orly

Part of the reason people choose Teksavvy is because they have better customer service.

Spoken with their reps twice and on both occasions got the distinct impression that the people were given the freedom to actually help rather than just being some numpty told to read off a screen. Having a background in computer networks I was able to have reasonably technical conversations with the guys I spoke with and they knew a lot more than the average rep at Bell. (glad to be free from those clowns)

jcwacky

Wow, lots of good info there. Thanks guys. I've checked out all your links. I had come across TekSavvy before, but had missed their cable offerings, and didn't realise they were a Rogers reseller. They currently seem like the best option for me, and I'm perfectly happy to do all the home setup at my end if needs be.

It also seems like 150Mb cable coverage is pretty widespread in Ottawa, with postcodes south of the airport still reporting availability. Is this true? Or is the coverage checker being optimistic?

Tangram

Seems things vary by Province. Here in the backwoods I am on Bell FibreOp and get 80Mbps/30Mbps for $80pm unlimited downloads ( 175/30 Mbps is available but really don't need that ).

Atlantic Xpat

Same in the wilds of Eastern Newfoundland.

orly

If it tells you it's available at your post code it should be accurate. They do up to 150 here in Guelph too but I was happy enough with 25Mbit for $45 after tax.

As mentioned do NOT go for the "unlimited" option. Teksavvy currently can't track cable usage in Ontario so they're doing an honour system of sorts and allowing anyone on any usage allowance to be unlimited. I guess if you're planning to download terabytes you might do the honest thing and sign up for the unlimited anyway to help them out.

AnneMarieC

I'm currently in the quagmire that is choosing an isp (in Ottawa) and seriously considering Teksavvy ... bit confused about the initial outlays esp when it comes to the modem.

Eg: looking at their 15/10 at 34.99 ... so assume I add the 130 modem + 10 shipping on top of that? (Or should I do the rent to own?) ... and of course the 50 activation fee.
Does that sound about right?

Can't figure out why someone would pay twice that amount with Bell (for example) for 240 GB less usage? Am I missing something?

SambaDeAmigo

If price is an issue:
http://web.aei.ca/english.shtml

$29.95 for 10Mbps

orly

Yea you pay for the modem and activation on top. Probably cheaper in the longer run to just buy it outright rather than any rental option.

As you mention Bell you appear to be selecting the DSL option. Note that, unless you live very close to the telephone exchange, you'll likely not get the full speed advertised. If you're rather far from the exchange it could be significantly lower than expected.

With cable you nearly always get the headline speed due to the way the technology works.

AnneMarieC

Ooo good tip!

Partially discharged

I don't believe that cable internet speeds are connected to the distance to a hub...instead I believe they are connected with the # of subscribers on the hub at any one time..in some areas, evening speeds on cable internet are slower than in the daytime and late at night.

orly

You're right but my point probably got lost in translation. The speed is affected by how many people are using the node as you say. If the node is connected to 100 or 200 customers all downloading at once it'll slow down. DSL tends not to suffer this badly but my experience with cable here suggest it's not being run on a shoestring either. DSL is also a contended system meaning that you don't get "dedicated bandwidth" either and it can also slow down at peak time.

The way cable networks are designed often means the node (hub as you put it) is in a far closer proximity to the neighbourhood than a DSL system. This means if you have a 15Mbit service you'll nearly always connect at 15Mbit and have the potential to download at that speed. You may not get 15Mbit if the network is busy at peak times as you mentioned.

In a DSL system you may never actually connect at 15Mbit in any conceivable universe due to the laws of physics. (my initial note about trying to determine where you live in relation to the exchange) If your property is a few miles from the telephone exchange you may only connect at 5Mbit. I know back in the UK BT having been rolling out Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC) which is where they run a fibre connection (high bandwidth/speed) to a cabinet somewhere in a neighbourhood and then hook the standard copper wiring for the DSL into that which then runs on to the properties as normal. In effect this creates a "node" similar to how cable internet systems are set up. I'm not sure if Bell are doing this here in Canada. I know they are doing Fibre connections all the way to the home rather than to a local cabinet/node (hence the fast speeds that are available in some areas)

This often means that, on balance, cable is an option to consider seriously even if it costs a little bit more. If you do happen to live close to the telephone exchange then DSL should be perfect.

AnneMarieC

Urgh my brain hurts at trying to make this decision. So tricky when you've no idea how much usage you actually do.

Can anyone suggest whether we might be ok on an 80GB? We tend to do netflix everynight - and we surf t'internet most of the evening on/off. I'd like to get an apple tv to get netflix etc. So no major downloading really, but a fair bit of streaming .... thoughts?

SambaDeAmigo

I'd say 80Gb is fine

orly

I'm sitting at about 50GB since the 1st of December for comparison. Doing much the same stuff...netflix and some gaming is about it.

AnneMarieC

Hmm - So likely you'll go over 100 by the end of the month ... ?