Thinking of Switching from Bayantel DSL to Globe Broadband
Saturday
Aug 30, 2008
My Bayantel DSL connection has been slow lately, and I’ve been experiencing some intermittent connections. That would’ve been okay if my connection were just for personal use, but since I use it for work, then I can’t afford to be cut off just when timing is critical. I’ve had important chats, VoIP calls and upload cut off and it while it would usually take a few clicks to reconnect (via router) there are some cases when the connection would be down for five minutes or more.
One other thing, I can’t seem to download using bittorrent anymore. Files that used to take 30 minutes to 1 hour of download (like a 350+ MB Linux .ISO file) would now take days. This is disappointing.
I recently received a call from Globe telemarketers (I wonder where they get my contact info) telling me they have a package almost similar to my current Bayan DSL, but only faster. For PhP 1,295 I get a 1 MBPS connection, a landline subscription and some free gadgets like an inkjet printer, webcam and headset.
Personally, I don’t care for the gadgets. I already have an inkjet printer (which also serves as my scanner and copier), and most of my computers have built-in webcams and mics. What I have been looking for is a package that also gives free hours or minutes with local WiFi providers. Globe broadband does offer free one hour Globe WIZ access per month with the PhP 1,295 package. That’s not much, considering that only costs about PhP 100 or so prepad, and that I could connect using my HSDPA enabled mobile phone (thru bluetooth) for only PhP 20 per hour (P5/15 minutes x 4).
I’m not so sure about the reliability of Globe Broadband connection in my area (UP Village), so I would like to get inputs from those who do have experience with Globe. This might help me decide whether to stick to Bayantel or switch.
J. Angelo Racoma is a technology journalist and blogger. See more of his blog posts here at racoma.com.ph, commentaries at racoma.net, and Twitter feed at @jangelo.
Comments
jhay
August 31st, 2008 at 10:11 am
You know my experience with Globe broadband. LOL
Still, I suggest asking a few neighbors who happen to be Globe broadband customers. They would give you the best feedback on how the service is in your locality.
Lorie
September 12th, 2008 at 12:54 am
Hi Angelo!
Try MyDestiny Broadband. Really fast, zippy connection, you’ll miss it when you’re off it. At Php 1,000/month, it’s so worth your money.
I used to clock 4MBPS in the wee hours of the morning, but of late, normal speed na rin, but it’s still much faster compared to Bayantel.
The great part is that they actually collect your payment right from you at your doorstep, too. So it’s pretty much kick-butt service for less.
I’ve rarely experienced downtime, too, that’s why I’m missing the service……
Now that I’m… Ehem. On Bayantel.
(Their line can’t reach me where I am eh.)
Blessings!
edelweiza
September 16th, 2008 at 3:20 pm
ooopps, it’s 512 Kbps rather…
Jose Perez
October 27th, 2008 at 6:53 pm
I’ve been using internet services in the Philippines for about 8 years and during that time I’ve been with Digitel, ComClark, Smart-Bro and Globe. I’ve had the top packages each have these had to offer at different times.
In the beginning I was paying 40,000 pesos monthly for a single 512kbps connection (I had 2 of them so was getting a bill for 80,000 a month) and had to fight with their tech support guys almost daily to keep the speeds up to a level that I could work with.
Never during the 8+ years has there been a provider that lived up to their promises and their refusal to discuss discounting their packages to a price in par with the level of service they provided was unanimous. Seems to me that over a monthly period if you average 60% of what you contracted for you should pay 60% of the bill….they couldn’t understand the logic in that.
Globe, what a bunch! I signed up in Aug, 2008 for their 3mbps package. In the presence of the installers I immediately ran a speed test and was receiving about 1Mbps. The installer said that was normal and he has to call in to advise them to set me up at their highest level and that would take about 48 hours.
After a couple days I called tech support and informed them about the “Concern” which they promised to fix with in 48 hours. Long story, many phone calls and a few e-mails later I gave up on Globe/Innove Communications. In talking to friends in different parts of town (San Fernando, Pampanga) their experience with the Globe bunch was exactly the same. They did send a birthday card and Jolibee coupon for my wife’s birthday however.
I came across your blog while searching for info about Bayantel and was considering switching to them because of their ads (accessed via www speedtest net) saying that if you don’t get what they offer you they give back your money. Is this a new offer on their part? Have they made some major change that allows them to make such an offer or is it just a promo gimmick?
I heard recently from a friend in California his ISP is offering 20Mbps packages
and I can’t even get 3mbps
God bless us, everyone (Tiny Tim/A Christmas Carol) because in this country we need all the help we can get!
Ferrty
December 5th, 2008 at 11:28 pm
That’s what you get for living in the Philippines, monopolistic companies that don’t give shit about speed or customer well-being… I’ll add pldt, which is pretty crappy too… disconnects frequently [die online gamers], stupid customer service [just delete your cookies, sir] and over priced lame speed package, what more can you ask for?
king
December 10th, 2008 at 5:09 am
i was wondering if you did go through the change from bayantel to globe? im actually on Bayan’s plan 899 for about two years now and i’ve had some good and some hellacious experiences…so far, it has been steady the past few months.
like you, i received a call from a Globe Rep just yesterday about their 995 plan which they say has a speed of up to 1Mbps. i have already arranged for a speed test but im not really sure about its reliability and download speed (my DL speed with Bayan is about 29KB/sec max). hopefully someone can enlighten me…im from Davao btw…
hjason
December 23rd, 2008 at 9:12 pm
i was wondering too of changing to Globe. however, i’m still attached to BayanDSL’s shitty package. just 2 months of my new subscription, i have a hellish experience with this. i was once a 384kbps user of BayanDSL for many years now until recently that i switched to 786kbps that’s much cheaper. oo nga, unlimited…pero sana naman hindi ako mawawalan ng connection every night. kung kelan pa naman ako makaka-uwi from work, saka pa mawala ang connection namin. evry now and then, mag co-complain ako, not in their hotline but i have to do it sa office pa, because i cannot reach there hotline through fone. and sometimes i use their other line, wala namang sumasagot.
hopefully this season, di ako ma disconnect ng ma disconnect. kaka-asar na kasi. complete ang pagbayad ko sa bill, incomplete pa naman ang service nila. i’m from cagayan de oro city.
Steelsheen
January 1st, 2009 at 8:41 am
well i’m a Globe DSL user located in QC (we’re just a stone’s throw away from Batasan Pambansa) and so far my experience with Globe DSL has been pretty good. i have the 1.5 mbps dry DSL line (no phone service) at P995/ month. so long as there arent any global net problems (internet cable lines getting cut off by earthquakes, stupid sailors etc) i do average a download speed of 1- 1.4 mbps, sometimes it even goes slightly over. i must tell you that i did my research very well though (i used to work for a US DSL company), knowing that regardless of what the advertising says, performance of an internet service trully depends from area to area.
prior to signing up with Globe i asked neighbors and internet cafe owners who they’re net service provider is and their experience with its speed and tech support. many are with Bayantel and have the same slow sad story as you have, most biz owners are with PLDT biz plan, and although their net connection is feasible they do have to contend with PLDT’s notorious tech support service. i just knew of 1 person that was using Globe DSL at the time i signed up, and that person had only good things to say about Globe after his harrowing experiences with Bayantel, so i took the risk and made the jump for Globe.
the tech support for Globe is ok (i rate it as just ok for me cuz i was a tech too and i can still say theres room for improvement, specially on technical proficiency
). helpdesk doesnt have much power beyond recommending to restart the modem/ router and clearing cache and cookies, but onsite techs can do more, and they do come to your place within 24 hours of the reported problem.
like you i have also experienced random disconnects, specially in the early days of my service. i’ve had lots of techs come by trying to fix it but it still occurs. what i do to resolve it is that i run a streaming app in the background– like internet radio– and that keeps the connection solid. (this technique is true for all net service, not just Globe). i havent tried to go by 2 days without running my internet radio so i really cant tell if the random disconnects have indeed been fixed, but to me being able to grab a less commonly used IP (meaning i’m not clumped under the general IP Globe puts its DSL users) and keeping it means more to me than being able to reconnect easily after being cut off. i have been thinking of getting static IP but last i heard its only being offered to DSL biz subscribers.
so there you go, thats my feedback as a Globe DSL user. my recommendation is to ask as many people near your area as you can, both home users and biz owners and take a poll (so to speak). if you plan to go with a Cable internet provider do check how many people are using it in your place. the caveat of going with cable is that you share the bandwidth with everybody who are subscribed to it, so more subscribers means more people to share it with, which means less speed for you. less subscribers of course means that there are fewer people to share the bandwidth with, hence the feedback of how some cable internet users get more speed than they’re paying for. DSL *supposedly* assures a bare minimum speed not far from your max speed regardless of how many subscribers in the area.
thats all. good luck with the hunt and if you can, do tell us what you eventually decided to go with.
~ Steelsheen
fryguy
January 19th, 2009 at 3:58 pm
Any word on Destiny? I just subscribed to their 2MBPS Cable Internet service and according to the rep there are very few compliants that come their way. We’ll see in a couple of days.
Lorie
January 30th, 2009 at 1:14 am
Honestly, the connection is great; I so miss it nga eh.
But their support dept is rather unprofessional, IMO. 
I’d rather go for Sky Cable Internet later.
May downtimes din; unlike Bayantel, na kahit mas mabagal the speed, zero talaga for me so far.
But when it comes to need for speed and a balance of reliability as well as affordability, go for MyDestiny anyday.
akr
April 25th, 2009 at 12:28 am
Guys, I have Skycable and let me tell you its a JOKE. when I started in Feb this year I got the basic I.5 meg package.. I rated about 212 down and about 16-24 up. I complained and complained, the crappy tech support said reboot and restart the modem, did this then thought if I upgrade I would get better service. Up to 3 meg package. Got about 317 down about 12k up, complained to no avail, I am at 6 meg now and my speed on down on a GOOD day tops of about 24K normally this whole week is been 250byts to 1k.. (god where did i put my modem).
The only positive thing i can say about skycable is the line has only fail once, but then what good is line that cant send traffic. I would no recommend Skycable broadband to anyone. it sucks! if your considering Sky i would bet that a string and two tin cans will work better and faster.
The bad part.. i am in Makati city, legaspi (dam where is that dial up service need to post this blog today) anyhow for those of you that use speed test. I have posted my speeds up there .. best one today was .1k down ( no joke and no typo) upload never completed.
akr
April 25th, 2009 at 12:32 am
Guys, I have Skycable and let me tell you its a JOKE. when I started in Feb this year I got the basic 1.5 meg package.. I rated about 212k down and about 16-24k up. I complained and complained, the crappy tech support said reboot and restart the modem, did this then thought if I upgrade I would get better service. Up it to 3meg package. Got about 317 down about 12k up, complained to no avail. I am at 6 meg now and my speed on down on a GOOD day tops of about 24K normally this whole week is been 250byts to 1k.. (god where did i put my modem).
The only positive thing i can say about skycable is the line has only failed once, but then what good is a line that cant send traffic.
I would not recommend Skycable broadband to anyone. it sucks! if your considering Sky i would bet that a string and two cans will work better faster and way cheaper …
The bad part.. i am in Makati city, legaspi (dam where is that dial up service need to post this blog today) anyhow for those of you that use speed test. I have posted my speeds up there .. best one today was .1k down ( no joke and no typo) upload never completed.
akr
April 25th, 2009 at 1:26 am
one last note, i discovered a new message on Firefox browser
bottom left hand corner (its burned into screen)
“waiting for … .anything.anything!”
Welcome to Skybroadband Philippines…OMG it hurts!
Rant Alert !
In japan they have 100 meg to city city residents, 60 in the UK, Singapore matches Japan while the companies like SkyBroadband drag emerging technology centers into the mires of Africa and Afghanistan.
One has the excuse of war, the other is studying the issue further.
While this country does admire the USA and its laudable abilities, its track record on technological infrastructure growth and investment is mostly criminal, and its a deployment pattern i have noticed in the Philippines. The US does have legal stature and now new found leadership that is both talented and aggressive, he knows the score of an ignorant nation and history should have taught us all.
This country and its elected leadership should consider that. If we view the network infrastructure as rails to distribute the knowledge among the people, then bad rails don’t transport very well the nation can not participate in the global economy.
Providing or allowing sub standard service is border line criminal in its actions. It camouflages the hidden talent of the nation and worse it places the nation under a self inflicted 21st century dark ages….
This self inflicted inequity has long lasting effects that span generations. It breads discontent and cost more to defend than it would have to deploy a robust managed network standards for service and performance that will attract revenue and market share, and this could be accomplished with enforceable guidelines for performance.
I mean its to much to ask for an egg to have something in it that resembles the species it came from. I feel like i and SkyB have a shell game going on. I by 1 meg i get half, the higher i go i get less and less.
…and why in the name of god does Globe broadband not have its own FQDN or one that’s not forwarded to a fixed promo FAQ page with no way out…!
is there anyone else please ….?
excuse the rant if its in the wrong place
akr
jettro747
May 24th, 2009 at 10:59 pm
I am a PLDT user under plan 990, before I was getting good connections with speed up to 384 to 1200 kbps. Early this year they made some repairs in our location and after that speed dropped to 250 to 120 kbps, I keep calling their tech service but to no avail. One tech serviceman even sneered that I upgrade to one of their higher plans.
What I did was to switch to Bayantel 899 with an ad of 768 to 1268 kbps and a money back guarantee within 15 days. Installation according to them would be 2-5 days but on the actual they were able to install it after 3 weeks. During the first day it performed well as speed was 700 kbps, I could download, watch youtube and play warrock all at the same time. But sadly I just got to use it for two days and the rest of the week there is no connection even if they send a repairman , after a few hour the connection will bog down. I just got irritated call customer service almost daily, and after 5 days made up my mind to return and get my downpayment thru their money back guarantee. I was so happy that I did not got stuck up with such kind of service. Maganda na sana ang speed at performance, kaso laging down ang system nila. Sayang kala ko nakakita na ako ng matinong DSL service provider.
I was thinking of wired globe broadband but from what I’ve heard I am now having second thoughts. Though I have a Globe visibility or tatoo, I can say na maganda at faster sya lalo na sa downloads but when I took it to Boracay dissappointed ako dahil d ako nakakuha ng signal from our hotel room pero on the average ok sya kaya lng mahal if you are gonna use it daily.
Ano pa kayang DSL Service provider ang OK. Feedback naman.
Lesley Macapas
June 16th, 2009 at 3:02 pm
Hi Angelo,
akr, i know how you feel. I’ve also been using Skybroadband since Feb, and i haven’t had decent service for almost 3 months of the 4 months i’ve been with them. Sa umpisa lang sila maganda, once you’re hooked, service deteriorates. As in really bad, we’re talking no connection at all almost the whole time. I work from home, so a reliable internet connection is a necessity. I’m already going to consult a lawyer about what i can do to them after all the physical, financial and emotional stress they gave to me. I don’t know what the outcome is, but these companies shouldn’t be allowed to get away with stealing our hard-earned money and time. Specially these times, when more and more people are dependent on the internet. If you know anybody who’s mad enough to sue, contact me and we might stand a better chance with a class suit if they know we’re really serious. Thanks!
hatesglobe
June 16th, 2009 at 3:25 pm
I subscribe to the Globe wireless broadband package for P1295/month, which has a landline and internet with speed of 512kbps (supposedly). I’ve been using this for 1 yr and 2 months already. initially their service was ok, i get 100+kbps download speed on the average. after a few weeks it started to deteriorate and deteriorate. for this month of June, my speed became too slow, I tested it a while ago and i only got 1.3kbps!! wtf. I call them everyday since last week and they said that my complaint is in “high priority” but they dont do anything to fix the problem. good thing the 1 yr lock in period is over. i can change my internet service provider for good.I live in QC, near project 8 area. dont bother getting a globe plan if ur in this area. it’s a waste of money coz all they give u is shit
stayawayfromglobe
August 11th, 2009 at 1:57 am
i am a globe subscriber of globe broadband for almost 5 years running. and believe me globe sucks. the only reason why we arent changing isp bec. my mom doesnt want to >.> we kept on upgrading. their costumer service is such a joke. the first plan that we took was the 284 kbps plan and upgraded to the 512 kbps, but you know what? when i called to complain why my internet was so slow they said that my connection was just 284 kbps…. i was a bit shocked -.-, now we upgraded from 512 to 1mb kbps and we dont really notice any difference in speed. globe sucks so much.
Jeff
August 12th, 2009 at 11:03 am
i subscribed yesterday with globe plan 1295/1mbps with phone per month and this plan sucks
i always get DC every hour and you’ll have to fix it using a Globe broadband fix that will take 3-5minutes to repair. this globe broadband is not for gamers, and its better to switch back to pldt dsl 999 which is good and smooth in connection but low in transfer rate 512kbps.
GLOBE= for SURFING
PLDT= FOR GAMERS
Martin
August 20th, 2009 at 8:39 am
Hi there,
The ISPs here is really getting complacent, we need a new ISP. Been with PLDT My DSL from 06 to 07(twilight zone), Switched to Bayantel…..good for the first 6 months, 2008 to 2009 is more of winning the lotto! Lately, their “backhole” traffic had been diverted and supposed to be faster and more consistent speed. Could not access my corporate site, traced the route for their technical department…..answer I got is that they have upgraded and nothing was blocked. Hmmm, guess i am on my own then…..Bayan DSL is not the preferred choice for sure.
Give me a sign!
Communicator
October 26th, 2009 at 12:56 pm
Smart Bro plug it is now 995 with reviews & suggestions and speeds, open line modem, manual, antenna connections to improve signal
http://smartbroplugit.wordpress.com/
Globe Tattoo plug it is now 895 & suggestions and speeds reviews, open line to use on all services, where to buy antenna
http://globetattoo.wordpress.com/
Another alternative is SMART Bro Share it with antenna connection possible, read the reviews, manual, where to buy antenna http://smartbroshareit.wordpress.com/
You can get the Globe usb or the SUN usb unlocked read more about it at my plug it sites above to use with any sim.
SUN INTERNET USB PLUG IT NOW GIVES 180 HOURS FREE SURFING READ REVIEWS
Sun just finally met the competition a little by now offering 180 free for 30 days when you buy their 1895 usb plug it modem. Smart now offers modem for 999 and Globe for 895
http://suninternet.wordpress.com/
Betchai
November 6th, 2009 at 3:12 am
NEVER SWITCH to Globe coz its like committing a suicide. i have been using Globe broadband for 2 years and i never had a good experience with them. even their technical support is worst than ever. Stay with Bayantel or get PLDT DSL.
Carla A. Foronda
August 31st, 2010 at 11:02 pm
I agree. Rebates are way too slow but they charge soooo fast.
Leah
November 29th, 2009 at 3:28 pm
Hi Angelo,
Wanted to ask if you ever switched to Globe or a different provider? I live in the Teachers village area and would like to know which provider can give reliable service. I need it for work, VOIP calls, not really for games. Have been using Sun unlimited wireless but service has been suffering of late. Was thinking of Sky, but with the previous comments, am now having second thoughts.
thanks!
Newbie~27
March 5th, 2010 at 1:31 am
hi,
what would be the best dsl provider for sta. rosa site? wer moving to another apartment. here in los banos,laguna we are using pldt dsl..well, it’s around 512 mbps…sumtyms drops around 10am then goes back by 11am…then goes down by 4pm. faster speed around 12 midnight…smooth…i dunno about sta. rosa site. how many days ba kakabitan dun for new connection.
london
March 13th, 2010 at 12:42 am
No matter what service provider you have in the Philippines…no network is STABLE. I have my destiny cable, BayanDSL and Globe and each network goes up and down..
Whats also important is overcapacity of the networks…and i know especially on the lower packages they are all on the same internet controller.
You can compare internet with Japan or Europe….but cables are glasfiber….and almost to the client….giving high speeds.
That wont happen in the Philippines with their cables overground
and there is exactly the problem.
Only thing that might work is broadband wireless provider…with outside client antennas so the signals are optimal.
Merito Tarrago
May 3rd, 2010 at 3:06 pm
Im currently subscribed to globe dsl plan 1295 with landline,1mbps,and a wi-fi router. My connection is ok so far, Ive got no problems. I usually get a .99-1mbps at speedtests.
jouielovesyou
July 2nd, 2010 at 6:08 am
Hi. It’s now 2010. And definitely, things have changed. We’re also planning to change our provider but for different reason. Bayantel internet speed’s fine for me. Their newest offer P1299 for a speed of 1MBPS that can go up to 1.5MBPS through SOD is fair enough. Usually my MP3 file would take 33 seconds, 5GIG games are 14 hours to complete. So I leave the computation to you.
jouielovesyou
October 20th, 2010 at 5:50 pm
Hi. If you’re planning to try Bayantel, click my username first. This is my way of sharing my thoughts as I’m currently a subscriber of Bayantel and I would say that this provider is still competitive in terms of their customer service. The rest of my comments about Bayantel DSL can be read by clicking my username. Thank you. Oh, anyway, you can also visit my other site for a more general topic. The address is
http://www.jouielovesyou.multiply.com/
marissa mason
November 5th, 2010 at 2:00 pm
hi:
if you could help my friend na niloko ng boyfriend niya kinuhanan ng thousands of dollars we would like to have it posted or if you could make an article about it; tinutulungan naman siya kc maysakit baka makatulong if you could make an article about it; nagsumbong na kmi sa NBI pero dito na kmi sa America kaya sinabi ng abogado na kailangan din sa FBI so kung matutulungan mo kami makakatulong ito sa kaso ito gusto lng naming matuto itong tao na magpahalaga sa kapwa at perang pinaghihirapan naming Pinoy dito sa America; so Angelo aasa kami sa tulong mo email mo ako thanks
GagoSiGlobe
November 6th, 2010 at 7:57 pm
Hi ! this post is 2 years old or more but if (lol IF) im not too late.. i would suggest you dont try bayantel .. as bayantel is just a sister company of globe. i have been a globelines subscriber for 2years up now my first was the 1mbps and now i have the crappy 2mbps which disconnects 5-7 times a day .. and technicians would close the Job Order and say NO TROUBLE FOUND the fuck.
Free
January 12th, 2011 at 3:49 pm
Pano paganahin itong acbel sa gsm may secret code ba o program