... of (not so) fast paced lives ...

Streamyx. If anyone out there is considering a subscription with Streamyx for the very first time, I think you should be given a counterpoint to all the marketing hype that they dish out periodically.

I'm not going to delve into the customer service. I'll let you go through that waiting experience yourself. I'm also not going into the helpfulness of their pre-fabricated answers when you tell them of your broadband woes.

What I *will* do is dive straight to the heart of it all: the lack of speed.

Once upon a time I subscribed to Streamyx's 1.0Mbps (download)/384kpbs (upload) package for RM88 per month, but since I've only broken the 600kpbs mark ONCE since I discovered speedtest.net in mid 2007 (I hit 784/382 on 30th September 2008 while testing against a server right here in Kuala Lumpur), I saw no reason to maintain a 1.0Mbps service. I thought maybe their servers couldn't consistently handle speeds beyond 500-600kpbs, so I downgraded to their 512kpbs package. but the moment I switch my service package, my speed dropped to an average of 150-200 kpbs when tested with Malaysian servers. I'm not talking about working hours when offices and businesses are tapping up bandwidth, I do my speed tests between 11pm and 1am. I guess it was never about the capacity of their servers or the quality of the copper wires, Streamyx just DOES NOT DELIVER WHAT THEY'RE SELLING!

Recent speed test results below (bear in mind that I'm subscribing to a 512 / 256 package). Tests were done between 11.40pm to 12.05am local time, Wednesday 25th March 2009 (through Thursday, 26th March if you want to get technical over it).

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - 213 / 71


Singapore - 203 / 101


Rome, Italy - 131 / 59


San Diego, USA - 352 / 217


Florida, USA - 104 / 84


So what other alternatives are there?

I've been thinking of switching over to P1 or DiGi Wimax, though I hesitate as I've not heard much feedback from their subscribers. I also hesitate because of coverage issues. Check it out:

Neighborhoods surrounding me are covered by PacketOne (P1) Wimax. My neighborhood (Sunway Damansara) just barely got left out. I wonder why I keep getting leaflets from them though.

DiGi Wimax covers my neighborhood, but I reside along the outer rim of their coverage. That makes it quite risky for me to switch to DiGi.

I guess I'm stuck with Streamyx for a bit longer, but if you're still looking for a broadband provider, I'd highly recommend that you shop around for options first. I'm planning to make that transition away from Streamyx once my area is fully covered by DiGi or P1.