HKBN 1000M vs PCCW 300M for EU/US based Usenet

[pin]

When you say you're getting max download speeds, do you mean you max out your 100M line, or do you max out your usenet provider which is restricting you to a lower speed than 100M? What providers are you using out of interest, my subscription with Usenet Bucket is running out in a few months so I could change to another main provider for better speeds.

Also, you mention having a 100M dedicated fibre, is that some sort of business connection? AFAIK in my new building they only offer 1000M but I think it's not FTTH, so I'm trying to understand if I should expect better or worse results than yours. Thanks!

Generally I have found usenet providers not throttling.

By maxing I mean I am maxing out my internet connection.

As for providers, as follows:

Main ones are Frugalusenet (600 days retention, Readnews, which is now owned by Highwinds, but I understand they use their own infrastructure) and xsnews (european server, but limited to 12MB downloads).

I have blocks with the following as fillers: Newsgroupdirect (Highwinds), Cheapnews (xsnews), usenet farm, astraweb.

[shri]

So, looking back at my actual config which has not been touched for years.

Astra - I was wrong wrong wrong.

My astra connection is to EU and I'm getting about 1-2MBs (bytes) or 10-15Mbps. To the US Giga I get about 10-12MB / 100ish mbps.

I think I'm getting rid of Giga soon - as they don't have a HK presence (verified I did get an email from their support that they have disconnected their HK servers).

[shri]

Also, you mention having a 100M dedicated fibre, is that some sort of business connection? AFAIK in my new building they only offer 1000M but I think it's not FTTH, so I'm trying to understand if I should expect better or worse results than yours. Thanks!

I'd talk to HKBN - as far as I know all their connections are FTTH. They don't share their bandwidth (it does eventually all get shared before it hits their data center.. but that goes into pedantic realms).

Their online sign up page does have options available in your building.



https://apply.hkbn.net/broadband/coverage.sc

[pin]

Forgot to add, I have dedicated because I am in a commercial building. But like others have said, they do have a habit of keeping on increasing the price every contract renewal. I unfortunately can't get smartone, as it only covers residential buildings.

[pin]

So, looking back at my actual config which has not been touched for years.

Astra - I was wrong wrong wrong.

My astra connection is to EU and I'm getting about 1-2MBs (bytes) or 10-15Mbps. To the US Giga I get about 10-12MB / 100ish mbps.

I think I'm getting rid of Giga soon - as they don't have a HK presence (verified I did get an email from their support that they have disconnected their HK servers).

Why don't you then connect to Astra US servers?

My set up is always to connect to both US and EU servers for each provider that has servers in multiple locations.


For Giga, can you do a tracert to see where it's connecting?

But yeah, Giga not cheap, much better and cheaper options out there.

[shri]

Yes, I know, I've been lazy with my configs.

Will ping you later for referral codes.

[mrgoodkat]

What is being downloaded? I would think movies, but if that's the case why not just stream them? Which is free compared to the paid subscription on usenet (according to the article posted above).

Movies, TV shows mostly. It's all automated and integrated into Kodi. Kinda like my own streaming service. The biggest difference is quality. I only download Blu-rays, even TV shows. Makes a huge difference on my 75" TV. Streaming doesn't come close. I usually wait for a show to have released a few seasons before binging them in one go.

[evalf]

I thought that HKBN didn't have FTTH as they don't advertise this aspect as prominently as PCCW but having read a bit more now it seems it is FTTH indeed.

Regarding smartone, does anyone have real world experience with them? It is indeed cheaper than going straight with HKBN, and if it is the same infrastructure then why not. I'm just a bit worried as I've had experiences in Europe with mobile phones providers using another provider's network, and frequently having connections or speed problems because the host provider gave priority to it's own customer's traffic.

[evalf]

So I've now moved into my new flat, decided to go with HKBN, but I realised that their pricing structure is very dynamic... They seem to constantly run promotions during the day, have different ones on evenings or weekends with small price differences. When I started this thread 3 weeks ago they were advertising 1000M + TV and phone for 169$ a month, last week the "promotional" price went up to 188$ and now it's at 198$. Does someone know if their prices keep going up and down, in which case I'm happy to wait a week or two and just use my mobile's tethering until some lower price promotions reappear, or did I just miss the cheap price window and should just bite the bullet and pay 198$ a month?