CONVERGE An "Am I technically within the "lock-in period"? dilemma: my downgrade plan woes with Converge

[dothackjhe]

Background:

I have been an active subscriber of Converge ICT's FiberX plan for more than 2 years now. For the longest time, as a FiberX 1500 plan subscriber, that is, until I immediately upgraded to FiberX 2500 when it was offered at a higher bandwidth (a boost to 300 Mbps) some months ago (January 28, 2022). To say the least, I am among the early adopters of the FiberX 2500 plan at 300 Mbps.

My upgrade had been swift, me being able to hit the stated bandwidth within the same day after I applied for the upgrade, as per Speedtest. However, my experience with the FiberX 2500 has not been satisfactory as far as tapping on the max available bandwidth: I barely hit the 30+ Mbps download speed I was anticipating in many of my downloads, which gives the feeling that I am on the lower end of the service reliability rate of somewhere between 30% to 80%.

Now, after Converge ICT announced that FiberX 1500's bandwidth had been permanently increased to 100 Mbps, it got me want to make the downgrade, considering the rather poor quality of my existing subscription (FiberX 2500). I've already initiated the plan for the downgrade, which Converge ICT's CS team responded to, albeit with some inconsistencies.

First, there is the issue of the "lock-in period," which could mean that I'd be paying P1000 for the downgrade or not at all (beyond lock-in). To which their CS named Candice stated ours as "beyond lock-in".

I've gotten the awareness that my supposed request for the downgrade is meant to be processed, technically, for FREE in that instance, so I raised the question as such. But only seem to be ignored. Yes, the subsequent exchanges never answered it, and instead, I was being pressed to provide essential details to make the downgrade, to which I openly provided, nonetheless.

Then, the last person to respond to my email is a person named Carmy who is now stating that I will have to pay P2000 for the downgrade. Naturally, it prompted me to ask the person herself where such a fee is coming from, considering that the laid out conditions suggest that I'd only be paying P1000 IF AND ONLY IF my household subscription is still technically within the lock-in period. To be fair, I still have not heard of Carmy's reply to the matter.

Throughout my exchanges with Converge ICT's customer support, I have been speaking to a different person EVERY SINGLE TIME, which I suspect is what gives off the irregularities.

I, ultimately, pushed the request to my sibling, who is technically the account holder and even though I was the one who literally pays for the bill. He, meanwhile, is being asked a P1000 fee because, according to the CS who responded to his email, our subscription is technically "within the lock-in period".

Now, I am genuinely confused.

Did my lock-in period make a reset when I made the jump to FiberX 2500 plan from FiberX 1500 last late January?

How long does the lock-in period even last?

I look forward to everyone's response regarding my issue.

Note: I did not make this post to discredit Converge ICT in the quality of its service. To be fair, our internet connection has been mostly stable so far, if not for the issue of me not able to fully tap the available bandwidth. But I can honestly state that my general experience under the FiberX 1500 had been starkly superior to my current FiberX 2500 plan. Not only because I was able to tap on the maximum possible bandwidth in that plan but also because there had been vastly fewer technical issues with it (I have had multiple instances where the internet would stop working under FiberX 2500 due to, what I suspect was, a faulty network or unannounced maintenance).

 

[equinoxzZz]

Did my lock-in period make a reset when I made the jump to FiberX 2500 plan from FiberX 1500 last late January?

How long does the lock-in period even last?

Though medyo luma na tong thread mo pero dahil susbcriber ako ng Converge, here are the answers you're looking for....

- ANY MODIFICATIONS/SPEED UPGRADES WILL RESULT TO A RESET OF THE LOCK-IN PERIOD. If your account is beyond the lock-in period (meaning natapos mo yung 24 months), applying for any speed upgrades will RE-APPLY THE 24 MONTH (2 YEAR) LOCK-IN PERIOD. Since you applied for a speed upgrade last January 28, 2022 Converge will re-apply a new lock-in period on your existing account till January 28, 2024.

But in my case my account is still under the 24 month lock-in period that was activated last June 2021. I applied for the speed upgrade around November 2021 and I was advised that my lock-in period would be reset from June 2023 to November 2023. So technically, di ako masyado affected kasi 2023 pa rin ang end ng lock-in period ko na namove lang ng 5 months ahead.


- As per T&C of Converge ICT, the LOCK-IN PERIOD goes for 24 MONTHS (2 YEARS).

 

[dothackjhe]

Thanks.

Naguluhan lang talaga ako talaga dahil iba-iba yung response na nareceived ko sa query ko sa topic sa CS ng Converge.

So far, though, dahil sa sobrang labo ng discussion, di pa rin downgraded itong subscription plan ko. Wish ko na lang na magkaboost din itong FiberX 2500 anytime soon. Pero even then, I do not think makokontento ako unless talagang consistent na sa 30+ Mbps download speed ko on most times.

Seriously, kahit sa mga the best na file hosting sites gaya ng Google Drive, Mediafire, o MEGA, di talaga pumapalo sa 30+ Mbps ang DL ko. Considering naka-IDM pa ako nyan.

 

[equinoxzZz]

Thanks.

Naguluhan lang talaga ako talaga dahil iba-iba yung response na nareceived ko sa query ko sa topic sa CS ng Converge.

So far, though, dahil sa sobrang labo ng discussion, di pa rin downgraded itong subscription plan ko. Wish ko na lang na magkaboost din itong FiberX 2500 anytime soon. Pero even then, I do not think makokontento ako unless talagang consistent na sa 30+ Mbps download speed ko on most times.

Seriously, kahit sa mga the best na file hosting sites gaya ng Google Drive, Mediafire, o MEGA, di talaga pumapalo sa 30+ Mbps ang DL ko. Considering naka-IDM pa ako nyan.

Ano ba results mo sa Speedtest? Gamit ka ng ibang server other than Converge's own server para mas accurate. Eto results ko sa plan 1599 using Eastern Communications' server.

Speedtest app for Windows 11 yan.

*IP address and location coordinates are covered for security reasons*

 

[dothackjhe]

Optimal ang result sa Speedtest at Fast. Pero pag actual download na, bihirang-bihira mareach yung 30+ Mbps.

 

[equinoxzZz]

Optimal ang result sa Speedtest at Fast. Pero pag actual download na, bihirang-bihira mareach yung 30+ Mbps.

Minsan kasi depende na rin yan sa site eh. Pero ewan ko lang din kasi maraming variables na nakakaaffect sa actual na download speed. On my side naman, after 1 year of my subscription, never pa ako na-LOS. Though minsan may outages pero hindi kasing dalas kumpara sa mga nasa Taguig, Caloocan and some areas in Cavite.

 

[dothackjhe]

Ang main concern ko basically ay yung service reliability ng Converge ICT. 30% to 80% kasi yung estimate. Pag di ko madalas nari-reach yung max DL speed, I am under the assumption na nasa lower-end ng spectrum yung narereceive ko.

 

[iHEPE]

Background:

I have been an active subscriber of Converge ICT's FiberX plan for more than 2 years now. For the longest time, as a FiberX 1500 plan subscriber, that is, until I immediately upgraded to FiberX 2500 when it was offered at a higher bandwidth (a boost to 300 Mbps) some months ago (January 28, 2022). To say the least, I am among the early adopters of the FiberX 2500 plan at 300 Mbps.

My upgrade had been swift, me being able to hit the stated bandwidth within the same day after I applied for the upgrade, as per Speedtest. However, my experience with the FiberX 2500 has not been satisfactory as far as tapping on the max available bandwidth: I barely hit the 30+ Mbps download speed I was anticipating in many of my downloads, which gives the feeling that I am on the lower end of the service reliability rate of somewhere between 30% to 80%.

Now, after Converge ICT announced that FiberX 1500's bandwidth had been permanently increased to 100 Mbps, it got me want to make the downgrade, considering the rather poor quality of my existing subscription (FiberX 2500). I've already initiated the plan for the downgrade, which Converge ICT's CS team responded to, albeit with some inconsistencies.

First, there is the issue of the "lock-in period," which could mean that I'd be paying P1000 for the downgrade or not at all (beyond lock-in). To which their CS named Candice stated ours as "beyond lock-in".

I've gotten the awareness that my supposed request for the downgrade is meant to be processed, technically, for FREE in that instance, so I raised the question as such. But only seem to be ignored. Yes, the subsequent exchanges never answered it, and instead, I was being pressed to provide essential details to make the downgrade, to which I openly provided, nonetheless.

Then, the last person to respond to my email is a person named Carmy who is now stating that I will have to pay P2000 for the downgrade. Naturally, it prompted me to ask the person herself where such a fee is coming from, considering that the laid out conditions suggest that I'd only be paying P1000 IF AND ONLY IF my household subscription is still technically within the lock-in period. To be fair, I still have not heard of Carmy's reply to the matter.

Throughout my exchanges with Converge ICT's customer support, I have been speaking to a different person EVERY SINGLE TIME, which I suspect is what gives off the irregularities.

I, ultimately, pushed the request to my sibling, who is technically the account holder and even though I was the one who literally pays for the bill. He, meanwhile, is being asked a P1000 fee because, according to the CS who responded to his email, our subscription is technically "within the lock-in period".

Now, I am genuinely confused.

Did my lock-in period make a reset when I made the jump to FiberX 2500 plan from FiberX 1500 last late January?

How long does the lock-in period even last?

I look forward to everyone's response regarding my issue.

Note: I did not make this post to discredit Converge ICT in the quality of its service. To be fair, our internet connection has been mostly stable so far, if not for the issue of me not able to fully tap the available bandwidth. But I can honestly state that my general experience under the FiberX 1500 had been starkly superior to my current FiberX 2500 plan. Not only because I was able to tap on the maximum possible bandwidth in that plan but also because there had been vastly fewer technical issues with it (I have had multiple instances where the internet would stop working under FiberX 2500 due to, what I suspect was, a faulty network or unannounced maintenance).

once po na nag upgrade po kayo ng plan kay converge ma rerelock-in po yung contract po ninyo

 

[ungazka]

technically kahit saang provider basta nag upgrade ka ng plan it is matic na po renew ang contract mo.
pag dating naman po sa serviceability depende talaga yan sa area and sa number of users connected duon sa box ni converge .. kung below the promised download speed ang nakukuha mo pwede ka mag report sa provider. pero sabi mo nga po optimal naman ang test result mo sa speedtest / fast.

question lang po is paano ka po nag be base ng speed ng internet sa pag d download ?

kasi po for my understanding ... if you are downloading something .. ang dapat na tinitignan natin is the Transfer rate kung ilang Mbps and usually para sa akin if ang transfer rate ko like for example sa mediafire is 2Mb/sec or up.. acceptable naman ang speed.

tska kapag mag a upgrade po tayo ng 100 Mbps or up na plan. dapat i consider din natin kung ma maximize ba natin sya. like kaya ba ng mga devices natin ... kung desktop / laptop via lan cable connected sa modem supported ba nya ang 100/1000 Mbps. .. sa mga wifi devices naman try natin i connect sa 5Ghz wifi ..

 

[dothackjhe]

I'm using a Wi-Fi 6-capable laptop na connected sa Wi-Fi 6-capable router. I'm at least expecting na mareceive ko yung optimal download speed sa karamihan ng downloads ko. Otherwise, I am paying in full for less.

 

[babybon08]

Optimal ang result sa Speedtest at Fast. Pero pag actual download na, bihirang-bihira mareach yung 30+ Mbps.