Broadband Speed Test ★
April 15, 2008
I just hate to remind myself looking at this screenshot. Almost the whole of India’s population using broadband would see at least 2000kb/s on that chart without realising how much better it is. Damn these speed caps.
MTNL has unknowingly turned off all caps on unlimited usage plans in certain areas of Delhi. Wonder when they’re going to make it standard, thus forcing Bharti to follow. The only reason I am not using MTNL right now is because of how unreliable their service is. I don’t think my internet has ever not worked in the past year since I’ve switched to Airtel.
MTNL’s service is fairly reliable. If you know how to fix basic problems in your router or check your line manually, MTNL is good for you. Considering the difference in speeds and prices of plans from MTNL and the ones from Airtel, I’d suggest you go for MTNL. The thing that sucks the most with MTNL is customer support. They have underpaid ragpickers sitting at their call centers, who would say, “Agar light jal rahi hai to connection sahi hai.” So go for MTNL if you usually don’t need customer care, and can hack your router on your own. I wrote reviews for both MTNL and Airtel broadband last year, for Techwhack.
http://sifybroadband.techwhack.com/836-airtel-broadband-review
http://sifybroadband.techwhack.com/838-mtnl-triband-broadband
These reviews were based on extensive market research, and my own experiences, plus the help of a few friends.
Apoorv, I don’t know how you say that. You can’t perform magic on your router, if it isn’t able to reach the server itself.
In Green Park, MTNL is really unstable. In the monsoon season, my phone remained dead for 2 weeks. Kick starting the router wont help there, will it? There isn’t any form of compensation because it’s a fucking public sector company.
Many people have the knowledge to do what you do but there’s the difference of having the knowledge and making a CONSTANT effort to use it. Note, constant is a very important keyword when you talk about fixing MTNL internet connections.
BSNL is much, much better where I’ve used it. But Airtel is pretty much the best service provider. Low on speed maybe, but I need a stable unlimited download cap connection at an affordable price. And that’s what Airtel gives me.
I would categorise that as a specific area problem. I have been using MTNL since the past 2 years. I live in North Delhi, and so do most of my friends, and for them, the ones who can fix problems relating to network modes, port forwarding, modulation, and basic ethernet settings are the ones who are satisfied. The other guys complain of having problems relating to slow speeds or complete inactivity, and inflated bills, all of which I would attribute to spyware/malware on their bloated M$ systems.
I think you need to be street smart a bit to make the most of ur mtnl connection. U need to know how to repair your phone lines, cos mostly during rains the loose ends of your phone line, which is connected to a box behind/front of your house on a pole/wall, get ruined/broken due to moisture( copper=rust or some damn chemical reaction i can’t remember).
SO be ready with a pair of wire cutters if u wanna live peacefully with an mtnl connection. Otherwise, it’s perfectly priced and also gives great speeds at time. Never had any problem in the past 3 years of my usage… other than the rare breakdown of phoneline due to some repair or shit..
Shivaas, I’m sure you’d agree that a lot of time is spent fixing wires, and more so, a lot of energy. I’m not willing to sacrifice so much for MTNL’s negligence towards their customers.