Back in 2001, an unlimited 56Kbps dial-up connection costs Php5,500 a month. In 2004, an unlimited 128Kbps fixed wireless internet from Meredian Telekoms (later bought out by Smart to become Smartbro) costs Php8,888 a month.
In the year 2015, is it possible to get 1Gbps to the home for under Php10,000?
1Gbps fiber connection tested at one of the home of a PLDT Fibr’s subscriber. We saw speeds of hitting 877Mbps and higher. Over the course of the afternoon, around 500GB of data were downloaded in this connection by various media and bloggers who attended.
That is the question that is being addressed by PLDT when they invited us last Friday in one of the homes along Mckinley Road.
So yes, it is possible if you happen to live in any one of the 1,700 barangays, villages, subdivisions and condominiums in Metro Manila, Cebu, Davao and many other cities around the country.
Most of these locations are new fiber roll-outs while a few are upgrades to existing copper lines. These 1,700 locations might not be enough to cover majority of subscribers but it’s a start.
It was the same problem when ISPs where upgrading from dial-up to DSL which took years to complete.
While 1Gbps might be too much for many subscribers, there are still slower subscriptions plans that only offer 50Mbps, 100Mbps and 200Mbps that starts at Php2,899.
The second question is — when we the rest of us get to those fiber speeds? We hope it won’t be as long as the transition from dial-up to DSL. To check if your area is covered, just go to the PLDT Fibr website and do a search of your location.
For the meantime, we can only drool in jealousy on those who are already covered in gigabit fiber.
The post Can the Philippines really get to 1Gbps home internet? appeared first on YugaTech | Philippines News & Tech Reviews.