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HomeChoice - a good choice?


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Old 24-10-2000, 09:16
Modelengineer
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You only need 6Mb/sec for fast action sport in MPEG2, general VHS quality only needs 1.5Mb/sec, and almost still pictures like the weathermap need practically nothing. MPEG4 can get away with 750kb/sec for low resolution pictures. Therefore it is not possible to stream video on a 512k ADSL line for instant video, you have to start 30 to 100 minutes earlier and store it. One possibility is to store the first half of 10 films in the set topbox until the user makes a choice, then catch up with the rest while they watch the store being played out. If you have to book in advance and wait an hour for a download it isn't VOD, it's NVOD ( Near VOD).
Anyone got a spec on the Homechoice box?
Cable operators already offer NVOD with 15 to 30 minute intervals. They have the bandwidth (>30Mb per transport stream) to offer true VOD but the equipment to provide it costs a fortune. The speed of a cable modem will always beat twisted pair, it's just a matter of time and money.
When considering cablemodem offers by ntl you have to bear in mind where you live. Old ntl already run DOCSIS cable modems but have fewer digital TV customers, old cwc don't run modems because they concentrated on digital TV, but the old cwc will catch up.
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Old 24-10-2000, 11:10
JT
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Thanks, I found that really helpful.

One thing has puzzled me about the cwc cable modem in the digibox. In times past (before ntl took over) I was frequently promised the ability to use the internet by plugging my computer into the ethernet port on the digibox. This was said to me by so many people who expected it to have happened by now that I can only think that it was indeed part of cable & wireless' original plans.

I'm just wondering how this would work in terms of bandwidth. Do the set-top modems share bandwidth with the digital tv and the yet to be released separate cable modems? Or is there yet another cable to be installed for true broadband cable modem use?

From the looks of things HomeChoice might be useful if you can get it now, but the 12 month lockin period and the (ok, so I'm being hopeful) new technology coming on-stream from ntl should mean that in the early part of next year we'll finally have MoreChoice
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Old 24-10-2000, 19:09
highlander
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Well my mates paying for his Homeworld ISP service/call charges now and hes already homechoice TV packaged so he rang up and got a date set for Homechoice Fast internet serivce (only takes 10-20 mins) to install from what ive heard.

Anyhow they told him we can be round on December 29th !!!!!
So he said no thx and put it down...

Ive sent 3 emails to Homechoice and tried phoning cant get thru at all. Guess Homechoice must be freaking really BUSY!

So homechoice is out of the running for me, but ive spoken to others that just got homechoice fast interent installed they will be upgrading to 256k/512k via a upgrade BUT they will be charging more per month, but this is all happening next year.

not happy that homechoice arent answering let alone people having to wait 2-3 months for a service that should be installed within days.... thats no service at all.

Think ill wait for NTL to get Cable modems rolling in London area, I can get digital box, but I hear net access from it is impossible for now so thats buggered.
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Old 24-10-2000, 21:05
richardadc
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The reason it takes so long in some places is because the exchanges havent been enabled for homechoice. Its BT fault not Homechoice.
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Old 26-10-2000, 18:50
Modelengineer
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To update my last input before someone else does you can stream video at rates as low as 64kb/sec but it makes it look like teletext graphics. I wouldn't pay to watch less than 512kb/sec.
All digital boxes from the 3 main operators have cable modems built in which is why they talked about a service becoming available. Trouble is they now realise they will be swamped as soon as they let it loose, so they are having to build up a massive infrastructure to cope. Also the software needs debugging and we all know how that just takes forever.
Bear in mind that all the engineers working on it are tekies who want the benefits at home too so they are bound to be doing their best to get it going.
Problem No 2 is that with you wanting 1Mb/sec for 50p / year there's not much dosh to pay for the hundreds of £10,000 each CMTSs (that's the bit that Cisco are boasting about in their adverts) to connect you all up.
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Old 26-10-2000, 20:31
highlander
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I got thru to homechoice spoke to some guy who took all my details down and I got the low down on why there homechoice ADSL cant be installed soon it is all BTS FAULT ! as usual!

They cant install it since BT need to install some extra lines for homechoice, untill then no customer can get there fast interent services ! And worse of all BT where meant to install the extra lines ages ago so they are back to there usual delaying tatics again.

Hopefully sometime in November homechoice will be up to date and can being to install its services again.
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Old 26-10-2000, 22:11
huxleypig
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Its interesting that ADSL is not rocketing off yet. Oftel reakon that less than 25% of BTs exchanges are equipped.

The great Broadband revolution won't happen just yet !

As for London, wait and see what ntl: have planned !
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Old 27-10-2000, 20:08
highlander
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Originally posted by huxleypig
Its interesting that ADSL is not rocketing off yet. Oftel reakon that less than 25% of BTs exchanges are equipped.

The great Broadband revolution won't happen just yet !

As for London, wait and see what ntl: have planned !

I recieved an email from them this morning, and my question was put thru too the superviser and basicaly they told me there are no current Cable modem plans for NTL/Ex- C&W franchises in London area yet, however its possible that in early 2001 ex-C&W areas will be recieving Cable modem trials.

Once again NTL prooving they cant reach there customers with the latest technology, proberly cos London isnt an important place in the England(snigger).

Going with homechoice now since they can get the job done!
installation for ADSL is december.
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Old 28-10-2000, 00:07
JT
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I recieved an email from them this morning, and my question was put thru too the superviser and basicaly they told me there are no current Cable modem plans for NTL/Ex- C&W franchises in London area yet, however its possible that in early 2001 ex-C&W areas will be recieving Cable modem trials.
This is the kind of thing I find hard to believe: how can NTL/CWC imagine that they will be able to compete if they say they don't even have "plans" for a service which they were saying would be available quite literally years ago? There are only so many people in ex-cwc areas who are prepared to pay premium rates for cable modems, and yet NTL appears to be quite happy to allow these people to go the ADSL route - and once they've paid ADSL installation costs what chance is there that they'll change to cable modem afterwards? Once you have to pay BT line rental again for ADSL the question arises as to whether it is really worth having the cable connection at all...

If they don't get their collective acts together fast they'll find that the reversal in "churn" from ex-cwc areas will once again reverse with users going back to BT and satellite.

(This of course depends on BT actually being able to deliver on ADSL - they may not - but its not a risk that I'd have thought NTL would think was worth taking.)

I don't want to appear to be completely negative towards NTL - I am not - but a company announcing that it doesn't have "any plans" to introduce a service which will be be key to its survival in years to come just amazes me...
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Old 28-10-2000, 00:28
Jackie G
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[quote]Originally posted by JT
I don't want to appear to be completely negative towards NTL - I am not - but a company announcing that it doesn't have "any plans" to introduce a service which will be be key to its survival in years to come just amazes me...
I asked them last month about cable modems in Manchester
and they said early 2001 along with ntlworld access,
their recent press release seems to agree with that.

"NTL now equipped to deliver broadband communications services to
over 90% of its franchise homes including London, Manchester, Glasgow,
Leeds, Oxford, Cambridge, Belfast and Cardiff

A broadband cable modem network to the same standard as those existing
in ‘old’ NTL regions is being rolled out over the CWC ConsumerCo franchises."

http://www.ntl.com/press/display.asp?id=293
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Old 28-10-2000, 10:16
JT
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Thanks for that - that's an interesting press release. Not for the first time, NTL appears to be contradicting itself. "Not having any plans" appears to mean "not having a release date" - but if that is what they mean, that is what they should say

Just dismissing the question with the "not have any plans" line (which is what their Q&A on their website says too) hints at a lack of concern for what a large number of customers are asking for (I'm sure that is not the case). With the delay to ADSL it looks as though the two services will really get up and running at about the same time, but the difference in selling and in building up a ready market for their launch is marked.

I'm confused as to why they need to set up another cable network mentioned in the press release: "In addition, a broadband cable modem network to the same standard as those existing in ‘old’ NTL regions is being rolled out over the CWC ConsumerCo franchises." Is this actually a whole new network, or additional bandwidth for the existing one? I'm not sure of why they would need another network when the current ex-cwc digibox has a cable modem and is perfectly capable of being used to access the internet. I assume that the reason they don't allow this currently is simply bandwidth considerations. Maybe someone with more technical knowledge could enlighten us on this point?

Its nice to see that Cable & Wireless at least got the choice of technology right

On the subject of HomeChoice, I've now had a big pack of information and a separate letter telling me that HomeChoice are waiting for BT to allow them access to the exchange before they can launch in my area. For a service that is not even available, they are certainly trying to keep me interested...
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Old 28-10-2000, 23:34
richardadc
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Originally posted by JT

On the subject of HomeChoice, I've now had a big pack of information and a separate letter telling me that HomeChoice are waiting for BT to allow them access to the exchange before they can launch in my area. For a service that is not even available, they are certainly trying to keep me interested...
The reason they want to keep you interested is because homechoice have to pay a standard fee, for 10 customers or 15,000 customers. Homechoise pay for 15,000 subscribers a year even though they only have 5,000 customers. This is because homechoice use a technology called videostream, this is also why it is so cheap compered to other isps using IPstream. And the 15,000 customers that they pay for only lasts for a year.
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Old 29-10-2000, 03:29
shala
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They've already started to trial full tv Internet access on
the ex c&w Pace Digital boxes (£5 a month) in addition
to the "walled garden" sites here (Southampton), & have
promised pc broadband access from early next year,
we shall have to wait & see.

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Old 29-10-2000, 08:02
JT
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Originally posted by shala
They've already started to trial full tv Internet access on the ex c&w Pace Digital boxes (£5 a month) in addition to the "walled garden" sites here (Southampton), & have promised pc broadband access from early next year, we shall have to wait & see.
That sounds great Is the pc broadband access via separate cable modem or through the tv digibox?
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Old 29-10-2000, 16:55
shala
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That sounds great Is the pc broadband access via separate cable modem or through the tv digibox?
They wouldn't give a direct answer (probably don't know themselves)
when I asked about connecting the stb to a pc, just said there would
definitely be several broadband options available to me early next year.
Whether this refers to using either the stb or external modem or instead
refers to several price/speed options, who knows.
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