Discussions

Hi I was looking at one of the other cable company's in rural Manitoba and see there speeds are prices are way better then westman's I have nothing against westman love there service but I do think the upload speeds could be increased. etx 96.95 for 75MBS Down 7 up Westman vs comstream 100.00 100 MBS down 10 up  
https://www.commstream.net/residential/  
http://westmancom.com/personal/internet/high-speed-plans/

They are both wireless and cable, if we lived in Oak Lake or other towns they service we would be fine. lol

Be nice for westman to match those speeds and prices, pretty bad when a small cable company can offer cheaper prices and better speed.

Speeds may vary.... they reserve the right to limit data  
 
This is not better than fiber like mts or Westman. This internet/tv is meant for rural areas that can’t get city stuff.

For all of you that dont know yet and have netset. Netset now offers unlimited data and speeds of 25 MB/s down for 99.99. They do not really advertise it or make the effort to tell people about it. But I was paying 99.99 for 120 GB data and speeds of 10 mb/s.

This is one advantage of moving to Winnipeg.  
 
For the last three years I've been bouncing back and forth between Shaw and BellMTS on their $60/month Internet/TV/HomePhone deal. If neither are offering such a deal, I will just go to a third party ISP that uses Shaw's cables for cheap and drop the TV/Phone. I can get 75/7 from a third party for about $50/month.  
 
Westman didn't often offer great bundles, so flipping between them and MTS was tough.

I remember paying like $45 a month from westman in 2011 for internet no limit... I just go a wireless transmitter for my computer..  
 
I know that things have changed but you would think that it would be more available to people as time goes on... technology evolves... instead it looks they just want to charge more. That is why I opt out on having data on my cell phone. 80% of the places you go have free wifi

Mobile data is the biggest con there is out there. I'm a "tech guy" but I refuse to pay for a monthly data plan. Of course, that means in our family, Koodo or Public Mobile prepaid plans work very well for $15/month each. My Koodo data(emergency) and voice add-ons have been rolling over each month for a couple of years as texting is what I use the most and unlimited texting is i:ncluded.

BELLMTS prices are going up in the next few months. That's including TV , internet and home phone. Mine is set to go up $10/month. Not sure why as im not getting any better service.

We don't have data either as it seems redundant. I pay $180/year ($15/month) for my plan too, unlimited texting, limited daytime minutes but unlimited evenings and weekends. We use texting mostly too, I save the daytime minutes mostly for emergencies and so my kids' school can get ahold of me, etc.  
 
I'm always horrified at the "great deal" my mom got on her cell phone plan, LOL.

I know that shaw has opened there cable lines up for third party isp's is this a CRTC requirement, as westman has not opened there's up that i know of.

No idea, but my educated guess is that it depends on the size of the ISP.  
 
You would think that BellMTS would have to eventually allow third parties, but maybe keeping it as a "division" of Bell let's them get around it.

Might be a loophole that they're using , wouldn't doubt it lol

Greedy Bell is always raising prices, and the DSL performance is so-so.  
 
I've had more outages since Bell took over than I had during over a decade of MTS. I used to measure my uptime in years....

Speaking of third parties, does anyone know if you can get Comwave in Brandon? And does that tend to ride on the cable or the telco infrastructure?  
I see their annoying ads all the time but never thought to check if they have service around here. Not that I would want it (mine is fine for me).  
 
But it always helps to have options.  
 
Edited by Simonwalcal, 2019-04-17 10:07:24

Everything I've read about Comwave leads me to believe that you'd have to be insane to go with them. I've read both of instances of bad services and of exorbitant fees to cancel service.  
 
Personally would not touch with a 3.048 metre pole.

People dont realize Running an ISP costs money and it is a business and is designed to maximize profit while reducing cost . Everything costs money and it is getting more expensive to operate. Yes cellphone prices are a bit ridiculous in canada and I agree the big 3 need to lower the prices, Home internet is reasonable. Canada is in the top 20 best internet speeds and all the upgrades Bell is doing to Fiber optics costs billions of dollars that doesn't appear out of nowhere and the increasing operating costs is why we see all the smaller home ISP's such as MTS and Netset disappearing it is because they dont have the money to give their members the best service and need the big guys money to perform upgrades to the latest and greatest tech. I have noticed no change if not better service since Bell took over MTS and in my opinion people are just looking for a reason to blame Bell because they refuse to accept change. Im afraid it all boils down to adapt or get left behind in the tech world which if you even stutter for a second you are left behind.  
 
Edited by HappyGilmore, 2019-05-07 01:12:04

One website I visited said it best.  
"In many cases, the economy dictates that prices must be low, as that's what people can afford."  
 
If nobody bought internet the price would go down. Because we still pay the higher fees they keep the prices up. I have been a lifer for MTS but sorry service went down after Bell. I have actually made the switch. Costing went up yet speeds still remain the same. I asked if they would start being comparable to the local internet company and they said they were. When I compared plans and pricing they said they are comparable to Shaw. I laughed and said we can't even get Shaw so how is that comparing.

At the people who think because Bell bought MTS that service quality changed over night.  
 
Seriously.. you think that Bell bought MTS then had a crew come out and age the copper cables in the ground feeding your home over night? That they magically flipped a switch and it made the entire system be less reliable?  
 
Do you know what changed when Bell bought MTS? Internal policy changes. Affecting employees and processes. Do you know what changed for the customer? Pricing, to keep in line with other major players.  
 
If you have issues with Bell MTS service its prob crappy cabling in your house. If its an older house, if it an old area the copper cables in the ground might be on their last leg. So you know what Bell's solution is? String fiber in existing parts of the city at billions of dollars in cost. Change the copper network to full fiber with the highest reliability rates, the best ping times, the best speeds and a battery backup if power does go out.  
 
It's so entertaining seeing people think because Bell put their name on stuff and prices went up with all major companies that its Bells fault. Give your head's a shake

The best thing for Brandon is if the CRTC forces some decent wholesale rates on the BellMTS portion of Bell like they do in Ontario/Quebec. The third party ISP industry has been waiting forever for new rates, but as far as I know nothing has happened.  
 
If this was to happen, Teksavvy and others would become available in Brandon over the DSL lines. If Brandon was already served by Shaw instead of Westman, there would already be access to a number of third party ISPs. When my BellMTS deal ends here in Winnipeg, if Shaw doesn't have an Internet/TV deal, I'm going to jump to an ISP out of BC that offers 75/7 for $50/month.  
 
The problem is a lack of competition, and as a tiny market player, Westman is not forced to open up the cable lines. As a former regional, neither was MTS, but as part of Bell I would hope the CRTC changes that.

Unsure why but its cheaper to go with there basic business plane then Residential plane and faster spend.  
XSTREAM 12  
$ 67 95  
12Mbs download, 3Mbs upload  
Basic  
$ 59 95 *PER MO.  
 
Speed – Up to 30 Mbps download, 3 Mbps upload speed

Westman Communications Group uses coaxial cable lines in most places in Brandon, believe they have fiber in the new developments, coaxial cable can handle such more bandwidth then copper wire. Westman is using docss 3.0 i belive and Bell Mts VDSL2 and fiber in new developments.