Internet from Home Cable/TOT

Post by **dalek** » March 9, 2015, 11:56 am

I've been a TOT ADSL customer for about ten years. Generally it works OK-ish, if there's a fault it gets fixed within a reasonable time. I pay for the 7Mb service, but for the past couple of months the speed has been pretty bad.
At the moment I'm waiting for TOT to hopefully fix the problem.

The upload speed is appalling. My email account is US based, so sending a 1MB email seems to take forever recently.
Not interested in what the speedtest says only for Thailand, but more keen on international speeds, although I realise this can sometimes be limited due to the international gateway bottleneck.

TOT are offering a "Fiber2U" service claiming speeds of 10-30Mb, but at a price of 1,200 Baht/month

I see Udon Home Cable advertise on their website three internet packages. The fastest is 15Mb download (and allegedly 15Mb upload!) for 590 Baht/month.
We already subcribe to the standard Home Cable package (300 odd Baht/month), so does the internet package include TV, or is it an additional cost?

I take it the internet uses their standard co-ax cable feed?
Does anyone have an opinion of the the Home Cable internet service - worthwhile, waste of time & money, is their internet access affected when there's rain - same as satelite TV?
Any other comments? The more comments the better!

Sorry if this has been discussed recently, but couldn't find a clear answer when I searched.

Post by **Brian Davis** » March 9, 2015, 3:51 pm

I'm a TOT ADSL user, similar package to you it appears. I'm quite happy with the service, but I'm not a demanding user as fas as speeds are concerned.
BUT, there's perhaps half a dozen of us waiting for TOT or CAT to bring fibre optic out from Phen a little. Trying to get reliable information out of either of them has, according to my mad on IT friend, been pretty hopelessI Talk of 20 Mb at a cost of c.1500 baht per month was talked of.
Someone not far away has the Cat system and says speeds are SO quick.

Post by **Somchai499** » March 9, 2015, 4:51 pm

I had TOT ADSL for 18 months and it worked OKish - maybe less than that. Frequent drop-outs impacting on Skype calls and appalling upload speeds, as you pointed out. I switched to True a couple of months ago (they call it fibre, but it is really HFC, in other words not fibre to the home) but it has been a great experience. Works all the time, 20 - 50 Mb/s down, 2 Mb/s up. I am a happy customer. If you can get it where you live then go for it.

Post by **semperfiguy** » March 9, 2015, 5:04 pm

Dalek, I have Home cable TV and internet and the service is outstanding. I pay 440 per month for 7 and 7 on the download/upload. Uploading docs and photos to email is very fast. I think you'll waste your money to opt for a faster speed package. This one will do all that you need it to do. I may have an interruption of service once every 2 months, but it's usually because they are doing some maintenance in their own office and service is back on within minutes to a few hours, so no big deal. Bad weather has no bearing on the quality of service. Since you already have the cable service I believe they only charge you 500 Baht for installation (I could be wrong on this...it may be free now), then you just pay month to month with no contract and can cancel anytime you wish. Unlike the cable TV service there is no discount offered for paying three months in advance. I highly recommend their service.

Post by **wayneor0** » March 9, 2015, 5:20 pm

we had tot for a few yrs NIGHTMARE then changed to 3g perfect service for couple yrs now faster cheaper no disc yet

Post by **dalek** » March 9, 2015, 5:45 pm

Hi Somchai,

Thanks for your positive recommendation, but....
I just called True on the number from their website (1686). Took three calls to get to speak to someone in English (and that's after pressing 9 for English each time).
One of the times I was told I needed to call another number - when I asked the "other number" - you've guessed it: 1686.

Then they needed my address to look on their map if they have fiber in the village. This is the English girl speaking with me and at the same time a Thai speaking guy looking at their map.
Not to difficult to find Udon, Tambon Nongnakam was more of a challenge for the guy, but no way could he find Nongsai to be able to say Yes or No about service in the village. They claim they'll call back, but I'm not holding my breath.

Thanks for your reply anyway,

Post by **Somchai499** » March 9, 2015, 8:08 pm

I understand what you are saying.

My wife did all the admin stuff. And they came the next day and connected internet and TV.

By the way, I used Homecable for cable TV, despite the rather poor picture quality in my home. I asked them about internet but they did not offer this where I live.

I get the feeling, that all the major companies embark on rolling-out 'fibre' services campaigns, so there is hopefully some choice for you.

And yes, the international download speeds tend to be 10 Mb/s or less for me.

Good luck in finding a capable service provider.

Post by **Techland** » March 9, 2015, 9:10 pm

At this time the international gateway seems to be a real bootleneck again. While before only parts of the world were slow out of Thailand, at this time (once again...) everything is. That is from a True customer who had been happy for about a year - when they had less customers. Time to move on (once again), it seems. Now the main problem is to find out which company can still supply outside internet access with usable speed. Rumours have it True online is a bunch of losers not up to the task, while CAT - who owns the main gateway anyway - is good. Also services using the CAT infrastructure (True Move H, not True Online) seem to work ok.

Udon Home is an interesting tip. I might just try it additionally. Who knows where they get their internet from...

Post by **Khun Paul** » March 10, 2015, 7:10 am

ASfter years of TOT adsl, I looked and sought a good internet provider one that would not drop out as people took it on etc .
I went to TOT explained my dilemma and went for their Fibre Optic option, 30.01 up, 3-4 down, what could one want, rarely less, as they explained to me, it is a matter of location, luckily my location is ok, they have the capacity for 50.000 connections via fibre optic but due to the expense about 2k per month only companies seem to take this up, hence a poor customer like me is a rarity, they have only used about 10% of their capacity as I write Like CAT they too have a major share in the gateway as well, everyone else has to get space from CAT ot TOT, seems daft to go to those that rent, better I would have thought to go with those that supply.

Post by **FrazeeDK** » March 10, 2015, 8:06 am

CAT and TOT are State Owned Enterprises, better known as monopolies.. They can squeeze as much money as they desire out of the Internet Service Providers for that international bandwidth..

Post by **dalek** » March 10, 2015, 8:11 am

semperfiguy wrote:Dalek, I have Home cable TV and internet and the service is outstanding. I pay 440 per month for 7 and 7 on the download/upload. Uploading docs and photos to email is very fast. I think you'll waste your money to opt for a faster speed package. This one will do all that you need it to do. I may have an interruption of service once every 2 months, but it's usually because they are doing some maintenance in their own office and service is back on within minutes to a few hours, so no big deal. Bad weather has no bearing on the quality of service. Since you already have the cable service I believe they only charge you 500 Baht for installation (I could be wrong on this...it may be free now), then you just pay month to month with no contract and can cancel anytime you wish. Unlike the cable TV service there is no discount offered for paying three months in advance. I highly recommend their service.

If I went for the Home Cable option, do you know if the router they supply is WiFi only, or is it WiFi and a LAN connection (as in - is there an option to use a cable to connect from their router to your PC, or do you HAVE to use WifI)?
Getting a bit involved now, can you access the router yourself in order to, say, set/change the WiFi access password and maybe other settings?

Post by **semperfiguy** » March 10, 2015, 9:20 am

dalek wrote:
semperfiguy wrote:Dalek, I have Home cable TV and internet and the service is outstanding. I pay 440 per month for 7 and 7 on the download/upload. Uploading docs and photos to email is very fast. I think you'll waste your money to opt for a faster speed package. This one will do all that you need it to do. I may have an interruption of service once every 2 months, but it's usually because they are doing some maintenance in their own office and service is back on within minutes to a few hours, so no big deal. Bad weather has no bearing on the quality of service. Since you already have the cable service I believe they only charge you 500 Baht for installation (I could be wrong on this...it may be free now), then you just pay month to month with no contract and can cancel anytime you wish. Unlike the cable TV service there is no discount offered for paying three months in advance. I highly recommend their service.
If I went for the Home Cable option, do you know if the router they supply is WiFi only, or is it WiFi and a LAN connection (as in - is there an option to use a cable to connect from their router to your PC, or do you HAVE to use WifI)?
Getting a bit involved now, can you access the router yourself in order to, say, set/change the WiFi access password and maybe other settings?

Dalek, since you already have Home Cable TV then you have a cable modem and will need a separate router if you want wi-fi. TOT service comes in on a phone line so they provide a modem/wifi combo. Home Cable is different! The installers will probably sell you a wi-fi router (they pulled one out of their hat for me three years ago and it turned out to be no good and waaaay overpriced). Just last month I bought a new router at Banana IT in Central Plaza and it works great, so I suggest you buy your own. I only paid 1150 baht for it and it is perfect for my use. I am attaching here photos of the box so you can see a description. The router is a simple connection to the cable modem and the Home installer will hook it up for you at no charge. He will set it up and let you choose your own password, then you can go back into your own computer and make password and other changes on your own. Simply enter 192.168.0.1 in your browser's address bar and the router's site will come up. The default ID/password to enter is admin/admin. Hope this helps!

Double left click on the images below to enlarge them.

Post by **lassebasse** » March 10, 2015, 10:57 am

True Online has a very nice offer at the moment. 18 Mbps fiber connection for 599/month, add 100 Thb and you will get 100 + cable channels. Free installation incl. digital box and wifi router. True has one office in the old Lotus and they can check directly if they have a fiber-cable where your house is. You have to be within 100 meter of their cable and the first 70 meters to your house is free.

Post by **dalek** » March 10, 2015, 2:04 pm

semperfiguy wrote:
dalek wrote:
semperfiguy wrote:Dalek, I have Home cable TV and internet and the service is outstanding. I pay 440 per month for 7 and 7 on the download/upload. Uploading docs and photos to email is very fast. I think you'll waste your money to opt for a faster speed package. This one will do all that you need it to do. I may have an interruption of service once every 2 months, but it's usually because they are doing some maintenance in their own office and service is back on within minutes to a few hours, so no big deal. Bad weather has no bearing on the quality of service. Since you already have the cable service I believe they only charge you 500 Baht for installation (I could be wrong on this...it may be free now), then you just pay month to month with no contract and can cancel anytime you wish. Unlike the cable TV service there is no discount offered for paying three months in advance. I highly recommend their service.
If I went for the Home Cable option, do you know if the router they supply is WiFi only, or is it WiFi and a LAN connection (as in - is there an option to use a cable to connect from their router to your PC, or do you HAVE to use WifI)?
Getting a bit involved now, can you access the router yourself in order to, say, set/change the WiFi access password and maybe other settings?
Dalek, since you already have Home Cable TV then you have a cable modem and will need a separate router if you want wi-fi. TOT service comes in on a phone line so they provide a modem/wifi combo. Home Cable is different! The installers will probably sell you a wi-fi router (they pulled one out of their hat for me three years ago and it turned out to be no good and waaaay overpriced). Just last month I bought a new router at Banana IT in Central Plaza and it works great, so I suggest you buy your own. I only paid 1150 baht for it and it is perfect for my use. I am attaching here photos of the box so you can see a description. The router is a simple connection to the cable modem and the Home installer will hook it up for you at no charge. He will set it up and let you choose your own password, then you can go back into your own computer and make password and other changes on your own. Simply enter 192.168.0.1 in your browser's address bar and the router's site will come up. The default ID/password to enter is admin/admin. Hope this helps!

Double left click on the images below to enlarge them.

Whoa Semperfiguy, thanks for all the info!

I don't have any cable modem from Home cable at all. We have TV only, no other sort of package, just the bog standard 70-ish channels they offer via coax directly (via a three-way signal splitter) into the back of the TVs.
I see on the router you've bought you have four LAN ports at the back as well as the WiFi.
I can't see from the picture, is it a LAN port that's the input - if so, is that from the Home Cable router they'll supply? (As opposed to a TOT ADSL router which has an RJ11 line connector.)
So back to my question as to what Home Cable will supply - would that be a router/cable modem from their co-ax feed, with a single LAN port for internet (if I refuse their overpriced WiFI offer)?
Thanks again for all your help on this.

Post by **semperfiguy** » March 10, 2015, 2:36 pm

dalek wrote:
semperfiguy wrote:
dalek wrote:
semperfiguy wrote:Dalek, I have Home cable TV and internet and the service is outstanding. I pay 440 per month for 7 and 7 on the download/upload. Uploading docs and photos to email is very fast. I think you'll waste your money to opt for a faster speed package. This one will do all that you need it to do. I may have an interruption of service once every 2 months, but it's usually because they are doing some maintenance in their own office and service is back on within minutes to a few hours, so no big deal. Bad weather has no bearing on the quality of service. Since you already have the cable service I believe they only charge you 500 Baht for installation (I could be wrong on this...it may be free now), then you just pay month to month with no contract and can cancel anytime you wish. Unlike the cable TV service there is no discount offered for paying three months in advance. I highly recommend their service.
If I went for the Home Cable option, do you know if the router they supply is WiFi only, or is it WiFi and a LAN connection (as in - is there an option to use a cable to connect from their router to your PC, or do you HAVE to use WifI)?
Getting a bit involved now, can you access the router yourself in order to, say, set/change the WiFi access password and maybe other settings?
Dalek, since you already have Home Cable TV then you have a cable modem and will need a separate router if you want wi-fi. TOT service comes in on a phone line so they provide a modem/wifi combo. Home Cable is different! The installers will probably sell you a wi-fi router (they pulled one out of their hat for me three years ago and it turned out to be no good and waaaay overpriced). Just last month I bought a new router at Banana IT in Central Plaza and it works great, so I suggest you buy your own. I only paid 1150 baht for it and it is perfect for my use. I am attaching here photos of the box so you can see a description. The router is a simple connection to the cable modem and the Home installer will hook it up for you at no charge. He will set it up and let you choose your own password, then you can go back into your own computer and make password and other changes on your own. Simply enter 192.168.0.1 in your browser's address bar and the router's site will come up. The default ID/password to enter is admin/admin. Hope this helps!

Double left click on the images below to enlarge them.
Whoa Semperfiguy, thanks for all the info!

I don't have any cable modem from Home cable at all. We have TV only, no other sort of package, just the bog standard 70-ish channels they offer via coax directly (via a three-way signal splitter) into the back of the TVs.
I see on the router you've bought you have four LAN ports at the back as well as the WiFi.
I can't see from the picture, is it a LAN port that's the input - if so, is that from the Home Cable router they'll supply? (As opposed to a TOT ADSL router which has an RJ11 line connector.)
So back to my question as to what Home Cable will supply - would that be a router/cable modem from their co-ax feed, with a single LAN port for internet (if I refuse their overpriced WiFI offer)?
Thanks again for all your help on this.

Okay Dalek, now I remember how this all worked out. I got cable TV and internet from Home at the same time, so that's when they installed the cable modem for the 500 Baht deposit. I could connect an Ethernet cable directly into the back of the modem and then into my laptop and then I would have internet access. Instead I wanted wi-fi because I have a laptop, PC, ipad and two smartphones. Again, Home only supplies the cable modem which is not a modem/router combo. You will need to provide them with a wi-fi router and they will set it up for you. A short Ethernet cable connects from the wi-fi port on the router to the back of the modem. I have no need for the use of the 4 LAN ports, but if for some reason you wanted to use Ethernet cables to connect directly from the router to your devices and not use wi-fi, then that's when you would use those ports. Otherwise, forget about them. I have a 5 meter long Ethernet cable that I keep handy in case something goes wrong with my router, then I could plug right into the back of the cable modem and the E port on my laptop and I would be back in business. So far I haven't had to use it.

Post by **jackspratt** » March 10, 2015, 3:11 pm

Up until last October, I was on ToT ADSL.

I subsequently had True Online, and then True Visions installed - both via the same HFC cable into my home.

Installation of the internet (18/1.8Mbps) was free, as was the "loan" cable modem router - which has wifi, 4 LAN ports, 2 phone ports and a USB port.

I was required to sign up for 12 months, or there was an applicable penalty for early withdrawal.

The second stage, True Visions (Enjoy package) also had free installation, with a cable splitter, a "loan" set top box with HDMI, RCA and Optical Digital Audio connectors, a USB port and a LAN port.

As there was about 3 months between the two installations, the original 12 month requirement was just extended for a further 3 months.

This costs TBH699/month + 7% VAT.

Post by **dalek** » March 27, 2015, 8:13 am

My search for a reliable, faster internet connection at a reasonable price has failed, due to my location.
My TOT 7Mb connection speed has been appalling for the last four months, despite a visit from an alleged "engineer".

We have Home Cable TV already. I went to their office to hopefully order their "Home Internet" package. First question, where do you live: Nongsai (three km outside the ring road). The response was a "No", (it needs a fiber connection) with no idea when it might be available in the village.

After three failed attempts phoning True, I asked at the True counter in BIg C. Told them where I lived and the same negative response, again with a "No" if they knew when it might be available.

I might try asking 3BB as a last resort, they offer 15Mb, but that's 900 Baht/month.

Post by **FrazeeDK** » March 27, 2015, 8:46 am

??? they current 10-12 mb package for 630 Baht a month should still be available plus the 3BB desk at Big C can quickly check to see if there is a drop available in your area and give you a quote on installation..

Post by **trubrit** » March 27, 2015, 10:59 am

The latest on offer from TOT, now available out here in the wilds on Nong Wai/Non Wau Sor.

I am having the 20/2 at 800bht a month on a 1 year contract with a two months extra free after that period .
They are in the house now installing it , will post the results soon .Click to enlarge , it's clearer.

Post by **RLTrader** » March 27, 2015, 11:51 am

If True Online is in your area. They just moved into my area and the deal I got is 30MB Online plus 105 channels of TV, plus 850MB of cell service, plus free install with free TV box and free router. When I test the internet against Bangkok, I am getting 50MB, except from one computer, its around 30MB, distance from router a factor. All of this for 799 baht plus Vat. Costs nothing to start, get a bill monthly. When installed was told 1st month free, not true. They billed me from the install date. Wife called, not free.

I don't watch the TV, but the channels come in excellent, think 3 or 4 english channels. The internet unlike 3B has not gone down during the 2+ months I have had it. Is it faster, not that I can notice. When tested against the US UK ... get around 10MB while 3B will test around 3MB. Still don't understand the phone bill, it said I used 45 baht worth of something and they gave me credit for 45 baht, so zero. Made a couple or three short calls and used it to access and view security cameras a few times. This usage with AIS was around 100 baht per month. So far I am more than happy. Only thing not like is the router, its CISCO, and I prefer the setup of my TP-Link. I Still have 3B for my security cameras connections, so I have both for now.