Review by core2extreme 
UPDATED: 358 days ago
member for 2 years, 27 visits, last login: 43 days ago
 Laval,QC
 $18 per month (12 month contract)
 about 7 days
 Bell Canada
 "Great speed, great price, great extras (Online storage, Online PC, SSH Tunnel), EXCELLENT VALUE!"
 "Uses Cogent (cogentco) as the Peer 1 network (= slightly higher ping time)"
 "For the added-value features and excellent online support system, Acanac has provided me BY FAR the best ISP experience"
| Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
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Moving from Bell... err... Hell Canada to Acanac, I felt as though a huge weight has been lifted from my back! From day one, Acanac has proved to be the best ISP I have ever used in my opinion.
1. MODEM
I ordered Sunday, and the modem arrived Tuesday. I'm not quite sure why, but they used FedEx Priority Overnight (even though my activation was in 2 weeks time). The modem is the best I have ever received from an ISP. A regular modem, that is by default in bridge mode, nice! I checked, there IS lots of configurable options (such as port foward, firewall, automatic PPPoE, DMZ, almost everything you find on a router), but I prefer to use it just in bridge mode and let my router handle these. No proprietary software (*ahem* Bell); this thing is 1000X better than the crippled 2Wire 2701 from Bell. One thing though, Acanac charges $49.95 as deposit for the modem, which is understandable.
2. DSL CONNECTION
So I tried to connect with my Acanac PPPoE login (even though I still had Bell). I got a mediocre 3396/672 connection compared to the 4386/676 I got from Bell's Total Internet Performance (»gr310.ifrance.com/ISP/Bell.JPG). So I sent a ticket from their online support page. Got a response a few hours later, telling me to re-contact them when my service will be officially "activated". OK, no prob. So I re-opened the ticket on the activation date, and they told me there was a installation issue with my line, and needed to create a ticket with Bell. The same night, only a few hours later, my DSL profile was properly corrected and finally got a 4347/673 connection (»gr310.ifrance.com/ISP/Aca.png). Nice, 5 Mbit/sec as promised!
Perhaps if there was one thing that was not better than Bell, it would be the network infrastructure. As Acanac connects to the internet via Cogent, the latency is a lot bigger than with Bell. There is also some packet loss, which was never the case with Bell. You may compare the Line Quality test of the two services side-by-side here:
*Bell (Total Internet Performance): »/linequality/nil/2448609
*Acanac High Speed: »/linequality/nil/2455286
3. FREE EXTRAS
For only $18.95 per month INCLUDING taxes and modem rental, a 5 Mbit connections with unlimited bandwidth (true unlimited, not softcap) is already a steal of a deal. But Acanac also offers at no extra charge 100GB of online storage (via FTP), which is activated right away with the DSL service. The upload speed to the FTP server is good, plus CPanel X to manage the account, so it a no-nonsense service.
And also, the most important part, is the FREE ONLINE PC. It's basically a CentOS 5 online system, just like VPS, but without root access. You have to contact support to activate this, but once you do, it's amazing. I have not used it frequently, but I did do a speedtest from the online pc, and got an unbelievable 40M/10M connection!
* »gr310.ifrance.com/ISP/OnlinePC.JPG
But the most interesting part with the online PC is the SSH Tunnel. My BitTorrent speeds has gone from 30KBps to more than 540 KBps with the tunnel! I am blessed. They even tell you how to do it: »acanac.ca/SSH-Tunnel-U.htm
The SSH works perfectly, excepts that the server sometimes reset the connection. I recommend using Bitvise Tunnelier instead of PuTTY, because of the automatic reconnect feature.
4. SUPPORT
The online ticket support system is flawless. Before you start saying they don't respond to your tickets, CHECK YOUR JUNK FOLDER! My first support ticket response went directly to junk! They do respond rapidly (one day at the most), and they do solve issues efficiently. No Indian-accent guy reading a script "restart your computer, reset your modem..." No, their staff seems to be knowledgeable and actually have a clue what they're talking about (*cough cough* Bell). They try to really assist you instead of finding lame excuses. As for phone support, I have to admit I never tried it, since the online ticket system is so effortless and effective.
5. CONCLUSION
Acanac has EXCEEDED BY FAR MY EXPECTATIONS. For a company that sells actual 5Mbit DSL with true unlimited bandwidth for $18.95 tax included, it is a bargain that no one can refuse. Bell over-advertises its speed, has bad support, is over-priced, and always tries to find ways to cripple customers' internet experience (throttling, bandwidth restriction, crippled modem). Acanac, in contrast, does not cripple the experience, but actually find ways to ENHANCE it by offering free useful services and helpful support. Believe me, at $18.95 it's a real steal, get it before it's gone.
I am not an Acanac staff, and the only reason why I took such a long time to write this lengthy article is because I truly believe Acanac is by far the BEST ISP I have ever dealt with.
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