A few questions regarding broadband and eircom hi-speed.

wdarragh

Hi,
Please could somebody answer a few questions I have about eircom hi-speed and broadband:

1. What is the maximum distance you can be from a broadband enabled exchange in order to receive it?

2. What is the current going rate for broadband? (something insane, no doubt )

3. Is eirom hi-speed just ISDN with a fancy name?

4. Is eircom hi-speed a good service, for gaming in particular (i.e. Counter-Strike)

Thanks

tuxy

1. i think its about 3.5 km but from what iv heard alot of lines are failing even if they are very close to the exchange , so just get your line tested and see
2. 110 euro inc vat a month for 512k from eircom (3 gb download cap)
3. yes
4. its fairly good for counter-strike generaly 50-80 ping to irish and uk servers

ando

eircom hi-speed is good for gaming depending on what ISP you use

jwt

ISDN is very good for gaming, and it connects in around 2 to 3 seconds from dialing to logged in.

However although it is better than analogue 56K and gives rock solid connections all the time it does not compare to ADSL.

Remember that to get 128K you are paying for two phonecalls at once.

I am 3.5 miles from my exchange and had no problems getting ISDN but I have friends who are closer and they had to stick to 56K

ADSL is supposed to reach to 3.5K or 2 miles but in reality it seems to be much less as ADSL is very prone to interference from crappy lines poor circuits etc.

The only known way to be sure, is to get Eircom to check the line physically.

JWT

the Guru

1. What is the maximum distance you can be from a broadband enabled exchange in order to receive it?
/// 1 Mile ///

2. What is the current going rate for broadband? (something insane, no doubt )
/// €89 - €169 with eircom ///

3. Is eirom hi-speed just ISDN with a fancy name?
/// ISDN is the Technology name (Integrated Service Digial Network) Hi Speed is the Eircom Brand name ///

4. Is eircom hi-speed a good service, for gaming in particular (i.e. Counter-Strike)
/// Nor Sure ///

tuxy

Originally posted by the Guru
1. What is the maximum distance you can be from a broadband enabled exchange in order to receive it?
/// 1 Mile ///

is eircom adsl differnt from adsl used in other countries because the standard is a maximum of 3.5Km from the exchange

melachi

Well, personally I don't think ISDN is good for any online gaming.
It certainly is better than 56k BUT nowhere near as good as broadband, well except eircoms i-stream...

ElNino

Just to point out that no one has mentioned ESAT. Their DSL is €90 + VAT per month, uncapped, and they offer DSL within 2.5k of enabled exchanges.

Dustaz

Originally posted by the Guru

/// €89 - €169 with eircom ///

actually its €107 - €210 (about) per month including vat.


ISDN gives you a ping as good as , if not better than eircoms adsl. However, unlike DSL, you do pay for the price of the call.

LFCFan

Originally posted by Dustaz
actually its €107 - €210 (about) per month including vat.

exactly. there should be a rule that people are not allowed to talk about the ex-VAT price because it can be very misleading and we all have to pay VAT so it should always be included.

koneko

ISDN is only good for certain games, and then only over a certain distance. For instance, playing Counter-strike on an Irish or UK server, grand no problem. Playing Bf1942? RIGHT. Playing anything else (like SOF2) is pretty much impossible unless it's a UK server. And they're usually full

Dustaz

Koneko, I think thats down the the netcode of any particular game. At the end of the day, ISDN is better pingwise for online gaming than eircoms DSL.

melachi

Originally posted by Dustaz
Koneko, I think thats down the the netcode of any particular game. At the end of the day, ISDN is better pingwise for online gaming than eircoms DSL.

Not if you ask koopa
ADSL can handle more things since theres more bandwith.
Sure you'll get better ping in DOS but that's just you and the server. Once loads of people show up and start shooting you'll be in a bit of trouble.
If there's any other option than eircom isdn / adsl coming to you (not likely duh but still) in the future I would wait for that hehe.

BKtje

i ping better to non Uk servers than adsl/cable players in UK.

im on ISDN.

ISDN is pretty good if you like a decent ping to newhere in europe.
One advantage over Broadband is that if you got a high ping. Switch ISP and ur ping usually drops. Different routing etc

crawler

Guys also keep in mind that it's the "copper distance" from the exchange - not the "crow flies" distance.

some of eircom's ducting path follow very "interesting" routes - you may only be a mile from an exchange but there is actually 2 miles of copper between you and the DSLAM

koneko

Originally posted by Dustaz
Koneko, I think thats down the the netcode of any particular game. At the end of the day, ISDN is better pingwise for online gaming than eircoms DSL.

Eircoms DSL maybe, but I'm talking about decent products, not their half-assed attempt.

Also ISDN is completely useless when you have 2 gamers in the house. Which we do. And forget about gaming and someone else browsing the web.

ando

my isdn is as reliable as a spanish dude on holiday in the north pole. Its the second time my isdn is down in 6 weeks:mad: