Smart broadband exchange update

Anarchist

Finally got my Smart BB last night and the good news was that by chance I found out I was switched on....1 week early!
bad news was that it took 5 weeks to switch from Eircom, so no internet for 5 weeks!!!!!
I found the Smart BB starter kit excellent and it included both ethernet and USB options unlike Eircoms last time that gave me ethernet when I was USB at the time.....
I had Eircom 2mb/128 bundle which was really 1716/106
Now with my 2mb/128 (256 from monday) bundle I am 1918/133
most chuffed, and it is so easy to get thru to Smart on the phone compared to Eircom.

Only fly in the ointment and it's not Smarts fault is that can't get to play Pes5 online unlike the rest of my games...........

Well done Gareth etc :cool:

irishpal25

ive ordered smart in the letterkenny area. the weird thing is i cant get eircom or any orther wired provider but smarts website says i can and the smart operator on the phone said i should be able to too but the technains will do a test first.

one question for any smart users are their connections RJ45 or RJ11 as my wireless router only has RJ45.

thanks

dub45

irishpal25 wrote:

ive ordered smart in the letterkenny area. the weird thing is i cant get eircom or any orther wired provider but smarts website says i can and the smart operator on the phone said i should be able to too but the technains will do a test first.

one question for any smart users are their connections RJ45 or RJ11 as my wireless router only has RJ45.

thanks

Smarts website is based on general availablity not a test on your actual line.

irishpal25

so you think it is unlikely that ill get it then?

dub45

irishpal25 wrote:

so you think it is unlikely that ill get it then?

Well I honestly dont know - make sure you tell the smart reps that your line does not currently pass the eircom test - do you have any idea why? could it be distance pair gain etc? You can post a question on the smart website and you might get some information directly there - in fairness to the support guys there they are usually pretty quick to respond to queries.

http://support.smarttelecom.ie/forums/

irishpal25

thanks. well i know that at the top of my road, 3/4 of a mile away, there is broadband but they never bothered to put it up my road. im hoping to get smart as they seem to have the best deal, i was getting IBB but they cancelled installation 3 times due to weather, i wouldnt mind but the last tmie they cancelled the weather was grand so i cancelled it. prob dodged a bullet there

gibbon75

So,is the Cork Central alive then?
(But the answer is probably a big fat NO....)

digitaldr

any news on the Whitehall exchange? Thanks

jimmycrackcorm

irishpal25 wrote:

ive ordered smart in the letterkenny area. the weird thing is i cant get eircom or any orther wired provider but smarts website says i can and the smart operator on the phone said i should be able to too but the technains will do a test first.

one question for any smart users are their connections RJ45 or RJ11 as my wireless router only has RJ45.

thanks

Smart is using ADSL2 instead of bland ADSL hence the distance is greater and line quality doesn't need to be as hot.

Drapper

jimmycrackcorm wrote:

Smart is using ADSL2 instead of bland ADSL hence the distance is greater and line quality doesn't need to be as hot.

a whole 400m better !! lol

halenger

Isn't it 2 or 3km better?

oilfoster wrote:

Whitehall live date has slipped and will be live by next Monday.

Has this slipped again or did it actually go live 2 days ago? I assume given that was said on the 30th of November it was referring to Monday just gone, the 5th...

rabbitinlights

Anarchist wrote:

Finally got my Smart BB last night and the good news was that by chance I found out I was switched on....1 week early!
bad news was that it took 5 weeks to switch from Eircom, so no internet for 5 weeks!!!!!

5 WEEKS? Did you get emails telling you the stage you were at so far, im just after getting my 3rd stage email from them:

"Your unbundled line order has been accepted and is underway.
You will receive your modem by courier over the next few days with instructions on how to set up your broadband."

Ive only been waiting about <10 days so far and they are sending emails telling me the status of my order (which is great)

Hopefully ill have my broadband back soon.
Is the 256k up an extra €5 a month extra?

Sean.

pizzahead77

Yeah, the 256K upload spead is an extra €5 per month

Drapper

halenger wrote:

Isn't it 2 or 3km better?...

ADSL1 can go up to 8mbs up to around 4.5km - 6km (depending on who you talk to) from the Exchange.
ADSL2 is a variation on the current ADSL standard that can go up to 12mbs up to around 7km from the Exchange.
ADSL2+ can go up to 24mbs within 1.5km of the Exchange and about half that beyond that distance.


opss I meant ADSL2+

OfflerCrocGod

Drapper wrote:

ADSL1 can go up to 8mbs up to around 4.5km - 6km (depending on who you talk to) from the Exchange.

As far as I know BT in the UK have removed the distance limit all together from their ADSL products because of the improvement in the equipment and therefore the ADSL distance.

machalla

Well smart were the ony ones able to offer me a dsl connection due to poor line quality. Thats the DSL2+ (and the fact they aren't eircon!).

Drapper

OfflerCrocGod wrote:

As far as I know BT in the UK have removed the distance limit all together from their ADSL products because of the improvement in the equipment and therefore the ADSL distance.

yes but it required DSL boosters every couple of KM ! and they cost a fair few bob!!

I hate when people compare DSL in UK and Ireland !! 20times the population and 20times the spending power

digitaldr

From the smart website:

Your phone number xxxxxxxxx is in the exchange WHITEHALL.
This exchange is on our current Network Build Programme for December 2005.
If you would like to avail of this amazing offer, please sign-up below and we will contact you as soon as your exchange becomes available.

stackeye

Checked my line at smarttelecom.ie and got this message

Your phone number XXXXXXXX is in the exchange CABRA.
This exchange is on our current Network Build Programme for March 2006.
If you would like to avail of this amazing offer, please sign-up below and we will contact you as soon as your exchange becomes available.


So Bingo I signed up then and there, I'm cool with changing the number, But I have a feeling that the exchange wont be done in March,

Smart are really offering alot now, FTTH and VOIP, Im looking at an add for Smart in "the Engineers Journal" for Triple Play
- 70+ Channels
- Voice
- 2mb+ Internet Access

(FTTH is only available in new housing developments)

fullerand

stackeye wrote:

So Bingo I signed up then and there, I'm cool with changing the number, But I have a feeling that the exchange wont be done in March

When you sign up online like that, what's the commitment on your side?

I mean, if March arrives and they can't provide broadband from your exchange, do you have the option to back out and go with another provider? I read the T&Cs but can't see anything.

/Losing patience waiting on Ballyboden exchange...

Anarchist

rabbitinlights wrote:

5 WEEKS? Did you get emails telling you the stage you were at so far, im just after getting my 3rd stage email from them:

"Your unbundled line order has been accepted and is underway.
You will receive your modem by courier over the next few days with instructions on how to set up your broadband."

Ive only been waiting about <10 days so far and they are sending emails telling me the status of my order (which is great)

Hopefully ill have my broadband back soon.
Is the 256k up an extra €5 a month extra?

Sean.

I get 200 spam e-mail aday, I delete all without reading :cool:
Yes the 256 upload is fiver xtra, well worth it though, esp if u use Bit torrents etc, I may get interleaving switched off now too as well.
Customer service in Smart is I agree with u excellent too

dub45

fullerand wrote:

When you sign up online like that, what's the commitment on your side?

I mean, if March arrives and they can't provide broadband from your exchange, do you have the option to back out and go with another provider? I read the T&Cs but can't see anything.

/Losing patience waiting on Ballyboden exchange...

You are not signed up as such. When the exchange is enabled thats when you actually sign up - there is no committment until then.

halenger

digitaldr wrote:

From the smart website:

Your phone number xxxxxxxxx is in the exchange WHITEHALL.
This exchange is on our current Network Build Programme for December 2005.
If you would like to avail of this amazing offer, please sign-up below and we will contact you as soon as your exchange becomes available.

Check again...

Your phone number xxxxxxxx is in the exchange WHITEHALL.
Congratulations, Broadband is available to you!

I also got an e-mail about the order process having started. I'll take this all as meaning that Whitehall has gone live. Good stuff.

irishpal25

there on Wednesday i got to give all my details over the phone instead of posting them as they were showing comreg that it would work fine. so now all i have to do is wait 10 days. hopefully just in time to avail of the 6mb connection for Christmas

dub45

irishpal25 wrote:

there on Wednesday i got to give all my details over the phone instead of posting them as they were showing comreg that it would work fine. so now all i have to do is wait 10 days. hopefully just in time to avail of the 6mb connection for Christmas

Tell us more about the Comreg thing?

How did they handle the terms and conditions side of things as they signed up over the phone?

LoGiE

When can people expect smart to enter exchanges in fingal? With 200,000 people and new estates popping up all the time you'd think it might be worth looking at. There's plenty of providers in Dublin city centre already offering Wireless, cable and DSL!

Praetorian

LoGiE wrote:

When can people expect smart to enter exchanges in fingal? With 200,000 people and new estates popping up all the time you'd think it might be worth looking at. There's plenty of providers in Dublin city centre already offering Wireless, cable and DSL!

They'll only go where there is fibre available to them. So Skerries / Rush / Lusk / Balbriggan will never have LLU from Smart or anyone else for that matter. Unless of course ESAT BT bother (They have fibre along the railway track that they could use).

irishguy

Your phone number xxxxxxx is in the exchange DOORADOYLE.
This exchange is on our current Network Build Programme for January 2006.
If you would like to avail of this amazing offer, please sign-up below and we will contact you as soon as your exchange becomes available.

Finally

rabbitinlights

Well my Smart router arrived on thursday and I went active today (Sat @ about 1pm?) So in total, I only had 11 days down time between Eircom and Smart. My D-Link DSL G604T works perfect and Im connected @ 160 Kbps Upstream, 2368 Kbps Downstream, Which on irishisptest.com works out at exactly 2mb/130kbps, I might upgrade to the 256 on Monday.

Overall Im very happy with the move and I feel much better about not giving any more money to Eircom.

Thanks Garfield and Oilfoster for helping with the smooth change over.

Sean

dingding

rabbitinlights wrote:

Well my Smart router arrived on thursday and I went active today (Sat @ about 1pm?) So in total, I only had 11 days down time between Eircom and Smart. My D-Link DSL G604T works perfect and Im connected @ 160 Kbps Upstream, 2368 Kbps Downstream, Which on irishisptest.com works out at exactly 2mb/130kbps, I might upgrade to the 256 on Monday.

Overall Im very happy with the move and I feel much better about not giving any more money to Eircom.

Thanks Garfield and Oilfoster for helping with the smooth change over.

Sean

Was both your phone and broadband down, did you have to contact eircom to get them to disconnect or was it done automatically as it is when you transfer yor mobile provider. I am intreested in moving to Smart when they come to town next year any information would be appriciated.