Gigaclear - the company that doesn't want customers

Wed 19 Jun, 21:46 (last edited on Wed 19 Jun, 21:51)

Another quick update for anyone who is wondering.

Our Gigaclear 200Mb/s connection is working extremely well.

The TP-Link extender which I mentioned worked fine as an extender but needed reconnection to a new different network name when we moved from downstairs to upstairs. It was also impossible to add as an extra node upstairs using the same network name and password.

My wife found on Ebay the exact same version of Linksys router supplied by Gigaclear which I asked Gigaclear about, ie would it connect as a node, but they wouldn't guarantee that it would.

However, we bought and tried it and it was very simple to connect, so we now have a mesh-system with the same connection, speed, password etc upstairs as we do downstairs and devices switch to the strongest of the two nodes/routers automatically; very impressive as far as I'm concerned. And we do not have to pay the extra £6 per month which Gigaclear charge for an additional node.

Fri 7 Jun, 15:10 (last edited on Wed 19 Jun, 21:47)

Still working fine Will, so I think it worth persevering with them to get more detail.

For your information the password problem that I had was a result of the tiny print on the bottom of the Linksys mesh router which I simply misread; the old eyes are not as good as they once were, so I kept trying the wrong password. Guess what? It didn't work!!

We have good, fast coverage through the whole house, though now weaker upstairs, where the old router from EE sits, but downstairs it is excellent everywhere. I have now purchased a wifi extender from TP-Link the same as a neighbour has and which made a big difference to them; Ill let you know if it also works for me, improving the upstairs signal.

Fri 7 Jun, 09:27

That's good to hear @Andrew. They cannot say the community of Charlbury is being abandoned now. Thanks for the info about the other providers - I suspect it will still need Gigaclear to do the fibre splitting to my house but worth seeing if they have any leverage over the installation prioritisation.  

Wed 5 Jun, 16:27

We have now been connected and all working for us with no major problems except for a minor password problem, partly mine, not Gigaclear's.

The help desk person I spoke with was extremely helpful and sorted my mistake quickly.

So at the moment all seems well for me with a super fast connection and so far all over the house; fingers crossed it stays that way!

Sat 1 Jun, 10:59 (last edited on Sat 1 Jun, 12:22)

Will, I have just had the email telling me they're coming as promised on Tuesday afternoon to do the final connection for my broadband. 

I realise it's not done till it's done and working, but I still have my fingers crossed and I will let you all know afterwards if it is doing what I want.

The problem is, that as far as I'm aware, Gigaclear is the one and only full- fibre connection available in Charlbury; unless of course you know different!

Well, I can answer that myself now having just done a quick search.  The answer is "yes".  There are other broadband companies that seem to sell connections using the Gigaclear cables; all the info is available at https://gigaclear.com/our-partners though not all of them are any use for home-broadband.

None seem to offer prices near the special offers Gigaclear still seems to have for the first 18 months of a contract.

Watch this space for any more information after Tuesday!

Thu 30 May, 16:41

Thanks for all the info here. @andrew it will be very interesting to hear back whether your installation takes place next week!

In the meantime I will try to find Nathan Rundle's email address to ask if the field operations team has been informed of his strategic direction for Gigaclear

Wed 29 May, 16:40

Isn't Britain the farthest behind any other "advanced capitalist economy" in provision of proper high speed data connection, in that huge areas are being left un-invested. Everyone else has a positive government and devolved policy and support resources and apparatus in place to push fibre into the more sparsely inhabited areas. They aren't just leaving "market forces" to determine rollout of utterly vital 21st century communication infrastructure.

Yup. More treason is my opinion as the UK slips down into being a 3rd rate "power" at best, and possibly 4th as economic structure distribution in the emergent 21st century world looms, ever more rapidly upon us. 

Broadband supply is just risible as of now compared to others. A very visible failure as the rump areas of Charlbury left unserviced can hardly be called remote or sparse. For those of us elders it doesn't make a huge difference to our lives as long as there is some connectivity. But for our kids and grandchildren the lack of effective and really commercially useable comms links will affect their lifetime of employment and careers options. 

So coupled with a sick housing system and market they will leave. Look at what's happened around Tokyo.

Wed 29 May, 16:31 (last edited on Wed 29 May, 16:32)

Christine, we're at the Slade end of Ticknell Piece Road, within shouting distance of the smaller junction box under the walnut trees and not far from the bigger one near Ditchley Road. They installed the little plastic connection boxes in the pavement along the whole street, some of which were marked in blue paint at one time.

The email I received was dated 26 April so possibly related to the new leadership.

Wed 29 May, 13:20 (last edited on Wed 29 May, 13:21)

I wonder if the change of policy is to do with the fact that Gigaclear now has a new CEO. 

"Nathan Rundle will succeed Gareth Williams as CEO of Gigaclear through a leadership transition beginning in April [2024]. ... His appointment represents a succession from phase one of build delivery to phase two focusing on adding paying customers and scaling efficiently in what is a consolidating market." See Fibreprovider.net

Gigaclear also secured a commitment of up to £420m for the rollout of rural broadband in June 2023 from global investor, Equitix, followed by a £1.5bn debt facility from a consortium of banks six months later.

But it's a very odd email that Richard Broughton received unless he lives too far from the 3 Gigaclear access cabinets in Charlbury: Five Ways, the town end of Ditchley Road, and Grammar School Hill. 

Looks like bad news to me.

Wed 29 May, 12:06

Hannen that thread is a blast from the past.

Wed 29 May, 06:49 (last edited on Wed 29 May, 07:00)

Well, I did try to warn you!

https://www.charlbury.info/forum/7175#40042

Hannen aka Cassandra. ;-)

Tue 28 May, 22:01 (last edited on Tue 28 May, 22:04)

I'm not sure if this is relevant to customers at your stage of the process, but when they first came out here I had put my name down as being interested in their fiber connection.  However last month I received an email from Gigaclear stating:

"Unfortunately, we will no longer be extending our network to your community. We understand that this news will be disappointing."

That read to me like they are giving up on Charlbury, which seemed a bit odd given the huge amount of infrastructure they installed.

Tue 28 May, 20:40

Do you already have the optical cable installed up to and into your house through an external wall or is that what is still missing for you.

In theory I should be connected next week so I'll keep this updated to let everyone know where I've got to. I do know several neighbours who have it up and running very successfully so I'm hopeful I will get the same success.

Tue 28 May, 18:33

Can anyone advise on the secret password to get Gigaclear to activate broadband?

Every time I call customer services they say they are "awaiting splicing at the cabinet for your community" but have been saying this for 2 years now and there seem to be plenty of the Charlbury community connected. I have been trying for 3 years now and my Building Digital voucher expired in 2022 - are they stalling because they cannot benefit from this incentive?