FREELANCER: Tatlo na sila but signal still absent or poor

We understand why there are evacuees of the Mt. Kanlaon eruption who hate to read or hear reports about the continuing unrest of the volcano kag malawigan pa sila sa mga evacuation camps.

Kasubo gid man nga while they are in abnormal situation nga naka-box at the evac centers and boredom grows each day, they keep hearing about such.

However, kinanglan gid ma-update very often ang tanan on the latest about Kanlaon para sa safety of everyone especially that volcanologists expect another explosive eruption although no one can say how soon and how big.

Dapat isaylo na gid lang ang mga evacuees in a permanent place far from the volcano so they can go back to normalcy kag indi na hagay bakwit kada lupok sang Kanlaon.

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WHEN SOCIAL AND MAINSTREAM MEDIA were abuzz about the entry of Dito a few years ago during the President Rodrigo Duterte administration, the existing duopoly of Smart and Globe subsequently prepared for the challenge of the third telco.

On the part of the public, there was renewed hope that due to Dito’s entry, ang Smart kag Globe mapilitan magpadasig sang ila expansion kay damo pa nga mga lugar nga either wala pa sila coverage, o may ara man signal pero pigaw.

Because Dito was promising for a fully-5G coverage and low service rates in both data connectivity and call and text rates, many also expressed hope that there will be more cellsites nga the two other telcos would install and fire up, kag ang ila rates maganubo.

Sure enough, Dito’s threat compelled the two to install more sites, but still lacking in other places. Now that Dito is here although it is still trying to put up cellsites to catch up with Globe and Smart, damo gihapon lugar nga damo man tawo pero pigaw pa ang coverage.

In our latest trips during the Holiday Season around Negros, damo gihapon mga lugar nga populated na kag need gid may telcos pero wala sila nga tatlo signal. Mayo lang may mga Piso WiFi sa mga unserved areas, but having telco sites is best.

There are also places that the three have cellsites and good signal, but when power interruptions occur, dula man ila signal kay wala generator.

By the way, Smart users at downtown Bacolod indi matawgan o makatawag especially from the area of Bacolod Police Station 1, BAYS Center and Negros Press Club across the plaza, up to Plaza Mart and Gonzaga-Araneta Streets fronting BDO to Lopue’s Araneta area. We look forward to coverage improvement in these areas.

Bay-i lang na anay si Dito kay bag-o pa lang kag diutay pa gid man iya cell sites. Pero, based on our phones’ indicators, daw laban 4G ang signal ni Dito kag naglaka ang 5G. But thanks, kay may mga lugar nga si Smart kag si Globe are absent pero ara si Dito.

We do not want to takes sides here pero when we travel out of town, consistent laban ang signal ni Smart and its sister firm TNT.

Globe and sister firm TM are good also but once distansya na sa city or town proper, naga-hinay dayon kag gaka-utod ang data connectivity nila.

These are based our experiences on both iOS and Android phones using the three telcos’ sim and esim.

We are hoping that the technical people of the three telcos, especially of frontrunners Smart and Globe must frequently monitor the performance of their networks and make necessary repair or adjustments to satisfy their subscribers.

While subscribers understand nga may mga lugar gid man nga daw indi pa gid man priority for telcos kag indi puwede butangan cellsites due to the topography, dapat dasigon nila install sa mga lugar nga needed sila.

We also call on government regulators to further reduce bureaucracy, the rules and formalities para madasig ang pag-install sang cellular towers and facilities. Sa pila ka barangay pa lang daw damo na hagdanan kag kuarto ang agyan.

Building owners also must allow cell sites, or micro sites to be set up sa ila mga buildings without rentals or nubo lang so telcos can improve their signal and cover more areas including indoors. Pabor man ini sa mga naga-rent sa building nila.

It will take years for the costly satellite-based mobile connectivity, and handsets, to become affordable to many. Terrestrial-based networks that transmit data, such as cellular sites, Wi-Fi, fiber data lines and even traditional landline telephone lines, will remain more reliable.

Amo ni nga dapat dasigon pa gid sang mga telcos ang pagpalapad sang ila coverage areas kag pag-improve sang ila services. Not because of the fierce competition alone. Enabling people to get connected anywhere, anytime is beyond explanation.*