In the Stix Broadband

Living in the Stix has some drawbacks ... probably more in Mexico than the US or Canada. Living as close to Melaque as we do you would think a landline telephone would be considered a necessity and a safety issue. But no .... Telmex only goes where it can make money. It wasn't long ago in some areas where they did have service you had to wait for a phone line or people would sell their service (how I don't know). Even with the phone lines you need the extra hardware for Internet so no time soon here.

In the void someone in Jaluco started a service of line of sight broadband and that was gong to be an option for me for awhile. A store owner on the Plaza knew who ran the service but thought I should not join because shared bandwidth would affect her service. One neighbor who had the service just moved to Melaque and the mechanic took down his pole because it made a perfect lightning rod and it fried his computer. So I guess the store owner will have all the bandwidth because I'm sticking with my CEL modem.

In the Stix Broadband

Fixed wireless repeaters

Similar to receivers used here

Slim Pickens

And Slim be doin' the picken

I haven't been the biggest fan of Telcel for the last three years but since we have no Telmex phone or Internet service in our little community there aren't any other options.   I've come to realize a CEL phone is the way to go for flexibility but you need the right "plan" and the right phone.   I was taken in with the free IPhone if you pay upfront.  Also taken with the thought of Internet on the run.   Problem is I can't stand Internet on something as small as a phone so a smart phone 1/2 or 1/3 the price would have worked just fine .... and NOT Apple.

My first cheap Nokia died within months and Telcel said humidity voided the warranty.   Second cheap Nokia they gave me a Manzanillo prefix so my time flew off the phone.   Gift to neighbors.

Thinking I needed a real phone I was prepped to spend way more than I needed.  I guess being cool and up-to-date was part of it. So my free phone was an Iphone 3s when the model 4's had been out for about a year.   I didn't know the difference and Telcel was clearing their inventory.   The contract was for 2 years and within 6 months I knew I was wasting money on the extras.  Patiently, patiently I waited until last November when my bill jumped from 500 pesos to 1500.  Figured out that upgrading the Apple IOS turned everything Internet on and was on 24/7.  Not Telcel's fault but proof I did not need an Internet phone.   Finally was able to cancel in December at the end of 2 years with a very expensive final bill.

So about a week ago I received my bills via Email expecting only for this modem .... and sure enough there was my phone bill for January and February to the tune of 1000+ pesos.    Another trip to Telcel in Manzanillo and was told even though I had paid and canceled I was missing another piece of paper which I was never told about.  They also said I was using the phone in February for something but I had thrown the old SIM card away in January and bought a new Amigo - pay as you go plan.   Finally when asking for a supervisor the clerk changed her mind and I have another piece of paper that may be the official thing ???   Just checked my online account and it's still there ??

Also while trying to handle this by phone instead of another Manzanillo trip ..... the 800# only talking to help desk personnel charged my phone almost 40 pesos.   Slim is a pickin'    !!!! 

Back in the connected world

I've been trying to get back into the connected world since I moved to my house outside of Melaque where there is no telephone or Internet. Two weeks ago I got my first cel phone, the Nokia 1616 below. That's the cheapest phone and for $350 pesos you get the phone and $100 pesos of airtime.

First cel phone in this day and age ... yes I know, I should have had one before. Had to have a neighbor teach me how to use it. Pretty easy really and things went well for the first week.

In the mean time I was evaluating my Internet options including a radio type transmission from a nearby community. That would have involved building a tower and buying sending and receiving dishes. Quite a bit of money for only a shared signal that may not be around next year.

Everyone said Iusacell was cheaper but the signal was weak in our area so I finally went into Telcel last week to see what was available. What a surprise to find they had an unlimited Internet service with a USB modem and an IPhone for $700 pesos a month. That package does require an 18 month contract and a credit check ... but I was approved and it's not much more than a 2meg service from Telmex.   And no I didn't have to pay extra for the Iphone or USB .... it's included in the contract price.

I'm now using the USB modem with my desktop and was quite excited to start using the Iphone to browse the web and check email. Sadly Telcel messed up the activation and neither one of the phones work even tho I had $100 peso credit on the Nokia. The messages say my SIM cards are not registered. I can guess at the problem but this will require another trip to Telcel in Manzanillo.

Oh well, at least I have Internet on this computer and will report what the mis-configuration problem was later this week.

Seems the SIM cards were reversed so problem solved. Another correction is that the USB connection thru this computer has a 10 gig limit. Only the Iphone has unlimited Internet time and gigabites.

I added the Speed Test image which is from a server in Guadalajara. The servers in the US gave me .85 megs and 1.2 megs. The service is rated at 2.5 megs.

Things are changing again

This weekend I will have 3 houses, Shoe's until Monday, the one I'll be house sitting starting Saturday and mine in Pinal Villa for quite awhile longer. Tomorrow I head to Manzanillo to turn off the service here at Shoe's and also try to get on a list of phone/Internet service in Pinal Villa.

(No Internet for 2-3 days during this transition!!)

The phone here is not in my name and I could just walk away like many do if they are leaving the country or service is not in their name. I assume there will only be bills for a call or two from last month, I don't want service next month so next to nothing should be owed. Hopefully Telmex just wants their ancient modem back ... and if not I'll just shrug my shoulders and say, "It's not me".

The other issue is phone service in Pinal Villa, of which there is none. Supposedly they need a list of 100 residents wanting service before they will wire the community. If there is a list I will get on it. If not then I've heard some positive stories about Telcel (wireless) reception in this area from others in my situation.

So we all need to go to Manzanillo now and then ....  I'll try to do some shopping and be back for Water Volleyball in the afternoon. We'll see if I make it

I was thinking of driving to Manzanillo Friday .... but that is Friday the 13th.   Reduce the risks

Dealing with Telmex

I lost my wireless modem in an electrical storm about two months ago and never considered that Telmex would replace them for free. You just have to jump through the hoops that phone support wants you to and be patient.

In my case I had borrowed a non-wireless modem so I'd not be off line in the meantime. I called them up with the bad modem connected so I could report what the lights were doing and what color. The answer/diagnoses I got was "we have line/switch problems in your area and please wait 72 hours for it to be fixed". I say OK and immediately switch modems and plan to wait 72 hours and call them back. After 4 days I called them back to find that they monitored my line and saw I had Internet activity so the problem solved itself (they sure didn't). This time I had to explain I was using a second modem and that`s when they decided to send a technician. Very nice guy, hardly looked at my old modem and promptly swapped them for a newer model.

For the last few weeks I've also had intermittant or very slow connection speeds and it continued with this new modem. I decided to plug everything into my second phone jack in the living room .... and WA-LA, connected at full speed. I replaced the phone cable and the wall jack and now things are good.

A Dealing with Telmex story - Mexico