Lester Chan's Website » broadband

SingTel’s Priority Pass Mobile Broadband Service

Lester Chan — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 07:23:59 +0000

Interesting service by SingTel. These days almost everyone is using an iPhone, Android or Blackberry and all the phones are connected to data services. Not forgetting those 3G USB dongles are connected to the same data network as well. If you paid only for mobile broadband, you are also sharing the same bandwidth with those who paid for mobile plans that comes with data services. But with Priority Pass, mobile broadband users get higher priority (in terms of speed & bandwidth) than mobile plan data services users.

Also, we can expect commercial LTE services from SingTel by the end of the year.

Show Press Release (438 More Words)

Singapore, 13 June 2011 – Singapore Telecommunications Limited (SingTel) today announced the launch of Asia’s first premium priority mobile broadband service, as well as the typical speeds of its mobile broadband services.

Named Priority Pass, SingTel’s premium priority mobile broadband service offers faster and more reliable Internet connectivity on the move. Customers enjoy priority for their data traffic when the network is heavily loaded, thus ensuring smoother streaming and downloads.

The service is activated at no additional charge for SingTel’s 7.2Mbps and 21Mbps mobile broadband plans. As SingTel has continuously invested in its network to provide more capacity, the introduction of Priority Plus does not affect the broadband experience of users of other plans.

Mr Yuen Kuan Moon, SingTel’s Executive Vice President of Digital Consumer, said: “Priority Pass is a game-changer that will give our mobile services the edge over our competitors. In the last year, we have seen a sharp rise in mobile data usage with the explosive growth of new web-enabled devices and bandwidth-hungry multimedia applications. We launched Priority Pass to cater to the rapidly growing number of customers who are demanding higher speeds with more consistent performance.”

Typical mobile broadband speeds
As a first for the mobile industry in Asia, SingTel has published the typical speeds of its mobile broadband services. The table below outlines the typical range of speeds that customers can expect 80% of the time. SingTel has also renamed its 3.6Mbps, 7.2Mbps and 21Mbps USB modem-based services as Classic 3.6, Priority 7.2 and Premium 21 respectively.

Mobile Broadband

Mobile broadband plan	Theoretical speed	Typical speed range
Classic 3.6	3.6Mbps	0.8Mbps to 2.1Mbps
Priority 7.2 (with Priority Pass)	7.2Mbps	1.4Mbps to 3.7Mbps
Premium 21 (with Priority Pass)	21Mbps	1.7Mbps to 4.8Mbps

As with all wireless technologies, the range of speeds and experience is dependent on several factors, such as the user’s location from base stations, the number of users in the area, the mobile devices used, as well as the response of websites accessed. Customers may also experience slower speeds indoors where mobile signals are blocked by walls and structures.

“We are constantly listening to our customers to understand their needs, and they have told us that they are not getting the speeds that are advertised,” said Mr Yuen.

“Our customers deserve to know exactly what they are getting when they sign-up for our services. We are confident that our mobile network is the best in Singapore and we want to set an example for the industry. By disclosing the actual speeds of our services upfront we aim to help consumers to make better informed choices.”

Mr Yuen said that SingTel was rolling out its LTE network after completing trials last year, and customers could expect commercial LTE services by the end of the year.

SingTel: Broadband on Mobile

SingTel Starts Selling iPad 2 On 14th May 2011

Lester Chan — Thu, 12 May 2011 00:37:04 +0000

SingTel will start selling iPad 2 this Saturday, 14th May 2011. The subsidized iPad 2 will be offered in 2 different types of services: Mobile Broadband and Mobile Multi-SIM.

You can register your interest here before 12pm, tomorrow, 13th May 2011.

Mobile Broadband

Offer	7.2Mbps Mobile BroadBand with iPad 2 16GB 3G + Wi-Fi
Monthly Subscription	SGD$40
iPad Model	16GB 3G + Wi-Fi at SGD$399 32GB 3G + Wi-Fi at SGD$499 64GB 3G + Wi-Fi at SGD$599
Free Local Bundled Data	50GB
Contractual Period	24 months
USB Modem (if required)	SGD$5 per month
Value Added Services	Wireless@SG, AMPed & De!ite
Data Cap Price	SGD$94.16

More Information: Mobile Broadband

Mobile Multi-SIM

iPad 2 Model	Price
16GB 3G + Wi-Fi	SGD$818
32GB 3G + Wi-Fi	SGD$948
64GB 3G + Wi-Fi	SGD$1,078

Description	Price (Inclusive of 7% GST)
One-time Charge of Multi-SIM card (1st set of 2 cards)	SGD$32.10
One-time charge of subsequent card (3rd and 4th card)	SGD$10.70 each card
Monthly subscription for 2 cards (one or more card is a MicroSIM)	SGD$10.70
Monthly subscription for 3 cards (one or more card is a MicroSIM)	SGD$21.40
Monthly subscription for 4 cards (one or more card is a MicroSIM)	SGD$32.10

In summary, the subsidized rates for MultiSIM is SGD$30 cheaper than the retail price of iPad 2 but you have to be bonded by a 12-month contract. Also just to clarify, on the SingTel site it states “one card is a MicroSIM” but in actual fact you can have one or more MicroSIM for your MultiSIM plan and the charges remain the same as stated above.

More Information: Mobile Multi-SIM

iPad 2 Prices
Just for easier comparison, here are the prices of iPad 2 in Singapore.

iPad 2 Model	Price
16GB 3G + Wi-Fi	SGD$848
32GB 3G + Wi-Fi	SGD$978
64GB 3G + Wi-Fi	SGD$1,108

Official Site: SingTel iPad 2
Official Site: Apple iPad 2

Linksys WAG200G With Singnet Broadband

Lester Chan — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 08:32:55 +0000

I would like to start off with ADSL sucks and Cable is the way to go. It is retarded to authenticate and use a telephone line to start a connection as that is so 56K era. ADSL connection disconnect you more than cable. ADSL modem has full of settings that requires you to set in order for it to work normally, with cable, just plug the cable into your modem and you are ready to use the Internet. How easy can that get?

Yesterday, I went to the my mom office to solve a very peculiar Internet problem. My mom is using Singnet Business Internet which is like SGD$100 per month for a 512K downstream and a 256K upstream for more than a year before this problem occurs.

The problem happen like 2 weeks ago where my mom is unable to use the Internet before 2pm (roughly) but after 2pm, she can use it without any problem. This problem occurs every day for the past 2 weeks.

The Singnet people came at least 4 times to solve this but for the first 3 time, they are unable to find out why. The 4th time, the technician came and he suspect it is our router problem.

We are using the 2wire 2700HGV-2 (Singtel’s MioBox) and Linksys WRT54G. So as you can see there are 2 routers as the 2700HGV-2 itself is also a router. Previously I set up wrongly for my mom and this wrong setup works for more than a year and only start giving problems 2 weeks ago.

The thing I did wrong is creating 2 routings. My 2700HGV-2 will initiate a PPoE connection and connect to the Internet and my WRT54G will also initiate a PPoE connection using the 2700HGV-2 and connect to the Internet. And hence I got 2 external IPs for the 2 PPoE connections, 1 each for the router.

According to some Google searches I made, 2 routings will cause a major lag and slowdown to the network. This problem did not happen a year ago as my mom’s workplace is new and my mom is the first few tenants there and recently it seems that the whole building is fully occupied and morning seems to to be the peak period and hence a lot of people is using the Internet. There is no cable point installed, so the tenants can either be using Singtel’s Singnet or Starhub’s ADSL.

After figuring out this, I went to disable all the shit in 2700HGV-2 making it into a pure ADSL modem and bridge it using my WRT54G. I managed to bridge it using only just my WRT54G to initiate a PPoE connection. My WRT54G managed to get the external IP, gateway, DNS and MTU and it seems everything is working perfect, but it is not! I can’t surf the Internet or ping out at all. And I have no idea why this is happening. I asked FRRO’s Michael for help and he told me it is weird and recommend me in worst case scenario, get a ADSL modem plus a router. I know that the 2700HGV-2 has a inbuilt wireless and 4-port wired router function but it lacks A LOT of features that the WRT54G has like the DDNS service which my mom need the most.

I heed Michael’s advice and went down to Funan to get the Linksys WAG200G, for SGD$99, it is basically a WRT54G with ADSL modem inside.

Went back to replace both the 2700HGV-2 and WRT54G with only WAG200G and BINGO, everything is perfectly working alright (just got feedback from my mom this afternoon).

Why can’t just Singnet give us the bloody ADSL modem with no shit inside just like Starhub’s Cable modem and it would make the solution easier.

Last but not least, I would like to add that my WRT54G is version 7 and I can’t flash it to DD-WRT. How unlucky!

M1 Broadband

Lester Chan — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 10:14:54 +0000

SINGAPORE, 4 August 2008 – Singaporeans will now be able to cruise the information superhighway with a new fixed broadband service operated by M1.

Offering a mobile broadband service since 2006, M1 will become a full fledged broadband player when it introduces M1 Fixed Broadband from tomorrow.

M1 Fixed Broadband is available to all homes with cable access points or which are cable ready. The service is capable of achieving download speeds of up to 100 Mbps and upload speeds of up to 2 Mbps.

“M1 is repositioning itself for the future as it develops new businesses anchored on our core competencies. The launch of M1 Fixed Broadband is an important step in our planned transformation from a single-play mobile operator to a dynamic multi-play operator with interests in both the mobile and fixed sectors. The proliferation of the Internet and the increasing demand for Internet bandwidth also make this an opportune entry into the fixed broadband market,” said Neil Montefiore, Chief Executive Officer of M1.

M1 will launch its fixed broadband service with four unlimited data plans based on varying Internet access speeds. Providing customers faster speeds for less, the monthly subscription fee starts from as low as $40.60 for existing M1 customers*. Customers will also be offered a plug-and-play cable modem as part of the launch promotion when they sign up for the service.

Promotional Price

10 Mbps $43.50/month
15 Mbps $58.50/month
30 Mbps $73.50/month
100 Mbps $88.50/month

Promotional Price for existing M1 customers

10 Mbps $40.60/month
15 Mbps $50.70/month
30 Mbps $63.70/month
100 Mbps $76.70/month

Usual Price

10 Mbps $58/month
15 Mbps $78/month
30 Mbps $98/month
100 Mbps $118/month

Those who wish to sign up for the M1 Fixed Broadband service can call at any M1 shop or visit www.m1.com.sg/broadband for more information.

* Existing M1 customers eligible for the additional discounts refers to existing postpaid customers on selected M1 Mobile Plans and Mobile Broadband plans

Source: Hardware Zone Forums