Post by: kitz on April 16, 2015, 10:40:28 AM
Sheeeeeeeesh at the price :o
It's not just that one seller, there's someone else selling @£59.00.
You can buy a brand new TG589vn combined vdsl modem/router for £9 less than that, or a Billion 8800NL for only a few quid more. :no:
Post by: stevebrass on April 16, 2015, 10:49:09 AM
Post by: jelv on April 16, 2015, 10:55:11 AM
/me Must got on with unlocking the spare! Once that's done a working, unlock the other and put it back on eBay!
Post by: Chrysalis on April 16, 2015, 10:59:57 AM
I notice the price of the HG612's on e-bay seem to have shot through the roof -linky (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Unlocked-BT-Openreach-HG612-3B-38-Modem-VDSL-2-FTTC-Infinity-Huawei-G-INP-/151641137542?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item234e842186)
Sheeeeeeeesh at the price :o
It's not just that one seller, there's someone else selling @£59.00.
You can buy a brand new TG589vn combined vdsl modem/router for £9 less than that, or a Billion 8800NL for only a few quid more. :no:
supply and demand :)
good I have stocked up on them :)
but that price is silly, its more than the 8800nl :D
Post by: kitz on April 16, 2015, 11:11:57 AM
Quote
but that price is silly, its more than the 8800nl
Exactly, we recommend the hg612's cause you can normally pick them up for about a tenner.
When it gets to selling them at more than the price of the TG589 and the 8800nl both of which are combined units, then its just plain ridiculous.
Fair-do's if someone wants to say add another tenner on for unlocking it, but adding £50 on IMHO is too much.
Post by: broadstairs on April 16, 2015, 12:33:56 PM
Stuart
Post by: apvm on April 16, 2015, 01:22:00 PM
Post by: Ronski on April 16, 2015, 01:31:29 PM
There's always been expensive unlocked ones, but never that expensive!
Post by: boost on April 16, 2015, 06:23:13 PM
Post by: Al1264 on April 17, 2015, 02:56:38 PM
Cheapest 'Buy it now' I could find, seller has 100% positive feedback too.
Post by: Dray on April 17, 2015, 03:04:51 PM
Post by: ip75 on April 17, 2015, 03:37:31 PM
Post by: Sebby on April 19, 2015, 12:16:20 AM
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on April 21, 2015, 04:25:13 AM
I'm surprised the supply hasn't dried up yet as I thought Openreach had been exclusively using the ECI modems for ages now.
Post by: jelv on April 21, 2015, 08:19:35 AM
7:45 open curtains, parked outside is a Kellys van. :-\
Wander across the road to the cabinet where he's doing a test and wiring me up - I'm on port 1 (the only one)!
Go to his van to find the modem - he pulls out an ECI. I pull a face and try to explain to him the issues (he's Polish and his English isn't 100%). I have got these smaller ones he says, opens a new box and pulls out a HG612 3B - yay!
Post by: chris32 on April 21, 2015, 05:44:48 PM
Will probably hang onto my old ECI for the time being....
Post by: kitz on June 14, 2015, 07:53:36 PM
They are now asking £80 for unlocked HG612's. :thumbdown:
That is bleeding ridiculous - link (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Unlocked-BT-Openreach-HG612-3B-vk-Huawei-SZ-Improved-Latency-Sync-G-INP-/171820854799?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item2801522e0f).
Whoever it is obviously reads this forum because there's an image of the ReTX profiles I posted here (http://forum.kitz.co.uk/index.php/topic,15283.390.html). Note they are using the terms MKI & MKII which afaik is only used on this forum.
Post by: Chrysalis on June 14, 2015, 08:13:17 PM
thanks in advance to openreach for my profit.
Post by: mjgr33n on June 14, 2015, 09:22:33 PM
Post by: kitz on June 14, 2015, 09:30:56 PM
Members of this community have:
- Hacked the HG612 (Asbo)
- Wrote new f/w so it will work with G.INP (Wolfy)
- Provided the graphing tools (Eric/BE/Ronski/B*cat)
- Provided information about G.INP (Our community)
- Told people to buy a HG612
all of the above was done for free for the benefit of the broadband community. Not one person who has done all the hard work has gained a single penny.
Then someone comes along and rips them off. Yes I do consider charging that amount of money ripping off someone, because that is pure greed especially when someone else has spent hours and hours doing it for free.
Let me state here and now I am not pleased with whoever it is taking advantage from advice given from members of this community. I have no objection to someone making a few quid for putting the f/w on but I do not agree with them charging such inflated prices because of the advice we give out. I do not want anyone who hasn't the capability of understanding what is going on, or be too nervous to install the new f/w themselves to be taken advantage of.
If I see anyone in future recommending a HG612 on this forum, I'd expect them to add a caveat about ebay inflated prices/avoid such sellers charging stupid prices/recommend an all-in-one please.
----
ETA
In fact on reflection if they really are nervous about installing Wolfys f/w themselves, then we may be best recommending a Billion/Zyzel/etc because then at least it should have some future proofing when it comes to f/w. Aside from the fact it would be far VFM as at least a new unit will have a guarantee unlike a modem which has fallen off the back of a BT/contractors van.
If it wasnt for HowlingWolf then a shed load of HG612 users would now be up the creek without a paddle.
Post by: Chrysalis on June 14, 2015, 10:08:13 PM
Post by: kitz on June 14, 2015, 10:15:23 PM
Post by: Chrysalis on June 14, 2015, 10:31:14 PM
I seen it before as a way to just sell with supply and demand so it helps pay for my new router, but now I feel like I shouldnt sell it :p
Will see how I feel tomorrow, although I definitely wouldnt put a price tag of £80 on it, thats way too high.
I wonder how many of these been sold are people like me selling one spare device, or if its engineers selling their van stock.
Post by: roseway on June 14, 2015, 10:54:37 PM
Sheeesh who is Fibre-cat?
They are now asking £80 for unlocked HG612's. :thumbdown:
That is bleeding ridiculous - link (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Unlocked-BT-Openreach-HG612-3B-vk-Huawei-SZ-Improved-Latency-Sync-G-INP-/171820854799?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item2801522e0f).
Whoever it is obviously reads this forum because there's an image of the ReTX profiles I posted here (http://forum.kitz.co.uk/index.php/topic,15283.390.html). Note they are using the terms MKI & MKII which afaik is only used on this forum.
And he's using a DSLstats snapshot to illustrate its compatibility with monitoring software...
Post by: kitz on June 14, 2015, 10:56:24 PM
£80 is taking the pee though... and thats what pushed my "youve gone too far button".
Quote
if its engineers selling their van stock.
Without doubt there will be some accounting procedure in place, so there wont be an unlimited availability when it comes to van stock.
But Ive no doubt there will be a few cases whereby the ISP will have been charged for the modem but one not given out to the EU. I'm thinking for example the likes of Eric's installation.
The contractor who did my original installation was also a bit of a 'hoarder' too - I had to stop him walking off with my clarity NTE5, and it later emerged that the NTE that he had installed was one of the known (older) faulty batch... although whether or not that was deliberate Ive no idea and not provable.. but it gives some scope for a certain amount of umm recycling.
Post by: HPsauce on June 14, 2015, 11:01:00 PM
I have no objection to someone making a few quid for putting the f/w on but I do not agree with them charging such inflated prices because of the advice we give out.I guess it's a tricky one.
There will be people out there who would like to take advantage of this freely-given work but do not have the technical ability/time/motivation/whatever to take what is available online and do it themselves.
So, as the work is freely available online it's just a market for those prepared to do it for others.
One way to give some sort of protection are the various models of public licence that require acknowledgement etc. and/or no commercial use. But that's possibly a bit OTT for those involved in doing the original work.
A bit of honesty by sellers might help, but why would they give away all the details of their sources in an eBay listing and potentially sabotage the effort they have made to understand and know how to apply the work of others.
"Standing on the shoulders of giants" I guess, or is it just plagiarism? Probably not, it's somewhere between. :cool:
Post by: Dray on June 14, 2015, 11:19:53 PM
BT could fix all these things.
Post by: kitz on June 14, 2015, 11:56:28 PM
And he's using a DSLstats snapshot to illustrate its compatibility with monitoring software...
I noticed that eric, which is one of the reasons why I mentioned the fact no credit to the time that the likes of you and BE etc had put in. :(
Ive also just noticed that he has a second hand (used & scratched & noticeable cosmetic marks) VMG8924 listed at £90. Just look at the description, screen shots and examples for the config and bridging mode... wonder where that info came from ::) Oh well :D
Post by: burakkucat on June 15, 2015, 12:22:09 AM
Post by: NewtronStar on June 15, 2015, 12:40:06 AM
Post by: Dray on June 15, 2015, 09:06:40 AM
Post by: HPsauce on June 15, 2015, 09:18:45 AM
Post by: boost on June 15, 2015, 11:47:09 AM
I'm just one of the idiots who paid for an unlocked one :D
Seriously, I admire people who can spot that A + B = £££. I don't have this ability myself. Are they taking the pee? Almost certainly but out of who, exactly?
What we really need to do, is phase out speaking about the HG612 on here. What is the best, mass produced and easily available alternative? I've used a 30 quid TP Link for an ADSL site that had telnet access and it worked very well. It had a few UI bugs but for our purposes on here, it is a credible alternative. I don't believe that model did VDSL though.
Someone post a personal review of a 50 quid VDSL2/ADSL2+/ADSL modem and let's stop mentioning the HG?
Or someone send me one and I will test the bollocks out of it and post a review myself :)
Post by: loonylion on June 15, 2015, 01:40:04 PM
Surely all we have to do is find a cheap source of HG612's, unlock them and offer them on Ebay for a small premium. This would increase supply and so reduce the price.
I planned on doing that, but as of yet haven't been able to find a source of them. Even Alibaba/Aliexpress don't have them, so I have a suspicion its an end of life product that BT have an agreement with Huawei to continue using/supplying
if anyone finds a source let me know, I've got little else to do all day and will donate a proportion of the profits to kitz.
Post by: Dray on June 15, 2015, 02:00:53 PM
Post by: Adduxi on June 15, 2015, 05:11:21 PM
<snip>
What we really need to do, is phase out speaking about the HG612 on here. What is the best, mass produced and easily available alternative?
<snip>
Regarding above, I would also be interested in finding this out?
I have a Dual WAN setup, so only need a modem, nothing else. I believe HH5 can't be set to 'modem only' mode, so it's a non starter.?
Post by: Dray on June 15, 2015, 05:24:45 PM
Post by: loonylion on June 15, 2015, 05:53:56 PM
What about the HG610? Plenty of those on Alibaba
does that use the same firmware though? although arguably it would come unlocked already since BT haven't got their hands on it first, but it would still need a G.INP compatible firmware available.
it appears to have 4 lan to the 612's 2, and no bbu port (may be relevant to people with voip based phone systems)
Post by: kitz on June 15, 2015, 06:41:32 PM
Quite some time ago Asbokid mentioned to me that some low-life entity on eBay was selling printed copies of his "unlocking guide" . . . That's right, the PDF format file which is free to download and documented in his HG612 "Wordpress" blog. >:(
I can't believe the cheek of some people :'(
Post by: simoncraddock on June 15, 2015, 08:27:45 PM
Post by: Chrysalis on June 15, 2015, 09:19:29 PM
As it turns out the other stuff I sold was enough to fund my router, but I still want to sell my 2nd hg612 as part of my clutter cleanup.
Post by: NewtronStar on June 15, 2015, 09:40:51 PM
mine hasnt gone on ebay yet.
As it turns out the other stuff I sold was enough to fund my router, but I still want to sell my 2nd hg612 as part of my clutter cleanup.
Always have a VDSL2 capable modem as a backup incase the all in one Modem & Router dies, just keep your working HG612 or ECI modem in hand because electronics will die not the whole unit just some capacitors.
Post by: Chrysalis on June 15, 2015, 09:53:35 PM
8800nl
hg612 (two of them)
3 eci's
fritzbox
hh5a
:D
Post by: Projjer on June 21, 2015, 10:46:01 PM
Just put my surplus HG612 on fleabay.
Description includes the words
"10% of purchase price will be donated to the expert enthusiasts that made the unlocked interface possible"
Cheers
Post by: Dray on June 21, 2015, 10:47:41 PM
Post by: kitz on June 22, 2015, 09:38:15 AM
@Dray. It's tricky because so many people have been involved. Original credit obviously must go to Asbo for the unlocking... But there's also been input from bcat.. And then people like bald eagle and ronski and Eric for stat logging.
Also a very important mention should go to howling wolf, because without him then unlocked hg612s would be a bit useless now... As they wouldn't be ginp compatible and seeing the same issues as the eci modems.
Post by: Dray on June 22, 2015, 10:07:54 AM
Post by: boost on June 22, 2015, 11:00:23 AM
Did anyone figure out what a good alternative might be?
VDSL2 capable BDCM + telnet access = win?
I'm not sure we should be discouraging the mega profits on the HG612 or anything else. We're techies, not whingers.
However, pretty sure Kitz pays for this site out of her own purse. If you find yourself coming back here again and again, perhaps consider hitting the Support this site (http://www.kitz.co.uk/sites/support.htm) button up the top to really give something back :)
Post by: Dray on June 22, 2015, 11:10:38 AM
All his work appears to be in the public domain with no benefit to himself.
Post by: boost on June 22, 2015, 11:20:29 AM
I don't know why, but Asbokid seems to have been banned from a lot of forums (know the feeling well). I do remember him running auctions of unlocked Huawei HG622 modems for the benefit of https://www.dogstrust.org.uk/
All his work appears to be in the public domain with no benefit to himself.
Ah, that's a shame.
Sometimes the helpy helperton in you goes too far, eh? :)
Post by: hacktrix2006 on June 22, 2015, 03:13:24 PM
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Unlocked-BT-Openreach-HG612-3B-vk-Huawei-SZ-Improved-Latency-Sync-G-INP/171820854799?_trksid=p2047675.c100011.m1850&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20140107083358%26meid%3D5e64f196e66a43679d7a2fd5e5ce3f13%26pid%3D100011%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D2%26mehot%3Dlo%26sd%3D281665297270
They sure have picked up on the G.INP issue and using it as a sell point thats for sure.
Post by: tbailey2 on June 22, 2015, 03:16:37 PM
Huawei [SZ] Direct -- Not "Ex-Openreach"= No Network Block / Lockout Risk{Openreach/contract stock units have the mac number/serials logged on the data base which can be system blocked with NCAS update rollout}
Post by: Projjer on June 22, 2015, 03:23:39 PM
I worded it that way to
a) remind potential purchasers that they had reason to be thankful
b) perhaps embarass sellers profiting from the efforts of others
I had no idea of all who had contributed, but my first thought was to donate to Kitz to support the site as I felt that most of the contributors would have no problem with this. Their good work helping a community that they were a part of.
If there is a definitive list then I would be happy to edit my description but I don't want to get into "I did more than him/her" type arguments.
I will do the same when I put my ECI device up for auction, although I think their prices are going in the opposite direction :(
Just seen the latest posts on here _ I might have to increase my "Buy it now price" ;D
Cheers
Post by: Ronski on June 22, 2015, 03:39:47 PM
Post by: kitz on June 22, 2015, 03:45:41 PM
His image shows the Openreach logo though.
Post by: kitz on June 22, 2015, 04:00:47 PM
They have gone past the £59 marker most are selling on ebay at £84.99 now lol.
They sure have picked up on the G.INP issue and using it as a sell point thats for sure.
That is ridiculous, stupid, silly money. >:(
I can only repeat previous post, that when recommending a HG612 that we should warn the buyer to check price. IMHO a Billion or Zyxel would be a far better purchase at that money.
In a way I feel that we* may have created a monster by recommending an unlocked HG612s as the fix. Other people have exploited that advice to the point at that price they are ripping consumers off who arent aware of what they should really be paying.
If he's buying in bulk for about a tenner he's making a nice tidy profit on the back of the likes of Asbo/HW/et-al hard work. Ive said before I have no qualms about those increasing the price to buy a couple of pints by installing HW firmware because there will always be those less technical & too scared to do it themselves. But I feel that particular seller is ripping off the community (not just here) advice by offering at such inflated prices. All the people who have invested in hacking the HG612 have done so for free and as has been mentioned Asbo donated any profits to dogs trust.
* "We" being all those across all the broadband communities who give advice and time for free.
Post by: hacktrix2006 on June 22, 2015, 04:03:12 PM
Sent from my TegraNote-P1640 using Tapatalk
Post by: kitz on June 22, 2015, 04:14:46 PM
According to the Shenzhen Huawei site (http://www.cccme.org.cn/shop/cccme2180/index.aspx), Those bought direct from the factory would appear to show the Huawei logo eg
(https://forum.kitz.co.uk/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fimage2.cccme.org.cn%2Fi_supply%2F2011-02-02%2F20110202071511000361360.jpg&hash=d7f93fcdb4fd00800c0ce4a52976cc6a5190649c)
-----
PS
What's "vk" does any one know
Quote
HG612 -3B[vk]
Quote
With the revised Broadcom [6368VK] chipset
Post by: burakkucat on June 22, 2015, 04:15:16 PM
- The PCB of a HG612 is that of the HG610 with certain components removed.
- When I last looked, the source code for the HG610 firmware was available from the Huawei web-site.
- Some time (years) ago, Asbokid imported a batch of HG610s, replaced the firmware image (in Chinese) with an image using English and offered each one of those devices as a receipt for a donation to the Dogs Trust.
Post by: Dray on June 22, 2015, 05:42:55 PM
Post by: burakkucat on June 22, 2015, 06:11:09 PM
Was that as well as the HG622s?
Yes. :) First the HG610s, then the HG622s. And, naturally, I have both devices in The Cattery. ;)
Post by: Dray on June 22, 2015, 06:17:07 PM
Post by: les-70 on June 22, 2015, 07:06:31 PM
http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=a230r.1.14.200.uDblOc&id=43195949461&ns=1&abbucket=5#detail
http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=a230r.1.14.380.uDblOc&id=17258023931&ns=1&abbucket=5#detail
But they always look like pre 3B models. Maybe used and unwanted Huawei stock.
610's, 622, and several more recent models are also available. In the past I purchased and reported some of the other models. The purchases were via http://www.yoybuy.com/ which is same method that asbo used for his purchases.
I would however agree that purchase like a 8800NL is a much better bet.
Post by: Projjer01 on June 24, 2015, 07:18:34 PM
Just to update you on the eBay sale of my HG610.
I did up the Buy It Now price to £35 and this afternoon someone bought it !
So Kitz - £5 will be donated shortly :-)
Cheers
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
Post by: Projjer01 on June 24, 2015, 07:39:30 PM
HG612 of course
Just to update you on the eBay sale of my HG610.
I did up the Buy It Now price to £35 and this afternoon someone bought it !
So Kitz - £5 will be donated shortly :-)
Cheers
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
Post by: GigabitEthernet on July 18, 2015, 11:15:12 AM
Post by: kitz on July 19, 2015, 12:30:25 AM
Without HWolf there would be a hell of a lot of HG612 users up the creek without a paddle right now.
Post by: GigabitEthernet on July 19, 2015, 09:16:19 AM
It's verging on scaring people into buying that one because the others will be "blocked".
Post by: GigabitEthernet on July 23, 2015, 10:11:09 PM
Why? Because of claims like this (http://goo.gl/K4aoM3).
Quote
Unlocked BT Openreach Modem ECI/r [v3] - VDSL 2 /FTTC/Infinity-Superior to HG612
How in any way is it superior?
Post by: NewtronStar on July 23, 2015, 10:45:52 PM
What happens if BT changes something on their network and there's no-one like Asbo or Wolfy to continue to support f/w for this modem.
Most of the hard work was done by Asbo and Wolfy followed it up and we need new blood incase Wolfy also disappears like Asbo :(
Post by: burakkucat on July 23, 2015, 11:56:34 PM
Seriously, avoid "fibre-cat".
I have had my suspicions that the person behind the fibre-cat ID is obtaining information from the Kitz web-site and forum. The current choice of eBay ID, fibre-cat, appears to be a veiled acknowledgement of what has been learnt here.
Quote from: eBay
Based in Lancashire, United Kingdom, fibre-cat has been an eBay member since 20 Nov, 2004
When joining eBay, on 20th November 2004, the ID len230 was selected. That ID was then used up until 3rd March 2014, when it was replaced with the fibre-cat ID. [1]
Quote from: eBay
User ID Effective Date End Date fibre-cat 03-Mar-14 Present len320 20-Nov-04 03-Mar-14
[1] http://contact.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ReturnUserIdHistory&requested=fibre-cat
Post by: jsamuel on July 25, 2015, 02:46:41 AM
Post by: kitz on July 26, 2015, 06:56:58 PM
Seriously, avoid "fibre-cat".
Why? Because of claims like this (http://goo.gl/K4aoM3).QuoteUnlocked BT Openreach Modem ECI/r [v3] - VDSL 2 /FTTC/Infinity-Superior to HG612
How in any way is it superior?
Good grief! £80 for an ECI? :o
I dont know enough about the following subject but I note his claim of ReTX following the output
Code: [Select]
nReturn=0 nDirection=1 bTrellisEnable=1 bBitswapEnable=1 bReTxEnable=1 bVirtualNoiseSupport=0 However I know with the TPlink TDW9980 (same chipset) needed the following to be fully compliant with g.inp (As you will recall I was in close communication with TPlink when it came to light that the TDW-9980 originally only supported g.inp downstream. This is output from the TDW-9980 after the tplink fix to support g.inp support in both directions.
Code: [Select]
nReturn=0 nDirection=0 bTrellisEnable=1 bBitswapEnable=1 bReTxEnable=1 bVirtualNoiseSupport=0 b20BitSupport=0
nReturn=0 nDirection=1 bTrellisEnable=1 bBitswapEnable=1 bReTxEnable=1 bVirtualNoiseSupport=0 b20BitSupport=0ejs is a far better man than me to be able to say more as he's done a lot of digging and research into unlocking and working on that branch of the Lantiq based chips. I seem to recall him mentioning one instance showing of ReTX from the shell prior to the fix but users were still at this point seeing problems with g.inp.
Some of those claims seem pure hype and aimed to confuse :-\.
I note he's also selling the WMG1312 for £80 which can be bought brand new for £60 (http://aa.net.uk/broadband-accessories.html)
Post by: kitz on July 26, 2015, 07:13:46 PM
Punching myself in the face, since I sold a spare brand new HW unlocked HG612 for £5 Buy It Now last week (which I got for free anyway from an engineer I bumped into a while back) I guess I'm too generous nevertheless.
I thought the whole idea of ebay was to buy unwanted goods and get a fair price for them. If he is sourcing direct from the manufacturer as he claims then surely he shouldnt be a private reseller?
His prices are grossly inflated.. I wouldnt pay £90 for a second hand ZyXEL SBG3300 either.
There are other sellers that offer much better and fairer prices eg someone selling unlocked HG612's for £37 (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Unlocked-BT-Openreach-Huawei-EchoLife-HG612-3B-VDSL-FTTC-Fibre-Modem-Router-/171844099383?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item2802b4dd37) inc p&p
Don't know who he is, but I couldnt help but notice he says this
Quote
Buy from a trusted seller who won't rip you off selling smoke and mirrors at £40-£70 ridiculous prices, listing firmware versions that don't exist and creating fake terms to confuse buyers, inventing nonsense such as unlocked serial ports and other absolute rubbish at consumer's expense.
:lol: :lol: :lol:
Post by: GigabitEthernet on July 26, 2015, 09:15:07 PM
Perhaps he might also work for Openreach and is making a nice profit on the side?
Post by: HighBeta on July 26, 2015, 11:28:57 PM
I'm just one of the idiots who paid for an unlocked one :D
I am too an I'm finding this thread more and more distasteful.
Will I next to be trolled because I've used that person for help with Lantiq drivers?
Post by: roseway on July 27, 2015, 07:03:59 AM