i was wondering if swift 4g internet is the beast in lagos at the moment ,i found out that they have gb limitation and 30k data plan unlimited has a restriction of 512kb speed

Yes, the swift4G is the best arround now in Lagos, with wider coverage now in egbeda, ogba, Alapere(these are places have used it successfully) have been using it since last year, it takes me average of 1-2hours to download a 1.5gb file(if I have 3-4bars coverage oo!). And the browsing experience is Good.

I HOPE AND PRAY THEY WILL KEEP IT UP.

zankey:

Yes, thes wift 4G is the best arround now in Lagos, with wider coverage now in egbeda, ogba, Alapere(these are places have used it successfully) have been using it since last year, it takes me average of 1-2hours to download a 1.5gb file(if I have 3-4bars coverage oo!). And the browsing experience is Good. I HOPE AND PRAY THEY WILL KEEP IT UP.

thats not whta i heard from peeps experience. Let others attest to this. And let someone tell us abt MOBITEL too. Difficult to trust all this network. Please share your experiences if you have one.

I think Swift is good. Have used there services very well. I go all the way from Ibafo to Onike
because I need to use there facility I don't mean this there 4G Router o o o
the Cafe they run in conjuction with business owners. I tell there has never been any time
regretting what I need to pay for transportation al to get a fast and reliable connection for my heavy
download,

swift is a fraud!!!! though they hav relatively fast internet but they use up ur money lyk crazy,
i started usin swift 4G in february, (10 gb bandwidth), 15k 4 one month, And after 3 days, they cut me off, i called them nd they said it was an accountin problem, they rectified it, nd in 5 mins i started browsin,
A week after, they cut me off again nd i called them again, then they said i had 18k left wen i jst paid 15k, so i paid 15k out of d 18k remainin 3k, afta that i started browsin,
after lyk a week plus, i was cut off again nd i called them and this tym they told me i had used up my 10gb bandwidth!

i ddnt want to argue wif them cus i had spent so much money even tryin 2 call them,
I paid 4 anoda month, 15k, And to my surprise, in exactly 10 days, they cut me off and i asked why, they told me i had used 10gb in 10 days after strict monitoring cus, i tot dey were billin me 4 wat i ddnt use, we have only 3 active computers in my house, so i started puttin it off wen i'm nt using it and stopped all downloads, And still this!

I have told them i wud neva use swift 4G again nd i'll mess them up in d media, its absurd!

Well, so far so good, swift' been okay in my office at Ajah. We use the 12k option and has been working for close to a month now.

@Dabraska, I don't use Swift but from your post, i don't think Swift is the problem here. You are downloading what you don't want without knowing. Most computers download things at the background without your knowledge because someone set it that way without knowing. Some softwares do download things automatically without informing you. You better check your system and disable every automated downloads. Check your download statistics from the browser software. Windows update can use up your data too. I wish you luck.

For now its Swift 4G all the way, relatively faster compare to other existing networks
we have been using it in my office for months now and we have no cause to regret except for some instances where we were cut off before our expiry period.

@Dabraska, to maximise your data bundle, always turn off windows automatic updates cos it usually runs in the background and it downloads a lot of updates dat you are not even aware of thereby using up your data bundle without you being aware.

To Turn Off Automatic Updates

Goto Start button

Click Control Panel

Click Windows Updates

Goto Change Settings on the left pane

Set it to 'Never Check for Updates (not recommended) '

Untentable:

@Dabraska, to maximise your data bundle, always turn off windows automatic updates cos it usually runs in the background and it downloads a lot of updates dat you are not even aware of thereby using up your data bundle without you being aware.

To Turn Off Automatic Updates

Goto Start button

Click Control Panel

Click Windows Updates

Goto Change Settings on the left pane

Set it to 'Never Check for Updates (not recommended) '

Thanks for this info.
i have always been worried about how my system requires me to update all the time.

30k 4 one month haba.dat means mtn slowlink is still the best

It is good enough when you compare with others in its Nigerian environment. The 10GB cap that was recently introduced is totally crappy though.

@Untentable: thnks very much, i will try wat u've said, thnks again!

@Dabraska, I don't use Swift but from your post, i don't think Swift is the problem here. You are downloading what you don't want without knowing. Most computers download things at the background without your knowledge because someone set it that way without knowing. Some softwares do download things automatically without informing you. You better check your system and disable every automated downloads. Check your download statistics from the browser software. Windows update can use up your data too. I wish you luck.

As a very experienced programmer and expert in ICT, I beg to disagree that the problem is windows update. Window full installation is not even up to 5GB so to say windows update consumed 10GB is very wrong. The problem is from swift.  Most of these networks have bugs in their systems that malfunction from time to time and it can affect customers. This is not supposed to be a very big issue if they had good customer service. But most of them have very terrible customer service. I think the customer service is something you should consider when you buy a modem.

The best in my books are

1. Starcomms
2. VISA
3. SWIFT
4. ZOOM
5. GLO
6. AIRTEL
7. ETISALAT
8. MTN

Criteria include, speed, cost, coverage, connectivity, reliability and customer service.

for example, ZOOM is very good in terms of speed and connectivity but their coverage is very poor.
VISA is very good for speed, coverage, customer service is fair and connectivity is good but their pricing is crap and expensive.
Swift is good but very expensive. Good speed, good connectivity, coverage is increasing but you can mostly use it in Lagos. Their plans are expensive too.  about the worst in terms of cost.
GLO, ETISALAT and AIRTEL are good and about the same in terms of performance and pricing. Average customer service apart from AIRTEL who has a fairly good customer service. Etisalat has a lot of their process automated though which is cool.
MTN is good in some areas but the slowest in terms of speed and has poor connectivity. Also very poor customer service.
Startcomms is good in most areas but their congestion is their major problem.

And just to add that the 3G or 4G claim is scam. They are all still operating on 2G or less. downloading 1.5G in 2hours is very slow compared to 3G or 4G. But we are just managing them for now.

they should just stop sending me annoying text messages every day

Truth be told, all these network providers have their pros and their cons, Especially the GSM operators, Well, as for me, the real deal has been starcomms; though a bit expensive, you can be rest assured that you'd get nothing but the best from them! I'm still looking to try out this 'SWIFT 4G' thingy though,

Ha I tire for people O! Swift 4G d best Ke? On what parameters?
Considering no technical hitches Glo has no rival. I have downloaded 1Gig in less than 5mins & even in the afternoon my connection hits speeds of about 1.5-2MB/s. Yeah I know people will ask have you used the others & my response is yes. I currently browse with Airtel & MTN @ night 3GB/N2500 options and use Glo 150MB/N1000 option during the daytime. As we say in Benin 'cunny man die, cunny man bury am'. When using glo as well as most capped bandwidth packages its advisable to stop most applications that will consume a lot of data like the updaters e.g. Windows update, windows security essentials etc. To do this click on START on the search box type msconfig and wait for msconfig to appear on top and then click. Go to services and unmark the programs that consume bandwidth by stopping them from loading and then Ok & restart.

Using their services this way allows me to reduce data usage as well as ability to roam to any network when any of them are having technical issues as well as reduce the rate of flow of hard earned cash from me pocket.
I used Swift 4G before and I must say those guys have the worst customer relations desk in Nigeria or maybe on the planet. They don't offer flexibility that is ability to use one hardware on different networks. As an IT savvy person I also know that if a particular base station covering say Lekki Ph1 can accept 10GB data then the more people are connected to that base station that will effectively reduce the bandwidth per user. Also if a base station is not optically connected to the backbone that also will affect its bandwidth. Power is another issue. There is hardly power in some neighbourhoods so the gen sets have to run for long periods which in turn in most cases reduces the voltage not current churned out from these sets. A reduction in voltage results to a reduction in bandwidth or sometimes a change from HSDPA to EDGE or even GPRS because the faster technologies require more power.
So if you're looking for speed then its Glo but not too pocket friendly. if u want to just be connected without bandwidth limitations perhaps Visafone or Starccoms but not fast.
I repeat as for speed Glo has no rival.

I have used Glo and I like their data plans. I think their speed is good but VISA is faster and doesnt break. ZOOM is about the fastest if you live in their coverage area. MTN is annoying.

IMHO, ipNX is the best. Far more stable and reliable than SWIFT. I've used both, so I can tell.

But then again, it depends on the area and the congestion level on the provider's base-stations in these areas. But then again, ipNX seems to have more coverage and a variety of modems to choose from.

Just my 2 cents, happy browsing!!!!

Visa is too slow in my area

^^^^ hmmm. . . .ipnx ke, that was then when they first started not now that they have bitten more than they can chew

@damola1 - a very good breakdown
@toblosky - like the cliche there 'mtn slowlink'
@edicolove - u're very on point about the 3G or 4G claim, it's largely a scam but partly true (depends on area and even at that not constant in those areas).

Basically internet in the country is still very expensive and not commensurate to the costs. Having said that, what we need from the numerous Service Providers is a detailed visual breakdown of what the maximum bandwidth (in whatever form i.e 2G, 2.5G, 3G, 4G, CDMA2000, HSDPA, EDGE, etc) offered in each coverage area/Local Government is in each state. That way, you can make your judgement based on what is available to you in your locale before you purchase.

Not that everyone comes to 'lie' to the public that they are offering 3G in Lagos when it's only available in certain areas of Lagos.

Truth be told they play on the limited tech knowledge of the larger populace and hide under the gimmick of it being the game of the trade and unfortunately for us our regulatory bodies (NCC, ISPAN, etc) turn a blind-eye to these sharp practices.

Who noticed the death of the GSM Forum programme that was ran some years back, where the citizens had the opportunity to interact directly with the telco representatives and quiz them on their services, costs and whatever it was that they were not doing right?? Such brilliant initiatives have quietly been swept under the carpet as the customer had taken centre stage.

s.dollar what did you see to the last post here.

zankey:

Yes, the swift4G is the best arround now in Lagos, with wider coverage now in egbeda, ogba, Alapere(these are places have used it successfully) have been using it since last year, it takes me average of 1-2hours to download a 1.5gb file(if I have 3-4bars coverage oo!). And the browsing experience is Good.

I HOPE AND PRAY THEY WILL KEEP IT UP.

mat6plus:

I think Swift is good. Have used there services very well. I go all the way from Ibafo to Onike
because I need to use there facility I don't mean this there 4G Router o o o
the Cafe they run in conjuction with business owners. I tell there has never been any time
regretting what I need to pay for transportation al to get a fast and reliable connection for my heavy
download,

@mat6plus and Zankey. What cyber cafes uses this Swift 4g? I have been trying to download a particular software in the last weeks. 777 Megabytes, and it says that it will take me 13 hours using visa phone. The problem that I am having is that Visa phone cannot stay connected for up to 5 hours straight without loosing connection. Once connection is lost, you have to start the download process all over again. I am so --- (I don't even know what word or adjective to use, frustrated is an understatement). I would appreciate a response. Please text/hit me up on 07043339139 or reply to this post with an address to the cyber cafe anywhere in lagos, I am willing to travel. Thanks in advance

jason2010:




@mat6plus and Zankey. What cyber cafes uses this Swift 4g? I have been trying to download a particular software in the last weeks. 777 Megabytes, and it says that it will take me 13 hours using visa phone. The problem that I am having is that Visa phone cannot stay connected for up to 5 hours straight without loosing connection. Once connection is lost, you have to start the download process all over again. I am so --- (I don't even know what word or adjective to use, frustrated is an understatement). I would appreciate a response. Please text/hit me up on 07043339139 or reply to this post with an address to the cyber cafe anywhere in lagos, I am willing to travel. Thanks in advance

I know of one at the Silverbird gallaria. You may have to go with you own laptop though. Its powered by Swift Networks. I hope it helps. Lets know what your experience is after using any of it.

@bracelet. Thanks a lot. Definitely checking it out tomorrow. I appreciate the 411. Will let you guys know how it turns out

Just started using MOBITEL around Dolphin are not BAD. its fairly fast and i have the aura (mobile hotspot) which enable s 5 devices simultaneously. good for IPAD, LAPTOP, IPHONE combo and its unlimited/10GB per month at 1mb (that's the claim) we will see but its far faster than my old starcomms and much more flexible. All i do is create a wifi spot and i can allow people to log on and use as i want.

the price is not that bad considering its 24/7 and that flexible.

In my experience and I've tried a few the Best is Glo but only if you have 3g coverage in your area (blue light)

second surprisingly is Cobranet very stable and decent (and constant) speed but again you must have green light on your modem

so it's all dependent on coverage


you can click my past post history for my experience with Swift!

@jason2010,try free download manager(FDM).It should resume download from where it stopped,after connection is re-estabished