Internet Connection

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OFSO
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Internet Connection

#1 Post by OFSO » Wed Sep 05, 2018 9:45 am

For more years than I can remember. my Spanish house has been connected to the internet via WiMax. As the name implies, that is WiFi's bigger brother: a small flat plate dish on the roof links the house via microwave with a much larger dish on a mast about 15 kms away.

A smallish company set it up and it worked well, so it was inevitable that a larger company, in this case Telefonica, would buy it up. Which they did, and having Plans of their own, announced this year they were closing the system down. Registered letter came Monday, you have until the end of the month to make alternative arrangements.

What happened next has surprised me. Despite the problems of a navigating a call centre in a foreign language (i.e. Castiliano rather than Catalan) I managed on Monday to request an installation of Telefonica's 4G internet box. Yes, it would take 7 to 10 days. No paperwork needed, it was a modification of my WiMax contract. Yesterday, less than 24 hours after my call, large burly man turns up, handed me a box - "is it Huawei ?" I asked and he laughed: "of course". Only one connection needed - the box plugs into the ethernet connection on my router, "be on in about an hour" he said, and left. An hour later the red LED went green. my PC, smart phones (Huawei), Google Homes, internet TV and the security system all connected.

This morning delved into the new box and set up my own password, changed the WiFi channel as it conflicted with my existing WiFi, and checked the connection speed, just over one Gigabyte - the Telefonica mast is about 2 kms away and below my house.

Do I think this is the future of internet connection - yes I do, as my UK house is also connected via a 4G box. But I only have one concern. When we are all connected this way, will there be enough capacity ? And who will come and remove and recycle all the primitive copper wires and decaying wooden poles that are no longer needed...........

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Alisoncc
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Re: Internet Connection

#2 Post by Alisoncc » Wed Sep 05, 2018 1:10 pm

I am fortunate I have FTTP, that's fibre to the premises, off the Aussie NBN - National Broadband Network. With optical fibre terminating in a small wall mounted box in the kitchen. Was paying UKP40 per month for 100Gb pm at 50/20 - 50 Mb/s download and 20 Mb/s up. Discovered the other day I can get the same from a different supplier for UKP27 pm. So have just switched over. Spent the day reconfiguring my modem/router. In my suburb the copper and poles are already redundant.

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Fox3WheresMyBanana
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Re: Internet Connection

#3 Post by Fox3WheresMyBanana » Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:28 pm

I have an aerial connection also, set up by a local man (retired teacher). He has a bunch of masts that are connected to the main Island fibre link (which runs up the main road), and I think he has about 150 customers now. The speed is only 5MB/s, but this is 5 times faster than anyone else gets round here from the big companies. He's also cheaper, there's no download limit, and it works. The only time it went down, I saw him up the main tower fixing it himself 2 hours later.
I am on top of a small hill, so I have no problems with the sightline to the tower.
The Island is supposed to be getting high speed internet in the next few years.

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Re: Internet Connection

#4 Post by unifoxos » Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:41 pm

UK house is also connected via a 4G box

Well it ain't the future round here. I dream of getting a working 2G connection, 3G is just a fantasy. And I can see the poxy mast about a mile away!

However there's plenty of blokes around to recycle the copper wire, but unfortunately they choose to recycle wire from working installations.
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Re: Internet Connection

#5 Post by Alisoncc » Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:45 pm

Fox3WheresMyBanana wrote:
Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:28 pm
The speed is only 5MB/s, but this is 5 times faster than anyone else gets round here from the big companies.
100Mb/s download is readily available here, with some suppliers looking to offer 150Mb/s in the near future. 50Mb/s is more than adequate for just surfing the web and reading emails.
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Re: Internet Connection

#6 Post by CharlieOneSix » Wed Sep 05, 2018 4:34 pm

Until last summer I used to be on only 1.5Mb/s as we are about 5k from the BT exchange. Then we found out the promised fibre upgrades would never ever, not ever, happen here. I'm now on a 25Mb/s download, 12 MB/s upload, 500Gb/month usage wireless connection via a starting point in Montrose which beams the link 15 miles or so to a mast at the old Edzell airfield which then bounces it about 9 miles to a repeater at Garvock Hill south of here, thence about 11 miles to a neighbour on the opposite side of the hill and finally it bounces about 1.5 miles down to us. Costs £49 a month just for internet, no telephone calls, but the price is worth it. There's no competition for wireless services here so I can't get it any cheaper and 4G doesn't exist here so that's not an option. I could get 37Mb/s for a pricey £90 per month but it's not necessary for what we need.
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Re: Internet Connection

#7 Post by OFSO » Thu Sep 06, 2018 2:53 pm

Slight thread drift. Mentioned all the redundant copper wire at lunch yesterday. German friends said better that than all the thieves stealing signalling cables from alongside the Bundesbahn tracks. Same problem in Spain. One incentive for going over to a fibre network. Back to theme. So far 3/4G box ok, also gives me a second house WiFi net.

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