Problem with T-Com and Arcor ADSL speed

Hello all,

Just found this amazing forum and registered myself at once. So this is my first post here...also English is not my native language!! :D

I am facing the following major problem and although I did a search, couldn't find anything related...

I live in MG (JHQ Area) and did an Internet-Phone connection at the local Deutche Post dealer, on Jan 2007. The phone is analogue and the DSL package was the "Call & Surf Comfort 6000". The technician came and set up the line, but from the moment he left, I found out that the speed was 384 only!! I have been several time to the T-Com dealer here in the camp and she says that it's a common problem with the lines inside here!! The b...ch didn't told me that earlier so as not to have this package and pay 51€ monthly, but the basic one with 2000 speed and 35€ monthly. It was all for the money...

Anyway, I've been trying to contact T-Com, no one speaks English. They give me a number where they suppose to speak English but no one ever answered!!! I send 2 letters of complaint to T-Com via e-mail, one in English & one in German (translated via babelfish). No need to say that they ignored me...

Being fed up with this situation, I went 1 week ago to an outside ARCOR dealer in a nearby town - who thankfully speaks English - so as to try to change my connection and try ARCOR. He sees my T-Com contract and says "Well, your contract is for staying 12 months in this service, I don't know if we can do anything now". I reply back "Yes but also my contract says speed 6000 or at least close to that and in no way speed 384!!!". They can't provide me what I'm paying for the last 7 months so I want to get rid of them and I want it NOW!!

I ask him then to check whether ARCOR can provide me with DSL in the area where I live, he does a search in his ARCOR Dealers Intranet and shows me his PC screen displaying that for my phone number in my street address, available speeds are 2000, 6000 & 16000!! Then, he offers me the following: He will make a new contract with ARCOR for me, for the speed of 6000, for 39€ monthly (12€ monthly less than T-Com I pay now), but stating clearly in the contract that if ARCOR speed is anything less than 6000, I will not accept this contract and cancel it at once.

Being happy for all the above and hoping that I will get rid of T-Com, I came home and browse in the ARCOR internet site, where I tested if DSL is available in my home, through the tool up left in their homepage. What a surprise, I input my phone and address data and the result was "Unfortunately DSL is not at all available for this phone number in this area. You can have ISDN 128 maximum only"!!! :blink: What the hell???

I cal back the guy in ARCOR, tell him about the above DSL availability result and he verifies it from his PC too. But the funny thing is that on his ARCOR Dealers Intranet, my area and phone number can have DSL up to 16000!! What to believe?? His final words were the following: "Well, I'll send an e-mail to ARCOR Central Services and they will tell me which one is true, or most updated data. In any case, we will proceed the cancellation of T-Com and only if ARCOR verifies that they can provide you with DSL, minimum speed of 2000".

Sorry for my big post, that's my big issue with T-Com and ARCOR...any opinions-help on this would be highly appreciated guys!!

Did you have a question? It sounds like everything is being taken care of.

There are a few important points here to consider.

1. You noticed the problem straight away, but that's now 6 months ago. You contract probably had a clause in it giving you the chance to cancel within 2 weeks or 1 month (depends on how it was sold / type of contract) - IN WRITING. It's no use calling them, if you want to cancel then you must do it in writing and on time.

2. The speeds are usually advertised as "up to 6MBit/s" or "up to 2MBit/s" and someone in the small print is "may be less due to local circumstances". Yours may well be a "local" problem, which is why Arcor have difficulties estimating the speed as well. It may be that T-Com can deliver DSL6000 to your line in theory, but something technical inside the base is slowing the linespeed down. If T-Com can't deliver DSL6000, then it's likely that Arcor can, as the distance to the exchange and the local conditions at your site will still be the same.

Also, T-Com normally write to you if they can't manage the DSL6000 before they activate the line, which again points to something local.

3. Call&Surf Comfort does not consist exclusively of DSL, but has the telephone flat in it as well. If you asked for a telephone flat, then Call&Surf Basic would have only included a set number of free minutes per month (currently 120 for analogue and 240 for ISDN). Maybe that's why they didn't offer it to you?

I think the only reasonable course of action after all this time is to write to T-Com/T-Home and ask for a "Downgrade" to Call&Surf Basic, if you can live without the telephone flat. If they won't, then sit it out to the rest of the year and make sure you get your cancellation in on time before changing to someone else.

A word of warning: if you do change, there are two things you might want to avoid -

- providers that don't use normal lines, but use VoIP over the DSL line. This would be a disaster with your line speed (see Arcor ISDN ordered but VOIP delivered)
- providers that block call-by-call, in case you want to call numbers abroad, ie. 010xx (see Arcor phone line and dialling prefixes).

DISCLAIMER: This entry is my own personal opinion and does not constitute any form of legal advice.

Sometimes I have problems with my t-com dsl. I've found the best solution is to unplug the router from the power for about 5-10 minutes and let it reset its internal memory. Then when it reboots everything seems to work much better.

Well, here's how I see things:

1) I've been to the T-Com sales center within the first month and complained, got the answer "all people inside here got the same problem, can't do anything about it cause the lines are too old". First month in Germany, I was dying for a phone line & Internet, couldn't go through all the waiting period again...and for what? I wouldn't have higher speed anyway, I was told. Just save me 15€ monthly.

2) The T-Com answer for my low speed was that my house was 6.3Km away from the nearest LAN center, that's why only 384 arrived here!! Didn't understand the final phrase of "2", ARCOR likely "can" or "can't" is what you wanted to say? Because if it's "can", then it's all I want.

3) I don't know more than 3-4 people in Germany so I wouldn't have a problem with the 2 hours contract. The point is that she (dealer) didn't told me that at all, only to go for the higher speed!!

As for the solution you're suggesting me, I phoned again today to T-Com and they said they can do me a "Downgrade" to Call&Surf Basic" but with a new 24months contract this time!!!

I'll have to wait for ARCOR's answer and I see what I'll do next...possibly sit and wait another 5 months...

Any other suggestions are most welcome

Done that already, it's not an instand problem with my line, it's permanent!!

I'm looking for any advise or suggestions mate...

Seems to me you have a noisy or poor quality line into your home which limits the ability for high speed DSL but explains why everyone thinks, from line length alone (which is how the initially estimate capability) you should be able to achieve better. My suggestions are "live with it" or "move house"

#2 is a typo, it should have read "If T-Com can't deliver DSL6000, then it's unlikely that Arcor can".

Your main problem will be that even though you responded within a month, the people you spoke to are unlikely to remember or be able to do anything about it. Only if you complained in writing would this be any good to you now. If they had downgraded you then it would only have been a 12 month contract starting again from scratch, and they would only have had to change your contract in the computer without re-connecting the line.

It might be worth writing to them now and putting forward your case for a downgrade. The call centre agents probaby don't even have the option to do this on their screens - they can only downgrade with the 24 month extension.

btw, I don't like this sudden change to 24 month miniumum contracts, but that's the way it is

You might like to read this entry about my experience with an alledged T-Com call centre.

Thank you all for your answers guys...

Not true. Arcor generally use AEG DSLAMS unlike Telekom who use Siemens. Because they are more sensitive the AEG/Arcor solution can reach further than a Siemens/Telekom configuration over the same line, which can lead to potential higher speeds as the line limit approaches. No much, but a little - maybe a couple of hundred metres more reach or 1.5Mbit Arcor where only 1MBit Telekom is available.

From my exp, this problem could be solved by upgrading the router-firmware. try if an upgrade is available for your model.

Dear all,

today bad news arrived inside an ARCOR official letter.

They say that for my house-area-phone is not available any DSL Connection but only ISDN!!!

So as you see, I'm obliged to have 384 speed for the next 2,5 years I'll stay here...

Now what guys?? Send that letter - suggested earlier - for a downgrade to the "Call & Surf Basic" package, so as to save me 15€ monthly right???

cable internet provider Unitymedia (formerly ish) has recently upgraded its cable network in MG ...

http://www.unitymedia.de/breitband/index.html

and Filiago offers a 2-way satellite solution ...

http://www.filiago-shop.de/sess/utn;jsessi...ndex.shopscript

I´m using ASTRAnet Satellite/ISDN ...

http://www.astranet.de/

It seems the problem does not lie on the wires but the distance. DSL subscribers cannot be too far from the central box.

You have only ISDN? A normal ISDN is 64kbps and it uses your phone line! (dial up). Be sure they do not charge you for the call. You can get 128 with channel bonding (using both telephone lines).

But you will be probably stuck with that unless Internet arrives through other channels. Do you get cable TV in your area? Some cable providers do Internet/Telephony too. Or, if you get coverage, check mobile Internet with UMTS providers

Good luck.

Thank's for the info mate...

Regarding Unitymedia, I've checked my street and the answer was "For the address indicated by you Internet and telephone are at present are not yet available."

As for Filiago, the Filiago Flat 1024 will cost me another 40€ monthly, same price for ASTRAnet Power 1024 Kbit/s...

Read all my posts mate, I already have ADSL 384 with T-Com Call & Surf Comfort...

You say "house-area-phone", you are on a military base, right? So does your phone line get routed through a central exchange, even if you have your own number and telephone bill. I remember a situation once when it was the exchange in a similar situation that was obscuring the DSL signal and thus reducing the line speed. The obvious solution is to nudge T-Com into giving you a dedicated line and not via the exchange. The question then will be: did they do it that way because they had to, or was it because the line just happened to be already wired up that way?

If not, yes - order the Call&Surf Basic as soon as possible as a downgrade, but don't bother writing to them about it as that will just prolong the situation. Visit the T-Home homepage and do it online. Normally they give you a 20EUR discount on your next bill for doing it online, I'm not sure if that applies to downgrades but as it's also a contract extension it might do.

PM me if you want me go through the online form with you.

Well, I wont bother anymore with searching about the line (yes I live in a base)...

You've got PM