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gmusgrave

Feb 18, 2005, 2:55 PM

Post #1 of 8 (992 views)

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Short-Term Broadband Internet Connection

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My wife and I are very serious about moving to Ajijic, and, to that end, are planning to come down in July for the month. We will rent a house, and try to experience day-to-day living.

Day-to-day living for me includes high-speed internet access -- I cannot imagine being without it. Naturally, I would like this for our month-long experiment. The catch, of course, is that we will only be there a month and then not return until next January. The house we would like to rent doesn't have high-speed internet service.

I would like to arrange to have this service installed at the the rental property, then cancel the service and store the equipment until we move down full-time. At that time, I would have the equipment re-installed at our new address and continue the service for, hopefully, quite a long time. If, for some reason, we decide not to make the move, then the cost of all the equipment and installation is simply part of the cost of our research.

Does anyone know if this is possible to do?

I have tried to contact Lagunanet, but this appears fruitless - they don't reply to my emails, and never answer their phone. I got a very prompt response from someone in tech support, but this area was beyond their scope, and I really don't want to tie-up tech support resources with something that properly should be a customer service or sales issue.

Are there other companies that I can email or phone? I find it hard to believe this is the first time this has come up -- perhaps someone has some experience in this regard.

Garry Musgrave

rjkveton

Feb 18, 2005, 5:18 PM

Post #2 of 8 (977 views)

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Re: [gmusgrave] Short-Term Broadband Internet Connection

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Does the house you want to rent have a phone currently installed, and if so do you know the number? If so, go to the Telmex website at this url: http://www.telmex.com/explorer/hogar/ms_infinitum/

Click on one of the links

Put the phone number in the text box of the next window that opens, should be 376766xxxx for Ajijic

Click on "Enviar"

Keep your fingers crossed and hope you see this on the next window that opens:

Nos complace informarte que existe disponibilidad del servicio PRODIGY INFINITUM para el número de teléfono solicitado.

Buy the equipment necessary for the installation which allows you to go month to month and contract with Telmex for the Prodigy Infinitum service, and either install it yourself or hire one of the local professionals. Don't use the installation software on the CD from Prodigy, hopefully you have XP or Win 2000, and can use the generic drivers and software. Go to the Monday morning advanced computer club meeting at LCS at 11 am if you have any further questions, about 80% of the cumulative real computer expertise Lakeside will be there on any given Monday, you don't need to be an LCS member.

Repeat the above for the house you will buy, without the equipment purchase of course.

Forget about messing with other alternatives, expect perhaps bringing down a laptop with wireless capability and hanging out a lot at Senior Sushi's, a wireless hotspot.

Hope this helps.

johanson / Moderator

Feb 18, 2005, 5:58 PM

Post #3 of 8 (975 views)

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Re: [gmusgrave] Short-Term Broadband Internet Connection

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Gary Things are different down here. Lagunanet has more customers than it can handle and is slowly expanding, not at a rate to keep the potential new clients happy, but at a rate to have the least negative impact upon the existing customers and the Lagunanet staff

I don't know why your email was not answered by customer care, but I thought the response "support" gave you to be very descriptive

Here is a copy of the email that was sent to you

Sorry no one answered. I always check and answer the support email more
than 3 times per day. Be I here, or at the cottage near you.

In answer to your question about punctuality of an install. You might get
it within 3 or 4 days but it could be up to a week. Sadly things just
work more slowly down here. The cost for both the installation and the
equipment (parabolic antenna, antenna post, coax, Ethernet bridge etc) is
$450 to $485 US

(Oh, as I write this I have CIOC Victoria 98.5 playing in the background
via the Star Choice receiver, I picked up on the Island)

Sorry I can't be more helpful. If it were in my power to do so I would.

support

YOUR ONLY other broadband choices are Prodigy ADSL, and a new wireless company called Mexico-Wireless. None of them offer an economical solution for short time visitors.

There are several Internet Cafes that offer broadband (shared 256 to 512) Ethernet connections.

If someone has a better idea, come on post it here. But I do not know of a good short term solution for you.

Oh, the reason I thought the support email was so well written (SMILE :) is because I volunteer to answer same for Lagunanet.
WHICH broadband system do I use? Actually two, both Prodigy ADSL and Lagunanet fixed wireless (WiFi)

UPDATE I had not read the above post when I made mine. Yes ADSL is a good alternative, but just like other alternatives, there are some reasons that may make you choose another option. I too, purchased my ADSL equipment outright. I too believed that I could simply give notice and immediately stop my ADSL service. I'm told and I hope someone will correct me if I am wrong, that to change or halt service there is a fee of what $50 US? and I know that it is hard to simply walk in and get one months service, especially if the telephone is in someone else's name. Also please understand that what we call broadband down here would be laughed at by many up North. Shown below is what is considered broadband down here, and it aint cheap. the first figure shown is download, the second upload both in kb/sec and the third the cost

Prodigy ADSL 256/128 $401 pesos per month
Laguna-- WiFi 256/256 $40 US
Prodigy ADSL 512/128 $689 pesos
Laguna-- WiFi 512/512 $60
Prodigy ADSL1 Meg/256 $1,149 pesos

If upload speeds are important, ADSL's advertised upload speeds are very slow.

(This post was edited by johanson on Feb 18, 2005, 7:22 PM)

johanson / Moderator

Feb 18, 2005, 8:38 PM

Post #4 of 8 (954 views)

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Re: [johanson] Short-Term Broadband Internet Connection

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Speed tests, two broadband ISPs in Ajijic, Jalisco, Mexico

I hope other folks have both Prodigy Infinitum and Laguna WiFi, because I would love to have my info confirmed or corrected. I just did two speed tests with www.dslreports.com . I chose the server in LA. Admittedly only two tests of each ISP is not much. But here goes. I discovered that my average measured upload speeds with prodigy ADSL were 56% and download speeds 82% of advertised speeds. With Lagunanet wireless, I discovered that my average measured upload speeds were 86% and the download speeds 94% of the advertised speeds.

ADSL 56% and 82% of advertised speeds (Prodigy)
WiFi--86% and 94% of advertised speeds (Lagunanet)

Again this is just one evening and two tests of each service. Maybe things will be different on another night.

By the way with a dial up comparison, I found Prodigy's download speeds to be faster than Lagunanet's but Lagunanet's upload speeds to be faster than Prodigy's.

TESTS were performed in Ajijic about 700 meters from both the Ajijic WiFi tower and the DSL switching station.

TEST UPDATE: I ran two more tests each at about 11 PM. I got approximately the same results.

(This post was edited by johanson on Feb 18, 2005, 9:13 PM)

rjkveton

Feb 19, 2005, 5:03 AM

Post #5 of 8 (941 views)

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Some additional thoughts

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If you currently have DSL service, you may be able to bring that equipment with you. Otherwise, I don't think it will cost that much at today's prices, especially if you buy it in the US or Canada. If you and your wife are flying down you get to bring in $600 US of stuff duty free, other than the items which travelers can bring in duty free as personal use items, so you would have no problem getting the DSL equipment into the country. All you really need is a good DSL router and then buy the DSL modem(bridge) from Telmex as it should be configured by them to work with their service. You need the router, because a hardware firewall is an absolute necessity here, and the router will split the signal coming in off the street to the POTS lines and the modem, otherwise you would have to put a DSL filter in front of every piece of regular phone equipment.

Telmex has just installed a fiber-optic infrastructure upgrade in my area, and as soon as they offer DSL service here I'm going to get it, and if I find out any other useful information before you come down, and the up front cost, I'll post that in a new message for everyone's benefit.

gmusgrave

Feb 20, 2005, 12:20 PM

Post #6 of 8 (899 views)

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Re: [johanson] Short-Term Broadband Internet Connection

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Quote

This is, of course, a good thing. It indicates a demand for these services, and, ultimately, improved service, coverage, and competition should result -- benefitting the service consumers.

Quote

I don't know why your email was not answered by customer care, but I thought the response "support" gave you to be very descriptive
<--SNIP-->
Oh, the reason I thought the support email was so well written (SMILE :) is because I volunteer to answer same for Lagunanet.

Interesting coincidence! I did appreciate your response, but I didn't continue this discussion with "support" as I didn't want to use up valuable tech support resources for a non-customer issue. This forum appears to be an excellent place for these discussions.

Garry Musgrave

gmusgrave

Feb 20, 2005, 12:36 PM

Post #7 of 8 (896 views)

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Re: [johanson] Short-Term Broadband Internet Connection

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Quote

Does the house you want to rent have a phone currently installed, and if so do you know the number? If so, go to the Telmex website at this url: http://www.telmex.com/explorer/hogar/ms_infinitum/
<--SNIP-->
Forget about messing with other alternatives, expect perhaps bringing down a laptop with wireless capability and hanging out a lot at Senior Sushi's, a wireless hotspot.

AND

Quote

UPDATE I had not read the above post when I made mine. Yes ADSL is a good alternative, but just like other alternatives, there are some reasons that may make you choose another option. I too, purchased my ADSL equipment outright. I too believed that I could simply give notice and immediately stop my ADSL service. I'm told and I hope someone will correct me if I am wrong, that to change or halt service there is a fee of what $50 US? and I know that it is hard to simply walk in and get one months service, especially if the telephone is in someone else's name. Also please understand that what we call broadband down here would be laughed at by many up North. Shown below is what is considered broadband down here, and it aint cheap. the first figure shown is download, the second upload both in kb/sec and the third the cost

Prodigy ADSL 256/128 $401 pesos per month
Laguna-- WiFi 256/256 $40 US
Prodigy ADSL 512/128 $689 pesos
Laguna-- WiFi 512/512 $60
Prodigy ADSL1 Meg/256 $1,149 pesos

If upload speeds are important, ADSL's advertised upload speeds are very slow.

I must say that this forum is really excellent!

In fact, I think the answer lies in both solutions. I will try to get ADSL connected for the short-term trip in July (and any other monthish trips we might make), and then, when we are permanently settled, go with the prevailing wireless solution.

I agree that, of the services currently offered, wireless is more what I am looking for as far as DL/UL speeds are concerned, as it has the advantage of these being equal -- there is no 'A' in "wireless" :).

While the 1Mb ADSL rate is attractive, the monthly cost is absurd. I am used to a fast connection (cable with dslreports speeds of from 2-3Mbps DL and 400 to 500 Kbps upload), but am currently only paying the equivalent of about $40US a month.

My goal when we live there on a permanent basis will be the 512/512 service or better -- who knows, competition may have stirred things up a bit by then. Mexico-Wireless may be a factor in time, and maybe the cable company as well.

Garry Musgrave

johanson / Moderator

Feb 20, 2005, 12:53 PM

Post #8 of 8 (891 views)

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Re: [gmusgrave] Short-Term Broadband Internet Connection

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There may be another solution. The local cable company, promises to offer internet via cable as soon as this May.

I think you will have a hard time getting ADSL from TelMex. As I understand it, only the owner of the house, or the person who has the contract with TELMEX can change the type of "Phone Service" he has. Remember. down here. ADSL and TELMEX are one and the same and. It's not like TELUS.

IN FACT I think when I get my first Prodigy Infinitum bill that it will be part of my TelMex phone bill. Perhaps someone can correct me here if I am wrong.

PS If you want TV from home, make sure you check out Star Choice and bring a system with you. It's a lot cheaper up North than down here. An installled system down here is about $550 US. I think I paid $99 Canadian in Duncan, BC

(This post was edited by johanson on Feb 20, 2005, 1:01 PM)