Help me decide on my internet plan

Forums › New Zealand Broadband › Help me decide on my internet plan

RedDinosaur

8 posts

Wannabe Geek

#281451 18-Feb-2021 15:35

Hi, I currently have ADSL with Orcon and 10 times over the last 12 months I've had my internet and phoneline not working. Gone through about 4-5 routers, yet half the time when a new one arrives the "dead" modem comes back to life.

So, either either I want to change ISP or upgrade to Fibre (which will hopefully leave my ADSL troubles behind).

So, I've been researching and it looks like Contact Energy works out to be the cheapest as I have gas with them (and I'd move electricity too), however I am under the assumption that not all ISPs are created equal, so I don't know what to do. Upgrade to Fibre with Orcon, or switch to Contact or even some other company? Vodafone is relativity in expense too.

To add, I game a bit, so latency is important. Download speeds are not so important.

Thank you

- Also, how do I go about getting ethernet in separate rooms over wifi? Just drill through the floors?
- Will using a homeline increase the latency when gaming with Fibre?

quickymart

14941 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 13956

ID Verified

#2659117 18-Feb-2021 16:47

My suggestion: I would never go with power companies for internet, ditto Vodafone - their customer support is horrendous (at the moment, anyway).

You're looking at the lowest price point is what I'm reading from your message. Spend a few dollars more and look at a provider who has a good reputation, not just the cheapest price.

Most people on here will suggest 2degrees (if you have a mobile with them I believe you get a monthly discount), Voyager are very good too. Otherwise have you spoken to Orcon to ask about upgrading?

bfginger

1330 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 191

#2663267 27-Feb-2021 00:23

It is far more likely the problems you've had were with the copper network than Orcon. Fibre should improve latency and I wouldn't get under a 100mbit plan as the price difference is small.

If you want to keep the landline you could have integrated wiring done with the fibre installation to keep the existing jackpoints working instead of having to plug into the fibre box or router. The amount ISPs charge monthly for landlines varies a bit.

" Also, how do I go about getting ethernet in separate rooms over wifi? Just drill through the floors?"

Wifi means a wireless connection, I don't see what that has to do with drilling holes. If you're a gamer you may prefer a hard wired ethernet connection between the computer and router. They can be installed in the walls and have outlets like a power socket but that requires some ability.

timmmay

20859 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 5350

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#2663274 27-Feb-2021 08:50

2degrees fiber is great. I've had it for so long I don't remember how long, the equipment works well, and outages are very very rare. Support is excellent when something goes wrong. I don't think they're the cheapest, but IMHO they're the best value.

Dial111

979 posts

Ultimate Geek
+1 received by user: 656

#2663280 27-Feb-2021 09:02

Orcon is fine for fibre, I've had nothing but solid speeds all the way through. I don't have an opinion on Contact as I've never used them for fibre, but power.. I wasn't impressed with that side of it.

RedDinosaur

8 posts

Wannabe Geek

#2663304 27-Feb-2021 09:37

bfginger:

It is far more likely the problems you've had were with the copper network than Orcon. Fibre should improve latency and I wouldn't get under a 100mbit plan as the price difference is small.

If you want to keep the landline you could have integrated wiring done with the fibre installation to keep the existing jackpoints working instead of having to plug into the fibre box or router. The amount ISPs charge monthly for landlines varies a bit.

" Also, how do I go about getting ethernet in separate rooms over wifi? Just drill through the floors?"

Wifi means a wireless connection, I don't see what that has to do with drilling holes. If you're a gamer you may prefer a hard wired ethernet connection between the computer and router. They can be installed in the walls and have outlets like a power socket but that requires some ability.

Yes, I just came to that conclusion that it's most probably not Orcon's fault.

When I said ethernet "over" wifi, I meant ethernet as opposed to the other option of wifi.

richms

29104 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 10222

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#2663333 27-Feb-2021 13:09

If you have been gaming and happy on ADSL then chances are no provider would provide a worse experiance than that.

I would not bundle services, as the small discounts they give you are not worth it with the elimination of freedom of changing when one service starts to suck and you're stuck on a contract for all of them.

Continuing with a home phone on anyone but spark will mean using their provided router. Really that service is at the end of its usefulness with $40 unlimited mobile plans being a thing across all 3 providers now, and that getting you a whole lot more than a home phone.

Richard rich.ms

Mighty Ape

Shop now at Mighty Ape (affiliate link).

CcMaN

87 posts

Master Geek
+1 received by user: 37

#2667950 4-Mar-2021 21:30

When I worked out the true costs for us, we worked out that Trustpower was only $80 more expensive per year than the cheapest option on powerswitch when comparing our past years usage.

For a premium of $160 we made the decision to take the TV. I know the power companies get a bad rap, but our connection has been really smooth and can easily get gigabit speeds all the time (have never noticed an issue). The customer service has been really decent as well.

To be fair, Trustpower are running the ISP themselves compared with Contact who are reselling, so I feel the majority of the problems are with ISPs who are just resellers.

nztim

4015 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 2713

ID Verified

Trusted

TEAMnetwork

Subscriber

#2667954 4-Mar-2021 21:43

richms: Continuing with a home phone on anyone but spark will mean using their provided router.

Almost, 2talk and some other Vocus brands will do it along with NOWNZ but that is about it

Any views expressed on these forums are my own and don't necessarily reflect those of my employer.