Forum Discussion

ilmontgo's avatar
ilmontgo
Sophomore
8 years ago

Gen 5 FAP Speed not 3 Mbps

Hello, I was a Gen 4 customer for a year and then was convinced to upgrade to Gen 5 when I called to cancel my service. One of the reasons I upgraded was that the sales person told me that after I used up my data, FAP bandwidth would be 3 Mbps. I ran out of anytime and bonus data early this month and have been in FAP mode 24/7 since. During this time, about 4 days now, speeds have been very slow (faster than Gen 4 FAP but not 3Mbps).

 

I've been testing with testmy.net randomly over this time period and the fastest I have observed is 1.5 Mbps, no matter whether during peak times or the middle of the night. I've read many topics here on speed testing and am aware of the standards requested:

  • multiple tests with more than 5 minutes between them, throughout the day and especially during reduced performance.
  • 25 MB download test and 3 MB upload test.
  • Connected by ethernet.

These were not connected by ethernet and I reduced download sizes to 8 and 12 MB because the 25 MB test would take several minutes. I understand the reason we are told to test through ethernet - to eliminate a variable. But I would argue that this variable is already eliminated since I do get (faster) speeds comparable to other subscribers when on wifi but not in FAP. Although the "congestion" factor does seem to affect me more than others describe... but that's a different topic. I'll schedule auto tests over ethernet through the night for the exact data that will inevitably be requested.

 

I'd like to believe there is something that can improve this speed but I doubt it and am once again feeling misled. Wondering what speeds others are observing in FAP with Gen 5? If you're compelled to respond with "it says 'up to' 3 Mbps",  please offer a possible explanation as to why it is so consistently less than half of the "up to" speed.

 

Thanks in advance

  • Amanda's avatar
    Amanda
    8 years ago

    No problem, I will PM you :)

  • Hi ilmontgo,

     

    We're very sorry about this. I was able to locate the call where you were offered the upgrade to Gen5 and did indeed hear the agent state the "No Hard Data Limits" speed was up to 3Mbps. I scoured our knowledge articles and could not find this information being provided to the agent, so we will definitely be going back to them and ensuring they understand the features and specifications of the service.

     

     

    Regarding the varying speeds after exceeding your allowance - traffic is categorized into different types, which is used to determine what our customers need most. When your allowance is exceeded, not only are your speeds slowed down, but certain activites may see further restriction (HD video, frequent file downloads, video chat). This prevents other customers who do have data from being affected by the few heaviest users. I recommend reading our network management statements here: http://legal.hughesnet.com/NetworkManagement.cfm

     

    If you'd like to keep the Gen5 service, I can see what I can do as far as getting the price lowered because of the incorrect information you were provided by the representative. Should you wish to cancel, we understand and would definitely waive your early termination fee.

     

    Thank you

    Amanda

    • ilmontgo's avatar
      ilmontgo
      Sophomore

      Amanda, thank you for your prompt and thorough response and for the options you presented. Liz scheduled a service provider site visit for tomorrow (10/3) to evaluate my situation/other issues so I will proceed with that and see what they say. I will reconnect on this topic after the visit unless for some reason the site visit voids your offers; if this is the case, please let me know asap and I will cancel the site visit. - Ian

      • C0RR0SIVE's avatar
        C0RR0SIVE
        Associate Professor

        I am sure the offer will still be valid as it is a result of misinformation during a sales call, and not because of performance.

      • ilmontgo's avatar
        ilmontgo
        Sophomore

        FYI, the speed tests are finished: http://testmy.net/quickstats/ilmontgo

        Max speed over 15 hours of testing was 1.41 Mb. Looks like the throttle is 1.5 Mb instead of 3 Mb.

         

        I suppose this doesn't really matter though as I read the Legal Fair Access Policy that's linked above and nowhere does it say 3 Mbps. I look forward to hearing the response to the review of the sales call because I'm sure they told me Gen 5 FAP was 3 Mbps.