Internet Connection to my condo -What can you get December 2015 in Pattaya?

[SirPaul]

Hello

I have a condo in Pattaya and I am currently shopping around for an Internet provider. I am looking for reasonable speed (not the fastest) at the best value. Can anyone help here as to what is best - so far I only know that if I get truevision it will be cheap to connect in my condo block but I have heard 3bb is better

This is one of those threads that get out of date within 3 months of the last post so that is why I have started this up for I intend to get internet installed in my Condo by Mid January 2016 at the latest.

At the moment I use my Dtac phone contract and connect to my computer via Bluetooth. It is slow (only 2Mb) but it is reliable. I need 10Mb or even 15Mb speed as the current option has proved to be to limited for my needs.

Looking forward to your inputs

Thanks

[Brit_Doggie]

Had true 3BB and AIS all same to start few months in <deleted> connection best to date was true with speedy line checks etc, each to their own as they say gl.

[moonseeker]

Quite happy with several 3BB 30MB Fiberoptic accounts. 1,200/month. However the 900.-- regular one with 15MB is sufficient for most if your internal lines/cables are ok.MS_>

[SirPaul]

Quite happy with several 3BB 30MB Fiberoptic accounts. 1,200/month. However the 900.-- regular one with 15MB is sufficient for most if your internal lines/cables are ok.MS_>

I did not consider such speeds as 30MB - Is that 900 bhat for 15Mb?

[KittenKong]

You should first ask at your building front office as not all providers may be allowed to supply your building. You may also find that they have some existing deal with one or other of the cable TV providers, and if so these may be worth looking at.

True seems to have a weird rule about not providing ADSL above the 3rd floor in condos, even though all work takes place inside the building without using ladders and is usually handled by the building technicians anyway. Very odd.

Cable/fibre are usually more reliable, if you can get them.

DSL from 3BB will require a one-year payment in advance, for which you get a discount.

[tropo]

If it is available I'd go for the new CAT fiberoptic package (now called C-Internet) of 30/3 at 1500 per month.

[NightRider70]

I am happy with 3BB 10Mb/s (ADSL) for 590 baht/month + tax = about 640 baht/month.

[Henryford]

I am happy with 3BB 10Mb/s (ADSL) for 590 baht/month + tax = about 640 baht/month.

Me too, this is more than adequate for most normal needs. Pay 6 months in advance and get a further discount.

[KittenKong]

If it is available I'd go for the new CAT fiberoptic package (now called C-Internet) of 30/3 at 1500 per month.

Indeed. The problem in condo buildings is that many do not offer a choice of fibre suppliers, and many building managements and committees have little knowledge about anything technical anyway.

[Langsuan Man]

DSL from 3BB will require a one-year payment in advance, for which you get a discount.

And lock you into a year of lousy service if your condo has bad wiring

Have a Thai apply for you and no contract required so you can change providers if required

[tropo]

DSL from 3BB will require a one-year payment in advance, for which you get a discount.

And lock you into a year of lousy service if your condo has bad wiring

Have a Thai apply for you and no contract required so you can change providers if required

All broadband services have a 1 year lock in period. In addition to that, they also have various setup/connect fees which varies from one company to another. For CAT, new customers are looking at around 5 - 6K connection fee for fiber optic, which included 2 pieces of equipment and a certain length of line-in allowance. Foreigners are required to pay 6 months in advance - they don't trust us.

Even if you buy a certain package you cannot change to a lower speed until your 1 year lock-in period is over, so it's always good to start at a lower speed as you can change-up at any time.

This is one of the "scary" things about trying out new services and a good reason to discuss them exhaustively on here. You have to think very carefully about your options before you jump in.

[Langsuan Man]

DSL from 3BB will require a one-year payment in advance, for which you get a discount.

And lock you into a year of lousy service if your condo has bad wiring

Have a Thai apply for you and no contract required so you can change providers if required

All broadband services have a 1 year lock in period. In addition to that, they also have various setup/connect fees which varies from one company to another. For CAT, new customers are looking at around 5 - 6K connection fee for fiber optic, which included 2 pieces of equipment and a certain length of line-in allowance. Foreigners are required to pay 6 months in advance - they don't trust us.

Even if you buy a certain package you cannot change to a lower speed until your 1 year lock-in period is over, so it's always good to start at a lower speed as you can change-up at any time.

This is one of the "scary" things about trying out new services and a good reason to discuss them exhaustively on here. You have to think very carefully about your options before you jump in.

An even better reason to have any Internet service in a Thais name since they don't have to sign up for a year or as you noted, pay in advance

[NightRider70]

I am happy with 3BB 10Mb/s (ADSL) for 590 baht/month + tax = about 640 baht/month.

I should have said that there is a connection fee of about 1500 baht depending on what type of ADSL modem you want, WiFi or not. The modem will be yours to keep. If you already have a modem that you want to use you can chose not to include a modem and the fee goes down.

Edited December 7, 2015 by NightRider70

[KittenKong]

All broadband services have a 1 year lock in period. In addition to that, they also have various setup/connect fees which varies from one company to another.

When I last looked Sophon cable internet still had a one-month minimum contract period.

[Langsuan Man]

All broadband services have a 1 year lock in period. In addition to that, they also have various setup/connect fees which varies from one company to another.

When I last looked Sophon cable internet still had a one-month minimum contract period.

Sophon would certainly be my choice if available, I had it at my condo in Pats and it was not only fast and reliable but the quality of the signal was excellent. And the service was top notch for the very few times I needed it in 3 years

But I have read here at TV that today's Sophon is not the same as it once was

[tropo]

All broadband services have a 1 year lock in period. In addition to that, they also have various setup/connect fees which varies from one company to another.

When I last looked Sophon cable internet still had a one-month minimum contract period.

Yes I realise that. I've also tried them for a short period on 2 different occasions. I don't consider them a contender, but I did anticipate that someone might pull me up on this. In most cases old TV lines will be no good and even on a new line they weren't any good. The prices are exactly CAT prices for exactly the same packages - as it is CAT adsl through Sophon.

[KittenKong]

All broadband services have a 1 year lock in period. In addition to that, they also have various setup/connect fees which varies from one company to another.

When I last looked Sophon cable internet still had a one-month minimum contract period.

Yes I realise that. I've also tried them for a short period on 2 different occasions. I don't consider them a contender, but I did anticipate that someone might pull me up on this. In most cases old TV lines will be no good and even on a new line they weren't any good. The prices are exactly CAT prices for exactly the same packages - as it is CAT adsl through Sophon.

No, Sophon have entirely their own infrastructure and it has nothing to do with ADSL. It's cable.

CAT merely provide the connectivity to the internet in general, so you could say that it is exactly the same as a CAT fibre package.

When I had Sophon cable broadband in my condo they were always quick to come out and fit new cable or connectors or splitters etc in case of signal problems. Once the cable is in good order the signal quality and reliability of Sophon cable broadband was very good.

They are particularly worthwhile for anyone who does not want to sign up for a year at a time. Or at least they used to be.

[tropo]

All broadband services have a 1 year lock in period. In addition to that, they also have various setup/connect fees which varies from one company to another.

When I last looked Sophon cable internet still had a one-month minimum contract period.

Yes I realise that. I've also tried them for a short period on 2 different occasions. I don't consider them a contender, but I did anticipate that someone might pull me up on this. In most cases old TV lines will be no good and even on a new line they weren't any good. The prices are exactly CAT prices for exactly the same packages - as it is CAT adsl through Sophon.

No, Sophon have entirely their own infrastructure and it has nothing to do with ADSL. It's cable.

CAT merely provide the connectivity to the internet in general, so you could say that it is exactly the same as a CAT fibre package.

When I had Sophon cable broadband in my condo they were always quick to come out and fit new cable or connectors or splitters etc in case of signal problems. Once the cable is in good order the signal quality and reliability of Sophon cable broadband was very good.

They are particularly worthwhile for anyone who does not want to sign up for a year at a time. Or at least they used to be.

Sophon packages WERE identical to HiNet CAT adsl packages down to the baht and Mbps. I realise the delivery was over cable. CAT adsl was better than the Sophon packages as I've had both. This was going back a few years, so I'm also going on "used to be" here. Maybe they have improved since.

I had it twice. They changed to direct cable to bypass the TV cable in my house. I agree their customer service was good.

So here we have a situation where one customer found it very good and one found it barely satisfactory. Unfortunately this happens on all these type of threads and makes the choices even more difficult.

[manarak]

I did a lot a research this november/december.

Staying in a smaller condo near Thappraya/Thepprasit serviced by TMN for TV and internet by cable modem, but my experience with the standard plan with TMN was that it doesn't deliver what it promises.

So I am currently using the 15/1 ADSL plan from 3BB, which basically does what it says, these are speeds inside Thailand, and while the international downstream sometimes slows to 5 Mb, the upstream usually remains pretty solid around 0.75 to 1 Mb.

But I need more upstream, so I have been looking into other options.

In a nutshell, it has been horrible.

All fiber providers said they will not service my area within the next 1-3 years.

3BB VDSL is not available in my area for whatever doofus reason.

TMN can put a cable modem with higher speeds, but the cost is 16.000 baht for 6 months for a 15/3 plan paid in advance and no guarantee of international speeds. Their fiber service costs only 1200 baht per month for a 30/3 plan, but of course fiber not here yet.

Sophon Broadband (located on Pattaya Tai, not the same company as Sophon Cable TV) did have the best offer with their 6/3 plan, but this supposes they get their cable into my building somehow, and the cables here are owned by TMN, so no dice.

So it seems I am royally f*cked.

As I see it my best chance could be to ask Sophon to run a cable from their nearest cable box to me and I pay all of part of the installation, I would still have to get the condo's approval for some building work to run the cable, as well as the approval of the other buildings between me and the road...

:-/

good luck

[tropo]

I did a lot a research this november/december.

Staying in a smaller condo near Thappraya/Thepprasit serviced by TMN for TV and internet by cable modem, but my experience with the standard plan with TMN was that it doesn't deliver what it promises.

So I am currently using the 15/1 ADSL plan from 3BB, which basically does what it says, these are speeds inside Thailand, and while the international downstream sometimes slows to 5 Mb, the upstream usually remains pretty solid around 0.75 to 1 Mb.

But I need more upstream, so I have been looking into other options.

In a nutshell, it has been horrible.

All fiber providers said they will not service my area within the next 1-3 years.

3BB VDSL is not available in my area for whatever doofus reason.

TMN can put a cable modem with higher speeds, but the cost is 16.000 baht for 6 months for a 15/3 plan paid in advance and no guarantee of international speeds. Their fiber service costs only 1200 baht per month for a 30/3 plan, but of course fiber not here yet.

Sophon Broadband (located on Pattaya Tai, not the same company as Sophon Cable TV) did have the best offer with their 6/3 plan, but this supposes they get their cable into my building somehow, and the cables here are owned by TMN, so no dice.

So it seems I am royally f*cked.

As I see it my best chance could be to ask Sophon to run a cable from their nearest cable box to me and I pay all of part of the installation, I would still have to get the condo's approval for some building work to run the cable, as well as the approval of the other buildings between me and the road...

:-/

good luck

This is indeed a nightmare in Thailand. I pay 5850 per month for 7 Mbps upload speed. 10 Mbps will cost me over 7000 per month. I can get 5 Mbps for 3500 and 3 Mbps for 1500 (CAT) Upload speed is very expensive. This is fiber, but...

..before I got fiber last year I used a program called "Speedify" to join 2 x 1 Mbps (upload) adsl connections and it worked really well. That got me 2 Mbps for a reasonable amount. International upload test results using this program clocked in at about 1.6 - 1.7 Mbps average. You can use it to combine more than 2 broadband connections and you can combine 4G/3G to adsl connections too. Most of my 4G speed tests clock in at about 5 Mbps (upload) average, 3G a bit less.. of course you're paying quite a bit for data if you do this. You can also set it to use 4G only if your broadband cuts out or becomes slow as an emergency backup (just in case you're into trading the markets). It's quite a sophisticated program. I used it for free for one year in the beta testing stage. It's all software based requiring no tweaking of your modems.

This should get you started: http://lifehacker.com/how-to-combine-multiple-internet-connections-into-one-s-1699431630

Edited December 7, 2015 by tropo

[SirPaul]

So far I have learnt....

1) Check with the condo management. My condo manager is pushing "Truevision". He states it is 30Mb download, not sure about upload but I am mainly interested in download.

2) There is a wide choice now but things can get expensive as you may have to pay many extra costs like, laying cables, modems and connection costs. I currently feel that for me, laying out around 10k per year on everything is more than sufficient.

3) You have to be careful of promised speeds as it depends on the condition of the line, and the way the connection has been setup.

I would have thought Sophon Broadband was connected to Sophon TV, how strange that they should name the Internet company after the such a big TV provider.

I thank all that have posted so far, it has been educational and helpful. I look forward to further posts as this is a very "in" topic now when chatting to friends in bars - there is also a strong link between service providers, speeds and the selling of TV boxes that allow a large amount of content to be viewed from around the world.

Any information about Truevision would be appreciated

[manarak]

I did a lot a research this november/december.

Staying in a smaller condo near Thappraya/Thepprasit serviced by TMN for TV and internet by cable modem, but my experience with the standard plan with TMN was that it doesn't deliver what it promises.

So I am currently using the 15/1 ADSL plan from 3BB, which basically does what it says, these are speeds inside Thailand, and while the international downstream sometimes slows to 5 Mb, the upstream usually remains pretty solid around 0.75 to 1 Mb.

But I need more upstream, so I have been looking into other options.

In a nutshell, it has been horrible.

All fiber providers said they will not service my area within the next 1-3 years.

3BB VDSL is not available in my area for whatever doofus reason.

TMN can put a cable modem with higher speeds, but the cost is 16.000 baht for 6 months for a 15/3 plan paid in advance and no guarantee of international speeds. Their fiber service costs only 1200 baht per month for a 30/3 plan, but of course fiber not here yet.

Sophon Broadband (located on Pattaya Tai, not the same company as Sophon Cable TV) did have the best offer with their 6/3 plan, but this supposes they get their cable into my building somehow, and the cables here are owned by TMN, so no dice.

So it seems I am royally f*cked.

As I see it my best chance could be to ask Sophon to run a cable from their nearest cable box to me and I pay all of part of the installation, I would still have to get the condo's approval for some building work to run the cable, as well as the approval of the other buildings between me and the road...

:-/

good luck

This is indeed a nightmare in Thailand. I pay 5850 per month for 7 Mbps upload speed. 10 Mbps will cost me over 7000 per month. I can get 5 Mbps for 3500 and 3 Mbps for 1500 (CAT) Upload speed is very expensive. This is fiber, but...

..before I got fiber last year I used a program called "Speedify" to join 2 x 1 Mbps (upload) adsl connections and it worked really well. That got me 2 Mbps for a reasonable amount. International upload test results using this program clocked in at about 1.6 - 1.7 Mbps average. You can use it to combine more than 2 broadband connections and you can combine 4G/3G to adsl connections too. Most of my 4G speed tests clock in at about 5 Mbps (upload) average, 3G a bit less.. of course you're paying quite a bit for data if you do this. You can also set it to use 4G only if your broadband cuts out or becomes slow as an emergency backup (just in case you're into trading the markets). It's quite a sophisticated program. I used it for free for one year in the beta testing stage. It's all software based requiring no tweaking of your modems.

This should get you started: http://lifehacker.com/how-to-combine-multiple-internet-connections-into-one-s-1699431630

interesting.

does this work for streams, such as video conferencing?

or my son's online games? (okay, mine too, 55)

as each broadband connection will use a different public ip,

i can see that working okay on stuff like ftp (if the server is setup to allow multiple logins of the same user from different ips), but i would be surprised if streams could originate from 2 different ips.

[KittenKong]

1) Check with the condo management. My condo manager is pushing "Truevision". He states it is 30Mb download, not sure about upload but I am mainly interested in download.

The "pushing" is probably more that True is the only one that comes to the building. Condo buildings here tend to just have one supplier for cable/fibre. Not sure why as there is no technical restriction against having more than one. Probably the Thai "I work with my friend" concept, which is quite alien to me.

I would have thought Sophon Broadband was connected to Sophon TV, how strange that they should name the Internet company after the such a big TV provider.

They are two branches of the same company and they share infrastructure. Most people would describe them as the same company though with different offices and staff.

[tropo]

I did a lot a research this november/december.

Staying in a smaller condo near Thappraya/Thepprasit serviced by TMN for TV and internet by cable modem, but my experience with the standard plan with TMN was that it doesn't deliver what it promises.

So I am currently using the 15/1 ADSL plan from 3BB, which basically does what it says, these are speeds inside Thailand, and while the international downstream sometimes slows to 5 Mb, the upstream usually remains pretty solid around 0.75 to 1 Mb.

But I need more upstream, so I have been looking into other options.

In a nutshell, it has been horrible.

All fiber providers said they will not service my area within the next 1-3 years.

3BB VDSL is not available in my area for whatever doofus reason.

TMN can put a cable modem with higher speeds, but the cost is 16.000 baht for 6 months for a 15/3 plan paid in advance and no guarantee of international speeds. Their fiber service costs only 1200 baht per month for a 30/3 plan, but of course fiber not here yet.

Sophon Broadband (located on Pattaya Tai, not the same company as Sophon Cable TV) did have the best offer with their 6/3 plan, but this supposes they get their cable into my building somehow, and the cables here are owned by TMN, so no dice.

So it seems I am royally f*cked.

As I see it my best chance could be to ask Sophon to run a cable from their nearest cable box to me and I pay all of part of the installation, I would still have to get the condo's approval for some building work to run the cable, as well as the approval of the other buildings between me and the road...

:-/

good luck

This is indeed a nightmare in Thailand. I pay 5850 per month for 7 Mbps upload speed. 10 Mbps will cost me over 7000 per month. I can get 5 Mbps for 3500 and 3 Mbps for 1500 (CAT) Upload speed is very expensive. This is fiber, but...

..before I got fiber last year I used a program called "Speedify" to join 2 x 1 Mbps (upload) adsl connections and it worked really well. That got me 2 Mbps for a reasonable amount. International upload test results using this program clocked in at about 1.6 - 1.7 Mbps average. You can use it to combine more than 2 broadband connections and you can combine 4G/3G to adsl connections too. Most of my 4G speed tests clock in at about 5 Mbps (upload) average, 3G a bit less.. of course you're paying quite a bit for data if you do this. You can also set it to use 4G only if your broadband cuts out or becomes slow as an emergency backup (just in case you're into trading the markets). It's quite a sophisticated program. I used it for free for one year in the beta testing stage. It's all software based requiring no tweaking of your modems.

This should get you started: http://lifehacker.com/how-to-combine-multiple-internet-connections-into-one-s-1699431630

interesting.

does this work for streams, such as video conferencing?

or my son's online games? (okay, mine too, 55)

as each broadband connection will use a different public ip,

i can see that working okay on stuff like ftp (if the server is setup to allow multiple logins of the same user from different ips), but i would be surprised if streams could originate from 2 different ips.

You're not using individual IPs. It is cloud based from a server in a different country - you choose where, so you have the added advantage of a VPN from a server of your choice based, for example in Singapore or Hong Kong (the closer to Thailand the faster it will be). It also doubles as the best VPN I have ever used.

Here's a description from the website ( http://speedify.com/how-it-works/ ):

What is Channel Bonding?

Channel bonding is a method for utilizing multiple Internet connections for increased throughput and redundancy. Our implementation uses a client-side application as well as a cloud server component to seamlessly and efficiently distribute all the data transferred across your various Internet connections.

[manarak]

I did a lot a research this november/december.

Staying in a smaller condo near Thappraya/Thepprasit serviced by TMN for TV and internet by cable modem, but my experience with the standard plan with TMN was that it doesn't deliver what it promises.

So I am currently using the 15/1 ADSL plan from 3BB, which basically does what it says, these are speeds inside Thailand, and while the international downstream sometimes slows to 5 Mb, the upstream usually remains pretty solid around 0.75 to 1 Mb.

But I need more upstream, so I have been looking into other options.

In a nutshell, it has been horrible.

All fiber providers said they will not service my area within the next 1-3 years.

3BB VDSL is not available in my area for whatever doofus reason.

TMN can put a cable modem with higher speeds, but the cost is 16.000 baht for 6 months for a 15/3 plan paid in advance and no guarantee of international speeds. Their fiber service costs only 1200 baht per month for a 30/3 plan, but of course fiber not here yet.

Sophon Broadband (located on Pattaya Tai, not the same company as Sophon Cable TV) did have the best offer with their 6/3 plan, but this supposes they get their cable into my building somehow, and the cables here are owned by TMN, so no dice.

So it seems I am royally f*cked.

As I see it my best chance could be to ask Sophon to run a cable from their nearest cable box to me and I pay all of part of the installation, I would still have to get the condo's approval for some building work to run the cable, as well as the approval of the other buildings between me and the road...

:-/

good luck

This is indeed a nightmare in Thailand. I pay 5850 per month for 7 Mbps upload speed. 10 Mbps will cost me over 7000 per month. I can get 5 Mbps for 3500 and 3 Mbps for 1500 (CAT) Upload speed is very expensive. This is fiber, but...

..before I got fiber last year I used a program called "Speedify" to join 2 x 1 Mbps (upload) adsl connections and it worked really well. That got me 2 Mbps for a reasonable amount. International upload test results using this program clocked in at about 1.6 - 1.7 Mbps average. You can use it to combine more than 2 broadband connections and you can combine 4G/3G to adsl connections too. Most of my 4G speed tests clock in at about 5 Mbps (upload) average, 3G a bit less.. of course you're paying quite a bit for data if you do this. You can also set it to use 4G only if your broadband cuts out or becomes slow as an emergency backup (just in case you're into trading the markets). It's quite a sophisticated program. I used it for free for one year in the beta testing stage. It's all software based requiring no tweaking of your modems.

This should get you started: http://lifehacker.com/how-to-combine-multiple-internet-connections-into-one-s-1699431630

interesting.

does this work for streams, such as video conferencing?

or my son's online games? (okay, mine too, 55)

as each broadband connection will use a different public ip,

i can see that working okay on stuff like ftp (if the server is setup to allow multiple logins of the same user from different ips), but i would be surprised if streams could originate from 2 different ips.

You're not using individual IPs. It is cloud based from a server in a different country - you choose where, so you have the added advantage of a VPN from a server of your choice based, for example in Singapore or Hong Kong (the closer to Thailand the faster it will be). It also doubles as the best VPN I have ever used.

Here's a description from the website ( http://speedify.com/how-it-works/ ):

What is Channel Bonding?

Channel bonding is a method for utilizing multiple Internet connections for increased throughput and redundancy. Our implementation uses a client-side application as well as a cloud server component to seamlessly and efficiently distribute all the data transferred across your various Internet connections.

Okay, I have now read a bit about this... so it's not pure software, it needs VPN hardware at the other end to re-bundle the IP tunnels under a single IP again before sending traffic out.

I got my own VPN on my server, but it seems the speedify software comes bundled with their VPN service which has to be paid so it adds yet even more costs.

But the solution is interesting, I could get the cheaper 12/2 cable plan from TMN for 1284 THB / month and bundle it with the 15/1 3BB ADSL plan for which I pay 828 THB / month plus the cost of speedify 19 USD monthly ( = 685 THB ), total cost = 2800 THB for a theoretical 27/3 plan (more realistically a 20/1.5 plan).

which would still be on the steep side of things.

the definitive no-go for me is that it works for only one computer at a time, this is a big issue.

speedify should sell a router, something like a modifed Draytec that supports dual WAN, so that all devices on the LAN could benefit from speedify.

so back to square one.

Edited December 8, 2015 by manarak

[tropo]

.

Okay, I have now read a bit about this... so it's not pure software, it needs VPN hardware at the other end to re-bundle the IP tunnels under a single IP again before sending traffic out.

I got my own VPN on my server, but it seems the speedify software comes bundled with their VPN service which has to be paid so it adds yet even more costs.

But the solution is interesting, I could get the cheaper 12/2 cable plan from TMN for 1284 THB / month and bundle it with the 15/1 3BB ADSL plan for which I pay 828 THB / month plus the cost of speedify 19 USD monthly ( = 685 THB ), total cost = 2800 THB for a theoretical 27/3 plan (more realistically a 20/1.5 plan).

which would still be on the steep side of things.

the definitive no-go for me is that it works for only one computer at a time, this is a big issue.

speedify should sell a router, something like a modifed Draytec that supports dual WAN, so that all devices on the LAN could benefit from speedify.

so back to square one.

You're welcome!

Why would you think it's realistically a 1.5 plan? Where did you get the idea you'll only get half your speed through Speedify? Even in beta testing I did much better than that and now it's a paid service it will likely be even better. I wouldn't be surprised if it's very close to 3.0. It will take whatever speed you can provide to the nearest servers in Singapore or Hong Kong. You can get a 1GB account for free and try it out. If you pay yearly it's only $7.35 per month.

That's 2362 for 3 Mbps upload. If you needed to run it on more than one computer at a time, you pay another subscription. 236 per month per computer is not very steep.

It takes time, money and experimentation to come up with solutions. It's not always easy and cheap.

[losgrad]

My 2 cents to this discussion is it's great to hear about the different services and customer satisfaction levels, but location is a big factor in quality and speed of your internet service. Just because someone else has terrific speeds at his condo/house doesn't mean another living across town or a half a km away will get the same results. Location, ISP Provider, location, ISP technology plan selected, exact location....

By the way, I have both Sophon Cable service and 3BB ADSL. Sophon technicians installed the separate coaxial cable (separate from our condos TV coaxial) from the main road to my condo building some 100 meters away. Speed is great, but sometimes it goes on/off. 3BB did the wiring to my condo building, but from there the condo staff did the wiring to my condo room. Fiber is currently unavailable in my area or to my building.

[smedly]

You're not using individual IPs. It is cloud based from a server in a different country - you choose where, so you have the added advantage of a VPN from a server of your choice based, for example in Singapore or Hong Kong (the closer to Thailand the faster it will be). It also doubles as the best VPN I have ever used.

This is indeed a nightmare in Thailand. I pay 5850 per month for 7 Mbps upload speed. 10 Mbps will cost me over 7000 per month. I can get 5 Mbps for 3500 and 3 Mbps for 1500 (CAT) Upload speed is very expensive. This is fiber, but...

..before I got fiber last year I used a program called "Speedify" to join 2 x 1 Mbps (upload) adsl connections and it worked really well. That got me 2 Mbps for a reasonable amount. International upload test results using this program clocked in at about 1.6 - 1.7 Mbps average. You can use it to combine more than 2 broadband connections and you can combine 4G/3G to adsl connections too. Most of my 4G speed tests clock in at about 5 Mbps (upload) average, 3G a bit less.. of course you're paying quite a bit for data if you do this. You can also set it to use 4G only if your broadband cuts out or becomes slow as an emergency backup (just in case you're into trading the markets). It's quite a sophisticated program. I used it for free for one year in the beta testing stage. It's all software based requiring no tweaking of your modems.

This should get you started: http://lifehacker.com/how-to-combine-multiple-internet-connections-into-one-s-1699431630interesting.

does this work for streams, such as video conferencing?

or my son's online games? (okay, mine too, 55)

as each broadband connection will use a different public ip,

i can see that working okay on stuff like ftp (if the server is setup to allow multiple logins of the same user from different ips), but i would be surprised if streams could originate from 2 different ips.

Here's a description from the website ( http://speedify.com/how-it-works/ ):

What is Channel Bonding?

Channel bonding is a method for utilizing multiple Internet connections for increased throughput and redundancy. Our implementation uses a client-side application as well as a cloud server component to seamlessly and efficiently distribute all the data transferred across your various Internet connections.

Okay, I have now read a bit about this... so it's not pure software, it needs VPN hardware at the other end to re-bundle the IP tunnels under a single IP again before sending traffic out.

I got my own VPN on my server, but it seems the speedify software comes bundled with their VPN service which has to be paid so it adds yet even more costs.

But the solution is interesting, I could get the cheaper 12/2 cable plan from TMN for 1284 THB / month and bundle it with the 15/1 3BB ADSL plan for which I pay 828 THB / month plus the cost of speedify 19 USD monthly ( = 685 THB ), total cost = 2800 THB for a theoretical 27/3 plan (more realistically a 20/1.5 plan).

which would still be on the steep side of things.

the definitive no-go for me is that it works for only one computer at a time, this is a big issue.

speedify should sell a router, something like a modifed Draytec that supports dual WAN, so that all devices on the LAN could benefit from speedify.

so back to square one.

you may be able to set up a share through Ethernet or even a virtual wifi port and share out the main connection from the base machine to other clients/computers on your network, not sure if this would work running along side this application nut it could be a possibility

[manarak]

Why would you think it's realistically a 1.5 plan? Where did you get the idea you'll only get half your speed through Speedify?

The issue is not Speedify, the issue is what the TMN and 3BB plans really deliver.

I tested TMN's "super fast fiber" in their office, and it delivered 180 down and only 0.5 up, it was mindboggling. That was a speedtest to a server in Switzerland.

Other people around me complain about TMN's speeds, and I ran a couple of tests against a server in Switzerland too and their speed was around 0.4 to 0.75 up.

So both bundled together would be around 1.5 Mbs I guess.

But I have just been thinking that about Speedifiy's servers in other countries - so if I get better speed to their Singapore server, that would also solve part of the problem.

And regarding Speedify's licences, I have older PCs gathering dust and also a handful of ethernet cards - I could just turn one of them into a dual WAN router and install speedify on it... hmmm...

[tropo]

Why would you think it's realistically a 1.5 plan? Where did you get the idea you'll only get half your speed through Speedify?

The issue is not Speedify, the issue is what the TMN and 3BB plans really deliver.

I tested TMN's "super fast fiber" in their office, and it delivered 180 down and only 0.5 up, it was mindboggling. That was a speedtest to a server in Switzerland.

Other people around me complain about TMN's speeds, and I ran a couple of tests against a server in Switzerland too and their speed was around 0.4 to 0.75 up.

So both bundled together would be around 1.5 Mbs I guess.

But I have just been thinking that about Speedifiy's servers in other countries - so if I get better speed to their Singapore server, that would also solve part of the problem.

And regarding Speedify's licences, I have older PCs gathering dust and also a handful of ethernet cards - I could just turn one of them into a dual WAN router and install speedify on it... hmmm...

Yes, if you test to a European or US server you won't get consistent results and lower than to Singapore or Hong Kong. When I test my fiber connection to Hong Kong or Singapore I get at or very close to what I pay for. Speedify suggests using the server closest to your location. It can be changed in a few seconds through the user interface.

3BB have premium packages which cost a lot more, but cut back on sharing (lower contention ratio). The problem with the bargain basement services (which most people go for) of any provider is that they are more heavily shared and your speeds will always be less consistent throughout the day.