iBurst versus Telkom DSL – why you should switch to iBurst

Posted on February 9th, 2008 by Richard Catto 8,088 views

I recently came to the end of my Telkom DSL 24 month contract and I decided to investigate using iBurst as an option because my friend Candy Tothill recommended it to me. I had also previously been disadvantaged by Telkom who supplied me with a DSL router which contained a security hole and as a direct result of that, I suffered bandwidth theft. Telkom refused to restore the bandwidth that I lost, so I felt that their poor customer service should have consequences for them, viz. the loss of my business.

When Candy was down here recently, she plucked this compact little iBurst modem out of her laptop bag and showed it to me. She had brought it down with her to Cape Town from Johannesburg so that she could enjoy Internet access whilst she was here.

The whole concept of having mobile Internet immediately grabbed me, because, of course, with a DSL line, the only place I can use the Net is when I am in my office.

Right now I am a happy iBurst customer. Let me tell you my story…

The first thing you need to know is that iBurst does not make you wait. You can get it and get it right away. I approached iBurst for the first time on Friday Feb 01 2008 and they faxed me the application forms right away. I faxed the forms back to them on Monday Feb 04 2008 and on Wednesday morning early (10h30) I received my iBurst desktop modem and omni-directional antenna delivered to my door via courier.

I was frankly amazed by the speed with which iBurst moved. With Telkom, speed is not a word in their vocabulary. I waited 6 weeks for my Telkom DSL connection to be installed in Dec 2005 and their technicians were incompetent, having to come back several times before the installation was completed. They also missed the date of installation I had been given by several days.

In May 2006 I moved to my present abode and I had to beg and plead with Telkom to move my connection in a reasonable time. It took 2 weeks for that to be affected, and I had to pay for them to move my connection. They also managed to screw up my billing completely in the process. All in all, dealing with Telkom was an incredibly frustrating experience. My advice is to avoid it if possible, and now, of course, you can if iBurst has coverage for your area.

Okay, so I took delivery of my iBurst package and I excitedly unpacked it and read the installation instructions. First step was to install the software, and that is where I hit a snag. When I inserted the iBurst CD, my LG DVD writer could not read it. The disk was faulty. So I called the iBurst helpdesk number printed on the CD and got through to a customer service representative very quickly. He suggested that they courier me a new disk to arrive the next day, but I wanted to get online right away so I asked if I could rather go to my local iBurst office in Canal Walk and get a swop out there. He said I could and gave me the number to call to arrange that. That’s where I hit snag number two.

I got put through to an extremely incompetent (white) woman who was rude and unhelpful and who should just be immediately dismissed by iBurst. They don’t need someone with a Telkom mentality working for them. I asked her directly (twice) if I could just come through to the office and get a swop out but she insisted that I speak to the salesperson who sold me the package. She gave me his JHB number and bounced me back instead of just sorting me out. I slammed the phone down on her. I proceeded to call my father to tell him of the miserable experience I was having with them and he proceeded to phone iBurst and shit on them from a dizzy height until he found someone who escalated my problem to the branch manager of the Cape Town office of iBurst, Marco de Vries.

Marco de Vries sorted me out completely. He organised the replacement package and I drove in and collected it. I also booked to have my iBurst omni-directional antenna installed the next day. I got home and the new CD worked. I installed the software, connected the modem and I was online immediately, albeit with a weak signal strength. Without the benefit of an external antenna, my average signal quality was only 30%, enough to connect, but not good enough to use broadband applications. Nonetheless, I was happy to wait until Thursday to get the antenna installed.

The next day, however, no-one called to tell me they were coming and no-one arrived to do the installation. So in the afternoon, I emailed Marco again (he had given me his business card with his personal email address and cell phone number on it). He apologised for the delay. The external contractor and his in-house technician (Warren) were totally booked up doing installs for other customers that day. I felt let down and I let Marco know. He apologised again and within half an hour I got a call from Warren who arranged to come out Friday afternoon around 13h00 to install me.

Warren kept his appointment. coming slightly before the agreed time and installed the antenna exactly where I wanted it and he did a neat job of it too. I found him to be a pleasant, friendly and competent technician and he affected a very professional installation. The external antenna boosted my signal quality to 100%, which means that I now enjoy up to 1024Kbps connection speed (double that of my DSL512K connection).

Unlike Telkom, iBurst does not charge different rates for different connection speeds. All their customers enjoy the same 1024Kbps broadband speed. iBurst charges only for the amount of data used. This makes logical sense. Telkom is actually ripping off the public when it charges a higher rate for their higher speed connections, because speed means nothing if your bandwidth is capped (as it is in South Africa).

Despite the snags I had, I am blown away by my iBurst customer experience. They got me online and fully installed within days. Whatever bad experience I had with one incompetent iBurst staff member was totally made up for by the attention my problems received from the Cape Town iBurst branch manager, Marco de Vries. He did his company proud. Thank you, Marco, you did an excellent job at satisfying this customer.

I now have a fully functional broadband connection at my office, and if I need Internet access away from my office, I can simply take my very compact and portable iBurst desktop modem with me. Even if I don’t get full signal strength elsewhere, I can still get online at a slower speed.

Pricewise, I also just shaved over R400 a month off what I was paying Telkom. I signed up on iBurst’s Pro Classic package which gives me 3.5GB. However, I was told by my salesperson that they allow up to 7GB on that package. After that, iBurst does not cap me and shut me off completely like Telkom does. Instead iBurst throttles my speed to 64Kbps for the rest of the month. iBurst also gives me the option of topping up to continue enjoying full speed. I pay iBurst R699 per month on the Pro Classic. I can move up to R1029 for the Pro Extreme or R1229 for the Pro Addict.

Since I contracted with iBurst for 24 months, they supplied the desktop modem and external antenna free of charge. Installation of the antenna cost R300.

All in all, I think it’s an excellent choice for the smart South African broadband shopper.

Tags: broadband, DSL, iBurst, Marco de Vries, Telkom
Filed under iBurst, Internet, Internet Access |

77 Responses to “iBurst versus Telkom DSL – why you should switch to iBurst”

arnold Says:
February 9th, 2008 at 06:13
I do not like stories like this because I am still tied down by a Telkom contract (sigh).

I have a off-topic question. You have been through a rough time what with bad service and the like. True to form you blogged about it but there is no ranting, raving or swearing. Who are you and what have you done with Richard?

arnold’s last blog post..Chain dropping or not
Richard Catto Says:
February 9th, 2008 at 06:32
I think the difference, Arnold, is that I don’t feel the frustration I have usually felt when dealing with incompetent people where there is no recourse to someone higher up who can rectify matters.

With Telkom, although they have a toll free telephone number to call for DSL related problems, getting someone to actually speak to you can take hours of waiting on hold.

And then there is the absolute inflexibility of Telkom. They do things in the most illogical manner possible.

Incidentally, as an aside, the reason I mentioned the race of the incompetent woman at iBurst is because I have a political agenda to refute all the naysayers who love to speak ill of black customer service representatives. All the black staff at iBurst were thoroughly professional and helpful. I’ve even had very good assistance from black CSRs at Telkom (on occassion).

I don’t actually think it’s the race of the person you’re dealing with that is the problem at all – it’s their attitude.
Richard Catto Says:
February 9th, 2008 at 07:25
I’m getting phenomenal download speeds here – bursting over 1024Kbps.
Callith Says:
February 9th, 2008 at 07:31
Nah, I’ll stick to my Vodacom 1Gig service. The speed is pretty good and it costs about the same as what a Telkom service would. What’s more, it’s mobile.

iBurst is just too expensive, methinks.

But I’m glad that you’re sorted, Richard.

Callith’s last blog post..I stole a meme?
Henry Says:
February 9th, 2008 at 10:49
It’s unfair for you to try to hold telkom responsible because you failed to secure your own router. Ignorance is no excuse.
Marko Says:
February 9th, 2008 at 13:19
I’ve been using iBurst since they first launched in SA. I have used it all over JHB, Pretoria (Tshwane) and CT.
In the early days it was very difficult to get technical help but I must say they have really upped their game recently.
Here’s an idea for those (like me) who live in a poor signal area. Height is key, put your modem in a weatherproof box and attach a high gain directional antenna (pointed of course at your nearest base station).
Power the thing with a PoE (Power over Ethernet) adapter (just keep the cable max. 30m otherwise you’ll have too much voltdrop).
Now mount this on a pole on your chimney or outside wall like so:
http://www.aquamanta.net/ib.jpg

Just a note for those gamers considering iBurst, don’t do it unless you can be sure of a really good signal. Due to the unpredictable nature of a wireless signal, latency can often fluctuate enough to make fps gaming impossible.

As Richard says, once one has exceeded one’s soft ‘cap’, they will throttle your service down to 64Kbps which is perfectly adequate for email and browsing.

*hint* if you are throttled and need to download something fast, disconnect and reconnect. You will have max. speed for a few minutes before being throttled again.
Also use a good multi-thread download manager, eg. http://www.freedownloadmanager.org/

If anyone is interested to see what a base station looks like, here is one in Plumstead:
http://www.aquamanta.net/plumstead.jpg
If you want to know more about the Kyocera and Arraycomm technology: http://global.kyocera.com/prdct/telecom/office/iburst/index.html
Richard Catto Says:
February 9th, 2008 at 13:39
Henry, you’re a lazy bastard and a nincompoop. If you had bothered to read my article about the security hole I discovered you would have realised that it was Telkom’s fault and not mine.

The DSL router was set to disallow remote access, but a flaw allowed remote access anyway.

But you’re a lazy online slob who can’t be bothered to click and read before opening your mouth and spewing crap online.

You’re not welcome here anymore. Hit the bricks, China!
Richard Catto Says:
February 9th, 2008 at 14:04
Thanks for the links, Marko.

That’s an interesting looking box on a pole you have there. I’m not sure why you chose to elevate your iBurst modem though.

The way iBurst installed me was to attach an omni-directional antenna (rather than a directional one that has to point in the right direction) on top of my roof and then extend the 5 metre cable so that it reaches my modem (which is on my desk) comfortably.

My one disappointment with the iBurst desktop modem is that, although it connects to my PC via USB, it is powered separately from the mains, limiting it’s portability somewhat.
Marko Says:
February 9th, 2008 at 16:09
At the time I installed that rig of mine, iBurst did not yet supply an antenna with the modem. There also weren’t any antennae available from any third parties. Even the special little pigtails were scarce as hen’s teeth. I had to import one and it cost me over R700 just for that stupid piece of wire and connectors.
I first tried to install it inside my roof which did improve matters but the unit would overheat.
The answer was therefore to get an antenna up high enough to gain any significant signal. Problem is, RF cable has 0.6dBi loss per meter and the only decent omni antenna I could find only had 1.5dBi gain (http://www.poynting.co.za/productdisplay.php?id=63&cat_id=2). My only option to reduce the length of cable and get height was therefore to mount the modem close to the antenna, hence the weatherproof box, PoE etc.
After a while, I changed the omni for a high gain (12dBi) directional Yagi type (http://www.miro.co.za/detail.php?cat=13&sub=66&id=4641) and I haven’t looked back since

If you want more portability Richard, get the laptop modem and use a mini-PCI to PCI (or mini-PCIE to PCIE) adapter card (R100) in your pc.
Then if you have a laptop you can just swap between the two.
Candy Tothill Says:
February 9th, 2008 at 17:51
Great article Rich. Happy bursting!

Candy Tothill’s last blog post..state of the nation, poor
Marko Says:
February 10th, 2008 at 05:40
Please WBS/Santa bring on the 2Mbit/s iBurst, I promise we’ll be good, even though it’s not yet Easter
esvl Says:
February 10th, 2008 at 09:36
Iburst rocks. Until you want to cancel. I wont use them if I get paid to use them. When I wanted to cancel my contract they came up with ways to find places I owe them money and had to pay them more than R2000 for “outstanding” stuff that I “did not pay”

esvl’s last blog post..STATE OF THE NATION ADDRESS OF
THE PRESIDENT OF SOUTH AFRICA, THABO MBEKI:
JOINT SITTING OF PARLIAMENT, FEBRUARY 8, 2008.
Ricky Says:
February 10th, 2008 at 14:14
Hi Richard,

Can you explain in more technical detail what the security hole was? I followed the link you gave but it was still a bit vague. You said you disabled remote access, however remote access was still gained via an alternative port. What port number is that?

You also said that you felt it was a waste of time to attempt to change the default admin password on your third router because your previous attempts on your first two routers didn’t work. So is it safe to assume you still had the default admin credentials?

Also, was your router configured as an wireless AP?

When you returned your two previous routers, did you make sure to remove your adsl login/pass from the router config?

I don’t mean to question you, but you are making a very serious accusation that could potentially affect hundreds of thousands of people.

I work at an ISP (not telkom, btw) and I deal with these issues all of the time. In almost every case it boils down to one of the following:

*Wireless is set up, with no ACL and left open
*Default admin details retained, and remote access turned on
*Virus infection that eats up all bandwidth while virus tries to spread to other machines

And, finally, why are the folks over at myadsl.co.za forum not talking up a storm about this? There are some very clever people there with advanced skills and yet they don’t seem to be aware of this.

If what you are staying is true then please write up a detailed explanation of your findings, and how to reproduce it, and post it on myadsl.co.za. Journalists frequent that forum and if there is some truth to your findings you might find yourself in the Argus soon!
Richard Catto Says:
February 10th, 2008 at 14:18
esvl, well you see that’s what lawyers are for.

If they present you with a bill for something you don’t think you owe, you ask their accounting department to submit all outstanding invoices (plus a combined statement of your account) to you, then you go over it, write your version of the story, and then take all of that to your lawyer and tell him or her to write them a letter explaining why you don’t owe them a red cent.

At that point, they will realise that in order to recoup R2000, they’re gonna have to spend more money on legal fees. Your lawyer would also be able to advise you whether or not you legitimately owe them.

Also, in this day and age of Internet blogs, any company which fucks people over has to know that a full account of their worthlessness is gonna appear in the search results of any customer who decides to google them before he or she signs on the dotted line.
Richard Catto Says:
February 10th, 2008 at 15:03
Ricky, I deliberately did not publish the alternative port number. I noticed the alternative port number in the webadmin control panel of my Telkom premium combo DSL router.

Connecting via that port number to the public IP of my router allows access to the webadmin page of the router, even if remote access is disabled (which it is by default). Since I had not changed my admin password from the default, they got in.

My router was configured for wireless access, but that was not how my bandwidth was stolen. Telkom confirmed that for me when they told me that my account had been accessed from other telephone lines. My wireless was secured.

I did not remove my account details from the routers returned because I naively assumed that Telkom would erase them before giving them out to someone else. Telkom fails customers again by not taking care to do that. In any event, I did change my password to those accounts, and bandwidth was still stolen, indicating that hackers had gained access to my new account details on the new (premium combo) router.

MyADSL people did talk about this briefly on their site and also left comments on this blog.

I submitted my story to IOL and it was ignored.
Marko Says:
February 10th, 2008 at 20:41
Hey esvl, you cannot ‘cancel’ a contract.
If you want to terminate the contract before the term is up then of course you will have to pay in the difference, that’s how these things work.
Did you even read the terms of the contract before you signed it? Of course, if there was some kind of breach of contract then that is a different matter.
So many people these days take out contracts (cell phone, gym, dstv) etc. without bothering with the legalese. It is a CONTRACT people, you are legally bound by its terms.
Richard Catto Says:
February 10th, 2008 at 20:55
Okay, so I suppose the question for esvl is why he wanted to cancel his contract?
esvl Says:
February 10th, 2008 at 21:28
Marko – I am not stupid. I know Iburst has “small writing”. Unfortunately I dont own a microscope.
Anyway they are full of crap. I guess you must be representing Iburst. So that makes you full of crap. In fact I am not going to spend another minute telling you “marko” about why Iburst screwed my bank balance and told me they would take further steps. Who needs to get scammed by Telkom when you can get screwed by Iburst wirelessly.

Sure Iburst, No cables attached. Just a whole bunch of strings.

esvl’s last blog post..10 things I hate about blog competitions
Marko Says:
February 10th, 2008 at 21:44
I did not say you were stupid but since you think that then maybe you are.

No, I do not represent iBurst. If you want to make allegations and you want people to listen to your whining then stick to the facts, not some vague story about outstanding stuff that I did not pay.
esvl Says:
February 10th, 2008 at 21:57
Get a life.

esvl’s last blog post..Make money online with – Surveyteam.com
Marko Says:
February 10th, 2008 at 22:19
Ok, I’ll bite…
I can only assume from your inability to construct clear sentences in English and from your use of terms like ‘Iburst rocks’ that you are still a teenager. Why don’t you go and ask mommy what the problem is and then come back and tell us properly ok?
You might then realise that having dealt with iBurst since launch in 2005 I might actually be able to help you.

Okay, so I suppose the question for esvl is why he wanted to cancel his contract?
Somehow I don’t think he will be able to tell us.
esvl Says:
February 10th, 2008 at 22:28
What has grammar got to do with a clear conversation? Jackass.

esvl’s last blog post..Make money online -
6000 Says:
February 11th, 2008 at 09:33
I’m going to sound cynical here, but do you like iBurst because they’re iBurst?

That’s actually really shit service – to have to get in touch with the regional manager twice to get anything done, despite only -er… 2 things needing to be done.

The other thing you might want to point out is that that big flat rock in Cape Town plays havoc with getting a decent iBurst signal.

We’ve just hooked up to Telkom for our business and were sorted, no worries, no questions asked in 6 days. No calls to the regional manager, either. Super impressed.

6000′s last blog post..Never give up
Richard Catto Says:
February 11th, 2008 at 11:18
6000, I think getting sent a faulty CD is bad luck. Getting an unhelpful person on the phone was unprofessional of iBurst and the only sure fire way for them to truly redeem themselves for that is to FIRE the woman.

No second chances, no group therapy, no kisses and hugs and promises to do better next time – just terminate her employment.

I take a hardline on customer service. If you screw up, you’re gone. End of story. Better luck elsewhere.

It would make me feel happier if I knew she was terminated. Not shuffled or transferred. Terminated. I’m quite adament about that.

The antenna installation should have been handled on Thursday not Friday. It did actually seriously inconvenience me. I actually had to miss going to a close relative’s memorial service on Friday because of iBurst’s inability to keep their promise to install me on Thursday.
ANDRES Says:
March 1st, 2008 at 22:57
Please, I saw the announce of TELKOM MOBILE PLAZA, i will advice your webpage, this is a FAKE company, i try to buy something from Congo, and sent it the money, but they never delivery the products, thes took my money and never receive anything, I complain in South Africa Embassy, and now I waiting, please Advise all Users fo your page, thanks

Julio
Gerrie Says:
April 2nd, 2008 at 13:19
How do get 1024kbps with iburst? I have an omnidirectional antenna, but only get an average of 55kbps? They claim 1024kbps, but I have yet to see this…. I live in Cape Town, in a poor signal area, but my signal strength is 100%. It is with an usb modem. I’m a pc idiot, so will appreciate any help!
Richard Catto Says:
April 5th, 2008 at 15:45
Gerrie » You should get a lot more than 55Kbps. Call their helpdesk.
Marko Says:
April 6th, 2008 at 17:30
Hi Gerrie, you will need to gain height to improve your speed. Obviously you will be limited by signal loss the longer your antenna cable is.
You could also use a higher gain antenna such as a directional one.
here is my rig, note that the modem itself is in the box and the very short antenna lead. I live near Cavendish square and its massive metal roof is my main interference.
Grim Says:
May 25th, 2008 at 00:33
What a joke, iBurst is absolutely useless! I have been with them for over a year, have had numerous issues with regard to data going missing (amazingly) and not to mention the useless support and constant disconnections considering I get full signal in my area). Worst of all iBurst have brought out their new price plans but then expect its existing customers to pay a R199 fee to “downgrade” to the lower price plan for the EXACT same product. What a joke, I have moved to telkom ADSL and i am very happy, service was surprisingly great and fast. Internet speed is the same if not faster PLUS i have more data per month (about 1500 MBs more) for LESS than what iBurst was charging me. There shouldnt be place in the market for sharks like iBurst!
Richard Catto Says:
May 25th, 2008 at 00:42
@Grim: Actually, Grim, since I wrote that article, my opinion has changed quite radically.

iBurst brought out a whole new range of packages recently and so I asked them to migrate me. Their support in regard migration has been 100% useless. Despite jumping through all their hoops, they have still not migrated me.

iBurst are a bunch of fucking idiots.
Grim Says:
May 25th, 2008 at 11:56
lol Rich, when i got my iBurst i couldnt stop telling people how cool it was and they should get it, needless to say everyone did warm me about them and their shenanigans. Many a “I told you so” went around when I started moaning about the service etc. I am now an active campaigner to educate people against this tyrant of a company. (Not really that active but sounds cool).

I think it was definitely the price migration that sent me over the edge. It is a dam cheek to expect loyal customers to have to pay a fee to move down and be on the same package. Telkom I think are pulling up their socks slowly (my experience has so far been rather pleasant), not to mention that Neotel are on their way in. So in all reality I dont see a company like iBurp surviving in this soon to be very competitive market.
Marko Says:
May 26th, 2008 at 15:25
Damn, until now I did not even know they had reduced their prices. Nice, thanks for telling us iBurst.
I see from their FAQ “If you are an existing iBurst customer you will remain on your current package unless you request otherwise. Please contact us if you would like to change to a new package from 1 April 2008.”
Does this mean that when one contacts them you are told “pay us R199 and you can change”?
On the technical side I have never had problems with iBurst but it seems their management is up to shit.
Grim, do tell how you manage to get more data+same speed for less from Telskom.
Richard Catto Says:
May 26th, 2008 at 17:38
@Marko: someone blogged about iBurst’s new package rates and I figured it was widely known so I didn’t bother to blog it here. Maybe next time I’ll blog it anyway in case it escaped someone’s notice.

iBurst doesn’t even respond to my emails that I send to their helpdesk. I want to know why they haven’t migrated me.
Grim Says:
May 27th, 2008 at 10:41
@Marko: Yeah I was rather surprised to find out about the new price packages to. I actually phoned them thinking that they had been billing me to much each month, only to be informed that I need to fill out and fax them a migration form, which they bang you R199 to do. Nice hey? I got on the phone and ordered ADSL through Telkom, not even a month and its installed and running with no issues (holding thumbs). By no means am I praising Telkom as their track record is not great, but I will give credit where its due and they were very efficient in getting me up and running. Better the devil you know than the one you dont I say.
With regard to price, I was paying R299 for 500 MB’s per month. I didnt take a contract thank the sweet lord but had to pay R2000 for the modem…
Telkom, wireless 4 port modem is R999, monthly for a 384 Kb line + 2 gigs data + 20 gigs local data for – R258 (excluding line rental) so you looking at about R375 in total. To get anywhere near that amount of data with iBurp you are going to unfortunately have to sell a kidney.
Most people would say “ya but iBurst is a 1mb line, kak! I can honestly not tell any speed difference between iBurp and my 384 line, and I got full signal, and I am very critical of speed.

All i can hope for is that others are warned against these monkeys!
James Nel Says:
September 27th, 2008 at 19:06
I have also had an extremely positive experience with iBurst, great service and support. The speed is really very good. I receive 100% signal strength here in Rosebank
Graeme Says:
November 4th, 2008 at 20:25
I had an iBurst desktop modem and omni antenna since April 2007 and only experienced some downtime about 2 months ago when a big chunk of the network fell over up north. Brilliant service, knowledgeable staff.
The best of all is that I am moving house soon and can only have pity on those that are at the mercy of those of whom we do not speak!
Terrick Wright Says:
November 18th, 2008 at 12:37
Hi Richard Catto
Remember me ? I once asked you for support on Ibust some years ago.
<— EX Ibust User
Cancelled my Ibust account about a year ago now, I was one of the first users of Ibust (had no cap for 3/4 months), yes in those days was averaging 700kbps – 1.1mbps but as time went by download speeds decreased, prices went up. Now I see prices have dropped again.
Went on to ADSL in the interim but now am a very very Happy Neotel user, speeds don’t quiet compare to the good old 1.1mbps but 1. I have uncapped (R469/month) 2. Consistent service as well as excellent customer support.
Little downside of Neotel though 24month contract but new packages are coming out all the time, just check out http://www.neotel.co.za for constaly updated details.
Residential Fibre Optics will be released end of November.
Hope you peeps make a good choice
Danielsp333 Says:
November 19th, 2008 at 15:02
U ppl are all stupid. Ranting about iburst services and how fast it is. Iburst is a load of crap. The service is apauling, you cannot end the cntract no matter what, they lie about the speed, the speed sucks. They are a bunch of lieing tossers. At ne point they adverized they were 17x faster than dial up, lol , perhaps 17x slower but definatly not faster. The modem is over priced and the other costs are aswell. up to 1mbps lol !!! in reality its more like up to 1 kbps
Marko Says:
November 19th, 2008 at 19:34
Daniel, if you’re so clever then why can’t you even type in English?
Clever people will also realise that with any wireless service (iBurst, 3G, Neotel, Wi-Fi), speed is dependant mainly on the quality of your signal, so if your speed ‘sucks’ then you have a signal problem. I have a yagi type antenna which I point directly at my closest array (~3km away) and have no speed issues.
Here’s some info so you can compare:
iBurst locally connected via SAIX and IS (largest carrier of IP in SA), internationally by Verizon (largest carrier of IP in the world).
Neotel backed by Tata Communications. Majority Indian owned, not South African. Locally have their own fiber network, international traffic via their own Tier-1 network, ie. the long way round to the East
Terrick Wright Says:
December 1st, 2008 at 14:29
Neotel Still pawns all other ISP’s in SA atm with great performance and reliability and excellent savings. I download average 20 gigs/month (Not a big downloader) for R469/month uncapped and am 24/7 connected, so no complaints.
Marko Says:
December 5th, 2008 at 19:57
Dear Terrick
Firstly, please don’t try to be l33t, it’s not working for you. The word is ‘pwn’ not ‘pawn’, big difference.
Secondly, I’d hardly call an average of between 50 and 100Kbps ‘great performance’. You say you’re not a big downloader but you’d have to be pretty much downloading 24/7 at that average to reach 20GB so either Neotel are understating their performance or you are lying.
Technology wise, Kyocera’s iBurst system has a much higher spectral efficiency than the Qualcomm CDMA2000 EV-DO system that Neotel uses.
Performance wise, I will again refer you to the network peering issues I mentioned previously.
I somehow also doubt that you’ll have much luck trying to attempt a Skype conversation with those average speeds, never mind video chat. You can also forget about multiplayer Internet gaming.
Price wise, for around the same price on iBurst you will get 3GB of data at up to 1Mbps and then be throttled to 64Kbps thereafter.
I would also rather give my money to a locally owned competitor than some foreign monopoly such as Tata.
Terrick Wright Says:
December 6th, 2008 at 17:54
Dearest Marko
Are you aware of the analogy “Empty vessels make the most noise” ? Well I certainly do hope you do as you just proved that analogy to a “T”
I see you make yet another personal attack, big mistake mister as many of your facts you stated above are in fact null and void, let me explain. First of all “pwn” is just an acronym for the word “pawn” whereas the word “Pawn” was orginally used to describe “an article deposited as a security instrument” (Programming term), was back in 1998 that the first expression of pawned came into use as the potential violater literally got pawned or pwned as you might put it. Pawn or Small as we use to refer to is an embedded scripting language, but made no sense to say “I just smalled someone” so hence the term “Pawned” was born. Although Pawn, Pwn all the same, is just an acronym of the other. I was not at all trying to be “L33t” – but seen as you made a personal attack I had explain a little, go do some research on the word “L33t” and we can compare bacon with eggs smartass. On another point Marko you seem to be quoting me out of context, I have no idea what my average download speeds are as I do not download all the time, I do however average 140-150kbps(18.75kBps) when I do download, so not sure where you get your figures from. Iburst does not give you average speeds of 1mbps but yes a peak of 1mbps which is highly unlikely as I only once peeked at 1.1mbps and have the screen shot to prove it, do you ? (Bare in mind I used to live approx. 50 metres away from the SABC building in Auckland Park) Another point I would like to mention, please have a squizz on mybroadband.co.za and compare the satisfaction repertoire between Neotel and Iburst, I am myself an ex user of Iburst, probably had the device before you did as I was part of the testing phase for pre-launch late 2004/early 2005 so no need to educate me on Kyoceras iBurst system which has a much higher spectral efficiency than the Qualcomm CDMA2000 EV-DO. I never said it did, and EV-DO is now busy been upgraded to the EV-DO rev A(max data transfer speeds of 3.1mbps) which will be upgraded to EV-DO rev B(max d/l data transfer speeds of 20mbps and 10mbps upload) upon Seacom’s landing mid June next year with a drastic decrease in Cap limit and bandwidth price by an estimated 80%. As for conversations in Skype I have no problem at all, even packet order synchronisation is fantastic and in fact at times better than it was on my previous 512k adsl line. Video streaming yes I must admit is not what it should be, but I mainly use voice only on Skype anyway (I have daily conversations on Skype, want to test it out, provide your Skype account name) As for mmoprg gaming RoFL, I in fact came #1 in Solar Combat last age, yes No.1, Koc I finished top 100, Roc I finished top 2400 odd (Cannot recall the exact number) Come pop in on cyanide-x.net (The International mmorpg Gaming server and I will provide facts with witness beared). Vodacom’s CEO is Iburst’s Chairman, who owns Iburst?, yes PBA owns Iburst(Personal Broadband Australia(PBA), who owns Vodacom ? Yes you guessed it Telkom, so in fact your inuendo’s are clearly innacurate, as in fact your much praised Iburst is Australian owned with subsidies from Vodacom i.e Telkom. So blegh* you clearly do not know what you are talking about Marko (Big mouth hey) -You want to talk monopolies ? Go do some thorough research before flaming someone with half-educated facts next time Marko. Let’s compare Eggs with apples in a few months time, what do you say hey ?
and btw You just got Pawned oops Pwned :p
PS: I only stopped by intially to say Howzat to Richard so “howzat man”
Cheers and Happy Weekend
Richard Catto Says:
December 6th, 2008 at 18:42
@Terrick Wright: download speeds of 150Kbps seems quite slow. Neotel advertises speeds up to 2.4Mbps which is more than double that of iBurst.

I definitely get more than 150Kbps on iBurst and I’d hate to downgrade my speed by switching to Neotel.
Marko Says:
December 6th, 2008 at 19:45
Terrick, you are confused my friend. Firstly may I suggest you obtain a dictionary as you don’t seem to comprehend the meaning of, amongst others, ‘analogy’, ‘acronym’, ‘repertoire’ and ‘innuendo’.
‘Pwn’ is derived from ‘own’ and has its origins in online gaming. It basically means ‘to be owned, or dominated’ by one’s opponent. I don’t know where you are going with the reference to the Pawn scripting language but it makes no sense, and since I find no relationship between it and the origin of ‘pwn’ on the web I’m going to assume you just made that up.

On another point Marko you seem to be quoting me out of context, I have no idea what my average download speeds are as I do not download all the time, I do however average 140-150kbps(18.75kBps) when I do download, so not sure where you get your figures from.

How exactly did I quote you out of context? I got my figures from Neotel’s own website where they quote peak download speeds of 156Kbps and average speeds between 50 and 100Kbps. This does not even qualify as broadband in my book.
I also did not say iBurst will average 1Mbps but is definitely much higher than Neotel.

who owns Iburst?, yes PBA owns Iburst(Personal Broadband Australia(PBA)

We are in South Africa Terrick. PBA operates the iBurst system in Australia. iBurst (Pty) Ltd is 100% owned by Wireless Business Solutions (Pty) Ltd which is wholly owned by South Africans. WBS was established in 1999 and is responsible for the wireless data network behind the National Lottery system.
I have no idea what Vodacom’s CEO Pieter Uys has to do with iBurst.
I also have no idea what eggs, bacon and apples have to do with wireless Internet but now you’ve made me hungry.
Richard Catto Says:
December 6th, 2008 at 19:56
@Marko: Okay, I’ve uncovered a key difference between Neotel packages.

The lite package goes up to 156Kbps, but their Prime package goes up to 2.4Mbps, which is more than double the speed of iBurst, plus their Prime package prices are much more competitive than iBurst.

For instance, I am paying iBurst R649 per month for 5GB at up to 1Mbps, whereas if I were on Neotel, I’d be paying them R599 for 10GB at up to 2.4Mbps.

Unless iBurst adjusts their pricing and bandwidth allocations soon, I will not be renewing my 24 month contract with iBurst. Right now I am getting a worse deal and I’m locked into it.
Marko Says:
December 6th, 2008 at 20:10
I agree with you Richard, prices need to come down significantly.
I’m not convinced by the CDMA technology though, especially when there will be more and more users on the same base station. Time will tell I guess.
I am on the same iBurst package as you and I too would like to see better pricing and allocation, and hopefully also an upgrade to 2Mbps soon.
Richard Catto Says:
December 6th, 2008 at 21:17
@Marko: Check if you can log into iburst’s web site. I just tried and got a login error. I can get into iburst webmail, though.

iBurst is running a special on their iCall package, and I wanted to register for it and try it out, but with the login error, I can’t register.
Marko Says:
December 6th, 2008 at 22:27
Hey Richard, I seem to be able to login right now.
Terrick Wright Says:
December 7th, 2008 at 14:12
Marko shuush you do not know what you are talking about FACT (You may think you do but you do not). You have stated yet again semi- null and void facts I do not rely on the web as my “bible” but rather rely on personal experience and fact. Make another personal attack and I will humiliate you further. /me points to “Empty vessels make the most noise. That is all I have to say.
Richard Catto Says:
December 7th, 2008 at 14:21
@Marko: The problem resolved itself and I managed to register for iCall.

They have a free promotion over Dec 2008 and Jan 2009 where they waive the R50 monthly subscription fee but still give you R50 per month of free calls.

I’m using the softphone and it’s pretty easy to get going. I just plug in my headset and make calls. Voice quality is good too.

My iCall number is 087 720 7325. iCall to iCall is totally free.
Marko Says:
December 8th, 2008 at 14:38
Silly Terrick, your idle threats do not hold water. Be quiet now you are just making a fool of yourself.

@Richard, what SIP software are you using?
Richard Catto Says:
December 8th, 2008 at 17:15
@Marko: I’m using the VirtualPhone (SJphone) that iBurst recommends.

I’ve used it to call customers today and it works like a bomb. It’s actually easier for me to use than a regular phone, because with my headset on, both hands are free to use the PC.
Terrick Wright Says:
December 12th, 2008 at 12:32
Business ADSL is expecting a price hike and do not see a forsee in a drop in prices or extension in usage caps, so not looking good for Adsl at all. Will Iburst SA get the promised 2mbps ? I see Iburst Australia has closed down due to the fact they were unable to compete with the various 3G providers. Wander if the same will happen here, competition is certainly hotting up. Neotel’s Neoflex has not been released yet but extensive testing has been done by fellow gamers on myphpBB and has come out on top as was able to compete with international latency but not local, adsl still has the up there.
DanielSp333 Says:
January 20th, 2009 at 16:44
Lol. Sum1 said that the only reason i beleve iburst is slow is beacuse i have poor signal…… well if you realy think 100% is bad i wonder what you have ….. anyway this whole topic is probably a propoganda excersize by iburst.. trying to get poor sucker to buy thier rubbish product. My friend lives 10meters away form one of thier poles and he sufferes frequent dissconects and slow download speeds. Iburst is a joke. At this piont i would say neotel is the way 2 go .. but actuly anything BUT iburst is the way… Oh and btw to the asshole marko : you said “Daniel, if you’re so clever then why can’t you even type in English?” well all i have to say to you is that im clever enough to not be defending iburst when it offers a clearly inferor product….
Marko Says:
January 23rd, 2009 at 13:46
Um ‘actuly’ Daniel, you can laaik to be a retard. Try for getting a spell check…
Your friend lives near a pole? I don’t know but the 12 antenna arrays look nothing like a pole, maybe this is your buddy’s problem. Please dude, take a photo of his place that is 10m away from this ‘pole’. Maybe he is retarded like you and mistakes his neighbour’s washing line for an antenna array.
JoeB1 Says:
February 7th, 2009 at 18:24
Iburst customer service is far worse than Telkom. It’s absolutely shocking. However, I still recommend it because it just works and you never have to speak to them. If they do mess up your account you will want to kill yourself rather than try get it sorted out.

On the games side, I have played Battlefield 2142 on the local SAIX servers. No real problems – everynow and then there is some horrible lag though.
DanielSp333 Says:
February 8th, 2009 at 18:54
By saying pole i was using it in a general term relating to where the signal orginates from, obviosly people like Marko dont realize the obvious and have to resort to word play to defend thier mistaken and somewhat stupid views. Marko shows great concern for me actuly, he suggests good sugestions like for me to get spellcheck, however i have one for him, buy a grammar guide ,, wtf ”Try for getting a spell check” what kind of a caveman are you? dissing me bout spelling error while you talk like a fucktard. Iburst clearly has a bad product, so my question to you is this : Why do u dumbly defend this product when it is the definiton of rubbish ?
Marko Says:
February 8th, 2009 at 21:41
Daniel, if you are going to try and make as if you know what you are talking about then you can’t use terms like ‘pole’. Your statement about your buddy living 10m away from an antenna array is also an exaggeration.
If you can’t see that I was deliberately writing badly as a dig at you then you are truly slow. Perhaps listening to Whackhead Simpson’s Institute of the Afrikaans Accent will enlighten you.
I think that your parents should get a refund for your school fees though. Fuck knows how you got through school (if at all).
I was not dumbly defending anything you idiot, but clearly expecting something slightly coherent, or even somewhat technical from the likes of yourself and Terrick is clearly just way too much.
DanielSp333 Says:
February 9th, 2009 at 15:17
1stly : im not afrikaans.
2ndly: you are actuly just dishing out insults and we are not realy talking about internet anymore
3rdly: shut the fuck up no one gives a shit what u wana say anymore coz of the way you disregard and instult anyone who is trying to make a piont.
Raithlin Says:
February 10th, 2009 at 13:13
@Richard: As a long time (since beta days) user of iBurst, I too have been watching the Neotel prices / customer service closely. I see over at myBroadband users that were initially overjoyed and evangelical have lately changed their tune. Have you any updates you’d like to add about this?
Richard Catto Says:
February 10th, 2009 at 17:25
@Raithlin: When I do, I’ll blog about it. Feel free to subscribe to my RSS feed to get updates.
Marko Says:
February 10th, 2009 at 19:10
@Daniel
1. Shame, you’re slow so I’ll have to explain it to you. Your English is so poor I was using the ‘can laaik to’ to mock it.
2. You insult me and you will get it right back so don’t go crying to mommy about it when you pick a fight with someone.
3. You seem to have a personal vendetta against iBurst. Maybe they rejected your job application (probably because nobody could decipher your retarded writing). You have made no valid points and in fact are just lying. At no point have you given us any evidence or reason, just some arbitrary ‘definition of rubbish’ crap.
I’m happy for you that you think Neotel are so great. Personally I just don’t believe in the CDMA technology, nor do I believe that a foreign monopoly (Tata Indicom) as SNO is a good idea at all.

By the way, I have never suffered a disconnect and my original iBurst modem which is now some years old lives in an IP65 box on my chimney with an antenna pointed at the base station which is some 3.5km away.

There is no point in arguing with an uneducated slob like yourself who can’t even bother to hold down the shift key, spell or punctuate so perhaps you should rather STFU!
DanielSp333 Says:
February 13th, 2009 at 16:00
1. My SPELLING is poor, not grammar but you seem to think otherwise.
2. I don’t actually know why you said I picked a fight, if you look back I didn’t say anything against you until you insulted me 1st . Obviously you, being the retarded angry failure you are ,you had to turn it into a fight and insult me. And I also don’t see why you have to mock my English, this isn’t a test or something important so I don’t give a damn what some rude angry attention-seeking person says about it.
3.As you pointed out I do have a vendetta against iburst, but then again you are an iburst ass-kisser so we balance each other out.
4. Unpredictable slop? What exactly are you referring to, I believe my posts have been consistent and too the point. You my friend are the unpredictable slob, unpredictable in the sense that nobody knows whether you will resort to gross personal abuse or reciting your painfully misguided views in order to prove some irrelevant fact or idea.
5. You keep saying that I don’t include facts, however I didn’t think I needed to, because didn’t Richard Catto and Terrick Wright just prove previously that neotel was vastly superior to iburst, you seem to have forgotten this. The only remark you made was that you were not convinced by the technology used, however it seems clear to me that the people with ACTUAL EXPERIENCE of the technology have a more valid opinion than you do. The only other reason you sited was that you do not want to give money to/or trust an Indian monopoly – This is a very stupid thing to say, because the only reason monopoly companies are associated with poor service is lack of competition, however in our setup it has a lot of competition which ensures good service, the only other reason I can detect as to why the Indian monopoly company is bad is that frankly you are a racist, if this is the case please state your racially abusive comments elsewhere.
6. Lastly, you seem to be a very angry person, but don’t worry your anger will disappear when your iburst contract ends.
Marko Says:
February 15th, 2009 at 22:42
Daniel, I’m frankly getting bored arguing with a child but let me set you straight.
Your grammar is actually piss poor my friend, and if you think it is not important to write clearly and correctly then you are sorely mistaken. Please do join us in the real world sometime.

Please learn to read, I said ‘uneducted slob’, fuck knows how you get ‘unpredictable slop’ from that.
Actually you did pick a fight when you called me an asshole so stop playing the victim.

Fuck knows where you come to the conclusion that either Terrick or Richard proved anything about Neotel. FYI Richard uses iBurst and Terrick spews the same mindless drivel as you. I do have actual experience you boring twat, I have working for ISP’s and Internet companies for over 10 years and currently run my own consultancy. I have used and setup many different technologies, including different types of wireless so I believe I have an educated opinion on the matter.

The fact that you pull the racist card displays your total lack of knowledge on the subject and you are desperately trying to backpedal and divert the argument. You are only making yourself look more stupid (if this is actually possible).

Come back when you can actually add something enlightened and intelligent to the conversation.
DanielSp333 Says:
February 19th, 2009 at 16:03
Im done arguing. This bullshit will never prove anything. Im sorry if what i say doesnt convince you and Im sorry this crap whent on for as long as it did. I could rebut you and argue (and misread ^^) all day long but im not going to. I still belive that iburst is not as fast or as relaible as other internet that i have come across and used. I still belive you are a rude person and im sure you think simularly of me but that isnt the point. I actuly have pitty for you, beacuse you must be over 30 years old or there abouts and where others would have developed a sence of goodwill by now you have just gotten angry and rude, aslo I find myself hardpressed to to know why on earth you would repetitivly vist back here and respond, when you are running a company ??!!?!?!? Lastly I want to apologise for anything that I said t offend you, as i was merely using these posts as a way to vent my anger, my refernces in the beginging were merely generalized and i did not mean to insult you. Hopefully in the future you will have something better to do than argue with 16 year olds (thats right im 16 !). Peace out i will probably never post a comment here again
Marko Says:
February 25th, 2009 at 17:58
Daniel, cry me a river. Let me offer you some advice my young padawan…
1. Learn to read and write. Remember, if you are too lazy to write properly then how can you expect people to bother reading it, or not flame you. The poor quality of your writing is possibly also an indication of the sad state of our education system.
2. Don’t contradict yourself, ie. suggest that I am angry but then admit to venting *your* anger.
3. Don’t do this “??!!?!?!?”, you just appear to be hysterical. One will do.
4. Don’t worry about my business, I’m doing ok thanks. Unlike you it does not take me an hour to type a paragraph.
mr. telkom Says:
June 5th, 2009 at 12:53
hi richard i think u an ass hole i work 4 telkom adsl support and we always deliver good service and about your bandwith theft …. i think u just plain stupid and your arguement for how the stole it does not make sense at all either u just k@k badluck or a professional hacker was targeting u which i dont think its true so please do ya research and inform yaself b4 u place another comment
Richard Catto Says:
June 6th, 2009 at 17:30
@mr. telkom: you’re an imbecile. you can’t tie your own shoelaces. you have to be fed with a baby spoon. please don’t comment on this site further. I bet none of your claims are true either, but on the off chance that they are, I have forwarded your comment to abuse@telkomsa.net and asked that they trace your identity and fire you from Telkom for leaving abusive comments in public which embarrasses Telkom publicly. Not a single bit of your comment makes any sense based on the fact that I described a bug discovered in a Telkom issued router that puts the customer at risk even if they follow instructions. Good night, idiot.
Marko Says:
June 6th, 2009 at 18:56
@mr. telkom, in the words of Philip Seymour Hoffman, ‘you fucking child’. You’re too lazy or too stupid to even bother to type properly so don’t even begin to talk about Telkom and good service. Little shitbag punks like you should not be allowed anywhere near a computer, let alone on the Internet.
Don’t ever bandy about the term ‘hacker’ when you have no fucking clue of its meaning, you insult us true IT professionals.
telkom fan Says:
June 8th, 2009 at 07:40
i totally agree with mr telkom telkom actually offers good service u can rant a nd rave all bout your speed but it still dont compare to a telkom 4meg line il advice all current iburst customers to move over to telkom thanks mr telkom for defending telkom we needed an opinion from u guys
Richard Catto Says:
June 8th, 2009 at 19:56
@telkom fan: Well, I’m glad you’re happy with Telkom, many people are. I find the portability of iBurst very useful. A Telkom 4Meg ADSL connection is no doubt much faster than what iBurst currently offers.

Btw, Telkom’s abuse department responded to my complaint: “The person has been identified and given a warning that such activity will not be tolerated and further action will be taken if this happens again.”

Let me be clear, I don’t mind people contributing opinions which differ from mine, but abusing me on my own blog is not on.
Marko Says:
June 11th, 2009 at 22:54
@Richard, I’m guessing mr. telkom and telkom fan are one and the same retard.
Btw, you so-called ‘ADSL support’ people don’t have a fucking clue. Do you even have matric? I would find it hard to believe since you cannot even type a sentence properly.
You have never given me good service. I know this because every time I phone you about a client’s issues you deny any problems with your own network yet you assclowns don’t even know what Ping or Traceroute is.
Richard Catto Says:
June 12th, 2009 at 19:43
@Marko: same IP (198.54.206.88) so, as the Americans say, you do the Math.
Marko Says:
June 20th, 2009 at 19:34
Just in case our friend with MPD, mr.telkom feels like talking shit again, it is worthy to note that his employer is listed as #1 worst company on hellopeter.com.
Rustum Says:
July 17th, 2009 at 18:13
I’m not gonna join in on speed comparisons, but I have to confess, my experiences between Telkom and iBurst are the complete opposite. I’ve just concluded a 3 year saga with iBurst, but I am still aggrieved and have written a long, angry complaint. If you have an open mind – i.e. not a believer in your ISP no matter what – follow me down the rabbit hole:

http://openlettertoiburst.wordpress.com/
hb7of9 Says:
December 7th, 2009 at 22:05
The IBurst CEO is a maggot, they don’t give a crap about their clients, just look at how many hellopeter.com complaints have been made against the company!
Richard Catto Says:
December 7th, 2009 at 23:02
@hb7of9: you bet your ass they’re a bunch of maggots! They recently “upgraded” my account, effectively removing the unthrottled service and coercing me to pay R250 a month extra for it.

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iBurst versus Telkom DSL – why you should switch to iBurst

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