Blink the only option?

[Satya]

I will be coming back to TrInidad in May and by chance that Blink is not available in my neighborhood, am I out of luck? I truly can't imagine my life with dial up :shock: Does anybody kow if Blink is keeping up with the construction of government houses?

[BW]

Blink should have pretty good availability. The technology they are using has a longer range than the previous ADSL setup. Areas which weren't covered by DSL before might now actually have coverage under Blink. As far as government housing goes... I can't say for certain. If it's got a working phone line (which I assume it does), and it's close enough to the exchange (which I assume it is), then you should be good-to-go.

Blink doesn't need to lay all that much infrastructure, so the rollout is going to be relatively quick. All that needs to be done is the exchange has to be upgraded. They don't have to do it on a house-by-house basis like Flow does.

Should both TSTT (Blink) and Flow fall through, there is a third option. Greendot (http://www.mail.tt) uses a wireless antenna on your roof to get an internet signal, so it can reach places not covered by anyone else. Speeds and prices aren't even close to what Blink and Flow are offering, but it is better than dialup. You have to call them to get package information (they don't list it on the website, and they won't tell you via email). Customer service has mixed reviews; some people say it's great, but there have been complaints.

TSTTproblems.com (http://www.TSTTproblems.com) is a good resource you might want to check out for more information.

[kemist]

Ive signed up for blink, it hasn't reached my area yet nor has digital cable.
I know some1 who works at flow who says cable is far better than blink. Does any1 know if thats true?

[BW]

Ive signed up for blink, it hasn't reached my area yet nor has digital cable.
I know some1 who works at flow who says cable is far better than blink. Does any1 know if thats true?

Well, define "better".

Flow is definitely faster. You can check the package information yourself: see my thread lower down or go to flowtrinidad.com. If your internet budget is over $150, and both services are available in your area.. without a doubt, go with Flow. It's not even close, Flow is better at the high end.

Blink still has the best "bargin basement" packages though. Blink service starts at $79 for unlimited (promo price) for 256k service. That's quite slow, but it is unlimited (no surprises at the end of the month). For someone who just wants internet for emails, webpages and doing research for school, etc.. the speed is fine. Note, however, that the 256k package just isn't fast enough for online video services (such as YouTube.com).

Flow also has a cheap service, at $69 for a 20 hour package (at 2Mb/s speed). That's a very fast service, and you will not have problems watching YouTube. Downloads will be done very quickly and the internet will just be a very much more enjoyable experience. There's a catch though, and boy is it a big one. If you ever go over that 20 hours, each additional minute will cost you $1.00. That's going to add up very quickly if you aren't careful with the service, and you could be facing a big bill at the end of the month. I really really don't recommend that package for people with kids or university students. If you are single and you can monitor your usage, though, this is actually a pretty viable option.

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Quick note about the current state of services.
Both companies are facing technical issues. Blink isn't all that stable at the moment, and neither is Flow. Expect downtimes and fluctuating speeds, until both companies have sorted through their initial build-outs.