet overnight, but it was sorted out early the following morning. It never was completely clear to me where the issue was, but something to do with a mistake on someones part with a wrong\misconfigured port.

So activation wasn't completely smooth sailing for me, but snap were very helpful and got it sorted quickly.

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