Warning to Orcon Customers

Forums › 2degrees (including Slingshot, Orcon, Flip, Stuff Fibre, MyRepublic, 2talk and Vocus) › Warning to Orcon Customers

ADKM

860 posts

Ultimate Geek

#196719 10-Jun-2016 12:12

Make sure you know what you're getting - and paying for in advance!

Orcon have become a pretty sneaky lot. We recently changed to fibre and noticed our number

has stopped showing as Private on caller display units, so asked them to put it back how it was.

Oh sure, but another $4 a month please. Well you can shove it up your jacksies and no thanks

for stopping it without telling us, or not letting us know it would suddenly cost more. And while I'm at it why

can't you improve the audio on calls? Give me back the NZPO and HB 670! Orcon (especially toll calls)

sounds like it's underwater, or a mp3 compressed to about 5 kbps.

ctucks

34 posts

Geek

#1593699 16-Jul-2016 22:11

We just moved to Orcon from Slingshot. We were told we could get VDSL of at least 20mb Down, and 5mb Up. So far, we're getting 18mb Down / 1mb Up. On Slingshot ADSL, we had 9mb Down, and 1mb Up. So effectively we're on a faster ADSL line, but with increased latency. I'm pretty unhappy about it. It's not even been a month yet, but I already want to leave to another ISP (I heard BigPipe are doing good work). Orcon has just been one problem after another.

Is there any way to justify leaving a contract fee-free given that we've been falsely advertised / sold? Not to mention our internet was down for 7 days after swapping to Orcon, which they only elevated to a higher engineer 5 days in. It's baffling how they even mess that up. Now they say there is a problem with our line and we can't get 'real' VDSL (whatever that means). And yet our service / plan still says we're on VDSL, and we're still getting increased latency from DLM.

DarkShadow

1647 posts

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#1593792 17-Jul-2016 10:04

^ Changing ISP won't help. Because no matter which ISP you go with you'll be connected to the same Chorus DSLAM and get the same speeds. When's fibre coming do you know?

sbiddle

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#1593797 17-Jul-2016 10:15

ctucks:

We just moved to Orcon from Slingshot. We were told we could get VDSL of at least 20mb Down, and 5mb Up. So far, we're getting 18mb Down / 1mb Up. On Slingshot ADSL, we had 9mb Down, and 1mb Up. So effectively we're on a faster ADSL line, but with increased latency. I'm pretty unhappy about it. It's not even been a month yet, but I already want to leave to another ISP (I heard BigPipe are doing good work). Orcon has just been one problem after another.

Is there any way to justify leaving a contract fee-free given that we've been falsely advertised / sold? Not to mention our internet was down for 7 days after swapping to Orcon, which they only elevated to a higher engineer 5 days in. It's baffling how they even mess that up. Now they say there is a problem with our line and we can't get 'real' VDSL (whatever that means). And yet our service / plan still says we're on VDSL, and we're still getting increased latency from DLM.

Please start a new thread for your fault as this is unrelated.

VDSL2 is best effort. There is nothing to suggest anything is wrong with your VDSL2 speeds. Changing ISP will NOT have any impact on speeds as these are determined by your distance from the ISAM and wiring.

ctucks

34 posts

Geek

#1594093 17-Jul-2016 18:03

DarkShadow: ^ Changing ISP won't help. Because no matter which ISP you go with you'll be connected to the same Chorus DSLAM and get the same speeds. When's fibre coming do you know?

Why has my connection to the US suddenly taken a huge downturn then? It started happening a week or two after changing ISP, I have never encountered this problem before, ever.

As for fibre? Well, considering I can't even get real 'VDSL' at the moment, who knows. From what I've heard we should have it by summer 2017, but that's always subject to change.

DarkShadow

1647 posts

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#1594126 17-Jul-2016 18:30

ctucks:

DarkShadow: ^ Changing ISP won't help. Because no matter which ISP you go with you'll be connected to the same Chorus DSLAM and get the same speeds. When's fibre coming do you know?

Why has my connection to the US suddenly taken a huge downturn then? It started happening a week or two after changing ISP, I have never encountered this problem before, ever.

As for fibre? Well, considering I can't even get real 'VDSL' at the moment, who knows. From what I've heard we should have it by summer 2017, but that's always subject to change.

Changing ISPs may help with international speeds, but it won't help with your VDSL sync rates.

ctucks

34 posts

Geek

#1594135 17-Jul-2016 18:54

DarkShadow:

ctucks:

DarkShadow: ^ Changing ISP won't help. Because no matter which ISP you go with you'll be connected to the same Chorus DSLAM and get the same speeds. When's fibre coming do you know?

Why has my connection to the US suddenly taken a huge downturn then? It started happening a week or two after changing ISP, I have never encountered this problem before, ever.

As for fibre? Well, considering I can't even get real 'VDSL' at the moment, who knows. From what I've heard we should have it by summer 2017, but that's always subject to change.

Changing ISPs may help with international speeds, but it won't help with your VDSL sync rates.

Yeah, that's what I'm more concerned about right now. It's rather frustrating.

xpd

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#1594269 18-Jul-2016 08:47

At its most basic level.....

Gavin / xpd / FastRaccoon / Geek of Coastguard New Zealand

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Move to New Zealand's best fibre broadband service (affiliate link). Free setup code: R587125ERQ6VE. Note that to use Quic Broadband you must be comfortable with configuring your own router.

surfisup1000

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#1594283 18-Jul-2016 09:46

@xpd- shouldn't the net be attached to the exchange box?

xpd

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#1594292 18-Jul-2016 09:54

Oh yeah... got distracted while doing that expert CAD drawing :D

Will update :-p

Gavin / xpd / FastRaccoon / Geek of Coastguard New Zealand

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ADKM

860 posts

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#1594516 18-Jul-2016 14:53

Hi, just going back to the original post, if anyone's interested.

I objected to the new $4/month charge for showing "private" when making calls and a woman at Orcon agreed to restore this for no cost, as it used to be. Very nice of them. Well it never happened, so I waited a while then rung back.

Spoke to some chap who confirmed what she said, but it needed to be 'elevated' and would all happen in due course.

I was also told maybe it couldn't be done as my router (Fritz) doesn't support it. Maybe?

Some time later, still no confirmation (or otherwise) so I rang again today, to be told all notes and references to the offer have vanished. My last call to Orcon was April (so they say) and about something else.

Agreed, the whole thing is not so important, but the bs and hassle suggest this Company Orcon should be avoided like the plague. Sad, as they used to be so good.

Mahjong

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Geek

#1594568 18-Jul-2016 16:13

hi ADKM

As a temporary solution you can block caller ID by dialling "0197" before you dial the number you wish to call. This manual method is free.

I like this option of choosing when to call as a "private number" as I don't mind my friends seeing my number when I ring them. Also when not using the "private number" mode, it makes the ID screening by my bank (ASB) faster as they recognise my number at the first instance.

Cheers

Mahjong

xpd

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#1594576 18-Jul-2016 16:24

Mahjong:

hi ADKM

As a temporary solution you can block caller ID by dialling "0197" before you dial the number you wish to call. This manual method is free.

Does that work with non-Spark lines ? I know back in the day when everything was Telecom it did, but now with ISPs providing VoIP, do those codes still get applied ?

Gavin / xpd / FastRaccoon / Geek of Coastguard New Zealand

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ADKM

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#1594617 18-Jul-2016 17:06

Hi.. yes 0197 does work, it was something my wife wanted.

Thanks.