Why Being First Matters
Being first on SUPA wasn't about bragging rights. A new network only shows its real behaviour under real load: how it handles evening peaks, how it reacts when a link fails, and which router settings get the most out of it. We've been learning those things longer than any other retailer, and every new VOCPhone connection benefits from it.
It also means we've worked with SUPA's engineering team since the beginning, which helps when something needs sorting quickly.
A Direct Connection Into SUPA
We don't reach SUPA through a middleman. VOCPhone connects directly into the SUPA Networks core from our own network. Your traffic goes from your fibre port, through SUPA, straight into VOCPhone's routers and out to the internet. No wholesale aggregator sits in the middle, and no third-party platform shares that path with dozens of other brands.
Fewer hops mean lower latency, fewer places for things to go wrong, and one team (ours) responsible for the whole path. Read more about why that matters in We're Not a VISP.
IPoE: The Modern Way to Connect
Many providers still use PPPoE, a connection method from the ADSL era. VOCPhone delivers SUPA using IPoE (IP over Ethernet), the way modern fibre networks are designed to run.
| IPoE (VOCPhone) | PPPoE (older method) | |
|---|---|---|
| Login | None. Plug in and it works | Username and password in your router |
| Overhead | None. Full 1500-byte packets | 8-byte PPP header on every packet, MTU drops to 1492 |
| Router load | Light, so gigabit runs on everyday routers | Heavier. Many routers can't reach gigabit over PPPoE |
| Reconnects | Near-instant via DHCP | The session has to re-negotiate |
| IPv6 | Simple and native | More complicated to set up |
Plug-and-play setup
No credentials to type in and nothing to get wrong. Bring your own router or use one we pre-configure.
Real gigabit on real hardware
PPPoE makes your router's processor handle every packet, and many popular routers top out well below 1 Gbps because of it. IPoE removes that bottleneck.
Fewer odd problems
Full-size packets mean less fragmentation, so VPNs, gaming and video calls behave better.
Gigabit That's Actually Gigabit, Both Ways
SUPA is pure fibre to your premises: no copper, no node, no HFC. On VOCPhone our top plans are symmetric, so uploads run as fast as downloads. That matters for video calls, cloud backup, sending big files and live streaming.
| Plan | Speed (down / up) | Typical evening speed |
|---|---|---|
| Everyday Fiber 50 | 50 / 20 Mbps | 48 / 17 Mbps |
| Family Fiber 500 | 500 / 500 Mbps | 416 / 416 Mbps |
| Super Fast Fiber 750 | 750 / 750 Mbps | 657 / 657 Mbps |
| Ultra Fast Fiber 1000 | 1000 / 1000 Mbps | 784 / 784 Mbps |
In testing on our network we've recorded 974 Mbps down and 982 Mbps up. That test used 10 Gbps equipment. SUPA network equipment may be limited to 1 Gbps, and factors outside our network can affect speed.
Why we publish evening speeds
Anyone can advertise a maximum. The number that matters is what you get between 7pm and 11pm, when everyone's home. We publish it for every plan, so you know what to expect before you sign up.
Not Over-Contended, On Purpose
Every internet network shares capacity. The question is how much is shared, and between how many people. That's called contention, and it's the main reason one gigabit plan feels fast at night and another doesn't.
Providers that oversell capacity show a big number on the plan card and slow to a crawl when everyone gets home. We don't build our network that way:
- We plan capacity for peak hour, not average use. Our link into SUPA and our upstream capacity are sized for the busiest evening, with headroom on top.
- We upgrade before we're full. We watch utilisation on our own core in real time and add capacity as we approach our thresholds, not after customers start complaining.
- We don't share a pool with other brands. We're not a virtual ISP, so nobody else's customers compete with ours for the same bandwidth.
The result is gigabit that stays close to gigabit, with low latency and low jitter, even when the whole neighbourhood is online.
1st
provider connected to SUPA Networks
1 Gbps
symmetric, over IPoE
99.99%
carrier-grade network uptime
A Static IP When You Need One
Lots of budget providers put customers behind CG-NAT, where one public IP is shared across many households. That breaks port forwarding, remote camera and NAS access, game hosting and some VPNs. On VOCPhone, a static IP is available on any plan for $5 a month. It's ideal for home labs, remote work, security systems and anyone who needs to reach their own gear from anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Was VOCPhone really the first provider on SUPA Networks?
Yes. VOCPhone was the first retail provider to connect to SUPA Networks, and we've run live customer traffic across it longer than any other retailer.
What is IPoE, and why is it better than PPPoE?
IPoE (IP over Ethernet) connects your router using standard DHCP, with no username, password or PPP tunnel. It avoids the 8-byte PPPoE header on every packet, keeps the full 1500-byte MTU and puts less load on your router, which makes gigabit speeds achievable on everyday hardware.
Do I need a special router for gigabit?
For Fiber 500 and above you need a gigabit-capable router with a gigabit WAN port that supports IPoE (DHCP). Most modern routers do. We can supply one pre-configured, or you can bring your own.
What does "not over-contended" mean?
It means we size our capacity into SUPA and out to the internet for the busiest evening hours, with headroom, and upgrade before links get full. That keeps evening speeds close to the plan speed instead of dropping when everyone is online.
What are typical evening speeds?
They're the speeds you can expect between 7pm and 11pm, the busiest time on any network. We publish them for every plan, for example 784/784 Mbps on Ultra Fast Fiber 1000. Your Wi-Fi, devices and the sites you use can also affect speed.
