Singtel 1 Gbps Fibre

[kero89]

Hi gurus, If I'm using a HG8244H which I manually bridged it, will a recon of my fibre break this bridge?

 

[xiaofan]

Hi gurus, If I'm using a HG8244H which I manually bridged it, will a recon of my fibre break this bridge?

It may break but you can try to bridge it again in this case. Actually they can break it anytime. So it is really not recommended to bridge by yourself.

 

[xiaofan]

I just recontracted in early august, didn't change my ONT but merely give me another mesh router which i didn't even need to use. I'm using ZTE ONR configured as ONT, just like before. New sign ups will be confirmed using ONR from huawei whereas recontract plans should likely still stay the same, since its like more job for them to migrate to ONR and there will be a downtime i suppose, when they physically do the connection to OLT..

Same here. Just done the recontract over WhatsApp Singtel channel. ZTE ONT user here, same as you.

1Gbps at S$39.9 per month, a pair of Askey Wifi 5 Mesh (not really need them but it is part of the SMS offer so I just take it).

I still like Singtel myself as it is rather stable as an ONT user, arguable the most stable consumer ISP in Singapore. I think I only encounter two or three downtime over the past 10 years + with Singtel Fibre Internet service (from Feb 2012).

 

[kero89]

It may break but you can try to bridge it again in this case. Actually they can break it anytime. So it is really not recommended to bridge by yourself.

Thanks for the advise. I manually did it sometime around March 2019, did a recon in Aug 2020 and now its time again. Kept getting pestered by the sales agent through phone, each time offering different promo

Update: recon thru whatsapp

 

[stalejive]

then for those on ONR , need to set the router as access point right ?

 

[xiaofan]

then for those on ONR , need to set the router as access point right ?

Yes that is supposed to be the better way if you can live with the limited feature of the ONR. You can read the problem with Double NAT. In paticular you may also read the post by @bert64 about the problem with NAT in general.
https://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/threads/whats-wrong-with-double-nat.6798182/
Some people choose to go with Double NAT because they are using a better router and the rich features will get totally lost in AP mode.

If I am in the situation of using unbridged ONR I will go with Double NAT myself within the contract period and then move to a different ISP. Most of my use cases will not be limited by Double NAT. In fact, back in Sept 2020 I was given a Singtel Mesh Router when I did my recontract. Then I was testing it and used it as the main router, I actually used Double NAT with my other router (eg: Huawei AX3 pro) for a while before I bought the Asus RT-AX82U and used it as the main router.

Singtel ONT + Singtel issued router is actually pretty similar to Singtel ONR. The feature of Singtel issued router is pretty limited as well -- for example you can not set the DNS server. And TR-069 is there as well. I think there are many Singtel ONT users who are still using Singtel issued router. Therefore Singtel probably figured out that there is no major problem to push for Singtel ONR to new users (since 2018) -- they may lose a few power users but no big impact.

 

[tuntun]

Hi gurus, If I'm using a HG8244H which I manually bridged it, will a recon of my fibre break this bridge?

can guide me how to bridge it? Thanks

 

[kero89]

can guide me how to bridge it? Thanks

https://lff0305.medium.com/how-to-set-hg8244h-in-bridge-mode-20ca417380fe
I followed this guide back then.

Ymmv, may lady luck be with you.

 

[xiaofan]

can guide me how to bridge it? Thanks

In your paticular case, I think you have got the ONR officially bridged already. You should just talk to Singtel before recontract to see if they are willing to keep the bridging. If not, better to move out of Singtel.

I tend to think the instructions on the Internet does not apply to your case and there is a high chance you will lose your internet connection once you tried to follow the instruction.

In any case, if you are tech savvy and you want to take risks to learn the bridging, just go ahead. Just prepare to possiblilty to lose the internet connection, or even brick the ONR. Then you may need to pay Singtel to get a technician to help you restore the internet.

 

[xiaofan]

Just collect my free pair of Askey Mesh AP (Model: AP5100W-D17 Dual Pack).

Free SIngtel issued router for Fibre Internet

2-wire 5012-NV --> Pace 5520
--> various Aztech router models like DSL7000GRV(S), DSL7003GRV(AC) and DSL7009GR(AC)
--> SIngtel AC Elite/AC1900 (AC1900, router/AP, 2016-2018)
--> Singtel AC Plus (AC1200, router/AP, 2018-2020)
--> Singtel Mesh router (2020 to now, AC1900, router/AP, or main mesh node if paired with Singtel Mesh Extender) or Singtel Mesh Extender (AP/Mesh, AC2600) or Askey AP5100W AC1750 (AP/Mesh).

I got the free 2-wire 5012-NV for my sign-up of Singtel Fibre in Feb 2012 and then they replaced it with Pace 5520 in 2013 when the 2-wire spoiled. Then I chose to switched to use my own Linksys WRT-1900AC since April 2014. I did not recontract until Sept 2018 when they gave the free Singtel AC Plus (it is pretty bad so I did not use it). Then I got the free Singtel Mesh Router for the Sept 2020 recontract and I am still using it as an AP. This time I got a pair of Askey AP5100W as part of the SMS offer. I have no plan to really use it though.

 

[xiaofan]

Various discussion thread for Singtel issued routers:

Singtel AC1900/AC Elite
https://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/threads/singtel-wifi-gigabit-router-ac1900-arcadyan.5388577/
Singtel AC Plus
https://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/threads/singtel-wifi-gigabit-router-ac-plus.5809222/
Singtel Mesh Router and Mesh Extender
https://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/threads/singtel-mesh-router.6241428/
Singtel Askey/Airties Mesh
https://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/threads/anybody-using-singtel-mesh.5354946/

 

[xiaofan]

Interesting info about the support policy

Singtel will provide security updates to a certain date. The lousy Singtel AC Plus actually receives the longest security updates.

Askey AP5100W WiFi Mesh (2018) -- up to 31 May 2025.
Singtel Mesh Router (2020) -- up to 30 November 2024.
Singtel Mesh Extender (2020) -- up to 30 November 2024.
AC Plus (2018) -- up to 30 November 2024.
AirTies Air 4960R (2022) -- up to 30 November 2024.
Wi-Fi 6 Mesh Extender (Arc) (2022) -- up to 31 January 2025.
Wi-Fi 6 Mesh Extender (Askey) (2022) -- up to 31 January 2025

AC Elite /AC1900 (2016) -- no more support
Aztech DSL7003GRV(AC) -- no more support
Aztech DSL 7009GR(AC) -- no more support

The info is from Singtel.
https://www.singtel.com/personal/support/broadband/routers-ont

 

[xiaofan]

The following three devices are new to Singtel as part of Wifi 6 push.

1) AirTies Air 4960R (2022) wireless router and AP, free with Singtel 1Gbps Enhanced plan (either one Airties 4960R or one Askey Wifi 6 Mesh Extender)

Tech Specs:
Wireless Technology

• Wi-Fi 6 AX5400
• Dual-band MU-MIMO
• IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax
• WiFi Mesh Ready
• EasyMesh R2

Processor and Memory

• 512MB RAM and 256MB Flash

Wired Ports

• 2 x GbE LAN

Security

• CSA Cybersecurity Labelling Scheme (CLS) Level 1
• WPA/WPA2/WPA3
• WPS

Dimensions

• 157 x 134 x 80 mm

2) Wi-Fi 6 Mesh Extender (Askey) (2022) -- AP/Mesh, free with Singtel 1Gbps Enhanced plan (either one Airties 4960R or one Askey Wifi 6 Mesh Extender)

Tech Specs:
Wireless Technology

• Wi-Fi 6 AX5400
• Dual-band MU-MIMO
• IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax

Processor and Memory

• 512MB RAM and 128MB Flash

Wired Ports

• 1 x GbE WAN
• 1 x GbE LAN

Security

• CSA Cybersecurity Labelling Scheme (CLS) Level 1
• WPA3
• WPA2-PSK

Dimensions

• 115 x 103 x 42mm

3) Wi-Fi 6 Mesh Extender (Arc) (2022) -- AP/Mesh, free with Singtel 2Gbps Mesh plan

Tech Specs:
Wireless Technology

• Wi-Fi 6 AX5400
• Dual-band MU-MIMO
• IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax
• Wi-Fi Mesh Ready
• EasyMesh R2

Processor and Memory

• 256MB RAM and 128MB Flash

Wired Ports

• 2 x GbE LAN

Security

• WPA/WPA2/WPA3
• WPS

Dimensions

• 140 x 55 x 140 mm

 

[xiaofan]

It is good that Singtel has published a FAQ to check whether a user is using ONR or ONT.
https://www.singtel.com/personal/support/broadband/routers-onthttps://www.singtel.com/content/dam...roadband-troubleshooting/ONT vs ONR Guide.pdf
Please note that the newer version of the ZTE ONT is labelled Optical Network Router. However, this is not an ONR. This is an ONT.

 

[xiaofan]

Typical Singtel 1Gbps plan recontract at S$39.9/month (or sometimes at S$37.9/month) will get one of the following (one unit):
1) Singtel Mesh Router (2020) -- ONT user or ONR user
2) Singtel Mesh Extender (2020) -- ONR users only (but sometimes ONT users may also get it if they already get Singtel Mesh router)
3) Askey AP5100W WiFi Mesh (2018) -- ONR users only (but sometimes ONT users may also get it if they already get Singtel Mesh router, certain promotion may have two units).

The following two are for the new Singtel 1Gbps Enhanced plan (S$47.90/month or S$42.90/month with promotion, at least that is the promotion for new sign-up)
1) AirTies Air 4960R (2022) -- for ONT or ONR users
2) Wi-Fi 6 Mesh Extender (Arc) (2022) -- or ONR users

Note: all new users will get Singtel ONR.

The following is for 2Gbps Mesh plan (S$67.90/month or S$62.90 with promotion?) or 2Gbps Mesh Plus plan (with extra Linksys E9450, S$77.90/month, or S$72.90/month with promotion?).
1) Wi-Fi 6 Mesh Extender (Askey) (2022), two units.

Of course users can opt for Asus RT-AX86U (1Gbps Pro Gamer Plan at S$54.90/month, or 1+1Gbps Gamer Bundle Plan at S$67.90 per month) or Linksys E9450 (1Gbps Plus Plan at S$49.90/month or 2Gbps Mesh Plus Plan.

 

[firesong]

Just sharing a quick and immediate update from my migration. StarHub tech came by around 10.30+ this morning so we installed the network. After that, I took it down a few times to reroute cabling, clean up, configure IPv6 etc... Sharing some Smokeping results so we can see the mapped timings and compare. The gaps are downtime because I shut down the box or rebooted it, but you can generally perceive the trends.

DNS Resolve times: includes round trip packet to server, resolution transaction time. Note that both Cloudflare and even Google greatly improved. Both are now 4ms timings, down from 60 (Cloudflare) and 20 (Google). Cleanbrowsing went up though.


Popular sites:


Singtel from StarHub is noticeably slower - the route traverses internationally rather than through the local IX.
Apple Music improved immediately, along with Twitter. The rest remain fairly stable. Spotify lag increased slightly, but negligible.

Still monitoring, but so far so good. Speedtests are fairly similar for both.

Of course for me, the greatest benefit is an immediate ONT to use my own router (without having to request for anything), and native IPv6 that just took a few configuration updates to remove the tunnel and update RA to SLAAC.

 

[ksw2010]

Thanks for sharing. Some looks like improve as SH may have more local peering with those sites. Google seems to be increased but you said it is improved?

 

[firesong]

Thanks for sharing. Some looks like improve as SH may have more local peering with those sites. Google seems to be increased but you said it is improved?

The top image is DNS resolution time. Which isn't just a ping, but also the time taken for the server to resolve the DNS query and reply. Dropping from 70ms-ish to 5ms is a huge increase, especially since this is DNS resolution we are talking about.

The bottom is a simple Ping, so yes there is a slight deterioration in performance, but negligible overall since it's about 3ms to 4ms, not a big deal imo.

Scrolled down on my top image (DNS Probes), to show the rest: Adguard, OpenDNS, Level3, Quad9. All are much better on StarHub's network.

 

[Qubicfactor]

Just collect my free pair of Askey Mesh AP (Model: AP5100W-D17 Dual Pack).

Free SIngtel issued router for Fibre Internet

2-wire 5012-NV --> Pace 5520
--> various Aztech router models like DSL7000GRV(S), DSL7003GRV(AC) and DSL7009GR(AC)
--> SIngtel AC Elite/AC1900 (AC1900, router/AP, 2016-2018)
--> Singtel AC Plus (AC1200, router/AP, 2018-2020)
--> Singtel Mesh router (2020 to now, AC1900, router/AP, or main mesh node if paired with Singtel Mesh Extender) or Singtel Mesh Extender (AP/Mesh, AC2600) or Askey AP5100W AC1750 (AP/Mesh).

I got the free 2-wire 5012-NV for my sign-up of Singtel Fibre in Feb 2012 and then they replaced it with Pace 5520 in 2013 when the 2-wire spoiled. Then I chose to switched to use my own Linksys WRT-1900AC since April 2014. I did not recontract until Sept 2018 when they gave the free Singtel AC Plus (it is pretty bad so I did not use it). Then I got the free Singtel Mesh Router for the Sept 2020 recontract and I am still using it as an AP. This time I got a pair of Askey AP5100W as part of the SMS offer. I have no plan to really use it though.

Why didn't you just get the AX86U w the Gamer bundle? It's a much better offer than getting Askeys that you don't need, and it's still highly sought after on Carousell if you want to let go. I did that for my recontract last weekend. Still on the Ericsson ONT w no change. I told the tech who came down that I already had an AX86U from previous recontract set up and working well, so he had an easy delivery job

 

[osiris]

Just saw this on Hardwarezone, I wonder would Singtel does the same?
https://www.hardwarezone.com.sg/tec...grade-of-its-gamer-broadband-service-to-2gbps