Quaere Verum

After almost a week of having no wired internet access at my home, I'm finally back online, with a new ADSL modem and faster speeds to boot. ZyXEL P-600 ADSL modem. Being able to browse the internet at up to 1 Mbps almost makes the aggravation worth it, but to be perfectly honest, I still think PLDT 's service still stinks. It was around two months before they really took action on my request to migrate my account from legacy DSL to IPDSLAM, and it involved quite a number of phone calls before they really did anything. There's lack of coordination between their customer service representatives and technical personnel, field technicians wouldn't arrive when they said they would, or they would arrive unannounced, and no one even bothered to mention that my internet connection would be dead for a few days to a week while the migration was in progress. Well, at least my connection is up and running again, and for that I'm thankful. As for their service and tech support,...

It's been six days, and I still don't have internet access at home, no thanks to PLDT 's excruciatingly slow process of migrating my legacy DSL account to IPDSLAM (Internet Protocol Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexer). It all started in the last week of September, I forgot exactly when. I visited PLDT's office in SM Megamall and requested that my DSL account be migrated to IPDSLAM since I was only getting half the bandwidth I was supposed to be getting, based on their P999 plan . My request was promptly entered into their system, I was given a service order number for future reference, and I was reassured that the migration would be seamless, and I would notice an increase in my bandwidth allocation after several days. After more than a month with no perceptible difference in browsing speeds I called up PLDT's customer service hotline (171). On my first call I was told their system was down so they were unable to follow up the status of my service request. A...

After talking a number of times with different e-Games support personnel and browsing a number of different forum sites (like this one ), it turns out that the reason why I couldn't log on RAN Online or any of e-Games' websites is because e-Games is having connection problems specifically with subscribers of PLDT's myDSL service. Apparently subscribers of different ISPs are not affected, as far as I know. So, the bottom line is, if you want to play RAN Online , or at the very least log in any e-Games website and your ISP is PLDT myDSL, tough luck. I've tried refreshing my connection so my router can obtain a new IP address, but it still doesn't work. Nothing does. And it's strange, because other than the fact that I can't seem to access e-Games' web servers, my internet connection is perfectly fine . If it weren't for the fact that I play RAN Online , I probably wouldn't have noticed. I can log on on virtually any website in the world, and yet...

It seems dissatisfaction with PLDT 's myDSL service is reaching a fever pitch nowadays. Not even the eminent Sassy Lawyer was spared from their lousy service (read about her predicament here ). And as it turns out, PLDT is planning to expand its service to Visayas and Mindanao. Talk about chutzpah. Well, PLDT will probably just piss off a lot more people, and make a fast buck while they're at it. If you've been visiting this blog regularly, you've probably read about my recent misadventures with PLDT myDSL as well, which was only resolved a few weeks ago. It took an email to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to finally get PLDT off its ass and do something about my excrutiatingly slow connection speed, which I had to endure for more than a month. In case anyone is curious, here's the letter I sent: Greetings. The undersigned would like to respectfully bring to your attention various incidents related to my subscription to PLDT myDSL, which have brought m...

Four weeks, four days, and fifteen hours after I first registered a complaint with PLDT myDSL regarding my excrutiatingly slow internet connection, I'm finally getting the bandwidth I'm paying for. It took them so long to fix it that it all feels so surreal...like emerging from the fogginess after waking up from a bad dream. It seems so anticlimactic, especially after numerous phone calls to their 172 hotline, and emails to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), and the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC). It would seem that PLDT only got off its ass when they received a copy of my complaint addressed to the DTI, a copy of which was in the possession of the technician who dropped by our house. He jokingly remarked that his unit was stirred into action when they received a copy of my complaint. I certainly didn't think that a month of lousy service was anything to laugh about. The technician even mentioned that my allotted bandwidth should be around 256 Kb...

I've finally forwarded a complaint against PLDT myDSL with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). If you're a PLDT myDSL subscriber and you are grossly dissatisfied with the service they're giving you, I recommend that you lodge a complaint yourself. Consumers like us shouldn't have to take crap from companies who shortchange us on the services they should be giving. You can call the the DTI at their hotline at 7513330, or call them directly at 8118231 local 1229, or email them at dtincr4@info.com.ph . So what happens now? I don't know. Let's see. In the meantime I'm shopping around for another provider.

After eleven days of following up on my PLDT myDSL account's sluggish performance, I've finally had enough. I'm lodging a complaint with the DTI tomorrow morning. What got my goat was their insistence that the problem was due to a network problem in our area. Imagine my annoyance when it turns out that my sister's DSL account was performing within 90% of her supposed allocated bandwidth, and it has been performing that way for the past several weeks now. Me? I'm stuck at less than a third of the bandwidth that I should be getting, and that's almost for the past two weeks. Network problem? Network problem my a**. That was the standard reason they gave my sister when she was having similarly sluggish service not so long ago. At the time I was getting about 430 kbps, which is significantly faster than what she was getting (but still way, way below the promised 768 kbps). After getting an earful from her, her service finally stabilized. Good for her. The service I...

When will PLDT myDSL stop sitting on its ass and give me the bandwidth I'm paying for? It's almost a week since I complained about this, not only have they failed to adjust my speed, as it turned out my downgrade request made several weeks ago hasn't even been posted yet, resulting in my account being trapped in limbo. And where does that leave me? Here, plodding along at a pathetic 177 kbps, less than half the bandwidth I should be getting. Its a wonder they still have subscribers with service this lousy. If you're looking for a broadband service provider, save yourself the aggravation. Subscribe somewhere else.

It has been almost two weeks since PLDT downgraded my PLDT myDSL account (see previous post here ). Unfortunately, from that time on, I've been receiving less than half the bandwidth I'm entitled to. The P999 monthly plan should give me 384 kbps of bandwidth. I'm only getting speeds in the 160-180 kbps range. It's actually the same thing before, when I was still paying two grand a month. They should have been giving me 768 kbps then, I was only getting about half that bandwidth, somewhere in the 430-450 kbps range. When will these people get their act together and just give me the bandwidth that I'm paying for? I called their customer service number and complained about the low bandwidth allocation two days ago, and up to now I'm still browsing and downloading at such low speeds. I'm getting tired of PLDT screwing me around. I only hope they fix this before I do something drastic. Like going back to dial-up. :-) Suffice it to say, that I'm not a hap...

After almost a month, PLDT finally informed me that they were downgrading my PLDT myDSL account without charging the P5,000.00 downgrading fee (see earlier post here ). All I can say is, it's about f***ing time. It's a good thing they agreed. If not, I was all set to have my service cut off and go somewhere else for my broadband needs. The clincher is, why should I pay double for supposedly up to 768 kbps of bandwidth, when what I'm getting is only 400 or so kbps? Moral of the story? Don't be afraid to speak out if some company is giving you a shoddy deal. As a consumer, you have rights. And if you're not happy with the service or product you're receiving, take your business somewhere else. You'll definitely be better off, rather than paying for something that simply isn't worth it. Besides, that may be the only thing you can do to get back at them. In business, a client lost, is a client lost.

A few minutes ago I was talking with a PLDT customer service representive regarding a concern I have with my PLDT myDSL account. What she told me gave me fits that I couldn't help but raise my voice at the poor girl. In a nutshell: You have to pay a fee of P5,000.00 if you want to downgrade your account. Needless to say, that has got to be one of the most idiotic policies I've ever heard of. The thing is, I have been a PLDT myDSL subscriber for more than a year now , and my lockout period has already expired. I'm currently paying P1,995.00 a month for broadband access supposedly up to 768 Kbps. When I first got on broadband more than a year ago, P1,995.00 per month was the lowest plan available, and it offered up to 384 Kbps of bandwidth. A few months after my subscription was locked in, they came up with a cheaper plan, only P999.00 a month for 256 Kbps internet access. Now, they have upgraded their cheapest plan by offering up to 384 Kbps for the same amount. I figured...

Where the hell is my promised 512 kbps bandwidth? PLDT myDSL promised me half a megabit per second of bandwidth, and I'm still getting less than that. They have also boasted that my plan will soon be getting a bandwidth boost to 768 kbps. So, where is it? I want my bandwidth now!!!

While I don't really believe that Friday the 13th is an unlucky day, in one aspect it was for me yesterday. I had absolutely no broadband internet service for the entire day, it seems my DSL connection was down for some reason. While this morning it seems to be working fine again, I do have some complaints about PLDT myDSL 's technical support: 1. Calling their customer service number (172-375) is pretty hellish, as it puts you on hold for as long half an hour. Of course, there are no guarantees that someone would answer. It was on my fifth try, I think, before I got to talk with someone. Good thing I have a speaker phone, I don't think I would have the patience to hold a handset to my head for that long; 2. The customer service representative, a lady, while actually being nice enough, was of very little help. She did confirm that service was down in my area (like I didn't know) but she had absolutely no idea when the service would resume. Shouldn't their technic...

According to PinoyDSL.net , PLDT has confirmed the increase in bandwidth speeds for its DSL services. The new bandwidth speeds are: PLAN TYPE - OLD SPEED - NEW SPEED Plan 1995 - 384 Kbps - 512 Kbps Plan 2500 - 512 Kbps - 768 Kbps Plan 3000 - 768 Kbps - 1 Mbps There was also a full page official announcement made by PLDT in the April 25 edition of the Philippine Star. This should be good news for all PLDT myDSL subscribers. On a whim, I tried measuring my connection speed using McAfee's Internet Connection Speedometer . PLDT must be doing something right, as these were the results I got: Did I mention I was on the slowest plan? :-) Hope PLDT can keep this level of performance up. :-)

It's been a long time coming. But finally, I'm on DSL (Digital Subscriber Link). I applied for a PLDT myDSL account last week, and only a few hours ago, a PLDT technician dropped by to install my ADSL (Asynchronous Digital Subscriber Link) modem. It was installed quite painlessly. A data/voice splitter (a small plastic box only a tad larger than a box of matches) is plugged to my phone line, one end of the line goes to my phone, the other to the ADSL modem. The modem is plugged to my PC's ethernet (LAN) port and is powered by an AC adaptor plugged in a power outlet. An installation CD was then inserted in an optical drive, the installation program started automatically, and the login name and password were entered. That's it. Fired up Firefox and now I'm browsing the internet at up to 384 kbps, a far cry from my peak connection speed of 53.3 kbps (at best) on my dial-up modem. DSL works on the principle that only a small portion of the potential bandwidth (amount ...