People, please help me decide by dropping me a line. For several weeks running now, Skycable has been calling, offering me 15 days of free broadband connection. The deal: Php999 for a speed of 1.5 kbps, Php1999 for 2kbps. Plus 15% off from my skycable subscription.
Meanwhile, I’m paying PLDT Php1995 for 1.2 kbps.
Who among you has experienced Sky Broadband? How is it?
Incidentally, because of Sky’s offer, I asked what subscription I had for cable, was told it was gold for which I pay Php900 plus monthly inclusive of VAT. All this time I didn’t care to ask. I should have because the silver plan which means 5 channels fewer goes at P200 less and these channels except for CInemax I already have from Destiny, meaning: discovery, animal planet, a cartoon channel and I forget what else. So today I asked that my cable subscription be downgraded. Next week possibly, we’ll experience sky broadband for 15 days for free. So why am I asking your opinion?
They could always try to impress us, put their best foot forward within those 15 days. Then what?
So please help me decide. Share your experience with Sky Broad Band? Please…
********
Update: Husband bought a Wi-Tribe thingy. For his Wi-Tribe experience, please click on this link
Fast forward to May-June 2013. We now have a PLDT Fibr connection and have had our PLDT DSL one cut off. Read about this development here.
Derdo's Weblog 
Guys I have trouble deciding if what ISP should I subscribed on.. PLDT or SKY?
I’d go with Pldt but that’s me. Read the other comments to help you decide
I have Skybroadband 3mbps for 999 every Month. During my first Month the service was good. On my second Month the service started to slow down seems like the connection is Dial up I’ve been dealing with the issue since Feb 10, 2015 Until now But sky can’t provide permanent resolution, Imagine that I can only use my internet for 1hr a day because of the issue. I already called Skybroaband for adjustment but the process is took to long to provide the adjustment. I have PLDT before. PLDT still more stable than Skybroadband
One hour a day? That’s sad.
Just wanted to share my experience regarding Sky.. I recently availed of Sky Super Bundle Plan 1299 (sky cable plan 549 + 2mbps dsl). There was no problem surfing the net or playing online games or watching youtube or other online streaming movies or anime. However, what I have noticed is that upon starting a torrent download, you become disconnected to the internet. Even after restarting your computer and wifi-router, the connection doesn’t return at once. Also, this doesn’t happen only during torrent downloads. I have also experienced being disconnected at LOL (league of legends) and not being able to return to the game since the return of service took a very long time. This becomes a huge pain in the ass especially when you are at that critical clash of the game..
I also have another account in pldt dsl plan 2mbps, connection is also fluctuating but is more consistent as compared to sky. Plus I have never experienced being disconnected after downloading files from torrent.
I guess there really is no perfect DSL plan…
I cannot agree more “I guess there really is no perfect DSL plan…” So sad considering that we’re paying and yet the service is so spotty. Thank you for sharing your experience.
Pldt’s Fibr Optic plans are great. It may be costly but I haven’t heard any bad reviews from my neighbors and and friends who were practically gamers and meticulous on the ping and and such. I myself can prove that in my 18 months being a subscriber, it was only twice I had difficult with the service – 1. Installation, patience is not a virtue but something to be learned (lmao), took about 48 days prior to application date. 2. A typhoon that struck Metro Manila, took about 11 days for service to be restored (but still this can’t be one, considering PLDT waived a month’s bill lmao).
So yes, PLDT Fibr. You get your money’s worth. But wait here’s more! (LOL! I promise I am not from PLDT ) If you are not a torrent freakozoid or a VPN user – work at home peeps (like me @_@) , they get to have the Lite Fibr now at 1899, 50 GB good deal ey? I might be downgrading too soon. Hopefully service would the same.
Our plan is 3k plus (husband doesn’t remember exactly) for 8 mbps. WHen we do the speed test, download and upload speeds are almost as promised, ping is okay. But the reality – streaming, normal use (email, FB) – is not good sometimes. Husband is thinking of upgrading to the next level but hasn’t decided yet because service might still be spotty. If you downgrade, do share your experience please.
i’m planning to try Sky Boradband’s free 15 day trial period (3mbps)…its actually the first time na maiinclude our area as part of there coverage…so i’m guessing less network congestion? Based on what i read so far on this thread…SKY Broadband is not a reliable service provider…so i’m having doubts…should i proceed with a subscription?
If there’s a free trial period, perhaps availing of it will be the best indicator of how Sky Broadband performs in your area. Another good way of finding out is asking your neighbors or friends who live nearby what their experience has been like. good luck!
My experience with Sky Broadband was nightmarish. Their supposedly fast 5Mbps unlimited package tested between 0.1 & 1.2 Mbps every evening until past midnight. Had multiple visits from their technicians who basically told me there was nothing they could do because the problem was network congestion. I’m amazed that they are allowed to operate. Switching to PLDT Fibr. It’s more expensive and I really don’t want or need a phone, but got to have a reliable internet connection.
Thank you very much for sharing your experience. I wonder what NTC has to say re your comment: “I’m amazed that they are allowed to operate.”
You said it, it’s so slow even if I’m paying also 5mbps, it’s terrible!
Hello! I’m a PLDT DSL subscriber and for the past 3 or so years, PLDT and I were so in love. PLDT did not fail me, even if there was a Signal number 3 typhoon surging the country, our connection was still amazingly strong. (That’s how much I love PLDT okay I feel like we have a connection lol) I live along D.Tuazon-Retiro, Quezon City, by the way. But then, July of 2014 came around and our love started to fizzle, so to speak. The connection started to go off every 2 hours or so. The modem would still be on but the 2nd light from the left isn’t steadily on. Basta gano’n. Nawawalan ng net and it was super annoying. Pero when it comes back naman, it’s still as strong as ever. I just had to refresh it EVER FREAKIN’ TIME NA NAMAMATAY. Hassle, ‘diba? Can download 4 movies in a day. When the connection is super strong, download speed would be 200-300kbps. That’s when I know that our love is still there. Pero nawawala-wala talaga. We called customer service about 4times and each time they DO something to fix it. Pinaltan si modem, new wires, even the box sa may corner namin binago. I love how they’re trying their very best. I feel so important. Hindi nila binabalewala calls namin and we even follow each other on twitter. I’m the main person using the internet at home ’cause I’m a 16-year old girl, techie savvy teenager. The internet is very important to us kasi that’s the way we talk to my dad who’s working abroad. Pero nagbalak kasi mom ko na lumipat na sa iba dahil mga one month na ‘yung problem pero inaayos naman ng PLDT. Friends na nga kami ng technician sa dalas nila sa bahay at sa street namin, fixing the wires. Kaya napadpad ako here. Buti na lang ‘di ko natuloy pag subscribe sa Sky. Love this thread so much! Thankshu!!! I’ll update kapag super ayos na ‘yung DSL at kami na ulit ni PLDT. 🙂 HAHAHAH I may or may not be high right now.
Hello. I love how you write, so perky and creative. I hope PLDT and you reconcile soonest and that you keep your promise to keep us posted of any developments in your love affair. Your loyalty is impressive to say the least. 🙂
Hello I have skycable in New Manila. My current speed is 16MBPS and i see a lot of you are complaining about customer service. Yes I had this problem getting in touch with these fools. I am lucky enough to have a premium plan so I have a concierge number for all my problems to be taken care. Oh my god it is MUCH MUCH better to have this, because they actually text you and answers all your questions/requests. I suggest if you guys have friends that have premium plans ask them for their concierge number.
I’ve been with sky for 3 years now. I use to have the consumable 10MBPS 15GB plan which worked pretty nicely. Actually whats neat about those plans is that your data is UNCAPPED from 12am-530am i believe. So you can download all you want! And its only like 1299pesos which is pretty legit.
Now i currently have the 16MBPS plan and I can say that the speed is there most of the time I get about almost 2 megabytes per second. Although this may seem like a dream come true its not perfect. Actually it used to be HORRIBLE as in it was always disconnecting and reconnecting all the time, which really pissed me off since I use the internet a lot at home and for school. But that was before and i didn’t pay them squat for months because i kept complaining about how bad the service was. Eventually they did some renovations and now i’m quite happy with it. However i suspect that the ping/latency on this thing is somewhat high so I wouldn’t recommend playing games. Also the upload def sucks ass at 1MBPS. For 5000 PHP which is like $110+ I definitely feel like its not worth it, but I need the fast internet, i cant live without it.
I want to move to PLDT Fibr when its available, but their jackass site never seems to update the damn Fibr villages it just says NEW which has been like over a year already. Can anyone tell me about the UPLOAD and the PING/LATENCY? I want to avail for the 20MBPS plan @5800 a month. I would be so happy if someone could tell me more about it!!! =))))
Hello. We have the 3500 plan (8Mbps) and our stats are as follows:
Ping – 15 ms
Download – 7.88 mbps
Upload – 4.02 mbps
I’ll try to find out what the stats are for plan 5800 from a friend.
what are you using to test your internet? speedtest seems to be inaccurate, its supported by the providers. Try testmy.net ill post my scores here.
Connected to Singapore: http://testmy.net/db/U4A51Yz.zDBg0Fi
Download: 8.32mbps
Upload: 917kbps
Connected to Cali: http://testmy.net/db/QNiDSm4.NJHuQ9q
Download: 4.3mbps
Upload: 788kbps
do not go for sky broadband… too slow for the internet… if you call their customer service they always say after 72 hours… if it is a internet shop then ur business will get lost … sky broad band offer slow price but with bad service especially their customer service…
Thanks for sharing your experience.
BAD EXPERIENCE WITH SKYBROADBAND / SKYCABLE
SkyCable has no customer service to speak of. Let me report that last June 24, 2013 I availed of the free 15-day trial of Sky Broadband, having been informed by the technician who came to our house that at the end of the trial period SkyCable or its contractors will pull out the modem and return the Php2,000 deposit. Since I was not impressed with the speed when I compare it to PLDT, on July 8 I called SkyCable to request discontinuance of the trial.
Pull out of the modem was scheduled on Monday, July 15, 2013, as per my conversation with telesales representative Christina. On that day, nobody from the company came or called.
The next week I followed up and was promised that the pull out will be rescheduled to July 29. I begin to get irritated but give lousy SkyCable the benefit of the doubt. July 29 came and went but still no one from this cable company came or called.
On August 5 I made another call to the SkyCable and was told by agent Alex that the pull out will again be rescheduled to August 30–THAT’S 46 WORKING DAYS (from the date of first request) TO RETRIEVE A MODEM! Worse than that, Alex repeatedly advised me to just bring the modem to the company’s main office in Ortigas Center, which is a 90-minute commute from my residence (one way) on any weekday. As of Sept. 1, 2013, no one, absolutely no one, from SkyCable has come to retrieve the modem and return my Php2,000 deposit.
Here’s the warning to prospective subscribers of SkyBroadband:
1. WHEN YOU DISCONTINUE YOUR FREE TRIAL, CONTRARY TO WHATEVER MAY BE PROMISED, EXPECT TO RETURN THE MODEM AND CLAIM THE REFUND OF YOUR DEPOSIT AT YOUR OWN EXPENSE, INCONVENIENCE, EFFORT, AND TIME.
2. DO NOT TRUST ANY VERBAL OFFER OR PROMISE COMING FROM SKYCABLE. Always insist on a written guarantee.
3. MY EXPERIENCE WITH SKYCABLE SHOWS THAT THE COMPANY COULD’T CARE LESS ABOUT ITS SUBSCRIBERS. If in the future you encounter problems with their service or equipment, prepare for a response that will surely frustrate you.
I hope this post will give you sufficient idea of what to expect when subscribing to SkyCable or SkyBroadband.
Thanks for sharing your experience. Years back, I requested for the discontinuance of my Skycable subscription. Weeks later, it was still around. I called up to say so and the lady was peeved, saying the connection had been severed. I didn’t bother to insist she was wrong. I was trying to be honest by informing her and she was the one who was mad. Apparently, the connection they had cut off was the extension of our Destiny connection.
Go for PLDT DSL. You’re much better off with them as they have more reliable service, at least here in Cebu. I am a SkyBroadband user and am very dissatisfied. @SkyServes
Sky is sh*t if you are a gamer! Exactly league of legends you can not connect at the login so sky is crap!
Have you used the internet booster in DSL?
Is that true that your internet connection can run Faster than your usual plan.
Haven’t heard of such. Please elaborate? That might be good to explore for us. Is it a contraption that can be bought in shops?
Well, as far as I know you can do it to yourself,
try to watch this video from youtube.com
Have you tried this? Did it work?
Bayantel is a better option in QC area. and their service is good because if you will call them today. They will come to your place within 24 hrs. just call them every 2 hrs to follow up your case providing the case ref to the next operator who will answer your call.
About PLDT, the connection is good enough but we’re not satisfied with their service if there is technical issue.
Great to hear that about Bayantel’s service. Re PLDT, we’ve been applying for its fiber optic service since December, and the application has yielded nothing. 😦
About your application in Fiber optic. You’ll need to contact the agent or the branch where you’ve applied for your FIBER optic to follow it up.
That’s what I have done last January but I was denied because my place is 200 meters away from the main line. As far as I know, it will take 3 weeks to C.I. your area then another week for installation of your DSL or FIber Optic.
Oh, we might have the same problem with regard to distance from the main line. How frustrating because yesterday, we saw a PLDT van that had a Fibr optic sign a few houses away from us. 😦
glad to see this thread. sky has been calling up the past few days offering a skybundle for P1,746 (cable, internet & landline). if i would let go our pldt subscription i would be able to save P1,600 + but based on the conversation seems that cable internet is unreliable and pldt-dsl is still the better option despite of the occassional hiccups (customer service is not that bad, based on my experience) so i think ill stay with pldt-dsl.
Thanks for this info, really really thank you very much!!! Just moved to a new location and was just about to apply into the sky bundle ( cable + net package). Good thing you have this topic. Now will be sticking in DSL.
You’re welcome!
I have been with PLDT for over 2 years already and in fairness, I havent experience any issues yet until last Monday (Jan 7, 2013) wherein all of a sudden the internet light capacitor went off I could no longer connect to the internet. I had the problem reported forthright and I was told that within 24-48 hours, the resolution would be apparent. Much to my dismay, it is now friday (Jan 11, 2013) and my internet connection is not yet restored and no technical deployment took place to check the issue. PLDT CS cannot do anything about it eventhough I keep on calling and following up any status. This is so frustrating and disappointing. I am thinking of switching to Bayan DSL. Any suggestions? Thanks!
Suggestion – write Manny Pangilinan about it if you feel calling repair is getting hopeless. I think MVP is the type who’ll listen and act.Or keep calling. You just might be lucky enough to get a Customer Service person who’s really efficient and will follow up your cause.
Re Bayan DSL, please check out the comments to this post…
Good luck. Don’t get wi-tribe unless you’ve heard it to work in your area. It never did in ours.
make sure your bills would not reach the third month being unpaid or they will disconnect…2months is still ok but you can pay the bill once the third month bill arrives. or better yet always maintain a 1 month lare bill because they always bill you in advance anyways…
Great info. Thanks! Will keep them in mind…
Wow, thank you very much for sharing your views on comparing rate of downloads between servers rather than speedtest results. I think you have a good point there. Very enlightening.
Further, thanks for the tip on disconnection/reconnection fees from the point of view of PLDT and SKY. That’s a very good thing to know. How late are payments due to warrant disconnection? Do they offer a grace period?
In surfing and streaming videos through the net you will not notice any difference both are at far, but In terms of downloading speeds – for 6mbps skybroadband + gold cable subscription (4kpesos) vs 5mbps mydsl+landline phone (3,700pesos); i would say Pldt is much faster than sky, that is based on our experienced. We tried using both service providers one in my brothers condo and the other at our residence.
Try to download movies or games using utorrent you will notice that the actual downloads speed of pldt versus that of skybroadband, pldt can download more number of files than that of skybroadband in a given day with ratio of 1:4 , 1skyb:4mydsl. Example per 1 movie for sky = 4 movies already downloaded for pldt. Forget about those speedtest results go to the actual number of downloads one can finish in a day.
However in case your broadband line is disconnected due to late payments skybroadband does not charge extra fee for the temporary disconnection while pldt will charge you 1k pesos or more.for the reconnection of its service that is aside from paying the outstanding dues. moral lesson if you will be using pldt dont be late in your payments
In surfing and streaming videos through the net you will not notice any difference both are at par, but In terms of downloading speeds – for 6mbps skybroadband + gold cable subscription (4kpesos) vs 5mbps mydsl+landline phone (3,700pesos); i would say Pldt is much faster than sky, that is based on our experienced. We tried using both service providers one in my brothers condo and the other at our residence.
Try to download movies or games using utorrent you will notice that the actual downloads speed of pldt versus that of skybroadband, pldt can download more number of files than that of skybroadband in a given day with ratio of 1:4 , 1skyb:4mydsl. Example per 1 movie for sky = 4 movies already downloaded for pldt. Forget about those speedtest results go to the actual number of downloads one can finish in a day.
However in case your broadband line is disconnected due to late payments skybroadband does not charge extra fee for the temporary disconnection while pldt will charge you 1k pesos or more.for the reconnection of its service that is aside from paying the outstanding dues. moral lesson if you will be using pldt dont be late in your paymen
I surfing and streaming videos through the net you will not notice any difference both are at far, but In terms of downloading speeds – for 6mbps skybroadband + gold cable subscription (4kpesos) vs 5mbps mydsl+landline phone (3,700pesos); i would say Pldt is much faster than sky, that is based on our experienced. We tried using both service providers one in my brothers condo and the other at our residence.
Try to download movies or games using utorrent you will notice that the actual downloads speed of pldt versus that of skybroadband, pldt can download more number of files than that of skybroadband in a given day with ratio of 1:4 , 1skyb:4mydsl. Example per 1 movie for sky = 4 movies already downloaded for pldt. Forget about those speedtest results go to the actual number of downloads one can finish in a day.
However in case your broadband line is disconnected due to late payments skybroadband does not charge extra fee for the temporary disconnection while pldt will charge you 1k pesos or more.for the reconnection of its service that is aside from paying the outstanding dues. moral lesson if you will be using pldt dont be late in your payments.
hi there,
ask lang po namen, kung anung dsl ang maganda for computer shop?
bayantel, PLDT or globe?
we have plan po kasi magtayo ng comshop. near ever commonwealth ang place namen.
I have a suggestion – ask the neighboring establishments what their service provider is and how it is performing. That would be a good gauge. Good luck in your planned venture.
ive been thinking of signing up for sky cable just a few minutes ago. thank goodness i know i shouldnt. haha. will just stick with PLDT
I think PLDT is not such a bad deal though it has its moments. A friend of mine had a fiber optic connection installed by PLDT and she’s very happy. I’m not sure if this available everywhere or if it’s being tried out in certain areas only, though.
marshee actually FIBER OPTICS connection is a lot faster than DSL ( Copper wire ) connection.. PLDT uses Copper and cable companies use FIBER OPTICS. you can never say FIBER OPTICS is slower than Copper wire but maybe you are just having bad physical connection from the outside of your premise that leads to intermittent connection. but never a slow connection with FO.
Is sky cable fiber optics?
My dsl is currently pldt dsl plan 1299 but we wanted to try sky broadband because they say they are faster, so me and my hubby decided to try it . First day with skybroadband was a disappointment because our internet was so slow my husband wanted to have it removed that same day. Anyway, after 5 days we are still not happy with skybroadband because it’s speed is so erratic, its unreliable. My husband has been itching to remove the modem and wifi and now he just did. I just called sky and told them to get their modem and stuff because my hubby just disconnected their broadband. Its a good thing we did not have our pldt dsl disconnected. Infairness to sky their customer service is way better than pldt but good customer service is not enough for me to stay.
Hello. First of all, thank you for sharing your experience.
Thigh I’ve never tried Sky broadband, I really appreciated sky Cable’s 24/7 customer service. Destiny’s CS is virtually non-existent.
Wise decision on your part not to have your post dsl disconnected yet. Curious – were you trying out Sky broadband for free (15 day trial period) or for a fee? If the latter how much was the disconnection charge?
Again, thank you for dropping by and sharing your experience.please answer my questions if you have the time. Would really appreciate it.
I was trying it for free. Im still a sky cable subscriber but will not be a skybroadband subscriber anytime soon.
Oh good, your subscription was on a trial basis. So no worries about a disconnection charge. Glad that’s so.
Oh good, your subscription was on a trial basis. So no worries about a disconnection charge. Glad that’s so.
I have Sky Broadband and I am still not satisfied since the connection is not stable. It may show high speed in speedtest.com but the quality is poor when you do pingtest. I’d rather have PLDT DSL if only I was not locked in to this shit.
I hope you don’t mind my asking, but how long is the lock-in period?
Thanks derdo. I’m curious to know what other people’s experiences are with this.
I’ve been using Wi-Tribe for about two months and the reception is slow and oftentimes no connection at all, but I am in a condo with about 5 floors above me so I suspect that this is the reason. The concept is great with respect to portability, but they seem to be stronger in their advertising and billing departments than the technical side.
Hi Mae. Thanks for the feedback. I’ll share it with my husband who has tried globe and smart already…
Hi derdo ~ You are welcome. If I am right about the building being the cause of the problem, it might be a pretty good service, especially since it is portable. Oh, the first router failed and I had to take it to Eastwood to have it replaced, but they did replace it at no charge.
Thanks Mae. Will keep you posted on my husband’s decision.
What does everybody think about Wi-Tribe?
Are you on Wi-Tribe or looking around? My husband always says he wants to try it out but hasn’t gotten round to doing so. The lines are always long in the Wi-Tribe office in Shangrila, so maybe it works? I hope somebody does give feedback on Wi-Tribe soon!
Hi. I am a subscriber of PLDT for 3 years now (previously with Bayantel until their service degraded). Subscribed on 5mbps (using business account, under the name of the buiilding where I am staying). Been happy with them for 3 years, fully satisfied, 18ms ping, getting 5-6 megs on speedtest, 450kbps max on torrents. Now their service is degraded, just as bayantel. Like bayantel, they don’t have plans of changing their physical line from the post. It is really disgusting.
I have been working for at&t and now with bell, services abroad are really good for paying customers, when it is found that wirings are the problem especially from the drop, provider changes the line. We are paying right as well here in Philo right? So why the hell the service sucks?
Just a question, maybe you guys can help, I see that globe has this wifi stick for 7.2mbps, is this a good choice? Or ill jsut try sky dsl as well?
Im a Globe subscriber for 1year(1mbps) and 3years(2mbps) and i gotta say Globe sucks. the problem with globe is that they hire 3rd party technicians to do their work and these techs are not keen to fix your issue they just wanted to close as many job orders as they can per day. every time i call globe hotline for an issue techs will call me the next day only to tell “we are having technical difficulties in globe manila can we close the JO now?” says that ever time like as if its scripted. i wanted to try sky dsl but unfortunately its not available in our area ill just wait.
Thanks for quick response, and to Derdo thank you for this thread… 🙂
Hope to hear more responses from you guys with Globe and Skydsl. My area by the way is E. Rodriguez Sr. Ave, QC
Hi Ritchy. Thanks for dropping by. My friend who lives in Makati also complained about the spotty service of PLDT DSL and she’s on the same plan as you. 😦 Hope you’ll get feedback on Globe and Skydsl soon!
PLDT has the WORST technical and Customer service from all ISP. Their work ethics are much alike employees from our government agencies. $&@&!!!
Why don’t you write the top brass of pldt and recount your experience? Or the consumer columns of broadsheets? That usually yields positive results from service providers! Good luck! You might want to share your experience here too. Maybe just maybe someone who can address your problem will read it and act on it!
Hi. i’ve been reading the whole page and i find it very informative, i think i found all the feedbacks i like to know. thanks for the information guys. we have applied for PLDT myDSL plan just this morning and i guess i won’t get my sister disappointed since i recommended the PLDT internet service to her. Just waiting for their responce. Thanks for the infos. 😀
in behalf of everyone who contributed to this thread, you’re welcome!
Hello. We just transferred houses. In the previous house we had PLDT myDSL 3mbps worth 1999 (Plus 700 for landline so around 2699). Gaming was ok and torrent downloads were usually a breeze. So we then transferred to the new house and I said “This would be an opportunity to try Sky Broadband. We applied for the 6mbps plan worth 3999 (but we are still on the trial period for the internet), also included Sky Cable Gold since my auntie was a sucker for movies and wanted to have Cinemax no matter what and since i wanted to have a faster line. Unfortunately it has been such a let down specially for torrent downloads. The torrent download would usually be at around 1-5kbps, yes you are seeing it right, 1-5kbps. Downloading via MIRC would net me at around 50-100kbps. Really disappointing as I was expecting a lot from them. Would be applying for a PLDT myDSL line before the week ends and will cut the Sky Broadband line before the 15day trial ends.
Wow, that’s really slow. Thanks for sharing your experience.
Wow, thanks, panzerpuff for your valuable inputs, as usual.
For everyone’s information, panzerpuff is the guy (or one of them) behind http://www.thetechnoclast.com/
So I just got back to Manila after 6 years of living with my dad in Osaka, JP. I am in need of internet and like someone has mentioned, most providers have lock-in periods..and I definitely don’t wanna get stuck with a pathetic speed. Currently, I have Globe’s superstick — Huawei E5 — (3-5Mbps) which delivers a very consistent 2-3Mbps and even a 4-6 on some days given a good signal, of course, as it depends entirely on 3G. My only problem is that it easily runs out of batteries and I’m certainly killing it (or its battery anyway) by keeping it plugged in all the time. Literally. Not to mention it might short circuit anytime soon and burn my house down. There’s also the pathetic speed of 2G when it’s rainy (rain kinda is a curse for 3G stuff). I am definitely keeping it.. But I also want to have the conventional wired connections for more stable *and less hazardous* reasons.
I think I wanna take out Sky in my choices, although, my mum is subscribed to Sky cable gold — most of you said it’s only for browsing and that it has cursed upload speeds. I don’t know about Globe’s services for their DSL + landline. You guys prolly need to give reviews about it, too. 🙂 I’m more inclined to getting PLDT myDSL now..but it seems kinda steep to pay 3 grand for speeds of “up to” 5Mbps when my superstick delivers a good 3-5Mbps at 1299/mo — less the wires, of course, don’t you think? LOL
So..any help? Thanks!
Hi there! You seem to be pretty lucky if your Globe superstick can manage 2-3MBPS (200-300KB/sec) consistently. I’ve been using all three telco’s 3G here in Manila and my average speed would probably be in the 0.5-1MBPS, especially on Globe.
Traditionally, wired connections have always been more capable than 3G because Telco’s are so slow when it comes to delivering the internet. And so the question of why should I go for wired is easily answered by: “fast speeds & reliable connection”. If you’re saying that your Globe superstick can easily beat wired broadband then by all means keep using it.
If so, I’d suggest getting a dedicated 3G router for your home so you don’t have to run the battery-powered Huawei. There are a bunch of possible 3G router devices out there – including Huawei brands. It might require a bit of setup, but it should come with a socket adapter since its made to run in homes for long periods of time.
If you’re looking for a dedicated wired connection, PLDT DSL still seems to be the best bet from what I’ve seen. But it might be dependent on your location. We’ve been using DSL for years and its been so far, so good. (PHP 1,995 for 3MBPS dedicated, no peak hour problems.)
Its ironic that the quality of Internet Service is probably the hardest to find information for in the internet. Telco’s and ISPs just don’t let us tech bloggers review their internet performance – which means no real, factual information about the quality of internet service. So all I have to go with is my own experience – with little to no way to compare it with other services.
I’m a telecommuter for about six months now and am very satisfied/happy/content with BayanDSL. Customer service is great and their response time is admirable.
Thanks for your comment, Kail. It’s good to hear that about BayanDSL. If it’s okay, would you mind telling us where you are located? Some people believe the signal’s efficiency is determined by the location.
Do they really increase the mbps when you call PLDT Service on phone only? Are they not required to go to your house?
I think this is something they can do and actually do without need for you to go to their office
pre. sky kami ngaun for 1mbps. kung ikukumpara ko itong sky sa bayantel. napakalayo pare haha. very unstable internet. kapag nag speedtest ako.. 0.32 dl speed and 0.20 upload speed. naka lock in period na kami dto ng 1 year pero sa tingin ko d namin matatapos toh. walang kwenta sky sa internet grabe haha.
hello po..alin po mas maganda para sa video pang skype at tska web surfing pldt or sky?
Have not tried any server other than Internet provider other than pldt and it’s okay
Hello Banjo. Thank you so much for taking time out to share your experience with all three. You’ve actually been there dine them, in aanner of speaking. SO GlObe appears to be the most satisfactory except for its billing. My cell phone bill with Globe is problematic too so I know whereof you speak. If you don’t mind, may I know what your subscription plan is with Globe?
Thanks again. I’m sure you will gave enlightened those who need to know through your comment!
Hello, I have experience with PLDT, sky and globeline ISPs here at home and at work. I could definitely say that it depends on your priorities (if you prioritize stability, speed, gaming, upload etc.) and location.
about PLDT, If you’re a gamer, it’s a no-brainer, PLDT is the only choice out there with low pings/ ample bandwidth. The biggest problem i had with PLDT is that it disconnects very often and nigh unuseable during peak hours. It took a year before the connection improved, but then again, anything other than my current situation back then would be an “improvement.” Customer service sucked bigtime too.
on SkyBroadband; though it has the fastest download speed of the 3, it’s just too inconsistent (as of last year) to be used as a business line. and the friggin upload speed just kills the service completely. When you need to send files through, it will take 10-30 minutes to attach a simple 2mb file. You could only imagine how long it took to transfer an entire website online. and also, you can’t play too much online games cos of the serious latency.
Globe is the best ISP i’ve ever subscribed to (so far!). What I like about it is that it’s reliable, and the customer service is nice. I can’t play online games on it though cos of the high latency if playing with PLDT and bayantel guys (and the majority of players are connected through PLDT). The only trouble i had with it is that i don’t receive the bills regularly and when it does finally arrive, I’d have 2-3 months worth of phonebills to pay.
Hope this helps.
It’s been October 4, 2011 now, and if anybody here wants to see the real WI-TRIBE in action (based on my above story) here is my actual screenshot >> http://www.ytters.com/witribe.jpg
That is based on my own wi-tribe Portal.
Thank you for sharing, Arnel…
Well as for me, I live in Makati area, so basically any ISP should be good,
we used to have Destiny, it was pretty good, it was always stable,
yet as an IT student, I feel the need for a faster connection, since I wanted to finish my downloads faster and a 512kbps connection was not fast enough to buff youtube videos at 360p quality, so I am forced to choose the 240p quality just to watch a video (and god, it still needed to be paused)
then by this month we changed to Sky Broadband, but we retained our TV cable subscription on Global Destiny which was cheaper (and I personally wanted ‘Discovery Channel’, which was only available on GOLD plan on SKY Cable, pffft damn expensive cable), anyway, we are currently on the plan 1mbps,
take note it is 1mb, 1megabit connection 1k monthly, which is fairly fast,
a 360p youtube video buffs in no time, and a 460p video buffs well, just pause the video for a couple of seconds though.
In terms of satisfaction, I am very happy with the connection,
their Customer Service is responsive and we we’re online in days (2days to be exact). In the near future I might upgrade our connection to 3mbps
which is 2k monthly.
just sharing 😀
You’re so lucky, Nikko! And Sky’s customer service is very convenient! Destiny’s isn’t 24/7 right? One just has to pray they restore service (we’re on Destiny cable) before one loses one’s sanity … Which is happily the case.
I am a witribe plan 1 MBPS Subscriber, my name is Arnel Milan and you can verify my account that I am telling the truth. I suggest to all, if you are looking for a good internet provider here in the Philippines, NEVER EVER THINK OF WI-TRIBE, you will experience hell on earth. Why? the 1st 1-2 months will be fine, very very fine, every thing is smooth, if you reached the 6GB monthly allowance, your speed will down from 1,000kbps to 256kbps… yes that is fine considering the fact that you’ve reached their “fair usage policy” (http://www.wi-tribe.ph/fair-usage-policy). 256kbps is fair because you can still “surf” and check your email on that speed.
However, when you are already on your 2nd to 3rd months, your bury will now start, remember that you already reached the 60 days trial period by which you CANNOT complain about their service. You have 24 months lock-in period and the company gave you 60 days to monitor their service, and now, it is above 60 days, so even if you file a law suit on them, you have a very minimal chance of winning.
Your record of surfing and internet usage will be their usage AGAINST you for their “fair usage policy”. And because of this, from 256KBPS, you will now have 10-20KBPS! Again, this is not a typographical mistake, 10-20KBPS! from 1mbps which is 1,000kbps, your speed will become 10kbps… in short, cook your lunch or dinner before a page start-up. So expect to lose your job if you are a “work-from-home” person. If you are a web developer, start to email your client that you will have some delay because of your internet. AND LASTLY, if you are a fan of youtube and Facebook, start to ABOLISH THEM ON YOUR MIND because that will be a thing of the past now.
Of course, your solution will call the hotline or email them on customercare@wi-tribe.ph or 31 – tribe (31 – 87423) for support. That is nice! BUT THEIR ANSWER IS NOT NICE! Why? They will simply reply… “You already on our “Fair Usage Policy Status .. Sorry but that is system generated and we cannot do anything for it”..
The last option would be to visit their nearest branch Ground Floor Convergys One Building 6796 Ayala Avenue corner Salcedo St. Legazpi Village, Makati City (that is my nearest branch). I’d brought my WI-MAX Tribe Equipment and present it to them. They simply replied “SIR YOU ARE ALREADY ON OUR FAIR USAGE POLICY STATUS.. THAT IS SYSTEM GENERATED.. IF YOU WISH YOU CAN SIGNED ON OUR TERMINATION CONTRACT..”
I’ve checked the “Pre-termination Contract” and it states there that ” D.) Pre-termination Fees — If Subscriber pre-terminates or cancels the subscription before the end of the Minimum Subscription Period, Subscriber shall pay a Pre-termination Fee proportionate to the balance of the Minimum Subscription Period, plus the full cost of the CPE.”.
This means that you will pay the remaining balance of your 24-months locked-in period plus surrendering the wi-tribe unit to them. Considering the fact that you only use it for just 1 1/2 months .. and the only mistake you have is BY VIEWING MOVIES IN YOUTUBE!
I do not have torrents, I do not downloads MP3 and I do not engage in any Big File Sharing transaction. All I know is that because I watch youtube, I’ve reached the 6GB MONTHLY BANDWITH.. and now I am in the burden of suffering this WI-TRIBE HELL.
Hope everyone will think first before entering this “Witribe Bait”
Arnel Milan
WI TRIBE DISAPPOINTED SUBSCRIBER
That’s so sad! Thanks for sharing.
How I wish things will improve for you. Have you written the company a letter? The call centers cannot do much from their end sometimes.
From what I am experiencing right now, 20kbps is so slow to open up a page. What more if I would attached some screenshots in the email. So what I did I think is the best would be to brought the WiTribe unit on their office at Makati, present it to them along with my laptop some screenshots of the speed from different time and day.
And that is the time I was very disappointed, they simply offered me to sign the Pre-Termination Contract with a 2-year payment for the balance.
Now I know what WI-Tribe means.. Walang Internet Tribe, and 4G technology, means 4Get technology….
Before : Youtube, Facebook, Surf, Downloads Stuffs
Now : Plants Vs. Zombie, Angry Birds, DOTA, Counter Strike
So for all subscriber who wants to join the Walang Internet Tribe like me offering 4Get Technology, simply subscribe for the WI-TRIBE Package and they will be glad to install it for you.
Oh my.:((
Thank you for sharing, Arnel.
I’m currently using the 15 day trial of Sky Broadband. I would be fair to say that Sky is good, I’m getting fast buffs on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter. But when it comes to some international sites it become slow. On torrents it is fine, 300kbps for a 1.50GB download. SkyBroadband is pretty new, so we need to give them a time to improve and I know there is always room for improvement. I’m subscribing to Sky. And one more thing I’m getting lags to online servers but they assured me that they will work on these problems ASAP.
You’re lucky -you were able to get the 15-day trial period. If you have become a regular subscriber do give us feedback on the service again, please. So we will be enlightened. Thanks!
hi. right now i am using sun broadband and i am planning to shift to DSL service. i am looking into PLDT and Sky…i completely have NO IDEA what to choose…
Please read comments below so you’ll get an idea as to which might be better from those who have tried both. We’re on pldt dsl ourselves and have experienced times when the connection was spotty but more often than not it’s okay. Ask those who live near your place if you can what they’re using. Please share what you find out if you have the time. Thanks.
Thanks for the link and info, panzerpuff. I’m sure this will enlighten those who need the info.
Hi Tita, looks like our “compare ISP with another ISP” topics might become much easier now. NTC is now circulating a memorandum to force all ISP’s to give out a minimum speed rating that also needs to pass 80% reliability every month.
Hopefully with these new numbers, it’ll be much easier to spot and avoid the ISPs that have high maximum rated speeds, but are very slow in real world scenarios.
Hope that helps!
Hello jagged. Hmmm, I hope someone reads your request for enlightenment and posts a response here. I’ll ask panzerpuff to check out your questions.
Thanks for dropping by.
I’ve found this conversation here so informative, and running since 2009! Hope we can update in light of these new broadband wars.
Hi what about this new P999/mo for 5mbps deal from SkyBroadband? up to 15gb per month.
How would it compare to PLDT service?
5MBps / 15Gb should translate to basically a max of 400-500 KB/sec download, with a maximum of 15GB fast download per month. Usually if you reach your limit your speed gets downgraded until the next month. (Some, like on mobile telcos, your internet gets turned off if you exceed daily allowance.)
I’m not familiar with the PLDT plan for 999, but I think it might be 2MBps / no limit. This will give you 200-ish KB/sec without any download limits in the month.
However, in my experience, PLDT is usually pretty good at maintaining those max speeds even through peak hours and is relatively reliable.
On SkyBroadband, testimonials say that it can definitely reach the speeds it claims, but doesn’t reliably stay on those max speeds. Possibly some congestion happens on peak hours, but these I haven’t tried personally so these are just things I’ve heard.
Your main thing would be the 15GB limit, and how you use your internet. Traditionally, online games have been more responsive on PLDT’s network than on others. That, and the reliability of the ping and service means that’s where most gamers go. SkyBroadband offers a pretty good burst if all you need are pure download speeds, but you have to think about how much you’ll download normally in a month and see if you’ll always reach 15GB or not so you’ll know if this plan is for you.
Thanks panzer! For those who’re impressed by panzer’s answers (and you’ve every reason to be), check out his blog at panzerpuff.wordpress.com and http://www.thetechnoclast.com/.
Thanks for the referral, Tita. =)
i, im currently using PLDT plan 999 and i usually get 0.85 mbps for download and 0.05 mbps for upload. when i check the ping its around 15 to 18 ms.
i recently bought a ps3 so i really wanna get the best online gaming experience. im considering the skybroadband plan 999 since it says u can get upto 5 mbps / 15 gig usage.
but i read here it may not be the best for online gaming.
considering that most servers are of PLDT, i think i will stick to PLDT. maybe just upgrade the plan for better speed. if anyone has info regarding best ISP for online games please reply. thanks =)
Hello. According to my son his friends who were into online gaming subscribed to
Pldt. He doesn’t know under what plan though
Hello. Last week up to last night even, we noticed that occasionally, our internet connection would lapse into a really slow pace, if at all. Then we recalled how years back, a natural occurrence in the seas also supposedly affected the cables and charged the slow speed of our connection to the earthquake in Japan. So they told you as much? It might be possible
i got a PLDT dsl plan 999 and i’ve been using this for 3 years for the first 2 years i’ve got a good connection but this year it sucks because i often got disconnected and the services are bad then last week i got 10~40kbps of download speed up until now i even got 10~22kbps which makes me mad but if i had free time next week i might call their staff and ask for explanation if this is not fix i’ll change my net so any of you got an idea which connection i should use?
Do call 171. Sometimes they are able to address the problem from their end, or they could send someone to check your contraptions.
Re an alternative server, I hope someone gives feedback.
@ derdo i called and they said it was the cause of earthquake in japan but that doesn’t make sense anyway pldt is back to normal now 180kbps dl speed for 1mb dsl FTW
SmartBro never sends me a bill and then disconnects me for nonpayment of bills I never received. Now they charged me P1,800 for a reconnection fee. Long story short, what other internet service provider should I switch to?
same here, that happened to me last 4 years, we’re very displeased
ang ginawa ni mama jan, talagang hindi na niya binayaran. haha!ha
I changed my connection from smartbro to skybroadband. PLDT is out of the question since they can’t install it in our area because the area is full. I subscribed to plan 3Mbps. The first thing I notice that it is faster since it is 3mpbs compared to 384kbps. I tested torrent speed smartbro gives me 30-60Kb/s now sky gives me 30 – 900Kb/s really… 1Gb file is an hour or less. Streaming is faster…Downside is if i play online games and the server is pldt or the host is pldt i get high latency or LAG!!!! L4D2 is fine…but in Garena for DOTA PLDt rooms is not working…But bayantel rooms are fast…just 16ms….ping…..whew…ALSO Direct download is fast and upload too…reaching same speeds as torrent speed. This is real.
SmartBro never sends me a bill and then disconnects me for nonpayment of bills I never received. Now they charged me P1,800 for a reconnection fee. Long story short, PLDT OR SKYCABLE????
I’m subscribed to PLDT–Skycable refused to connect me because of the house’s distance from their poste. based on the comments to this post, the different servers have their moments/quirks. Maybe you can ask your neighbors? Good luck.
Hi Tita, sorry I haven’t been visiting lately. Here are opinions in the matter/s. =)
Watchpad – Tita, you might be glad to hear that Watchpad now has a Mac version you can use. I haven’t tried it, but I believe it came out last November 2010. I don’t “Watch”pad too often, but certain things like live Pacquiao fights is possible on Watchpad.
Sky vs. PLDT – Basing from the comments I’m inclined to stick with my gut here that PLDT is the better option. Sky is just a lot more unstable and unpredicable, especially where ping is important. (not just for gaming, but voice and video chat like skype will suffer if you have bad ping or unpredicable speeds.)
You can test ping and latency with http://www.pingtest.net which is from the same guys who made speedtest.net. For PLDT, pick the Makati server since its PLDT hosted. It will tell you how good your line is to their main server. (This will tell you if your immediate connection has a problem that PLDT can fix. If you get a good grade from Pingtest, then there is no use calling PLDT because their lines are running well at the moment, and something else is at fault.)
PLDT does upgrade all the old subscribers and generally give older subscribers better treatment and unlock faster speeds for them. When I started using PLDT DSL, my speed was only 10kB/sec. That’s only twice the speed of dial-up. Gradually I was upgraded while PLDT was upgrading their infrastructure – and now, I’m still on the same plan 1995, but I get more than 300kB/sec. Plan 1995 is supposed to be 2MBit right now, but we’re getting 3MBits. PLDT does dole out speed upgrades above your plan on case-to-case basis. (eg. if you’re a valued customer or if you just get on the good side of the managers)
DSL vs. Cable internet – Its true that Cable internet run on better wires and can transmit a lot more data than DSL. In fact, in the US, majority of users are on Cable and we get minimum speeds of 500+kB/sec there. In multiple occasions I got 2000+kB/sec on Cable while on DSL there maximum is 400-500kB. But in the Philippines, unfortunately Cable companies just suck at delivering internet data. For as long as cable internet started here a long time ago with companies like Destiny cable, it has been terrible. No cable internet provider in the PH has been proven to be even half as fast as DSL, sadly. On most cases, and even long ago when our internet streams weren’t even that congested yet. When Youtube wasn’t even invented yet, Cable internet had had a problem already with speeds of slower than dial-up at peak. And just breathing above it on off-peak hours. I’m sure its been improved since then, but the argument that cable transmits more than DSL is moot. Its the infrastructure behind the internet provider that is more important here in the Philippines.
4G – 4G, Wi-tribe or other 4G services are basically an upgrade to our telephone’s 3G and the USB 3G dongles that come with Tattoo or Sun or Smart or Weroam. 4G can transmit faster, the signals can penetrate walls better, etc. But right now, the plans for all 4G providers are weak. They are mostly on “bucket” plans where you have limited internet at high speeds and unlimited slower internet after you use up the bucket worth of data.
What 4G is not is something you can clearly say as better. DSL and Cable both have physical wires running into your system to prevent any transmission problems. 4G (and 3G) is based on your quality of signal with the cellphone tower. 4G towers is also an issue. Right now, only a limited area over the Metro have 4G towers and I don’t see that improving much yet.
Lastly, 4G is rated to be pretty fast, but like Cable internet, the delivery method is only as good as the infrastructure providing the internet. I haven’t had any firsthand accounts on 4G speeds, but if nobody is talking about it being fast, then I’m inclined to believe that nobody talks about it being fast because it isn’t.
My opinion, is that if you have 4G coverage in your area, and are currently using 3G internet plug-its, then its a good upgrade path to 4G. If you currently have a satisfactory DSL / Cable connection it will probably be a downgrade to go 4G. Actually, a cousin of mine works at Wi-Tribe so if anybody has inquiries like coverage area, I can mention it to him.
As for regular 3G plug-its, I’ve been using a Sun broadband SIM on my phone when I need internet and it seems to be pretty capable. It suffers during peak hours which means Youtube is near impossible, but if you stick to Facebook, Twitter, and email during peak time it works well. During the day, the internet is passable, and off-peak it tops at about 130kB/sec download.
I’ve started to use these when I visit Pampanga over weekends because I can use the PHP100 3-day unlimited internet cards instead of paying PHP10 / 30mins from WeRoam since I can’t seem to keep myself offline for too much that I’d rather have unlimited than metered. Its a good alternative, especially if you’re on-the-go. I use it in my cellphone now which can actively share WiFi internet to my other devices – so I can actually have internet while driving, or visiting relatives, etc.
I hope that helps!
thanks, panzerpuff, for indulging my request that you enlighten me and whoever is interested…
At home, we’re currently subscribed to sky and believe me, it sucks. It occasionally disappears from time to time(for durations of about 10minutes, but in indefinite intervals and sometimes about every 45 mins or so)
what i’m wondering is this 4G stuff. if its faster and whatnot.
Hello. I have no experience with 4G. Is that the one of wi-tribe? Find it a bit expensive so haven’t bothered to try. Hope someone reads this and gives you feedback. I’ll ask a friend about it. He might know something.
Hi Malou. Our PLDT DSL comes with Watchpad but we don’t use it because my son and I use Macs and I think it doesn’t have software for that. It’s fast if it doesn’t act up, which thankfully, doesn’t occur too often. Sometimes, we feel that those who subscribe later get better deals than us, although I think they improve our speeds without extra charge when they come up with cheaper and better packages. Perhaps someone who has experienced PLDT DSL with the features you have can share his/her experience?
Please give me feedback re: pldt dsl…Im satisfied with Bayantel broadband but the latest offer of PLDT is quite tempting: internet, wifi (up to 4 ports) and watchpad (selected channels-cable inc. anc, etc)plus landline…for only999 per month…If pldt is fast, then I’ll shift…kasi it means savings of at least 500 per month (kasi i dont need the telepwede anymore, if there’s free landline)…also, with the wifi, my daughter and i can both use the internet at the same time…
Elow poh..can you give me an advice also which isp is good for online job?I’m working online, baguhan lng poh kasi ako dito sa manila at d ko pa poh kabisado ag pasikot2x dito para poh minquire I really need an internet connection as soon as posible poh kaya lng d ko po alam which has a better connection Smart, globe pldt or skycable poh? I’m currently using globe tattoo pero sobrang bagal..Yung sa smart nman 2 years contract poh at pag d mo ntapus yung contract mo babayaran mo yung termination fee for the remaining months of your contract ag pangit nman nun..Sana poh matulunagan nyo ako.Thanks poh!
We are on pldtdsl – plan 1995. There are times it is really slow, but it’s definitely better than Globe Tattoo and sun, at least per my experience. Tried Smart Bro too before, and it was painfully slow. Perhaps you should just get prepaid – but I don’t know what would be best really. I hope the others who read this can give you better advice.
im new using pldt… but pldt was bad connection and giving u a suprise bill… cost of reconnection 700 plus… they said its a policy and the contract how it can be a contract they never say about reconnection fee cost of 400 for landline and 3oo for dsl… imagine that u can pay another 1 month bill for the reconnection fee….
guys I’m jay agent of skybroadband. skybrodband was design not for online game it is purely surfing.believe me. if you looking for surfing you choose sky, but if you are using it for online gaming go to pldt. text me or call me to this number 0923-638-4347 or send me email to: domenion08@gmail.com for more information and subscription of skybroadband
just wondering. wanted to have a skybroadband connection but was told our house was too far from the post. up to what distance is feasible?
You are correct. SkyBroadband only limits the cable length to 250 feet. That’s why they cater to people whose house is right NEXT to their post. Those houses that are two or three houses away from the post, sorry na lang. Crazy huh?
True. Instead of spending so much on advertising, they should improve their service. Then people will hear about it and they won’t have to advertise to get subscribers.
hi,Jay! I have a new condo unit due for turn-over this year at Rada St. around the vicinity of Greenbelt, Makati. Instead of putting a telephone line with DSL Broadband I am thinking of having SkyCable with DSL Broadband instead for the Cable TV and Internet use. Landline will just be a redundancy since nobody is without celphone anyway.
The condo unit is on the 30th floor of Chancellor Bldg. Can SkyCable service that ok?
I’ve been trying Sky Broadband now for a very long time, i have been using WiFi, i am paying for the 12Mbps w/ the free cable and to be honest i am very very disappointed with it since i speed tested it and i have 1000 ping and only have a download speed of 1.80 Mbps, my other friends who use Pldt are not having these problems. also when playing computer game sky is always lagging and has a high ping while pldt does not have any problems
That’s sad, jeremy. PLDT also has problems occasionally, though.
If you don’t mind, may I know how much you pay for your connection? Is your house near the post containing Sky’s cables?
so pldt wins this?? because i need an internet connection since im moving out for college.. 🙂
Not having tried Sky Broadband because of our house’s distance from the post of Sky, I have no basis for comparison. I guess it’s best to ask around in the area where you’re staying what works best. Some swear by Globe, others by Sky. Son said he heard Globe Tattoo is all right. No definitive answer, really.
Called Skycable yesterday because I want to try its cable services but was told if the house is more than 250 feet (approximately 33 meters) away from their poste, it cannot be done.
I havent tried SKY BROADBAND yet, peoro nakaka-inis hanggan pangako lng sila sa 15 day trial screw them!. I am using pldt plan 999 btw its “1mb” daw but there’s one thing that really bothers me.. my neighbor has the same plan and dsl speed, there connection is 1.2 to 1.5 mb suprisingly (based on speedtest.net). I dont know if its my router or im not that lucky… anyway i think you should just stick to your isp muna ^^
thanks for the suggestion. lately, the Internet has been very slow but when my son compared notes with his friends, they were experiencing the same. we were thinking – could the spate of earthquakes have disturbed the cables under the sea again? years back this happened.
PLDT has the WORST customer service of any company!
my gosh, for me, sky has many things to learn from pldt. i mean, baed on the speedtest, mabilis sya. pero if you try downloading torrents and stuff. grabe, super bagal… in my 999 pldt plan, 170kbps ang nakukuha ko. while sa sky is 10-20kbps.. i tried the same torrent in both isp. im super sure sa results.. sky is good when surfing the net or watching streaming vids. pero super unstable din ng connection nila… kaya i would go parin sa pldt.
thanks for the advice. We’re still with PLDT and have in fact had our Sky cable connection cut in favor of Destiny, which is cheaper.
there is no doubt that cable broadband is much faster than any telephone broadband. the reason is that telephone only runs with fiberoptic wire which has a limited bandwidth unlike for the cable DSL that uses copper wire and can carry a lot of bandwidth.
thanks for the input. we never got to try sky broadband, though, because the men who were supposed to install it gave up without even trying. Thanks for dropping by.
You got it twisted all around. Cable companies use Fiber Optics which is more advance than copper wires.
Telephone companies use Copper wiring , the same connection they use for your landline phones. when telephone companies developed from a telecom to a broadband DSL service they used the same connection they already installed in the network which is Copper wiring. because its cheap ( its already there ) unlike upgrading to fiber optics where they would have to install.
Ive been with Skycable since last year. Im supposedly on the 2MB plan and since I’m also a gold cable TV subscriber, I have been upgraded to 3MB. I have experienced both Sky and PLDT since the internet connection in my parent’s house is on PLDT DSL (3MB). Since my parent’s house is a long way off from the PLDT Calling Office, guaranteed max speeds is far from 3MBPS (which PLDT disclosed and we accepted since we subscribed).
If you are looking at online gaming, Sky is not a workable option (although I have yet to try the 6 MBPS service). Even if PLDT has a “published” 3 MBPS rate (and a max 2MBPS in our case), it is the superior option. In my case I will be shortly disconnecting my Sky service as soon as my DSL is up and running. It will take a while since I do not have an existing landline. Overall, it will effectively cost more (as I will still have the cable TV and an additional cost in the landline but heck, if I factor in the mobile calls I made to the Sky customer service number for the numerous problems I encountered (e.g., inability to connect either because I couldnt get an IP address probably due to server load (modem working fine) or there was absolutely no cable internet signal (no modem signal), consistently high latencies during gaming) I should be ahead).
Just tested using the link and it’s 3.34Mbps. Thanks again.
thank you panzerpuff. Your comments are always so enlightening. galing mo.
On another note, I believe we’re on PLDT’s plan 1995 as well, I don’t remember the kbit ratings, but our max speeds are close to 350Kb/sec. Dial-up would be 5Kb/sec. When I started on PLDT DSL with a 1995 plan, it was a measly 12Kb/sec. (A mere twice that of dial-up.) They’ve given us a handful of speed upgrades since then.
Try this link: http://210.5.68.202/speed/initialmeter.php (It’s PLDT’s internal speed test for the infrastructure, and the download speeds it gives you off the internet.)
Color me skeptical on Sky Broadband’s bandwidth speeds. I’ve been paying close attention to any feedback on local broadband providers for quite a while now, and I got nothing on Sky. Which leads me to believe that a.) nobody has it or b.) nobody’s talking. Both could mean something bad, or it might actually be something good that people haven’t caught onto yet.
The most popular choice would be PLDT’s DSL. I’ve been on it for about 6(?) years now. Despite the occasional hiccups early on, I would still get my guaranteed speeds even on peak hours.
For about a year, I tried NOW Cable, which came from Home Cable. (I stopped just before they merged with Sky.) NOW cable had the same backbone provider (Infocom) and it gave me guaranteed speeds on par with a PLDT subscription at the time. (and it made those speeds) But it had a different type of connection style where your total speed is divided by your uploads and downloads. So in effect, I’d lose upload speed from downloading, and vice versa. What was great about NOW cable was the more efficient Customer Service numbers. When you call, sometimes they would have pre-recorded service downtime advisories or something related. The staff were friendly and they had information about downtimes and its causes as it happens. (Which means they communicate with the engineers pretty often.)
Based from feedback, the worse you could try is Destiny’s internet service. All I’ve heard from Destiny’s customers are complaints. I’ve had a Destiny employee confirm to me that on peak hours, they could have service slower than a dial-up connection. That stuff never happens on PLDT.
Sky Broadband is the big question mark here. Cable internet can inherently transmit a lot more data than DSL can ever do. And Sky’s plans effectively double the speeds of any other broadband provider we know. I just haven’t heard any customers talk about it. There might be something wrong if the adoption rate isn’t that good. (Otherwise we’d be seeing Sky Broadband based net cafe’s, coffee shops, businesses, etc.) So I’d wait for more info about their service before I’d commit.
One thing to note is that a lot of the providers don’t play nice with each other, at least when online gaming is concerned. You can play smooth online games with people you share providers with; but once you start playing people using other local providers, its pretty bad. 50% of my friends are on PLDT, the rest are mostly on Bayantel or Smart Broadband. So that’s one thing you could consider. In the end, I’d keep my PLDT subscription for the guaranteed speeds and the community of players I know that use it.
I currently have a 2mbps dsl connection. I am now using the FREE for 15 day skybroadband 3mbps connection. Using a Speedtest utility, Skybroadband was faster. Then I tried downloading a divx torrent. Don’t know why but Skybroadband was much slower by 50%.
wow, so are you inclined to go skybroadband? Please don’t forget to share by leaving a comment on this post. Inis lang that they didn’t even attempt to connect us.
The decision was taken out of my hands by the lay of the house. It being some distance from the gate and SKy’s post/pillar,the installers balked and said it wasn’t feasible. So much for that.