Internet

[Expresspete]

As we will be moving over from the UK in about 8 weeks can I have your advise regarding internet and providers please? We are moving to Lower Peyia and have to decide primarily between satellite and dial up and then the provider. I guess we'll need sufficient internet for tv, laptops and not to mention the grand kids iPads and gaming stuff when they come over. So we look forward to your advice (tia).

[Polemi Dave]

Pete
Forget satellite, it is very expensive & very slow to respond. Dial up is all finished now.

Your choice is between fixed line broad band and wireless broadband.

Fixed line is a choice between CYTA & Primetel. Wireless has quite a number of providers. No one can tell which is best for you. The fixed line is most often more expensive but then the download speeds are better, Prime Tel you need to have a phone as part of the package. The wireless providers have all sorts of plans, but you need line of sight to a mast to connect.

Your best bet is to wait till you arrive and decide your needs then. Do you want to stream HD TV for example? These days you can get connected within a few days.

[Expresspete]

Thanks Dave again (it was you who advised me about the solar panels). Yes, we're going to be using it for TVs and for streaming etc so Cyta's Broadband will probably be the way we will go.
I had heard about Cosmos Satellite internet and claims it was the best way to go (hence my question).
I followed up on your advice about Solar Panels and met Andi's wife at his shop. Apparently we just need the first electricity bill (the rules have changed now) and then he will complete the install. We're due over at the end of April so I'm trying to get (in my mind at least) as much planned as possible

[ast]

We use wireless internet and it never misses a beat, i stream TV on it and obviously the usual surfing the net e mail etc and i am more than pleased, of course everyone has there preference but i am happy with our service.

[trevnhil]

We use wireless internet and it never misses a beat, i stream TV on it and obviously the usual surfing the net e mail etc and i am more than pleased, of course everyone has there preference but i am happy with our service.

But you have not mentioned who is providing the service for you .

Trev..

[mdean2805]

We use wireless internet with BlueNet and have been very happy with them. The costs go up with the speed but we find 6mps works okay for us with downloading and IPTV. Service has been reliable and when I once did have an issue, it was resolved quickly. As we are not permanent residents the switch on and off service works well for us. If we were in Cyprus permanently I would probably use Primetel. My neighbour has it and I have been impressed. He gets speeds of 10mps plus you also get a phone line. It just works out more expensive for us as they will not switch off the service when we are away.

Mike

[holitec]

If you are in Peyia, and are here permantly, than cyta is the bext option for internet, and a tv provider via a mag 25x box, say with uktv.media. If you cannot get a phoneline try us, we do special rates for permanent customers and include uktv in the package. If you are part-time, you are better looking at bluenet. cytel etc as we no longer support customers who are here less than 16 weeks per year.
Regards

Digby

[ast]

We use wireless internet and it never misses a beat, i stream TV on it and obviously the usual surfing the net e mail etc and i am more than pleased, of course everyone has there preference but i am happy with our service.

But you have not mentioned who is providing the service for you .

Trev..

Fusion IT is our Provider, only one problem i ever had was resolved for us on a Sunday morning so more than happy.

[Expresspete]

Appreciated gents, thank you

[Polemi Dave]

Thanks Dave again (it was you who advised me about the solar panels). Yes, we're going to be using it for TVs and for streaming etc so Cyta's Broadband will probably be the way we will go.
I had heard about Cosmos Satellite internet and claims it was the best way to go (hence my question).
I followed up on your advice about Solar Panels and met Andi's wife at his shop. Apparently we just need the first electricity bill (the rules have changed now) and then he will complete the install. We're due over at the end of April so I'm trying to get (in my mind at least) as much planned as possible

I am pleased Andi Solartec has sorted you out. The EAC rules are a lot more lax now than they were when we first connected.
As to internet, I have Prime tel at my work and the service is great, till there is a problem - then they are Useless. At home we have wireless DSS but they are not taking new customers at the moment. My 2 rented properties use Blue Net, I know the installation was next day on both for both and I have heard no complaints from the tenants. If you are thinking along the wireless route it could be worth getting Blue Net up for a site survey - should be free.

[Dominic]

The bottom line is this; decent broadband is a lot easier to get hold of in Cyprus than you may have been led to believe by doing online searches.

We came over last year, and prior to that I was concerned based on what I read up. I need not have worried. Cyprus broadband is fine. Obviously if you are living in a hut on the Akamas you might have issues, but Pegia will be fine.

[deepthroat]

A couple of things to consider . Cyta own the entire local loop of copper and fiber to the cabinets in the streets, and the majority of undersea cables capacity is also owned by CYTA. If you want your internet (adsl) connected fast go with CYTA they will come in a day or 2 . Primetel or any other provider must obtain the lease of the local loop before they can sign you up ( 30 working days for a new line) .

Customer service | Go to the offices of Primtel and Cyta and see . Primtel have no staff or engineers ,much the same on the phone . Same goes for MTN (adsl ) . Primetel may on the surface offer a better speed for less money but remember they buy bandwidth ( like wireless providers ) from CYTA . I had a 8 MB line with Primetel but only got 4MB . With Cyta I get exactly the speed I pay for but it is a bit more . Primtel also have 2 wifi networks on their routers , one encrypted for you and another open for others to use and pay Primetel direct ............thats right they use your power and bandwidth to feed another service.

Wireless Service Providers | They also buy bandwidth from Cyta , moreover they use the publicly available 5Ghz wifi channels for their network backbone. While it is a clearer than 2.4Ghz that is used in most home routers it can be subject to interference . Their is no way Wireless carrier operating on any frequency can be more reliable than cable ( adsl ) , especially over 5Ghz . Its just not possible . I dont even understand the Financial incentives , the gear costs over 100 Euro ,more than a proper wired connection.

So in summery if you really ,really need fast net with minimum latency whether its for gaming ,business ,TV you will really need ADSL from Cyta .

PS I dont work for CYTA .........

[Dominic]

Cyta customer services is excellent. When I was having issues the guy who I spoke to was very knowledgable and knew exactly what he was doing. A few years ago I had a sideline of refurbishing and reselling routers, and have plenty of experience dealing with poor customer services. I was very pleasantly surprised with Cyta.

I don't work for them either!

[smudger]

Been with Cyta since I moved here almost 11 years ago. Only ever had one problem and had engineers up several times until eventually they sussed the prob, it was the cable between the Cyta box and the house. Got a great local leccie in and it was damp in my internal walls, cable replaced within 30 mins. No probs since. Always find Cyta staff most helpful. V helpful recently with granddaughters iPhone, sorted instantly and no charge.

[Mark]

Been with Cyta since I moved here almost 11 years ago. Only ever had one problem and had engineers up several times until eventually they sussed the prob, it was the cable between the Cyta box and the house. Got a great local leccie in and it was damp in my internal walls, cable replaced within 30 mins. No probs since. Always find Cyta staff most helpful. V helpful recently with granddaughters iPhone, sorted instantly and no charge.

Agreed Smudger, you get what you pay for with Cytanet, I consistently get the 16 mb I pay for.
I pay the same as I did years ago when it was 4mb, it has doubled for free twice since then.

[Mark]

>Mark..how much do you pay a month?..just interested..no agenda!

62 euros including telephone, which I really do not need, for 16mb, which is consistent.
You can now exclude the line rental.

[deepthroat]

Agreed with the speed from Cyta .

Another thing to point out is that the choice of ISP should take security into consideration also . While the NSA already sift through your digital footprints , you can do a lot of fun things when you control the internet connection ,especially if you obtain your DNS automatically on your computer. Its not rocket science to make your browser redirect to another site that looks exactly like the one you thought your requested . Even the address in the browser would look correct if it was not encrypted .

Fine for a forum , not so good for a bank . Its called a man in the middle attack https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man-in-the-middle_attack and why you should not use internet banking over a public network ( even if its secured ) .

So you put a lot of trust in these WIFI guys . I believe only one guy from Coral Bay has the licence to operate as a WISP.

[bromerzz]

Over on the East I use Cosmos wireless and have done for the last 4 years. Great service with good ping to on island servers in region of 4 to 30ms, no download limits and comes with built in Geo Unblock for the UK. I used to be with Cyta but suffered all too often from 2 to 3 days whilst waiting for an engineer to come out - more if it was a Friday when you have a problem and wait till Wednesday or Thursday for them to look in the local cabinet.
I use the 50Mbps service for €60 a month. Cosmos uses the Cablenet backbone.
Have no desire to revert back to a landline.

[Expresspete]

Over on the East I use Cosmos wireless and have done for the last 4 years. Great service with good ping to on island servers in region of 4 to 30ms, no download limits and comes with built in Geo Unblock for the UK. I used to be with Cyta but suffered all too often from 2 to 3 days whilst waiting for an engineer to come out - more if it was a Friday when you have a problem and wait till Wednesday or Thursday for them to look in the local cabinet.
I use the 50Mbps service for €60 a month. Cosmos uses the Cablenet backbone.
Have no desire to revert back to a landline.

Does the weather (rain, wind or sun spots) have any effect on your reception/use (thinking in tv terms here)?

[bromerzz]

None what so ever. Never experienced any problems, I am within 2km of my local transmitter but I do have friends who are some 15kms away and they have no problems either. It does of course depend on the quality of the equipment the WISP company is using.