Imagine Wi-Max: One Week On
This is a follow up to my initial review of the Imagine Wi-Max product 2 weeks ago.
Updated on 2010-06-15 (see end of article for 3 weeks worth of test data).
My last post referred to some shortcomings with how the Wi-Max modem was shipped with an inaccessible control panel, making it all but useless to anyone but the casual home/non-technical/non-business user.
Since then I have:
- received a replacement modem (hardware fault in the original)
- obtained access to the control panel (allowing me to set up my network properly)
- had about one week of general use
- performed some bandwidth tests
Modem indoor reception
The modem has 4 lights indicating signal strength to the Imagine mast (high site). In Dublin 7 I was getting 4/4 lights lit up with the modem close to an exterior window. I guess that I am about 1km from the nearest Imagine Wi-Max mast, so I can rule out problems associated with being in an area of marginal signal coverage.
However the window location was too far to cable to my server, so I moved the modem. At the moment the signal strength lights are 2/4 and it is not even in line of sight of an exterior window. No problems to report.
The manual says that at least 2 lights should be lit to ensure reception.
Test methodology
Tests are conducted from a Linux server cabled directly to the Imagine modem. I am on a 3MB down, 512kB up tariff.
- Ping test: 50 pings to ftp.heanet.ie
- Download test: ftp download of a compressed (bz2) 4.5MB (approximately) file from ftp.heanet.ie
- Upload test: ftp upload of a 1.2MB bz2 file to a virtual server in the UK
Tests are conducted every hour and the initial results are from a single 24 hour period. The telephone service was not tested at this time.
Important: There are about 5 or 6 clients on the network connected by Wi-Fi. Their usage is average to low, but the server is not guaranteed exclusive access to the broadband ‘line’ during these tests. However seeing as it is the only PC cabled to the modem and the tests run over a reasonable, it shouldn’t make too much of a difference. As time permits I’ll do some exclusive tests.
Responsiveness
Compared to the DSL connection I was used to, this definitely feels more sluggish. Ping times are longer than I was used to and are not as consistent, but overall it cannot be compared to 3G, Ripwave or dial-up.
The graph (click for a larger version) shows a record of ping times to a nearby server. The minimum ping time averaged at 59 milliseconds. Average was 135 ms but the responsiveness did vary quite a bit.
Given the variance in the response times, I am a bit curious about the performance of the telephone line. Voice over IP is particularly sensitive to these variances.
| Hour | Min | Ave | Max | StdDev |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 76 | 166 | 1064 | 164 |
| 1 | 43 | 82 | 192 | 34 |
| 2 | 63 | 63 | 63 | 0 |
| 3 | 62 | 135 | 793 | 136 |
| 4 | 61 | 115 | 937 | 123 |
| 5 | 80 | 369 | 1644 | 342 |
| 6 | 61 | 93 | 221 | 36 |
| 7 | 46 | 90 | 262 | 36 |
| 8 | 32 | 65 | 103 | 10 |
| 9 | 76 | 83 | 128 | 16 |
| 10 | 74 | 149 | 1084 | 188 |
| 11 | 63 | 109 | 818 | 107 |
| 12 | 59 | 82 | 141 | 14 |
| 13 | 65 | 78 | 129 | 8 |
| 14 | 63 | 129 | 1307 | 176 |
| 15 | 60 | 103 | 525 | 79 |
| 16 | 46 | 82 | 158 | 16 |
| 17 | 31 | 83 | 194 | 33 |
| 18 | 54 | 81 | 143 | 19 |
| 19 | 51 | 86 | 197 | 28 |
| 20 | 40 | 168 | 759 | 140 |
| 21 | 76 | 258 | 1536 | 347 |
| 22 | 61 | 106 | 834 | 110 |
| 23 | 60 | 80 | 143 | 15 |
Speed
As measured by hourly upload and download. Again this was not too bad. I am on a 3MB tariff at the moment and the average download is 2.61MBps. Without knowing what the contention ratio is it is difficult to comment, but that performance is pretty reasonable for a home/small business user on a highly contented product.
| Hour | D/L | U/L |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 2.23 | 0.49 |
| 1 | 1.73 | 0.39 |
| 2 | 3.10 | 0.48 |
| 3 | 1.80 | 0.46 |
| 4 | 2.99 | 0.43 |
| 5 | 0.99 | 0.40 |
| 6 | 2.09 | 0.43 |
| 7 | 4.08 | 0.44 |
| 8 | 3.44 | 0.48 |
| 9 | 2.51 | 0.41 |
| 10 | 3.52 | 0.46 |
| 11 | 3.99 | 0.48 |
| 12 | 4.78 | 0.49 |
| 13 | 4.15 | 0.49 |
| 14 | 3.62 | 0.47 |
| 15 | 2.59 | 0.44 |
| 16 | 3.76 | 0.48 |
| 17 | 3.29 | 0.47 |
| 18 | 3.75 | 0.46 |
| 19 | 2.23 | 0.48 |
| 20 | 3.03 | 0.50 |
| 21 | 1.89 | 0.45 |
| 22 | 2.71 | 0.48 |
| 23 | 3.31 | 0.47 |
Overall
While performance is not blistering, I am certainly not pining for my old provider. At EUR 30 per month with no line rental and a land line (over the Wi-Max network) thrown in it represents good value. I’ll probably upgrade to the 7MB product soon (they apply a charge for downgrades, but not to upgrades, hence my choice of a 3MB tariff at the outset).
There have been various moans and mutterings about the performance of this product, but as long as you are in an area of good coverage, you should be fine.
Follow up 2010-06-15: Three weeks on
After 21 days of pings, uploads and downloads I now have a reasonable amount of data to give a more reasonable picture. These graphs derive from data averaged over the 21 days. For the ping tests I averaged out the min, avg, max and stddev figures.
I stress (again!) that the server was not guaranteed exclusive access to the bandwidth and I know for sure that I was downloading hefty ISO files on more than one evening and there are other Wi-Fi users of the bandwidth too. This will affect all the results below.
While the graphs indicate very satisfactory performance, it is worth looking at the following table which illustrates the variability of the connection. In this case I have taken the overall averages for upload, download and pings. Without granting the test scripts exclusive access to the bandwidth it would be unfair to attribute any significance to the maximum ping time of over 2 seconds or the minimum download speed of 0.3 MBps – I can confirm that that figure refers to my hefty ISO download.
Overall averaged performance over 21 days
| Down | Up | Ping | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Min | 0.30 | 0.14 | 29 |
| Avg | 3.42 | 0.41 | 87 |
| Max | 5.67 | 0.49 | 2402 |
| StdDev | 1.14 | 0.08 | 60 |
Graph of ping results (by time of day)
Graph of download/upload results (by time of day)
First trial: only 1 light signal strenght (in window near computer).can get 2-3 lights upstairs but no access for computer. Logged on to Imagine site ok but it requires more than 1 light. Will talk to service tomorrow. Location-Bray area-believe mast is on Royal Hotel -maybe 600 meters away
AMAZING. this article had so much detail…time and effort were not spared to give a great presentation. this article helped me to make an informed choice in switching from a 2MB ADSL to a 6MB WiMax with a peak of 10 MB. thank you very much.