A lot of people always ask me – “How’s the Internet in the Philippines?” And, the question is not surprising to hear. One of the big reasons is because you always hear about how bad Internet Connectivity is here. Slow. Unreliable. In and out. Generally Bad. That is what you always hear. Well, my experience has been that it isn’t as bad as you hear, although it is not great either. Right now, though, I must say that I am in Internet Heaven. I’ll explain in a bit.
Firstly, let me say that Internet-wise, I came to the Philippines unspoiled by super-fast broadband. I lived in a relatively remote place in the USA, no broadband available. At the time I moved to the Philippines, broadband was just starting to become available in residential areas anyway, but had yet to reach our location out in the sticks. So, I had grown up on dial-up connections. When we moved here, I was disappointed in the Internet anyway, it was not nearly as good as the dial-up I had experienced in the USA.
When we moved from GenSan to Davao, in 2002, I was pretty happy with the Internet that I was able to get in Davao. We were able to get DSL for the first time in my life. Speed? Ha ha… it was a blazing fast 256 Kbps connection! Well, that was fast for me, compared to what I had been used to, and I was pretty happy with it. That connection was from PLDT (Philippine Long Distance Telephone).
I remained a PLDT customer for 7 years, and always had their most premium residential plan. In the end, I was “supposed to have” a 3 Mbps connection, although I rarely even could get speed readings approaching 500 Kbps. I left PLDT because they kept cutting me off for no reason! First, they said I didn’t pay my bill, even though I showed them a receipt for payment. The next time cut off my account, they could give no reason. Finally, they cut me off for the third time in a month, and the reason they gave (after several days of me demanding to know why), was that they were repairing a cable in my neighborhood, and that I would be off line for “at least 2 weeks.” That was all I could take, so I terminated my account with them.
SmartBro Share It Router with my Vonage ATA
I got a connection from SmartBro at that time (June 2008). The account was only 384 Kbps, but surprisingly, I could not tell any difference between that and the 3 Mbps that PLDT was supposed to be providing for me (at a much higher price). I liked SmartBro so much that I got a second SmartBro account in just a few days. I have a number of computers operating in the house, so I wanted to get the bandwidth that two accounts could offer me. The account was only P999 (about $20) per month anyway, so I was not too worried about having to pay for two accounts.
A few weeks ago, I read an article about a new service from SmartBro called “Share It.” This “Share It” service is also P999 per month, the same price I was already paying. The catch was, though, that the connection was 2 Mbps instead of 384 Kbps. Wow, that’s like 8 times the speed! Same price! How could you possibly go wrong?
With the Share It service, you pay an initial fee of P2,500, which gives you a wireless router that allows you to share the service among 5 computers (no wonder they call it “Share It” service). I already have two WiFi networks in my house, sharing the other SmartBro accounts, so I really didn’t need another WiFi router, but it is necessary, because this WiFi router is also the modem for SmartBro Share It service. You see, you put a Smart Broadband SIM inside the router. The SIM looks just like a Cellphone SIM card, and it lets the Router connect to the 3.5G service on the Cell Network (HSPDA service).
I got the router on Thursday last week. When I got home, I put the SIM card in the router, plugged it in, and was on the Internet through the new service in less than 5 minutes. It is simple to hook up, and no hassle! Through Internet Speed Tests, I get results ranging from 1.3 Mbps to 1.9 Mbps all the time. Very reliable, and very good!
As I have been writing this article, there are 3 people connected to the Share It service right now. I am also listening to a US Radio station while writing. I just finished using my Vonage telephone to talk with my Mom. All of this going on at the same time, and Internet Speed is excellent, even with all of this activity.
Wow, talk about heaven! I am very happy with SmartBro Share It service, and I recommend it to anybody who is looking for a good broadband service here in the Philippines. P999 per month for 2 Mbps or so? How can you beat that? As far as I know, you can’t!
About MindanaoBob
thanks, bob. as you know, i’m in the process of planning my triumphant return & wondering which net service to use.
i was leaning towards PLDT, but this makes way more sense for my laptop, ipod touch & other wireless devices that i will be bringing with me.
hi bob,
My primary business here in the middle east I provide a wireless internet connectivity to western housing compounds and military hospital for both roaming and fixed wireless, I’ve been into this business since 1997 that was the time the wireless was first introduced and there was no “wifi standardization” yet, basically, I am into providing internet using different methods either a dialup, wireless, vsat etc..etc..
The problem with the philippine internet is not the actual internet infrastructure, philippines has an advanced sea cable, terrestial, fiber-ops across the S.E. asia region, the main problem with the dsl connections are in two folds, first, the existing copperwire which was laid 20 years ago are no longer suited to handle high speed bandwidth due to deterioration and the old copper wires are not rated or for such service, most cables installed 20 years ago are rated for voice quality only and not for data.
secondly, the problem is with the “business” side of it, most providers in the philippines always uses the term “Up to” it can means you can reach a speed of “up to” blah blah speed, it can be from 0kbps to 2mbps or whatever speed they advertised,
There’s a technical term called a “Contention Ratio” and “Dedicated Bandwidth or CIR”, contention ratio means that there are 2 or more users in a single speed, in other words, if the advertised speed is “up to 2mbps” that would mean it is a contented bandwidth, there could be 20 or more users sharing that speed from the provider’s circuit, I have many friends who worked for PLDT and they are telling me that there are at least a 50:1 ratio in a single 2mbps speed, contention ratio in a dsl service are very common among the provider even in the states, HOWEVER, most ratio from a good provider limit it to 2:1 or 3:1 or with a maximum of 5:1 in order to provide the client with a decent speed, in the philippines the problem is that most isp “over share” the ratio to 50:1 which can render the speed unacceptable or very slow.
If the advertised speed is up to 2mbps for 999 pesos per month, don’t expect you will get the advertised speed, internet bandwidth is very expensive even in the states and around the world, there is no such thing as 999 pesos for a dedicated 2mbps speed, it is so expensive that in some western countries some providers limit the user download to a certain amount such as 5gb per month for $20
unless the provider advertised a “dedicated speed or CIR (Committed Information Rate) then you can be sure that you can get the speed you payed for.
for those who plan to subscribe to any provider in the philippines, you better ask the ISP agent or sale rep about the REAL speed or whether it is a CIR or Contented Bandwidth, most of them can answer your question and they would probably offer you another subscription plan with a certain CIR. Some provider such as DigiHELL can offer you a 2mbps with 512kbps CIR, what it means is, you can get a maximum 2mbps if the users in your group are offline and you are the only user online, but when everyone goes online you are guaranteed to get 512kbps for 6 thousand pesos a month (I am not promoting digiHELL here, it so happen I know they are offering it)
anyway, be carefull with the ISP’s advertisement as most of them are misleading.
Good information Bob. I took your advice before and signed up for a Vonage phone. I hope to also get a smartbro connection too. Okay you figured me out ….. I want to be just like Bob! Your experiences are very helpful to us newbies. Thanks Bob!
Hi bob,
Enjoy your high speed internet while there are few users subscribed to it, give it a month or so and you will see it will start to slow down, some 3.5g HSPDA are limited to 21mbps and some are limited to 7.2mbps or 3.6mbps.
Hi Bob,
I was delighted with your article. This is really good news for me if I decide to move to Davao in the future. Topnotch internet connectivity is very important to me.
As usual you are a great resource for the latest information of interest to future ex-pats!
Hi Bob – Our Vonage calls showed no noticeable problems from this end. I’m wondering if PLDT would do a “no-fee” (outside of the PHP2,500, of course) upgrade of service?
Additionally, can you tell me if the wireless router includes a wired port or two for a computer? Don’t want to rush into things just to discover I need to make the fleet WiFi compatable!
Hi Bob – since I didn’t get a chance to talk to you after my lesson, I’ll just let you know here that it was an improvement over the previous service. In particular the sound was better. Not perfect, but improved. I don’t believe we had a disconnect, which in itself is welcome.
Would still like to give the other method a shot if we can work it out sometime.
Really good news to see the service improving there!
Kamusta ka Bob,
Congrats on the new speed Bob, sounds great, and makes your job a little easier and “faster” now.
Wow, the dial up was slower than in the USA, when you first moved there? I can remember my days on AOL using dial up, and can’t imagine it being slower than that. Anyways, is good news for you and what awaits me in the Philippines.
Salamat kaayo,
Danny
I still have to go to town Bob. no internet at my place ..no wireless yet eather ..so here I sit at a cafe doing my typing with every one else ..Phil n Jess
there seems to be a conflict on the smart bro share it webpage (http://www.yugatech.com/blog/telecoms/smartbro-share-it-now-unlimited-at-php999/). It says unlimited but then is says up to 90 hrs use then they charge 0.35 pesos per minute. which one have you experienced?
Hi Bob is that a wired connection or a wireless modem ? we have a wireless modem connection which is supposed to be “up to” 512kbs but I rarely see that but i think most of the problem is due to atmospheric conditions and air wave interference i think if we had a wired connection which Globe also offers for the same price of 995 per month but with the wired it “up to” 1MB which is the route we are planning to go. Great subject tho, I am the spoiled American with high bandwidth broadband connection experience, but all i can say is … it’s getting better !
wat is a vonage phone?
anyone interested in creating a fantasy football league? email me if you like to create one. temiller63@hotmail.com
Sounds like you are closer to ” The Fast Lane ” now Bob and if anyone deserves it you certainly do. I made use of Internet Cafes quite a bit during my visits there in Iligan and CDO to keep in touch with people and found the speed ” satisfactory ” and reliability good, for what I was using it for. I believe all of them were on a DSL circuit.
Recent trend here in the USA is ISP’s putting ” usage Limits ” on individual subscribers I believe to go after ” usage abusers ” who load down the system downloading too many Movies or attempting to operate servers out of their house ( I think on some systems that violates terms of service on residential subscriptions ). I just about paniced when my ISP sent out notices about usage limits which in my case is 250 gig per month. Comcasst Cable assuerd me after describing how I use the internet that most likely I would never even approach that limit. They explained that to disconnect abusers from their service they had to come up with a written policy specifying a certain limit. Other ISP’s however have usage limits a lot lower than mine.
My area is now experiencing an ” invasion ” of Verizon( Telephone Company ) trucks installing an all fiber optic system right to the house and in a few months I guess the 50 yr old copper will be removed although I don’t know if I will change from what I have now which cost me $40 a month.
Those ” up to ” speeds have always been mentioned here too with no specific speed being guaranteed.
Good luck with your faster service there Bob and enjoy listening to radio webstreams. I have listened to some radio from Cagayan De Oro on the internet from here.
Currently we are using the SmartBro Prepaid modem… I.E. load it with so many pesos and you get a certain number of minutes (30mins/P10). It’s one of those things that “seemed like a good idea at the time” and I imagine with me out of the country Venice has saved money over PLDT. Anyhow the connection speed with the SmartBro Prepaid is horrible, barely better than dialup so naturally I am leery about buying into a Smart Postpaid internet plan. However I will add it into the mix, because PLDT was definately overshared in El Rio and I don’t know how good it will be in Diho.
I think what Dans mentioned is common all over the world, where you buy a certain bandwidth, but end up with less. Although I do “miss” the tunes of my 56k modem connecting to the ISP, the bills could get quite high if you were a regular user. I have a 20/2 Mbit line (downstream/upstream) in Denmark, without limits on use for about 400 DKK (~4000 pesos) per month, with a laptop constantly running as a server (apache/mysql, ventrilo, etc. – also connected to my television, for use as mediacenter) and it all runs smoothly =)
I used to buy the pirated movies/music/software in the philippines and thailand … and although some of it was low quality once in a while, so was the price. I do wonder if those booths will still exist in ~10 years from now though, when many more are connected with high speeds to the internet and can download that stuff themselves?
Dating myself, but I can remember how proud I was jumping from 300 baud to 1500 baud here in the US. Can you imagine how long it would take a current-day webpage to load at those speeds? Great article. I’m so pleased to see that the Philippines is offering services that allow reasonable use of the internet.
Sounds like you have it better in the Philippines than I do here in UT. I live a bit out in the country and slow isn’t the word. I’m used to it, but when my daughter comes to my house and uses my computer, I hear nothing but complaints. Just depends on what we get used to. LOL
good for you bob
i’m a smart bro user, and this (share it) i must try because there are about 3 members of our household sharing our current broadband connection. is it true that you can use the sim on your phone as well?
Mine works better than it did in the U.S. and is a whole lot cheaper. Never have problems with it. Have smart Bro. here in Bulacan. BOB
After 7 years with no internet, a kid from Smart knocks on my gate and offers it to me. Three days later a truck shows up from Smart and guys get out and carring some fancy meter, stand at the top of my roof and tell me no signal. SOL was the resoonce I received. Since I have satelite TV I was confused (natural state for me).
That night my Son-in-Law drops by and I explain my day to him (he’s a good kid)He then took my Nokia 3G Cell phone (I’m on a Globe Monthly Plan) and a tiny CD and had me on the internet in five minutes. So for those who live in places like mine,there is an answer. I did ask him how long he knew about that! Head scratch again.
Hi Bob,
My sister sent me the vonage package and I was able to set it up with my PLDT. However, my sister told me that if I call her using Vonage, she will incurr extra charges. Is that true? Or if I continue to use Vonage here in the Philippines, she’ll just pay her monthly due without additional charges?
Thanks in advance for your response.
I understood that Globe has a similar plan – 995 or something. The router comes free I heard. Do you know anything about this? I am looking into getting it for my wife’s family in Manila.
I knew I should have visited this site sooner. PLDT also kept cutting us off, GRRRRRRRRRR! We just switched to Globe, maybe I should also get that Smart thing…
I have been so busy ughh. I gotta catch up on this site, LOL!
Hi Bob,
Can you tell me what you needed to do to get the Smartbro Share It? Did you just go to a store and buy the router and SIM card and set it up yourself? Or did you have to sign up with Smart, wait a few days, etc.
I’m a little concerned because my sister has PLDT DSL in their house and she just told me that it is down (again)! I can’t have this happening while I am there. I need reliable broadband service for my work. I may have to get this Smart Share It.
I have tried the SmartBro USB Modem but found it too slow.
Thanks!
hi all, have you try it for online gaming? like games which eat a lot of bandwidths? my smartbro canopy will end next month, i want to try “share it”
Hi macky – I am quite happy with the service I have. There is a hard limit of 5 connections at one time, just in case that would affect your plans.
Hi dans – Yes, having lived here for nearly a decade, I am well aware of the “up to” that these providers always use. But, I’m used to that. I am also quite happy with the service being provided. Hope it remains that way!
Glad to help, Tom. Hey! I never got any credit from Vonage for your signup! Did you click through my link? If so, they short-changed me.
We will see, dans.
Hi Randall – I’m not sure if I’d call it “top notch” or not, but I am certainly happy with it! I’m sure it would work out for you too!
Hi Paul – Yes, the WiFi router includes one LAN connection too, but only one. I tried hooking up a hub to that, but could not get it to work. Perhaps that could be done, but I couldn’t do it.
Hi Randy – No problem… I will help Bebe do the GTalk whenever I am home at your lesson time, which is most of the time.
I am not sure on GTalk. It was great when you and I tried it. Dave Starr and I have been trying to use it daily, though, and have had significant trouble with it.
Hi Danny – Was the dialup slower here? Like 1/10th the speed! It was like a dinosaur!
Happy Birthday, by the way!
Hi Phil – If you are able to get Smart Cellphone signal, you should be able to get some flavor of SmartBro. Good luck!
Yes I did go through your link so you would get credit. I have noticed that I got a bill so I did not get the free months service promised also. I guess if we both call and complain maybe they will correct this.
Hi Tom – I have contacted Vonage to see what happened. I don’t mind if people sign up whatever way, but if you used the banner, we should both get the referral credit! I don’t like it when they make a promise and don’t deliver on it!
Hi Bob – Perhaps that LAN connection can be hooked up to the Vonage box and the Vonage’s LAN out to a router – similar to what I use with the 999 SmartBro?
Try doing a bridge connection Bob as you can’t go from one router into another but you can bridge them
Hi Tom – They used to offer 90 hours per month, with surcharges after that. They recently upgraded it to unlimited monthly use. Perhaps they did not update parts of the webpage yet. It is 100% certainly unlimited use, though.
Hi Paul – I have my Vonage box hooked up to the LAN, as you suggest. I have an old Vonage box, it doesn’t have “LAN out” – I didn’t even know that such a thing existed!
My Vonage box is 8 years old, it’s already an antique! 
Sounds like that might work, though.
Thanks for the info. this is the first time i have visited your website and its got a lot of great info. I have been living in the phil for 8 yrs now. i have bookmarked your website and will take a look at it every few days or so. again thanks
Hi Tom – That’s great! Thanks for visiting! Where do you live, by the way?
I live in Pasay. i have been married for 4 yrs and i am retired US navy. I am also working here as an ESL teacher.
Hi Tom – Since this is off-topic, much better if you post this over on the Live in the Philippines Forum. Or, if you would like to write a guest article about creating an expats Fantasy Football league, you would be most welcome to do so, just contact me and let me know.
Great info, Tom! Thanks for stopping by, I hope we see you more often!
Hi Tommy – This is wireless 100%. What you have (I think) is a Smartbro canopy system (antenna outside, right). Yes, that is rated at “up to 512 Kbps”. The 3.5G HSPDA system that I have is the same price you are paying (except the P2500 buy in), and is rated up to 2 Mbps. My old connection was the same as what you have, I think.
Hi Tom – Vonage is a Voice over the Internet telephone. I have been a customer for about 8 years or so now. I have a US phone number, and people can call me just as if I were in the USA. It uses a regular telephone, so you are not tied to the computer. You don’t even need to turn the computer on to use it.
wer can i get info abt vonage phone
Hi Tom – To learn more about Vonage, you should click here. If you sign up through that link you and I will each get 2 free months of service.
Hi Bob – Thanks for your comment. I hope that the usage metering never comes to the Philippines… because (shhh…) I would be considered an abuser. I use a ton of bandwidth! (don’t tell anybody, this is only between us, and twenty or thirty thousand others who read this site!).
Hi brspiritus – When you are back in town, come by and give my Share It a try and see what you think. Right now, I am very happy with it.
Hello Bob.
Interesting topic. I remember still the time when one had to go to the phonecompany if one had to make an overseas call. Reading your article I was wondering if you have tried to use SKYPE. I use it a lot and the sound quality is good to exellent, when calling RP.
Hi Preben – Yes, I have used Skype. Personally, I prefer Vonage.
Hi Adamite – I totally agree with you about the “up to” thing. It’s worldwide that speeds delivered don’t match what is offered “up to”. I am quite happy with the service that I have, though.
Ok I will take you up on that Bob.
Hi Evelyn – I know how you feel! Been there, done that! I am so happy with what I have now! A few weeks, I’ll probably be hoping for something faster, though! I guess that’s how we are as humans!
Hi dharmabum – I have been told that you can put the sim in your phone and surf on your phone (assuming is 3g or hspda ready), but have not tried it. I think you should be able to, though.
got an n97, no postpaid data plan though so i can’t say i’ve been taking full advantage of the phone
Hi Bob – Glad that it is working out for you! I’ve been happy (mostly) with SmartBro for the past year or more. This new upgrade has me very happy.
Hi Paul – That son-in-law is a good guy to have around!
Hi Chris – If you call here, there will be no charges for her to pay. If your Vonage number is in the same exchange as hers, or a local exchange, there would also be no charges due. It’s a local call, after all!
That’s called ‘Globe Tattoo” Steve. It is not unlimited service, and also the router is not a wifi system that can handle multiple computers.
Hi Cheryll Ann – Haven’t heard from you in ages! I’m glad to see you back again! I am still quite happy with the Smart Bro system that I have! I recommend it.
HI Tina – Well… it may not work out for you, since you will be here a short time only. You go to the PLDT office (PLDT owns Smart) and sign up. There is a 12 month commitment, so you must sign up for one year of service. You will pay P2,500 for the router, and P999 first month service. Then, it can take 1 or 2 days for them to activate the SIM. You just take the router home, and plug it in… it just works! No real setup required. I don’t know if the 12 month commitment will be a problem for you. Also, since you are not a resident, you may not be allowed to sign up. But, certainly somebody in your family could do it.
Hi Bob,
Thanks for the prompt response. Well, since we’ve all been unhappy with PLDT’s DSL, my thought was to convince my sister & her husband to switch to SmartBro Share It. This PLDT DSL outage was constantly happening while I was there in April. Only thing is I don’t know if they’re locked in on a 12-month contract or something of that sort. Will find out.
BTW, can you set up a password on the SmartBro router?
Also, did you get my email?
Thanks again.
Hi Tina – Yeah, you can set up the SmartBro ShareIt to be password protected, which is what I did for mine.
On the e-mail, you mean the one about your Dad’s birthday? Yep, got it, didn’t have a chance to reply yet. But, I will mark the date on my calendar! Thanks!
I’m sorry, I do not play games online, so I have not tried that.