Hi all,I have been on Voyager for years, and am happy with them, but the current deal for Spark is very appealing ($300 account credit, plus 6 months Netflix) for the unlimited data Fibre100 $95/month ($105 - $10 / month). I have some questions.How much does it cost to have a static IP on spark (its free on Voyager)?How is Spark's pairing with Youtube? Voyager has been sub-par in the past, but improving.Can anyone tell me their ping times (residential fibre) to 1.1.1.1 and 9.9.9.9 ? I would ask about traffic shaping ... but looks like thats a definitive NO. If I go with this bundle, do you know if ...... I still eligible for the $10/month bundle discount (my wife has a Spark $59/month mobile plan, we can sign up in her name)?... I still eligible for the $50 online sign up credit?... Is there any catch with the "Upgrade to Ultra Fibre100 for no additional cost**"Lastly, any issues I should know about using Spark?If it makes a difference, I am in Christchurch.Many thanks :)
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Thinking of switching to Spark Fibre from Voyager, have some questions for current Spark users
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The end of Dial-up?
Hi all,One of our (slightly distant) neigbours has been told by Spark that they will be unable to continue providing his Dial-Up from 17 May. Are there any other providers that plan to continue with Dial-up? Slingshot and Vodafone are possibilities. Or may be its even got something to do with the decommissioning of the NEAXs or IPNet (just guessing here)?ADSL/VDSL/fibre/cellular/WISP are not available at his house. There's a hill blocking satellite. Dial-up is adequate for checking the weather though.I'm probably asking the wrong demographic, but does anyone have a dial-up provider that they can recommend? thanks
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Log on page for xtramail saying 'The requested URL /xtramail was not found on this server'
Hi all. I've been unable to access my emails for 10 days. I've been in regular contact with Spark and have been elevated to a tier two (no idea what that is).. I've heard from no one and am desperate to access my emails. They told me it was a problem with my browser, but I've tried to access them on my laptop, work computer, ipad, iphone.. someone elses surface tablet and laptop and the same message appears... Spark have been no help whatsoever and I'm getting desperate. I've lost work as I didn't receive the emails and I'm now totally at my wits end. I know nothing about these things but in my mind, if I can't access my email from a multitude of different devices then it must be a problem with either my email settings, or something Spark has happening at the other end of my email... Has anyone else had this problem and how did they solve it please. Thank you.
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Does Spark do any CGNAT?
I'm in Christchurch thinking of changing to Spark from Bigpipe.Mainly looking at changing since Bigpipe traffic all routes through Auckland which adds unnessecary latency when I VPN into home. Plus I generally VPN in via my iPhone which is on Spark, or another Spark fibre connection (so Spark makes more sense than Bigpipe).With Bigpipe I have a static IP which was just a one-off cost, but Spark change $15 a month which I'm not prepared to pay.DDNS would be sufficient for my needs to allow the incoming VPN, but I wasn't sure if Spark might have started doing CGNAT on residential connections?
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Sending pictures via iMessage
Can anyone confirm that they get charged ( or not ) for sending pics via iMessage?I wa under the impression that anything via iMessage was data only and not part of your text plan, Spark confirmed that and even sent a test pic from their shop,but I always get charged for them
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SPAM email has returned
for some weeks I have been receiving SPAM emails from what looks like NZ companiesetc and been blacklisting etc. In the weekend I find from family and friends on xtra mailthey receive exactly the same junk. Friends on other providers don't seem to receiveany. What has happened?
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International websites slow or unresponsive on Spark 22/5/2018
Anyone else having trouble with loading international websites this afternoon on Spark from about 1pm on 22/5/2018? They are either loading really slowly or timing out for me. Likewise adverts on geekzone also don't load as they just time out. I am on Spark Fibre and in Wellington. Local websites seem fine.
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international websites problem
I am having issues with international browsing, sites are very slow to load or don't load at all)i.e timeout), I expected to find a thread here about this issue as this has to be affecting a lot of people surely?
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Cloudflare Routing issue
i've been noticing some Cloudflare IP's have been routing to japan instead of closer AU nodes anyone else on Spark noticed this? these IP's for example: 104.27.143.66 - 104.18.48.190 while geekzones CF IP: 104.24.2.14 (updated IP was incorrect) routes perfectly.
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International SMS not working on ported number
Hi,From a search it looks like I'm not the first to have this, but...My number has been on journeys over the years. From originally being on Vodafone, it went to spark about 5 years ago, then 3 1/2 years ago went back to vodafone. Now, new employer has got me ported back to spark, and low and behold I'm now not receiving any international texts! This means that iMessage is broken, along with a number of other services (I can't use uberEats for example.Any fix other then getting a new number, porting this back to vodafone, and hoping like heck everything works?Mike
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Spark UFB Support ?
Our UFB connection in tauranga failed... still connected but just no internet. For some odd reason, the daughters IOS instagram on IOS was OK. Rebooted everything and still no internet, but it did connect in the modem webpage so looks like a spark network issue. I haven't used spark support for years, so i'm thinking they must have an awesome support system in place having had so much time to improve since last time I used them. Switched the iphone to 4g, went into the spark mobile webpage. Click through to help/broadband/troubleshoot/fix my broadband. The spark support page says.... "for fibre you'll need to sign in to myspark to run the test". Is this the stupidest instruction ever! My broadband is down, so how can I sign into myspark???I just want a phone number, but they have a link 'speak to a tech wizard' which sounds like customer support. Click that, and it is a PAID service, so cannot use that!!! And still no phone number. Under "contact us" they have 'chat with us, book a call, get social, come and see us. I scroll down a while but there are just stuff about call performance and answer times so I cancel that. I'm sure the phone number must be somewhere but they made it really hidden in their mobile website. So.... I remember in the old days 123 used to work, gave that a whirl and got through..... a nice foreign answer machine voice tells me their internal support system is down and that i must request a call back. ...........Check our internet again, it has come back up......Spark need to improve their mobile website and put a phone number where it can be easily seen. One good thing though, this is the first time in years I've had to call support, reliability of fibre is great.
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Local support
Hi I just spoke to customer services on a issue on my broadband.Very interesting conversation I was routed to a call centre in the Philippines and asked about local support(as in NZ) to which I got told this is now a premium service at $15 per month.I am gob smacked around this to put it mildly, anyone else heard about this and is there anything that can be done or not ? Thanks
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Spark's walk off roaming
I now see that Spark are able to automatically add roaming packs when you land in an eligible country - great! My question is: will packs keep adding automatically as you're needing them? So bill-shock can not ensue.... Cheers :)
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New customer having rough 'Sales' experience with Spark (long sales wait, sales getting confused over price, offered worse deal, no price matching VF)
Hello, I'm trying to connect with Spark for a naked UFB connection. This post is my personal experience and should be taken as constructive criticism. Having done my homework - I don't see any reason, compelling or otherwise to join Spark over Vodafone.Issues:-Spark has a wait time to call sales is between 1:10-1:40 hrs (according to system), for a new client!? Vodafone took me 10 minutes.-Spark does not do price matching.-Spark suggested an even CHEAPER deal at their sister company Skinny, the only problem is - it's even more expensive then what they were offering.-The representative's grasp of math is quite shocking, I'm sure this isn't exclusive to Spark. Unfortunately so many of these ISP's tweak their figures instead of just giving you an average monthly amount - which is what I calculated.The facts:-Vodafone has the best first year pricing of any NZ ISP for the previously stated requirements.-Spark: ($95 * 12 - $300) / 12 = $70 monthly, 1 year contract. (sum includes $300 cashback)-Skinny: $73 monthly. (They don't play with the figures when on contract, 1 year contract)-Vodafone contract 1: ($89.99 * (12 - 3)) / 12 = $67.42 monthly, 1 year contract. (sum includes first 3 months free)-Vodafone contract 2: ($79.99 * (12 - 3)) / 12 = $59.99 monthly for first year, $70 monthly the following if you call up, 2 year contract. (sum includes first 3 months free)-The first 3 months free is equivalent to the first 6 months half price.-$300 cashback is a -$25 reduction in monthly fees.Here are my questions:-Why does Spark require a new customer to wait 1:10-1:40 hrs for a new connection, when talking by phone?-How come the link for "message a representative" sends me to the FAQ on their website, when I'm trying to talk to sales. It doesn't initiate any form of contact.-Why are the staff incapable of price matching, except for when they knock at your door?-Why are the staff left in the dark on how much their offers cost on a monthly basis. It's quite difficult for them to talk regarding their costs when their companies figure is obfuscated by 'cash-backs', 'free months', 'half priced months'.Thank you,Spark is not projecting the image they're capable of meeting.
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MIGRATE XTRA MAIL IF CHANGE FROM SPARK OR STAY?
My retired mother is being constantly contacted by Enable and various others about getting Fibre installed. Shes currently with 2degrees for mobileADSL with Spark and uses Xtra.co.nz email.If there was a way to migrate all the Xtra emails and folders etc to another service that would be preferableSo say take up 2 degrees internet and phone so all with one provider and then use another email rather than xtramail.I've told her she doesn't really need fibre speed and ideally don't want to start paying more per month when you're retired. Any suggestions welcome
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VLAN tagging on Spark not required for previous Bigpipe customers?
Hi all,I was previously with BigPipe using the BigPipe modem (HG659) and when I moved to Spark I didn't bother changing the router because everything was working fine. This morning the modem went kaput (i.e. it won't power on any more), and I swapped in the Spark modem (HG659b) I got when I signed up. I had expected it would work seamlessly, but you can guess what actually happened -- no Internet -- and the helpdesk's diagnosis was "new modem required".When I got home I decided to try connecting my laptop directly to the ONT to see if it would work. I found the PPPoE connection wouldn't establish if vlan tagging was on, but worked fine with it off. I unchecked the box in the Spark modem, and now the tubes are flowing again.Is this expected behaviour? I had thought vlan tagging was required for Spark connections. I would love to go back and check if vlan tagging was enabled on the Bigpipe modem, but unfortunately that's not possible.(As an aside -- the Connection Promise was fantastic. I borrowed a mobile broadband dongle from a family member and the helpdesk loaded on 20GB really quickly. Without it I couldn't have downloaded Wireshark and solved this. It's a good reason to be with Spark!)
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Switch Out Spark Wireless Broadband Modem (Huawei) with my own?
Is it possible to purchase my own wireless broadband router and connect it to the spark network?Are the sim-cards locked to the modem somehow?I have the stock standard mobile broadband modem supplied which is a Huawei model. While the broadband connectivity seems ok, the wireless is terrible. I've switched over to using a seperate (old) wireless router for wireless, with a wired connection to the Huawei modem. I'm now experiencing increasing needs to power the modem down to fix connetivity issues. I want to improve reliability and simplify setup. Thoughts?Thanks Jayden
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Spark campaign to refund ex-customers
Just received:Spark is launching a public campaign to contact former customers so that the business can return credits left on accounts from when they left Spark. Over the next week, around 135,000 former customers will be sent an email or letter prompting them to go to the Spark website and enter their details, so Spark can return these credits to them.Like many businesses with variable monthly bills, when customers leave Spark there may be a small credit or debit left on their account. A minority of those customers who left Spark in the last seven years still have credit left on their old account. These credits range from a few cents to over $100.Grant McBeath, Acting CEO of Spark Home Mobile and Business says, 'There is a range of reasons why a former customer might have a credit left on their old account. Some customers were left in credit at the end of their account termination process due to the way their final bill was calculated. Some customers didn't cancel an automatic payment before leaving or mistakenly paid their final bill twice. Or in some cases, a refund from a billing error on Spark's part was discovered after customers had left Spark.'Whatever the reason, the credit remains on these old accounts and we want to give the money back. This money is held for the customer until it is paid back.'Spark has communicated with many of the former customers with credits previously. If it doesn't hold a customer's bank details, in most cases the customer receives a notification of their credit in their final bill or receives an email or letter at a later stage when a credit is retrospectively made to their account. Some customers have also received reminders by email or letter.While lots of people have successfully received their credit this way, Spark has not yet reached everyone - and some haven't claimed their money. For instance, when people have changed their email or physical address and their final bill or reminder letters didn't reach them, if former customers don't open their mail/ email - or if they simply don't bother to claim what might be a relatively small amount. Unfortunately, whatever the scenario, if we don't have current bank account details for the customer, we can't refund the credit.Spark is in discussions with the Commerce Commission about a billing system issue and two operational issues that relate to a small proportion of the outstanding credits. While this investigation is ongoing, it prompted Spark to look take a look at the broader issue of account credits. As a result, we decided to take a more public, proactive approach and run a public campaign to encourage former customers to claim their credits.McBeath explains, 'We want anyone with a credit to get their money back. Once a customer has left us, it becomes harder to track them down and then verify their identity to make sure we give the credit to the right person - while also making it as easy as possible to claim their credit. So, we're launching a public campaign and contacting former customers who have a credit from the last seven years to remind them of this.'ENDSNotes to the editor:If a customer has left Spark in the last seven years and has a credit, we'll send them a letter or an email to their last known address. Note that this applies to Home, Mobile and Business customers with a credit balance of $1 or more, but excludes Government, Enterprise or Corporate accounts, customers in receivership, liquidation or deceased estates, or customers where mail has been returned previously.Alternatively, if a customer has their old Spark account number handy, they should head to spark.co.nz/refund and fill out the form and we'll let them know if they have a credit. If a customer doesn't have their old Spark account number, we'll need to check a few details our end, so they should click on the 'Don't know your account number' link. This website is available to former customers on a permanent basis.Customers with a credit can choose to have their money sent to a personal bank account, transferred to a different Spark account, or donated to one of the worthy causes at the Spark Foundation.
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Spark Internet Connection (at work) - DNS not working with all websites
Is anyone else on Spark having issues accessing some websites.I've noticed for a couple of years that certain websites will not load via Spark. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/ is my go to address to test whether there are issues if I am having problems (Daily Mail always seems to fail if Spark is having DNS issues). See below for the message chrome browser gives when the server IP address cannot be found.Is this just me, or is this a known issue?" alt="Daily Mail can't be reached">This site can't be reachedwww.dailymail.co.uk's server IP address could not be found.Try:Checking the connectionChecking the proxy, firewall and DNS configurationRunning Windows Network DiagnosticsERR_NAME_NOT_RESOLVEDReloadHIDE DETAILSCheck your Internet connectionCheck any cables and reboot any routers, modems or other network devices you may be using.Check your DNS settingsContact your network administrator if you're not sure what this means.Try disabling network predictionGo to the Chrome menu > Settings > + Show advanced settings and deselect "Use a prediction service to load pages more quickly". If this does not resolve the issue, we recommend selecting this option again for improved performance.Allow Chrome to access the network in your firewall or antivirus settings.If it is already listed as a program allowed to access the network, try removing it from the list and adding it again.If you use a proxy server…Check your proxy settings or contact your network administrator to make sure that the proxy server is working. If you don't believe you should be using a proxy server: Go to the Chrome menu > Settings > + Show advanced settings > Change proxy settings… > LAN Settings and deselect "Use a proxy server for your LAN".
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XTRA MAIL export to PST?
Good day allCan anyone advise if there is a way to export a users email (complete with reasonably extensive subfolder structure) out of Xtra Mail webmail portal to say a PST file, where I can then import to Outlook? thanksfrank
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