This is my second segment/part of the review. In this segment , I would be focusing on Internet Applications. That means how sites such as YouTube , Forums , Blogs and things like that would load. In other words , how good P1 in terms of productivity web applications and Internet entertainment.
As I’ve mentioned earlier I’ll be splitting this mega review into segments and parts. If you have missed the first segment/part , click here (Part 1 of the review) to read about it. I’ll be then creating an index (once the whole review is done) so that it would be easier for people to refer and jump into the section that they prefer. Do keep in mind that this is going to be a very long post as I’ll be basically talking and comparing stuff. Its not for the faint of heart !
Preface & Test Setup
Internet surfing has become an important part of our lives . We usually use Internet to download materials such as documents , music , videos , watch online videos over at YouTube , metacafe , surf social networking sites such as Facebook and chat with our friends through Instant Messengers or via Skype . Lastly but not least to check eBay , read news/blogs and e-mails too ! Its what an average user does it on the internet. Before I go any further , I would like to explain my test setup. To do such comparisons and review , we have to keep certain things constant so that it doesn’t influence other factors. Much like a science experiment , lets say if you want to study on the effect of light intensity on photosynthesis. You’ll keep the carbon dioxide concentration as the constant variable. Same thing goes here. I’ll try to keep certain things constant , so that our results aren’t biased
Now for the Test Setup
PC : Intel Pentium D 3.00Ghz | 4GB 533Mhz DDR2 RAM | Windows Vista Ultimate SP1 | Atheros WiFi 802.11g PCI Card
P1 WiMax : Connected to my NetGear Router
Streamyx : Connected to my Linksys WRT54G Router
Hold It ! – You may say that there aren’t connected to the same router. That’s right , you’re correct. Before I’ve connected to the router. I’ve tested how they perform on each router first and I found out that the numbers were insignificant (only by a small amount of margin) . Keep in mind that I didn’t enforce QoS or any other funny set of rulings in my router . I set it up as how an average consumer would set his router.
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Test 1 – 24 Hour/Overnight Connectivity Test
This is my first test. Its a simple test. All I did was to see if the connection can sustain for 24 hours without disconnecting. Disconnection is bad especially if you’re doing something or downloading something. I am sure that you can resume those back but there are some things that you can’t do with your new IP – i.e if you’re using a rapidshare free account to download a large file overnight. If the connection drops half the way , you’re forced to re download. In other words you’ll have to do it back in the morning. This is troublesome for some of us
P1 W1MAX – I got a green light (meaning the connection is superb) but if I leave the connection overnight and when I check the following day. I noticed that it has changed from solid green to blinking red. Well the only way I could get a connection was to restart the modem physically – as P1 doesn’t provide any Web Interface for users to reset the modem. So pretty much its not ideal to leave it overnight and to hope that you’re still connected the next day. Keep in mind that unlike streamyx/ADSL service , etc. You can’t dial-back or reset the modem through a router or a PC.
TM Streamyx – So far so good. I’ve to say that I am pretty impressed with my Streamyx. I can have my connection up and running for several days and even weeks without a single disconnection at all. Some users do face a ltot of disconnections as I think that its caused by the poor quality of their phone line. Overall , pretty happy with streamyx’s stability as I can still be connected to the Internet without a disconnection
Winner for this round : TM Streamyx
Reason : I can sustain a connection without a single disconnection for a day . For me its a big plus point. I want it to be stable
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Test 2 – Online Gaming (World Of Warcraft) (Local Server – hosted in Singapore)
I used to be a WoW player. Not that avid wow player but just someone who loves playing. Of course I didn’t have the money to play now and plus since I managed to get my GM account to test the latency and stuff. Anyway let me upload the screenshot for you and explain
Lets take a look at P1 W1MAX. Firstly as we see. The latency isn’t that great. Bear in mind , its wireless. So for those who wanting to play games at a lower latency. sorry to say that P1 may disappoint you in this case
As you see , the latency hovers between 200-300ms when in a raid. We’re talking about a server hosted in Singapore. Well for WoW , it isn’t so bad. Now lets compare it with a Streamyx/ADSL Connection.
Well I recommend you to click the picture and have a closer look at it. Highly recommend.
Winner : TM Streamyx (Current Score : 2-0)
Reason : From what I’ve observed , streamyx still beats P1 WiMax for Local Gaming (i.e servers which are hosted in Malaysia and Singapore). So if you’re going to play games such as fps (i.e Counter Strike ) then its better to go for Streamyx as the Latency is lower
Test 3 – Online Gaming (Star Wars Jedi Academy / US Server)
Now lets test how P1 WIMAX and Streamyx performs for this game. Okay , so I did connect to a random server (added to my favorite – which is hosted in US). I just want to see how the game performs in both the connection.
SW : JA on Streamyx Connection. Notice the latency that it goes from 360,s to 420ms when there are people 😛
As for P1 :-
SW : JA on P1 WiMax Connection. Notice is still under 350ms , despite the fact that I am fighting with another guy !
Well , it seems that p1 isn’t that bad when it comes to playing games such as Jedi Academy. I guess those who have said that p1 is bad for gaming are somewhat wrong . For Locally hosted games , the latency is high for wimax but for games which have their servers in US , Australia , etc – the latency seems to be pretty good and it kicks streamyx’s butt. The clear winner for this round is P1 WiMax
Winner : P1 WiMax (The Score is currently 1-2)
Reason : The screenshot has summed it up. Just take a look and compare it. I’ve to tell the latency is pretty stable for WiMax. Kudos guys , especially for your International links.So far so good !
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Test 4 – Internet Surfing/”Daily Usage” Test
In this test , I’ve tried to mimic how a normal user uses the Internet. Usually one would go to YouTube , message board , use Google search , read latest news , check e-mails and chat with friends !
I am not sure how to conduct this test. This test is based on how fast a site loads and such. I don’t know how to take snapshots , maybe at a later time I’ll try to record a video and post it in YouTube. Surfing experience seems to be better with P1 WiMax. YouTube loads fast , Facebook loads fast. Pretty much International sites loads fast and such. I can guarantee you that. As for local sites , they are about equally the same. So if you’re more into YouTube surfing , checking stocks and uh using social networking stuff. then P1 might do the trick. I just hope that they do not oversell their services just like how streamyx is doing currently. Oh I had no problems connecting to MSN/YAHOO with P1. Its just that Maxis is the only one with this problem
Winner : P1 WiMax (2-2) (Oh no its a tie)
Reason : I guess its because of the limited users now or because of their good management. Its because I think they enforce a good bandwidth management , 20GB user cap and throttle their bandwidth. The other reason I am guessing its because they enforce a Smart QoS (Quality of service) that would automatically prioritize which services needs a higher bandwidth and such. As for streamyx , you can’t basically do anything as you can use any modem you like and if you want to do your own QoS service , I recommend you to read my QoS Guide on how to do it
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Test 5 – The Torrent Test – Yes I Know that you’re waiting for this
Okay for this test I am testing out HeHeHunter’s Xunlei. The reason why I am used Xunlei instead of BitComet is that Xunlei doesn’t need any port forwarding. So its fair (since p1 doesn’t allow us to do port forwarding) I can’t do anything. For this test ,I’ll be downloading a copyrighted material. No I don’t endorse piracy , I am just trying to mimic how an average Internet user uses the Internet. Thats about it
Now if we take a look for Streamyx. The speed seems to be amazing fast for a 2Mbps line. Not bad I am pretty impressed with this client as well
If we take a look for P1 , the torrent speed isn’t great. Its because P1 enforces QoS. It automatically allocate speed when you torrent and when you use the net. In other words you could torrent and surf the Net at the same time without worrying about the fact that torrent slows down your Internet :P. Thats the beauty , anyway for die-hard torrent users it might not be something which they enjoy. For p1 its a win-win situation , they allow you to torrent but control the speed at an acceptable speed. The maximum that I was able to get was only 65 Kilobytes/sec. Not bad
Some may argue saying that TM throttles Torrent but if you take a look , P1 even does that. In fact every ISP these days throttle p2p connection as its consuming a large amount of bandwidth. Nevertheless , streamyx still wins in this case. I did manage to get full speed for it. On the other hand , P1 is being a bit nice and they do allow you to torrent (which is great) as ISPs such as Maxis blocks it fully (which is bad). The connection might be better during the wee hours of the morning when they aren’t many people using it. Oh yeah , at least I could get ~60Kilobytes/sec at this time of torrenting.
Winner : TMNet streamyx (Current Score 3-2)
Reason : Its still the best as its because they allow you to port forward and plus they don’t enforce any QoS in their modem settings. Its done over at that side ,w hich is great as you could still find ways to bypass it !
Test 6 – Direct Downloading
This is very important aspect for web developers , downloaders and gamers. As usually we use the internet to download game patches , softwares , and updates for our OS. Well for this test , I am going to download my wireless card driver for my COMPAQ laptop. Its hosted in a US Site . Keep in mind for streamyx the speed may be slow because of the recent International cable break down. I’ll do a retest once its back up
I’ve to say that p1 is the clear winner for this test. However , I’ll do a retest for streamyx at a later time
Winner : P1 WiMax (3-3)
Reason : The picture sums it all
My Conclusion : I am not going to rate both of my connections. If you take a look , both of them do have their own unique weakness and strengths as well. P1 seems to excel pretty good when we are dealing with sites and games which are located overseas. It seems to excel in that. On the contrary , streamyx seems to be doing a good job when it comes for heavy downloaders (especially if you torrent a lot) and if you play games in local servers such as in Singapore and in Malaysia. Its up to you to decide on which one to go. This is again my 2nd part of the review. I still have more to write about it. So that you can really decide which one to go. I can’t just say P1 or Streamyx is best. Its up to you , to decide which one you would prefer to use. Like I’ve said your usage style and my usage style varies
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In the next review , I’ll be doing more on VOIP , Video conference and maybe more on uploading. Since there are some of us would love to upload photos to our blog , flickr acocunt and such
Hmm it’s weird that you have such great speeds for torrent on your streamyx. While I on the other hand, is throttled badly for Bitcomet/Xunlei/Utorrent(except for 1.9 Alpha)
I find it weird that some people are throttled by TM but some aren’t? Doesn’t TM enforce throttle to like all torrent activities? I don’t know how people get away with it.
Xcens last blog post..Sorry, I won’t be updating soon.
need…. WiMAX…. in…. Puchong….. NOW!
Would you mind to include some one-click hosting sites like RapidShare, MegaUpload, etc for the downloading section?
Eric_Almightys last blog post..Hey Eric, Whatcha doin’ now? House moving
I’ll try to get an account and I’ll do the comparison. Version 3 will be up shortly
I use P1 WIMAX as an alternative when TMNUTS cable for rack over by cat or dolphins under the sea. It is impossible to access all my servers which is hosted in north US. P1 doesn’t have problem with that. But the 20gb bandwidth cap is pretty fast to use up when I lend my modem to my company to work as a backup. I have no choice but to hook it up or else no need to do business in 2 weeks time.
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Hi, I was wondering whether you did a test on LAN sharing using P1? The sales guy told me that I need to get a router and hook it to the modem but couldn’t give me an estimate how the sharing will affect the connection speed (mine is 2 people sharing). If it still gives it a decent 800kps (for the 1.2 Mbps) it’ll still be great but I’m just worried that sharing will slice down to less that 600kps. Do you think you can do a simple test on this aspect? I think many will be interested to know whether its worth it to share a single subscription between house members 🙂 Oh, btw, I have an Aztech ADSL wireless router, will it work for the P1?
No you don’t need a router. Currently , my P1 WiMax acts as a router. I’ve linked it up to a switch and also a wifi router (with DHCP Disabled , so that it acts as a Access Point). You’re able to connect up to 5 PCs . Shouldn’t be a problem. I would discourage people from connecting to the router directly without disabling DHCP in the router as it would create dual NAT (two routers) and double the overhead. So in short its possible !
I am surprised you get such good results w Streamyx. You are probably one of the v few lucky ones w good ports and good ground connection with low noise. For me Streamyx sucks all the way. P1 is currently smooth, fast for all sites. but their 20GB cap use up fast, after that you cannot BT anymore but other surfing is still WAY better than Streamyx. I guess different places do give different results.
I still wonder why. I guess I am the few of the lucky ones ! So far P1 is doing good (knock on wood). I just hope that they enable port forwarding for us kaki torrents to download at a faster speed and for gamers to host their own games
Are you really having b-r-o-a-d-band?
Click this links to check
What is Broadband? (http://www.broadband.co.uk/guide.jsp?section=1)
Connection speeds and download limits (http://www.broadband.co.uk/guide.jsp?section=3)
Is telephone cable the same as road highways?
1. Roads during peak period will have traffic jams.
2. However, telephone cables are similar to TNB cables.
3. One electric cable from TNB is connected to a row of terrace houses.
4. Bear in mind the usage of electricity is 24 hours per day in every house. Peak usage is during the night with TVs, airconds etc. Do you experience low voltage? Power surge perhaps.
5. Is broadband usage 24 hours? Is every house using broadband?
Therefore,
1. I urge everyone to check whether you are getting the download speed that you subscribed from streamyx. For your info, you should get at least 90%.
2. Please click this link to see how much speed you get. Click a few times to confirm. (http://promos.mcafee.com/speedometer/test_0150.asp)
3. If you are getting below 50%, please do a print screen.
4. To do a print screen, put your cursor at the down right hand corner (put the cursor at the time) to get the date and day appear. Once appear, press together the keyboard buttons ctrl and prt sc.
5. Next click start, All Programs, Accessories, Paint
6. Press keyboard buttons ctrl and v
7. Then File, Save As (put a name) Save into your desktop
8. Send it as attachment to [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
9. They need your support and evidence to bring up to TM
10. Please support for everyone benefit
Cool , its a good product review , keep up the good work 😉
Glad you found it useful sir !
Can you please tell me what port settings you used in utorrent to achieve 65kb/s? on P1
Ive tried everything i can think of but only getting around 2kb/s with P1 🙁
direct downloads are fast though.
I’ll be writing a tutorial or blog entry on how to do it shortly.
Im a P1Wimax user and up till today i had no problem with internet access whilst connecting the DS-300 modem directly to my PC. Today I bought myself a Prolink WGR1004 (how i wish i hadn’t) and set it up accordingly. My problem now is that my DS-300 modem is not blinking(no light) network connectivity and my router status is searching for DHCP IP address…(i think)and it never connects. So, while my router to pc connections have no problem, I can’t get internet access. If I connect the modem without router, no problem. Plus now, I can’t go to router home(e.g:… 192.168.1.1) Please advice.
well, for me.. P1 is ahead in terms of the ability to connect at a consistent as advertised.. However, since news came through that port forwarding is allowed, I cannot seem to find any advise on how to enable this, calling their hotline is pretty useless as they just told me that i need to sort out the port forwarding settings by myself..
Anyone out there who has successfully enabled the port forwarding?
Can anyone help me with portfowarding for P1 wimax?.. im creating a Counter-Strike game server on my own, i cant launch the server.. and its due to portfowarding.. its easier to do portfowarding on my previous Aztec Modem.. need help..
Whether you have cultivated your own personal seeds or have purchased the
seeds from the industrial Pot seed provider,
be sure that the seeds you are currently planting are
wholesome and also have germinating’s top chance.
The seeds you place are darkbrown incolor and not soft bright or even a light green look.
They need to also be circular and pretty big, though many stresses do develop perfectly great vegetables that are smaller,
generally hybrid seeds are smaller.