SIMBA Fibre Broadband

[xiaofan]

Signed up for 10gbps SIMBA broadband about 2 weeks ago, so far it's been quite disappointing:
- 10gbps plan, but I'm only getting around 600mbps up/down in speedtest, it can drop to 200mbps at certain time, never been able to achieve anything higher than 700mbps, I am using AX router on MacBook with wifi 6 capability, so I'm not sure what's the issue
- Gaming on simba is really bad, it just seems like they are not able to connect to singapore server directly, and need to route through Hong Kong etc just to reach back to singapore server, so you get very high latency 100ms+ on alot of games like mobile legend etc, previously on M1 and this was never an issue.
- CGNAT, meaning you won't be able to connect back to your own network to use as VPN etc, not a deal breaker for me but useful to have when travelling to certain countries

Regret signing up, but with the 1 year minimum contract, I got no choice but to stick with it. If they don't fix this by the contract expiration, I will definitely be porting back out to one of the big 3 telco.

I do not recommend new users to subscribe to SIMBA mainly due to stability and support issues, then it has other issues as well.

1. Cannot help on the Gaming and CGNAT side.

1) SIMBA does not have good connections to Singtel and probably Starhub network as well. So that is probably the reason you are having latency issues with local gaming server.

2) SIMBA will probably not change the use of CGNAT but they provide IPv6 as a potential work-around (but that means you need to have access to IPv6 network if you want to use IPv6 for VPN or remote access back to home network). For remote access you can use things like Tailscale or Zerotier.

2. But for the first issue, you may have to upgrade your router. If your router is only capable of 1Gbps, then your will use the 10Gbps plan as 1Gbps. Many users forget about this point.

10G capable wireless routers are not cheap. SIMBA provides subsidized Amazon eero Max 7 to the 10Gbps plan users, that is probably the cheapest way to get a 10G capable true WiFi 7 router.

 

[thiamhui]

Signed up for 10gbps SIMBA broadband about 2 weeks ago, so far it's been quite disappointing:
- 10gbps plan, but I'm only getting around 600mbps up/down in speedtest, it can drop to 200mbps at certain time, never been able to achieve anything higher than 700mbps, I am using AX router on MacBook with wifi 6 capability, so I'm not sure what's the issue
- Gaming on simba is really bad, it just seems like they are not able to connect to singapore server directly, and need to route through Hong Kong etc just to reach back to singapore server, so you get very high latency 100ms+ on alot of games like mobile legend etc, previously on M1 and this was never an issue.
- CGNAT, meaning you won't be able to connect back to your own network to use as VPN etc, not a deal breaker for me but useful to have when travelling to certain countries

Regret signing up, but with the 1 year minimum contract, I got no choice but to stick with it. If they don't fix this by the contract expiration, I will definitely be porting back out to one of the big 3 telco.

What router are you using?

 

[twosix]

this is normal, even back when u subscribe 512Kbps DSL, your so call web browser download is also subjected to all the overheads.. worst, consumers think they should see 512KB/s in the download, when most are not familiar with Kbps which is the networking term, while on the application layer when you download, you are presented with KB/s .. so that doesn't help as well...

kbps and KBps r just wrong perception by end users, not because of technical limitations. if it is 10Gbps, I will expect at least 9000Mbps. Even 1Gbps can get 900+mbps, and 1+1gbps can get 1900mbps. most consumers will not know all the technical specs, but if i pay for 10gbps, i jolly well get actual speeds close to that number. my view as a consumer, not a techie.

 

[ForbiddenB]

I do not recommend new users to subscribe to SIMBA mainly due to stability and support issues, then it has other issues as well.

1. Cannot help on the Gaming and CGNAT side.

1) SIMBA does not have good connections to Singtel and probably Starhub network as well. So that is probably the reason you are having latency issues with local gaming server.

2) SIMBA will probably not change the use of CGNAT but they provide IPv6 as a potential work-around (but that means you need to have access to IPv6 network if you want to use IPv6 for VPN or remote access back to home network). For remote access you can use things like Tailscale or Zerotier.

2. But for the first issue, you may have to upgrade your router. If your router is only capable of 1Gbps, then your will use the 10Gbps plan as 1Gbps. Many users forget about this point.

10G capable wireless routers are not cheap. SIMBA provides subsidized Amazon eero Max 7 to the 10Gbps plan users, that is probably the cheapest way to get a 10G capable true WiFi 7 router.

What router are you using?

TP Link Archer AX72, previously I'm able to get 1gbps on speedtest on 1gbps m1 plan, just not on this 10gbps simba plan

 

[xiaofan]

TP Link Archer AX72, previously I'm able to get 1gbps on speedtest on 1gbps m1 plan, just not on this 10gbps simba plan

TP-Link Archer AX72 is only capable of 1Gbps due to the 1G LAN port. It is not really the right router to use with SIMBA 10Gbps.

Anyway for OOkla SpeedTest, you have to use certain SpeedTest servers. SIMBA has bad connection to Singtel and probably Starhub. So you can not use those SpeedTest servers. The recommendation from SIMBA users seem to to use "CTCSCI Tech Ltd" server. You can try also SIMBA server (but previous reports had problem with SIMBA's own server as well, not sure if the issue has been sorted out or not).

 

[xiaofan]

Repost my previous post why I do not recommend SIMBA to new users if using as the only ISP.

Main issues now for SIMBA, at least from the reports, are the following
1) Stability issue
2) Lack of support
3) Bad connection to Singtel and maybe Starhub. Quite some SG websites and services are hosted on Singtel/Starhub network. Bad routing to China -- but this may only affect some customers.
4) Clear documentation to metion the router to be used. SIMBA does offer Amazon eerom Max 7 at discounter price.
5) No digital voice -- only affected some users. May not be an issue for many users.
6) CGNAT without Static IPv4 add-on. SIMBA 10Gbps has native IPv6 which may help but it may still be an issue for those want to have a public IPv4 address. This may not affect majority of the users, but

#1 and #2 are the main problems I can not recommend SIMBA to average users.

Power users know their use cases well -- so it is usually not an issue to go with their choice of ISPs. But I would not recommend power users to go for SIMBA either because of #3 and #6.

 

[xiaofan]

So what low cost (around S$30) plan will I recommend now for new sign-up?

Note -- nothing wrong to pay a bit higher for better plans.

1) Average users who need a wireless router to get started and do not mind using ONR.

Starhub special 5Gbps offer with Nokia XS-2426X-A ONR (10G capable with one 10G LAN port, with AX6000 WiFi, cannot change to ONT) and one Nokia Beacon 2 to form a mesh
https://www.starhub.com/personal/st...speed-5gbps-onr-at-2955_ultraspeed-5gbps.html

2) For power users who want to use their own router and want ONT

Starhub special 5Gbps offer with ONT -- Not so sure if the link will be valid for long.
https://www.starhub.com/personal/st...speed-5gbps-ont-at-2955_ultraspeed-5gbps.html

Previously there was no successful report of installation done with the above link. Today we have the first confirmation that Starhub does honor the above link and installed the ONT to the user who use the link to subscribe to Starhub 5Gbps plan with ONT.
https://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/...-plan-launched.7024290/page-47#post-153960394

Just to share, I used the ONT link shared here:

https://www.starhub.com/personal/st...speed-5gbps-ont-at-2955_ultraspeed-5gbps.html

The StarHub person just came and installed the Nokia ONT and gave free Nokia Beacon 2. He asked me a few times if I want the ONR instead as he said the beacon 2 cannot support the 5Gbps. I say it’s ok, I’ll use back my current mesh (which is slow Deco M5) but will upgrade next time.

 

[thiamhui]

TP-Link Archer AX72 is only capable of 1Gbps due to the 1G LAN port. It is not really the right roter to use with SIMBA 10Gbps.

Anyway for OOkla SpeedTest, you have to use certain SpeedTest servers. SIMBA has bad connection to Singtel and probably Starhub. So you can not use those SpeedTest servers. The recommendation from SIMBA users seem to to use "CTCSCI Tech Ltd" server. You can try also SIMBA server (but previous reports had problem with SIMBA's own server as well, not sure if the issue has been sorted out or not).

SIMBA SpeedTest server looks ok up to 2.5Gbps, I'm unable to test beyond that.

The SpeedTest results to "MyRepublic Singapore", "PT Indosat TBK" and "fdcservers.net" are ok too.

 

[jrwong84]

Signed up for 10gbps SIMBA broadband about 2 weeks ago, so far it's been quite disappointing:
- 10gbps plan, but I'm only getting around 600mbps up/down in speedtest, it can drop to 200mbps at certain time, never been able to achieve anything higher than 700mbps, I am using AX router on MacBook with wifi 6 capability, so I'm not sure what's the issue
- Gaming on simba is really bad, it just seems like they are not able to connect to singapore server directly, and need to route through Hong Kong etc just to reach back to singapore server, so you get very high latency 100ms+ on alot of games like mobile legend etc, previously on M1 and this was never an issue.
- CGNAT, meaning you won't be able to connect back to your own network to use as VPN etc, not a deal breaker for me but useful to have when travelling to certain countries

Regret signing up, but with the 1 year minimum contract, I got no choice but to stick with it. If they don't fix this by the contract expiration, I will definitely be porting back out to one of the big 3 telco.

This is called as bottleneck same as Cpu and Gpu if you buy a rtx 4080 4090 7900xtx but your cpu is 11 gen Intel below and you game on 1080p the bottleneck will be your cpu and resolution. So upgrading to 2k 4k gaming the Cpu will not bottleneck the Gpu.

Same as connection speed you need a 10G lan card for desktop mostly even higher end current motherboard don't have 10G pan port mostly 2.5 5G only some have the 10G but very expensive. Best options is to buy a pcie 10G lan card.

And your router need to upgrade as per xiaofan.

 

[justin007]

Hmm.. Seems Simba has improved internet connectivity for their 10gbps users

 

[xiaofan]

Hmm.. Seems Simba has improved internet connectivity for their 10gbps users

Your file sharing does not work...

 

[justin007]

Your file sharing does not work...

Oh.. I have no issues. I dont share files.

If U need to share files or have specific needs then I guess SIMBA is not for U.

For me, the internet provider works as it should be. The speeds are almost similar to other operators and the fees are affordable. So far, the service is ok.. I am a happy camper, for now

 

[xiaofan]

Oh.. I have no issues. I dont share files.

If U need to share files or have specific needs then I guess SIMBA is not for U.

For me, the internet provider works as it should be. The speeds are almost similar to other operators and the fees are affordable. So far, the service is ok.. I am a happy camper, for now

LOL, I mean your picture posted usng Google Drive does not seem to work, maybe permission issues.

It says "Google Drive: You need access. Request access or switch to an account with success".

Hmm.. Seems Simba has improved internet connectivity for their 10gbps users

 

[xiaofan]

It is good Singtel to SIMBA SpeedTest server latency is much better than last time. Now it is below 40ms. Still not as good as other ISPs but very good improvement already.

Singtel 5Gbps, wired connection, Intel N100 mini PC (10G capable) running Ubuntu Linux 24.04.

mcuee@miniroute10g:~/build/networking/ookla$ ./speedtest -s 12687

   Speedtest by Ookla

      Server: SIMBA Telecom - Singapore (id: 12687)
         ISP: Singtel Fibre
Idle Latency:    35.90 ms   (jitter: 0.16ms, low: 35.57ms, high: 36.02ms)
    Download:  4057.46 Mbps (data used: 6.9 GB)
                 37.22 ms   (jitter: 0.35ms, low: 36.80ms, high: 45.68ms)
      Upload:  2060.92 Mbps (data used: 3.7 GB)
                 36.63 ms   (jitter: 0.38ms, low: 36.26ms, high: 41.07ms)
 Packet Loss:     0.0%
  Result URL: https://www.speedtest.net/result/c/73d5cf50-3d60-4951-8d93-66c229ef748c

 

[eddy0505]

As an average user, SIMBA 10Gbps plan has been pretty good (other than them trying to charge the monthly payment early). As I WFH 99% of the time, for work, streaming 4k/8k videos, light gaming, torrenting (much faster than my M1 500Mbps), video calls etc no issues. Nothing complicated with my setup, have a few doorcam/CCTVs, a few PCs, some gaming consoles, tonnes of wireless devices that's all.

Using a very basic wifi 6/wifi 7 2.5Gbps ports modem/router mesh setup, my wired speeds usually hover around 1.5-2.1Gbps, wireless speeds about 1- 1.5Gbps on average. Will upgrade to 10Gbps capable setup once it becomes more affordable.

Also to add, this is my only BB plan (still using port 1). If it ever goes down, I can rely on my GOMO 5G 1TB plan as backup. Other than M1, had bad experiences using ViewQuest, Singtel and Starhub (but those were some years back). If there's better and more competitive alternatives once my SIMBA plan expires, will jump to try try.

 

[ykeen]

kbps and KBps r just wrong perception by end users, not because of technical limitations. if it is 10Gbps, I will expect at least 9000Mbps. Even 1Gbps can get 900+mbps, and 1+1gbps can get 1900mbps. most consumers will not know all the technical specs, but if i pay for 10gbps, i jolly well get actual speeds close to that number. my view as a consumer, not a techie.

to a consumer i pay 10gbps but get 8.2 to 8.5 only. missing 1.5gbps which is even more than the base 1gbps plan lor. anyway, may hear more complaints when more people sign up.

This is one of those technicalities that doesn't favour us consumers. If you include the PON frames, the line rate indeed is 10Gbps, but once you strip those out you're left with around 8.2Gbps on a good day.

yes there were 2 issues:
1) communications definitions between bits/sec and bytes/sec
2) the technical limitations that you mentioned - overheads when you have to factor in line rate 10Gbps/1Gbps/500Mbps whatever.. in theory you are allocated 10Gbps but after factoring all the frame/packet overheads.. isn't 8.2G .. the practical performance that you can get?

 

[justin007]

LOL, I mean your picture posted usng Google Drive does not seem to work, maybe permission issues.

It says "Google Drive: You need access. Request access or switch to an account with success".

OMG.. Im so sorry people.. I guess the system doesnt like me.. OK.. I cant seem to post pics..
but here's the data

Time	Download (Mbps)	Upload (Mbps)	Ping (ms)	Jitter (ms)
2024/10/7 19:00	7755.87	4717.82	1.81	0.20
2024/9/19 09:49	4493.65	3024.80	1.86	0.34

Simba telecom - PT FirstMedia

As for Simba to Singtel, I got this today.

Time	Download (Mbps)	Upload (Mbps)	Ping (ms)	Jitter (ms)
2024/10/8 00:04	6684.05	4491.34	2.77	0.05

Again, my apologies. lol.. it has been sometime...

 

[yuyangsg]

hi, i am using starhub hubhome with 1GB. if that starthub 5G for $29.9 link works, i will go with it. if not, I would like to swith to simba 10gb. Quesiton is: would my existing Nokia Beacon 2 work with simba ONT? i don't mind the nokia router speed limit. is it plug and play?
Thanks in advance.

 

[eddy0505]

Including ONT and NLT is $33.96 per month 12 month old contract, vs current $32.69 w gst.

This info wrong liao. Previously for 2.5Gbps plan average out $31.16 per month, currently 10Gbps is $29.99 inclusive of GST nett, a bit cheaper than previous.

 

[morimorimori]

This info wrong liao. Previously for 2.5Gbps plan average out $31.16 per month, currently 10Gbps is $29.99 inclusive of GST nett, a bit cheaper than previous.

My mistake, thought GST not included. I think unless I make noise they won't move me to the 10g plan until my sub runs out.