Tag Archives | dsl

Ogero Announces Its Fiber Deployment Timeplan

By Rami on November 23, 2018 in Telecom

If you regularly visit Ogero’s website then you probably have noticed that they recently published their plan for deploying the fiber network (FTTX) around Lebanon.

Over the next three years and until min 2021, the time-plan shows that at the end of each quarter a number of areas will start benefiting from the FTTX project. Still, the schedule seems to be subject to change since the exchange office I am connected to was set to be done by Q4 2018 but I noticed today that it was delayed along with several other area till Q2 2019.

I personally can’t wait till my DSL line gets on board the Fiber project because my internet connection speed has been unbearable for almost two years now, and the last time I tried to complain once again to Ogero’s support I got a mediocre argument and funnily enough, they requested that I ask my ISP (IDM) to follow-up on my problem with them instead of me doing it personally. (Because logic!!)

Anyway, you can stay up to date with the time-plan on this link and don’t forget to keep your fingers crosses.

Touch Now Offers Residential Data Plans at Discounted Prices

By Rami on October 26, 2018 in Telecom

Remember how bad was my internet at home? Well it never changed (thank you Ogero), so I eventually switched to using data plans by Touch and Alfa over a 3G router I have and was paying up to ~$100 depending on my usage.

However last week I noticed that touch now has residential internet plans at the following rates:

25GB for $35
50GB for $59
100GB for $109
150GB for $159
250GB for $200

You can check the offers here. Prices are not inclusive of VAT and are definitely better than what you pay for mobile plans (20GB at $46 for example), and they’re of course more expensive than what you get from ISPs but it’s not really fair to compare a mobile operator to an ISP.

The only drawback though is that it seems to be compatible with Touch 4G/4.5G routers only wich cost between $70 and $135, whereas I would have preferred to be given the ability to use my own router. Moreover, I wish they had free traffic quota at night.

Anyway, if you also have problems with your home internet connection, then it’s good to know that plans by Touch are not more affordable now until the DSL infrastructure is hopefully fully upgraded.

Ogero Website Finally Got a Makeover

By Rami on December 26, 2017 in Telecom

Ogero’s website finally just got a very long due makeover! I’m personally used to paying my landline bill online and I absolutely hated how hideous it was… the design was so outdated that one can even doubt the information that were available there were left from the nineties.

Anyway, so I wanted to check my bill today and was surprised with the new version (right now in beta). The website has several new functionalities now such as more controls to the members area allowing subscribers to activate/deactivate phone and internet services, in addition to of course paying bills and viewing previous invoices. Moreover, an online directory has been made available to search for a subscriber’s phone number.

And for those planning to apply for a DSL subscription, a simple form can be used to check the maximum speed supported by their phone line.

Still, some little things can definitely be improved such as making the directory design homogeneous with website look and feel, and changing the way you select a phone number when paying a phone bill because it is a bit confusing right now, but all in all I’m quite satisfied with this new upgrade.

A mobile app is also expected to be released soon by the way, so stay tuned if you prefer to manage your account on the go.

Ogero is Now Offering Residential Fiber Connection in Hamra and Achrafieh

By Rami on September 2, 2017 in Telecom

You’re so lucky if you live in Achrafieh or Hamra because Ogero announced two days ago that they started offering fiber connections there, and you can apply to the service by sending an email to thepeople@ogero.gov.lb.

I don’t imagine the procedure to be very straight forward because it certainly involves changing the wiring and Ogero didn’t provide any further explanation about that yet.

Anyway, while this is a big step forward for the residents in these two areas, you can’t but think about the big gap being created among the users of the same phone network, and you can clearly see it in the comments on Ogero’s page. Some can’t benefit from more than 1 or 2Mb connections and others can’t even have DSL installed at their premises, while others on the other hand are benefiting from open speed plans and now fiber connections…

And let’s not forget also the problems that need miracles to be fixed such as mine which has been trailing with IDM and Ogero for more than 5 months now. At some point I’m starting to think it will only be solved once I move to Beirut!

The solution for all of this is certainly an infrastructure overhaul, but given how slow our governments tend to be with fulfilling promises, I really hope we get to see this during our lifetime.

So Did Your DSL Speed Improve?

By Rami on August 3, 2017 in Telecom

It’s been three days now since the new plans recently announced by Ogero became effective, and with them came the “open speed” packages which allow subscriber to benefit from the maximum speed their phone lines can handle.

All other ISPs have updated their existing plans well, and the most flexible ones are offered by IDM and Cyberia. Others like Sodetel and Wise have less options, but no matter what provider you are subscribed too you can get a decent plan for ~$20.

I have tested the speed upgrades at a friend in Achrafieh who is now getting ~3.5Mbps instead of the 2Mbps he was originally subcribed too, and at my parents in Kaskas area who are now getting ~6Mbps (The latter spoiled my kid by the way because YouTube videos were loading pretty fast on is iPad! 😛 ). On the other hand, people who live relatively far from the exchange offices will be limited to 1 or 2Mbps.

I personally was quite excited when the plans were originally announced in May, but unfortunately shortly after that I started experiencing disconnection with my home connection that lasted several hours everyday, and extremely low speeds whenever I get lucky and my modem connects. So I followed up with IDM (my ISP) and Ogero to troubleshoot the problem for over a couple of months until I was recently informed by Ogero that the problem is due to a defected cable in my area which cannot be replaced anytime soon, and that I have to deal with my current connection until further notice.

This is quite frustrating to be honest since the monthly subscription we pay for our landlines is at minimum supposed to cover the technical failure that might occur on the network, and that should of course include main cables feeding a whole area…!

Anyway, until a miracle restores my connection, I am currently considering switching to a wireless solution such as Connect which recently updated their plans with higher data caps.

Ogero New DSL Prices Finally Approved

By Rami on June 8, 2017 in Telecom

Remember the new DSL prices that were proposed by Ogero earlier in May? They were finally approved by the cabinet yesterday with a slight modification and should be effective in a couple of weeks once the decree is published in the Official Gazette.

As I mentioned before, people who will benefit the most are those who live near any of Ogero’s exchange offices since their phone lines can handle better speeds. Others will unfortunately have to wait up to two year until the phone network is upgraded.

As for the minority who is blessed with connectivity using fiber optic cables, the below rates apply.

The above prices are of course only applicable to Ogero subscribers, so we should soon expect other ISPs to announce new competitive packages.

Finally, with respect to mobile data bundles, telecom minister Jarrah also announced that E1 prices will be reduced as well which only makes it logical for 3G and 4G data plan prices to decrease as well, so let’s cross our fingers!

New OGERO DSL Prices Announced by General Director Imad Kreidieh

By Rami on May 11, 2017 in Telecom

Imad Kreidieh, the general director of OGERO, announced on his twitter account last night the new DSL prices that should soon be offered to the public once approved by the cabinet and they are as follows:

2Mbps / Ulimited – 60,000L.L
4Mbps / 40GB – 24,000L.L
Open speed / 50GB – 30,000L.L
Open speed / 100GB – 45,000L.L
Open speed / 150GB – 60,000L.L
HDSL / 100GB – 100,000L.L
Open speed / 200GB – 75,000L.L

Note that open speed means as much as your phone line can handle. And according to the tests OGERO is currently conducting the speeds are reaching up to 10 and 12Mbps for people that are close to the exchange offices. As for free night quota, Kreidieh claimed it will not be available at this stage.

Needless to say, any price reduction to the DSL service is good to us, and I believe these new prices are quite fair. What I also wish is to have the process of switching from one ISP to another made easier since it takes up to two months right now.

OGERO #UnleashTheSpeed – Test Results in Achrafieh

By Rami on April 13, 2017 in Telecom

Today marked the third day in Ogero’s “Unleash the speed” tests for subscribers in Beirut, and among the exchange offices that were included today is the Achrafieh exchange office, so I passed by one of my friends there in the area to test the “unleashed” bandwidth myself!

I eventually used speedtest.net and picked a server in Lyon that I usually use to test my home connection. I performed numerous tests and was impressed by the download speed which was consistent at ~6.5Mbps (3 times the subscription original speed), however the ping latency varied from 90 milliseconds as shown above up to 300 milliseconds, it’s worth noting though that ping to local servers at Cyberia and Connect was consistently less than 50 milliseconds.

Assuming the subscription fees will remain unchanged or hopefully decrease, the speed upgrades are much welcome but the latency thing should definitely be reduced to provide a better experience for online gamers. Aside from that, the ultimate challenge for Ogero will of course be to cope with the increasing demand on bandwidth once they remove the speed caps for all subscribers. People are currently barely getting the speeds they are subscribed to, so increasing line speeds without having the necessary bandwidth to cater for the users is going to be pretty disappointing.

Anyway, I don’t want to be pessimistic about the upgrade plan, but let’s just keep our fingers crossed until it is all done.

The New Connect Ads Are Spot On

By Rami on March 31, 2017 in Telecom

It’s almost the end of the month, and as per Ogero’s new Director General Imad Kreidieh our internet speeds are supposed to double or triple by tomorrow! However, unless he is a magician, I really don’t see how the speeds are going to increase with the current rotting telephone network… I have mentioned it several times before, as long as copper wires are still used to connect households to central offices I really can’t see the connection quality getting better.

I personally have been feeling very frustrated with my DSL connection for quite some time now due to speed and latency degradation in the evening. In fact, I can rarely enjoy online gaming anytime before 10 or 11PM… which recently got me thinking of switching to some wireless internet provider. Using 3G or 4G would definitely be the optimal solution but the bundles are quite expensive for home usage and lack of free night traffic is a deal breaker.

Aside from their witty ads, I have been hearing some positive feedback about Connect and I’m considering checking if they can allow me to test their connection where I live before committing to one of their plan, and I will definitely subscribe in case their service was stable throughout the day.

Another possible solution could be to talk to your neighborhood’s “hayda taba3 l cable” who basically provides you with internet by installing a wireless atenna/access-point on your building’s roof. Even though no one really knows where they get their capacities from, they surprisingly provide good speed an latency. A guy I know in Dekwaneh for example gets <100ms latency to google.com which is pretty decent in Lebanon. The drawback however is that the service gets totally fucked during winter time…

Anyway, I will let you know how it goes with me!

Everybody can hack into your Blink wireless router!

By Rami on February 28, 2013 in Lebanon

It’s not a secret anymore that the routers you get from Ogero once you subscribe to their Blink DSL service can easily be hacked since their WiFi password is very easy to retrieve.

First of all, Blink routers are by default secured using WEP encryption which is very weak and can be cracked using wireless penetration tools. Second, they can easily be identified since they all have an SSID (network name) following this pattern “BlinkXXXXXX” where XXXXXX is a 6 character code, and this isn’t just any random code as it is derived from the router’s serial number. Unfortunately, the same applies to the WiFi password, it isn’t generated randomly but rather derived from the router’s serial number as well.

Logically speaking, if you encounter a Blink network and were able to reverse the operation in a way that lets you guess the router’s serial number from the 6 character code in the SSID, retrieving the password would then be a piece of cake since it can be derived from this serial. That’s basically what some people have been doing for a while now since several tools are already available online allowing you enter the 6 character code once you stumble across a Blink network, and gives you the password in a few seconds.

Up until lately, I was thinking the usage of these tools was somehow minimal and limited to techies since you will rarely find them on Lebanese website, until I lately came across this new Android application called “Hack Blink” with a download count of over 10,000 and rapidly increasing.

Using the application is very straight forward, you enter the code and wait for the password, I tried it and it does work. So if you have a blink subscription, be sure someone around you will soon or later have this application and eventually start consuming your bandwidth.

Fortunately, there is a way to stop people from doing that by reconfiguring your router using this manual I found on Ogero’s website (which applies to Thomson routers). I strongly recommend you use that manual to change your SSID and setting the encryption algorithm to WPA2, in addition to of course changing the default wireless password. If you encounter any difficulty, make sure to either contact their customer support or just head to the nearest Ogero office in order for some support person to help you do it.

Best solution is definitely for Ogero to stop ordering their routers to be configured this way!

Thanks to @ZuZ for the information he previously provided in this post.

Update:

@AbirGhattas just informed me “Hack Blink” was removed from the Play Store. I still recommend you change your router’s default settings.