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Questions about Vodafone's Gigafast service from a potential customer.

Anonymous
Not applicable

I am currently with Virgin Media on their Gigabit product. 1.Gb/50Mb. I use my own router a GT-AX11000. VM allow their modem/router to be switched to modem only mode to allow folk to use third-party routers.   I live in Coventry, a Vodafone/City Fibre Gigafast city. Their FTTP network is being laid in our street as I type so, naturally, I am interested in a possible move to Vodaphone. A nice symmetrical 900Mb sounds perfect.

 

Firstly, is Gigafast a decent service with good reliability, low ping and close to advertised speeds. VM always provide slightly more than the advertised Broadband. Before I switched to modem only mode the SamKnows app measured my download speed at 1.17Gb. What is the typical ping? VM's ping is about 13ms, rather slow. Are speeds and ping worse at peak times? 

 

Secondly, can the Vodafone modem/router be put in modem-only mode to allow for my Asus GT-AX11000 to function in full router mode?  If not, is there an officially countenanced work-around?  This issue is a potential deal breaker.

 

Thirdly, is customer services any good?  In normal times, are waiting times reasonable and are the operatives well-enough informed to get you the help you need. Do engineers attend promptly? 

 

Fourthly, I know that a proper TV service isn't offered, but that TV boxes with useful apps such as Apple TV and Netflix are available. If I had two boxes do the boxes talk to each other like VM's TV boxes do? Programmes recorded on one box can be watched in a different room on another box. 

 

Finally, at the time of installation and activation, is fibre brought all the way from the pavement into the house, or is coax used on the property? Does the cable merely go to the nearest point of entry or will it be extended to the point in the house one requires it? VM brought their coax from the pavement to the room I required and connected our two V6 boxes by TV coax back to the internal terminal. 

 

Thank you, in advance, for any information provided.

 

 

27 REPLIES 27

Cynric
16: Advanced member
16: Advanced member

@Anonymous wrote:

 

Thirdly, is customer services any good?  In normal times, are waiting times reasonable and are the operatives well-enough informed to get you the help you need. Do engineers attend promptly? 

 


To your third part, the only answer is "no", "no" and "no".

Anonymous
Not applicable

"To your third part, the only answer is "no", "no" and "no"."

 

Sounds pretty much like Virgin Media CS.  

Jayach
16: Advanced member
16: Advanced member

I'm not on Gigafast so can't answer all your question, but can some.

The service is presented to you as Ethernet so no modem is required.

The TV services you mention (and many more) are streaming services so they are not recorded at all so can be watched on as many boxes as you like. (or have)

There are no coax cables used at all, but I can't say for sure how much choice you will get in the positioning of the cable connection box.

 

Anonymous
Not applicable

Thanks that's great. Just a couple of things to clear up.

 

When you say that the connection is provided as ethernet, are you saying that that the Vodafone hub provided is really just a switch that converts the optical signal to Ethernet, and with ethernet and WiFi output?  If so, all I have to do is connect my 3rd party router to it? Presumably I can also switch off the WiFi, to prevent any interference with my own router's WiFi.

 

I understand what you are saying about most of the TV being being a streaming service, but I would be connecting the TV boxes provided to my rooftop aerial so I can get regular free digital services. Are you saying that the boxes are unable to record those? TV boxes for receiving Freeview etc normally have storage for TV programmes and often have more than one tuner.  Do you know anything about Vodafone's box?

gipjon
16: Advanced member
16: Advanced member

this may help

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPSZXlhoumo

and in ref to customer services . The official information from Ofcom is Vodafone customer services has a lot more complaints than virgin

Anonymous
Not applicable

Thanks,

Yes, I had begun to wonder.  The Coventry teams rang me because I had registered an interest. I asked the questions above, apart from the one about CS, only to find that the operative couldn't answer my questions about routers, installation or TV boxes.  These are core questions for anyone who is even a little IT savvy. 

gipjon
16: Advanced member
16: Advanced member

I see this every day, people talking to Vodafone about their own selling products, faults, issues, and Vodafone reply is basically we don't know on most stuff, 

it really is a joke, it needs the hierarchy to accept that's Vodafone needs sorting in a big way Vodafone broadband is ok but if you have an issue then its goodnight.  This year it took 4 months for Vodafone to sort my issue out and two years ago it took 3 months to sort a different issue I ended up taking them to Ofcom ADR 

A lot of staff have NO idea what they are doing or even how to operate the Vodafone computer system. 

all I can say is have a good read around the forum before you join and don't bother using the forum social dm live chat 

Anonymous
Not applicable

At the point of entry, the signal is provided via fiber optic cable.  That cable connects to either an ONT (Optical Network Terminal) or a (G)PON (Passive Optical Network terminal).  Those devices convert the optical signal so it can be delivered to the router over 1Gb ethernet.  So, provided you have a capable router of your own and can get your username name and password, there is no need to use the VF-supplied device (getting the username and password for the VOIP/SIP/whatever phone can be more complicated if not impossible).

 

Most domestic routers are probably going to be capable enough, if you were to be using an active security or firewall device, you will probably have to consider the throughput of such devices.

Anonymous
Not applicable

Thanks. That was useful.

 

My router, an ASUS GT-AX110000 has the necessary WAN to LAN throughput to manage  over 1Gb. It also has a 2.5Gb LAN port, in addition to the 1Gb ports. The WiFi can do over 10Gb to compatible devices. You can see why I don't want to use use VM's HUB 4 or VF's offer. 

 

When you say I can use my User name and Password in my own router, is that the log on detail that comes with your package at installation time, or do you have to ask for that too? I'm unlikely to use VOIP or SIP for phone calls, so  I won't have to go through that nightmare.

 

I know that most punters don't need to ask all these questions and I am sure the vast majority don't need to call CS for anything, but what you report is a real worry. It would be just my luck, given that I am asking for something different, to be beset by problems.