Time to change ISP, but where to go?

Sillychuckie

I think it is time for me to change ISP so am looking for suggestions but I have the following requirements:

1) No monthly usage limits. I download a heck of a lot (usually afew gigs each day).
2) I'd like to keep my BT line (won't go into reasons) so this rules out people like NTL, and talk-talk.
3) I don't want a lengthy contract. 3 months is fine, but 12 is not.
4) I wan't good quality internet. Low contention, little/no packet loss etc.
5) No NAT's.
6) 2MBPS or faster... faster is better, obviously (but the quality is the most important).
7) I'd rather avoid new startups (like Primus).
8) Looking to pay LESS than £20 p/m. This is what I currently pay, so looking to make a decent enough saving to make it worth the switch.

I am in London (or will be shortly), so coverage won't be a problem.
Am I getting a reasonable deal already (Demon Internet) or can others suggest anything better?
I have no interest in things like 'free modems' but cashback sites would be good.
Thank you.

So far I have come up with the following:
RULED OUT:
- AceInternet (no cheaper than what I'm currently paying)
- Zazizam (more expensive than waht I'm currently paying)
- UKOnline (cheaper, but their connection fee puts me off)
- Pipex (usage caps, except for expensive option)
- Fasthosts (too expensive)
- Madasafish (usage caps)
- Talk talk. (requires phone switching and has a 40gb limit anyway)
- Be (not available in area yet)
- Telewest - not prepared to lay in a new cable line. No more lines into the house. The ISP MUST make use of the existing BT land line.
POSSIBILITIES:
- Tiscali (£2 saving, although has 'fairusage' policy)

If anyone has anything to add, please do.
I'll take suggestions of ISP's that require you to switch to their phone service too, but only if the contract is short. (rules out talk-talk for example, and this has a usage cap anyway).

Rev

You wouldn't need to change your telephone provider if you went with Telewest, I have neither telewest's digital tv or phone line. As it's cable you don't even need a phone line. But I'm pretty sure they only do 12 month contracts, I could be wrong though.

Sillychuckie

Thanks for your responses. Rev, I was not aware telewest was cable and as such, you have helped me rule it out. I don't have a cable line into the house and the ISP I will switch to must make use of the existing BT line. My folks would not be best pleased about another line in... so forget that.
HIBS, I have added Be to my ruled out list as unfortunately they do not cover my area (even though I'm in London). Silly people.

This leaves 'tiscali' only, with an acceptable usage policy (which I'd most likely break). Any other suggestions?
It is looking increasingly like I'll just stick with Demon (but call them to try and get a few pounds off each month to keep me as a customer).

coolsteel

Think Tiscali are a 12 month contract anyway,
Freedom2surf below is a 3 month contract but do have usage caps

Cascade Plus

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** Activation price waived subject to the service being retained against the same uninterrupted and unchanged BT Line Rental Contract for a minimum of 3 months, otherwise standard activation fee of £49.99 is due.
Usage caps do not apply between the hours of 1.00am and 6.00am
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Coolsteel:cool:

Sillychuckie

OK. Thanks all for your suggestions.
You have pretty much confirmed what I was thinking which is that I am on a decent provider at the moment and there is no clear ISP that beats it hands down. Ill call them to try and get the price down a little but will most likely stick for now.

Sillychuckie

So, I called Demon and got £2 off my bill, so I'm now paying £17.99 p/m for 2mb broadband.
They also tell me that in 1 months time, they'll be dropping the 2mb service and everyone will have a minimum speed of 8mb. I'll still be paying the £17.99 for it...
So, they have essentially matched Tiscali's price (or will be, once the 8mb kicks in), but unlike Tiscali, have no acceptable usage policy (which is good for me as I download masses of data).

The only thing that still seems cheaper is Talktalk, but I'm not a fan of their monthly usage allowance even though it is a relatively large 60gig.

Just a 'heads up' for anyone that wants a good 8mbps ISP with absolutely no caps, no AUP and a decent contention... Try demon, and ask for £2 off.

mrJ_5

it probably wont be a minimum of 8mb... as it is most likely based on adslmax - go to https://www.bt.com/broadband and see how fast your line can support

sk1n

http://www.fmn.uk.net/

Friend of mine is with them & they seem quite good, no usage limits, short contract, 8Mbit conection (download), seems stable. Worth a look.

P.S. Tiscali sux from personnal experience.

Sillychuckie

mrJ wrote:

it probably wont be a minimum of 8mb... as it is most likely based on adslmax - go to https://www.bt.com/broadband and see how fast your line can support

Quite right... 8mb connection, but not true speed.
"Our test also indicates that your line should be able to support a potential ADSL Max broadband line rate of 6.5Mbps up to 8Mbps."

Sillychuckie

sk1n wrote:

http://www.fmn.uk.net/

Friend of mine is with them & they seem quite good, no usage limits, short contract, 8Mbit conection (download), seems stable. Worth a look.

Too expensive. The aim of the post was to reduce my £19.99 bill with Demon, and as I have now got it down to £17.99, I'd need to undercut that.
I notice they have a better contention (if you pay for it, £50 ish) of 20:1, and I'm not a fan of the static IP address either (unless you can call them to have it changed easily).
Also, the setup fee isn't that great.

A very expensive ISP by the looks of things. Certainly not what I'm looking for. Thanks anyway.

normanmark

depends, with broadband you get what you pay for

the perfect company doesnt exist sadly