Recomended broadband for cheap but reliable service?

cashmonger · 20 May 2017 at 8:23AM

Looking on uswitch initially brought up origin as the cheapest but seeing the appaling reviews strewn over the net I am not gonna risk them.

I work online so need a solid connection however it doesn't need to be too fast. 20mbit from sky was fine.

I had to pay nearly £30 a month for that which seems alot just for 20mbits when you can get fibre for a couple of quid more. Thing is though I don't really need fibre speeds so it would be a waste but at the same time it the 30 for just 20mbit seems too expensive.

Any better deals for a similar price? and I am talking about after the grace period of the first year is over. I am finding it hard to find the REAL price since they hide it deep in there terms and only show the first year in huge numbers, which is much less than what you will be paying later, all over the place to lure you in.

I don't even know how long I will be at my new house, though I would like to stay indefinitely if all goes well, however I like to plan ahead and a year soon goes and I don't want to be chopping and changing providers all the time. I want a reliable one and stick with them.

So are there any suggested better deals for no frills solid internet connection for cheaper than the 30 quid I was paying at sky? Reliability and price are the main two factors.

DCFC79 · 20 May 2017 at 8:45AM

Once you have been there for the first year you call up to leave and see if they will reduce the cost for the following year.

JJ_Egan · 20 May 2017 at 8:48AM

Cheap and reliable do not go together .
Reliable then you pay more with an ISP like Zen or Andrews and Andrews .

Grace period does not exist .
You take out a contract at xx price for 12 18 or 24 months once that ends you are on a rolling 30 day contract usually at the full current price .Its up to you to renegotiate a contract once the term is up .

cashmonger · 20 May 2017 at 9:13AM

Broadband only with a phone is only available for fibre isn't it?

I do not need a phone line at all but I have to get it if not using fibre? since the broadband will still use the phone line correct?

JJ_Egan · 20 May 2017 at 10:12AM

Fibre or standard ADSL broadband both require a line to travel along .
You pay line rental for this data line Fibre or ADSL .
Most ISPs now bundle line rental in a package .

iniltous · 20 May 2017 at 10:36AM

20Mb from a standard broadband connection is very good,( presuming you mean 20Mb and not 20mb) and if that level of performance is perfectly OK for your needs, then why bother with FTTC.
You can easily get standard broadband with line rental included from £20 a month, minimum term, cash back, router delivery, connection charge, etc, etc, will vary between providers , just pick the one that suits you best.
Only Virgin offer stand alone broadband, but the price is near enough the same as line and broadband anyway, and starts around the £30+ level.
There is no reason why a cheaper ISP broadband equipment will be less reliable, (it's router performance may not be as good though) but should you have problems, the cheaper providers customer service generally is poorer than those providers who charge more for what seems to be the same product , again you pays your money and takes your choice.
Obviously if you may be moving home committing to say a 24 month minimum term may not be a good idea, but generally the longer the term the cheaper the price, because the ISP knows they are going to get revenue for that period from you

AndyPK · 20 May 2017 at 10:41AM

if there is a chance you may move house soon, so can't really move supplier, as this would lock you into a 12 month+ contract
with a termination fee of £300+

cashmonger · 20 May 2017 at 11:28AM

No I don't mean sign up and then move home I mean I am looking for the new broadband for my new place, which I will move into at start of June. I just meant that you never know if you will be settled in the new place til you move in.

I have found that uswitch and the other comparisons aren't much use since they don't tell you how much it will be after the 12 months is up.

Looking on the individual sites it is confusing since some show the line rental and others don't.

Also since I will be moving into a new build I guess I will have to pay for the installation of the line too so maybe that will be a consideration when choosing a package with the lowest line installation being the better deal.

Re 20Mb I didn't mean I got the full 20Mb, I got 12Mbit and yes that was fine. Even before they fixed the line and I was getting only 8Mbit it was also fine.

Which ones are £20 per month? All the ones I see at under £20 end up at around £27-30 once the first year is over; or they were not quoting the line rental on their website. I don't know why people go on the first year prices because if you are happy with the service you would spend most of the time on the standard prices after the first year so I want to know that price upfront.

The only one under £20 is origin which has atrocious reviews both on MSE and all over the net.

JJ_Egan · 20 May 2017 at 12:10PM

Only a non moneysaver would go on a standard price after a contract is finished .
Same goes for other utilities moneysavers don't pay standard prices once a contract ends they negotiate a new contract .
You seem to want to pay more in the long term than is necessary .
No ISP has fixed prices more than a year or so in front and all contracts are subject to price rise .
My last three BT contracts have actually dropped in price each year as i negotiate a new contract .

iniltous · 20 May 2017 at 12:12PM

It really does depend on what's more important to you, if 24 month minimum is ok , then you could get TT at £20/month, BT have a 12 month minimum term deal for £23/month with a £75 back via a card redemption, you may get a new customer deal from Sky if you are moving into a new address, £10/ month for 12 months then 6 months at £20 all these are including line rental...obviously there may well be more to pay if you are the first occupant of the address and there isn't an existing line to takeover, again the cost varys depending on what products you take and for how long...I would say don't worry too much about what it goes upto after the minimum term as you can always switch provider or negotiate a retention deal once the minimum term is up.
If the costs are unclear as the price goes up with some deals, or service set up is free with some and £50+ with others, just add all the costs together over the minimum period and divide by the number of months in that minimum period to get the 'true' monthly cost...
The problem is there probably isn't a single obvious answer to your question, too many variables , and asking on here quite often gets recommendations based on other peoples bad experiences , like avoid so and so they are ****, or fan boys who state so and so are great, TBH for the price of a cup of coffee a month, between providers that operate in the same segment, budget, mainstream or premium I wouldn't stress it too much,
Finally if this service is for your new address you probably should find out what speed you are likely to get on ADSL , just because you get 12Mb from an upto 20Mb service now has no bearing at all on what you may get at another address , and it could be the case that regular ADSL is much slower than what you need and you have to consider FTTC if it's available

onomatopoeia99 · 20 May 2017 at 12:17PM

If you need a stable connection for your work, pay for it, else you'll be back on here in a few months complaining that you're losing hundreds of pounds from not being able to work because your ISP support is rubbish, treats you like a domestic consumer rather than a business because you bought a domestic product, and all because you weren't prepared to pay an extra 10-20 quid a month for a proper ISP.

Why are you so intent on cutting a necessary business expense to the bone when it is absolutely required for you to be able to work? It makes no sense.

Recomended broadband for cheap but reliable service?

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