Advice on a new ISP please (long post)

Cash-Strapped.T32

Hi all, first, let me apologise for asking a question that really I ought to know the answer to.
I tend to be of the opinion that folk ought to educate themselves as much as possible before setting up complex contracts, but I'm afraid it's been so many years since I delved into this area it's like trying to explain modern mag-lev trains to a Victorian engineer..

(to give you an idea, last time I went ISP hunting, 56k dial-up was still a current option! :eek:)

My situation is this; I'm looking for a new ISP - We're on AOL and frankly they're as awful as their reputation makes out.

I never used to have any choice in the matter, but recently I have "inherited" responsibility for our internet connection, as I'm now the only one who still uses a desktop & landline-based connection - My family all use lappys or netbook with weeny dongles for face-booking & plain old browsing, whereas I require far more than that.


Because I'm going to be paying for it, I'd like to move from our existing shonky dsl package that still uses a BT voyager usb modem & rarely gets above 2mbps (often far less).

My understanding is that the package we're on currently is no longer supported (it's an unlimited package for about £18 p/month), because they don't offer it to new customers.
In addition, the modem isn't even supported under Win 7 (no drivers) so I've been stuck with XP to boot which is a big problem for me (see below).

I'm quite active in the hobbiest-level computer game community, coding games, producing the artwork, sound editing, textures, models, basically all of it. (not simple flash games or anything, full sized games based on the Unreal Engine 2 & 3).

We often use bit-torrent technology to make beta-versions available, as a single beta might run to several GBs, and you might well put out several betas per week before you're happy with a given level, so direct-downloads are bad news for this kind of thing & FTP can be awkward as it's yet one more account to keep track of & it would mean me making everyone else move to FTP which isn't going to happen any time soon.

(NB; please let me be clear, I'm *not* talking about teenagers pirating films & albums, I'm talking about self-created content here - If I were even remotely interested in that kind of stuff I'd just go via usenet)


So this means I need to find a package that is;


[*] Unlimited (I can easily blow through several GBs per day, not even taking into account iPlayer & online TV).


[*] One that will not instantly cap my data-speeds as soon as it sees BitTorrent packets flying about.


[*] Ideally, that uses a proper router setup, not some wireless donglette.


[*] In addition, for play-testing, I also require a package that provides decent pings to the US, as much of the community is US based & online testing is essential for online games as well as general gaming for my own fun.


[*] Finally, one that is reliable. Whenever it rains I often get disconnected and have to wait hours before the ISP allows me to reconnect (like today for instance).


Now I respect that this is a big ask, and in truth I'm utterly lost!

I don't expect anyone to trawl through acres of adverts for me, but I would really appreciate it if you guys could point me in the right direction, let me know what I ought to be looking out for because while I might understand the finer points of coding enemy AI & collision-detection, simple networking is like black-magic to me.

I'm familiar with using comparison sites for other things (insurance, banking, etc..) but when it comes to ISPs I don't know enough to recognise a good deal when I see one, if you get me.

Thanks for reading all this, sorry for the wall of text but because I'm so ignorant of my options I felt I ought to give as much background info as possible.

*EDIT* Sorry, I forgot to mention; I'm in a semi-rural area (S44 postcode) so that restricts my options even further.
Many thanks everyone.

steveE2

Firstly pop your postcode in here http://www.samknows.com/broadband/exchange_search and see which LLuoperators are available to you from the list on lower left.

penrhyn

I concur with the above post, however,


[*] Finally, one that is reliable. Whenever it rains I often get disconnected and have to wait hours before the ISP allows me to reconnect (like today for instance).

Sounds like a line fault, you need to get AOL to contact BT Openreach to investigate/ fix it. Changing your ISP wont improve your situation.

Cash-Strapped.T32

Thanks lads, getting on there right now!

I've heard of local loop unbundling, and I know it's desirable for good pings though I admit it'll take a good deal of reading before I now why.

After inputting my p/code it gives a number of LLU providers, so I'm working down the list seeing what deals the various companies provide.

Ps: My only experience outside of this shonky modem is our works' internet which runs via ethernet from a massive router cabinet on my office wall; I was unaware that a home router would also use the basic phone telephone line; So I take it that even using a router would mean the connection is set up via the BT phone socket in our house and a DSL filter box?

(yes, that is my level of understanding, I sometimes feel like a kid shoving lego up his nose & wondering why it doesn't fit together! )

esuhl

For good 24-hour technical support and a pretty unadulterated connection (i.e. no traffic shaping, port blocking, or funny business), I find BE pretty good.

And after messing around with LLU and getting charged hidden disconnection and reconnection fees (thus wiping out any savings and having to put up with inferior customer service), I've gone back to BT and can't see myself tempted to switch phone providers any time soon. If you pay up-front it's £120 for a year's line rental (i.e. £10 a month), which is often several quid cheaper than the LLU option (thus making the cheap LLU-provided broadband not quite as good a deal as they make out).

Ideally, I'd get rid of the landline and just have broadband...

penrhyn

What are your LLU options?
If Sky/Easynet is one thats probably a good place to start looking as they offer unlimited BB. A decent Sagem F@ST2504N router and access to wifi hotspots via the Cloud, handy if you want connectivity whilst in Greggs!

Cash-Strapped.T32

esuhl wrote: »

For good 24-hour technical support and a pretty unadulterated connection (i.e. no traffic shaping, port blocking, or funny business), I find BE pretty good.

Ah-ha, I'm beginning to figure out this SamKnows site now; Rightio, BE are available through my local exchange;

ADSL: Yes
SDSL: No
LLU services: Yes
Cable: No
Wireless: No

..thank you for the heads-up on them, I do like the sound of that (no messing about or funny business - nicely put).

A quick Google sesh' has pretty much informed me of the difference between the two flavours of DSL; Tbh I would probably be better of with SDSL if they provided it, as it would help with uploading those large files & would no doubt help lower my pings to the US.

To see if it's our exchange that doesn't allow SDSL or just a few providers I'll check out as many ISPs who route through our exchange & see if any of them offer SDSL.

And after messing around with LLU and getting charged hidden disconnection and reconnection fees (thus wiping out any savings and having to put up with inferior customer service), I've gone back to BT and can't see myself tempted to switch phone providers any time soon. If you pay up-front it's £120 for a year's line rental (i.e. £10 a month), which is often several quid cheaper than the LLU option (thus making the cheap LLU-provided broadband not quite as good a deal as they make out).

Ideally, I'd get rid of the landline and just have broadband.. .

I could certainly live with losing the landline if needs-be, although I have a sneaking suspicion that even if I rang BT tomorrow to cancel it, I would end up having to pay whichever ISP I go with for line-rental on top of the standalone internet connection..

That's another point I'll need to check up on - Thanks for steering me toward it.

If you don't mind me asking, why do you associate LLU with shoddy service & extra charges?
Is it because you had to ring up your ISP to get them to enable LLU, resulting in some kind of "service" charge?
Do they treat it as cancelling the contract & taking out a new one, or something?

penrhyn wrote: »

What are your LLU options?
If Sky/Easynet is one thats probably a good place to start looking as they offer unlimited BB.

ISPs who do LLU in my area;
AOL
O2 / Be Unlimited
C&W
CPW / TalkTalk
Digital Region
Edge Telecom
Entanet
NewNet
Node4
Pipex
Rutland Telecom
Sky / Easynet <- yay!
Smallworld Media
Tiscali Wholesale
WB Internet
Zen Internet

I assume Sky/Easynet are different to Sky as in BSkyB, because I checked them out today & their website didn't list a single package that wasn't capped to 10GB per month which would be about a day's worth for me (ok, I'm exaggerating a bit there, but only a bit!

After I finish this post I'll google for SkyEasynet & see what they're all about - Thanks for this recommendation too mate.
I'll start my search by working down that list one by one.

A decent Sagem F@ST2504N router and access to wifi hotspots via the Cloud, handy if you want connectivity whilst in Greggs!

Oh-noes the cloud! :eek:
Heh heh, I'm not 100% sure what that means, but I'm guessing it's some kind of cloud-computing service piggybacking off other sky customers' un-used bandwidth? (and in turn other sky customers can piggy-back off your own un-used bandwidth while out & about)

Iirc there's a name for that, or am I thinking of BT open zone? (hmm, ponders)

~ ~ ~ ~

Thanks again to everyone, you've given me a good deal to think about; I'm aiming to make the decision & get set up within this month, so I honestly couldn't have hoped for a more helpful bunch of people.

rippedoffbyspark

check out a company called be broadband www.bethere.co.uk

i was with them and they arent bad never had a problem with them fair enough call centre was in bulgaria (its part of 02) but they spoke english and really helpful. speeds where good to.

zens another top company but from what i remember expensive. it all depends on your preference at end of day.

penrhyn

Sorry I've confused you. Easynet is a BskyB company who provide the network infrastucture for their broadband service.
Sky do not have 10Gb capped packages, if you are in their netwrok area its either a 2Gb capped Broadband Lite, Broadband Unlimited, and more recently Fibre Boadband Unlimited.

http://www.sky.com/shop/broadband-talk/


The Cloud, another BskyB company provide wifi hotspots in commercial premises. Like BT Openzone.

http://www.thecloud.net/free-wifi/

pcombo

I recommend orange.

I thought orange would be dire but the service i get with them is amazing. £10 for unlimited usage adsl2 connection not complaining. Plus i got 60 voucher.

esuhl

Cash-Strapped.T32 wrote: »

A quick Google sesh' has pretty much informed me of the difference between the two flavours of DSL; Tbh I would probably be better of with SDSL if they provided it, as it would help with uploading those large files & would no doubt help lower my pings to the US.

To see if it's our exchange that doesn't allow SDSL or just a few providers I'll check out as many ISPs who route through our exchange & see if any of them offer SDSL.

Don't bother with SDSL. It's not marketed to residential customers, so it's pretty expensive.

ADSL on BE (16Mb/s down, 1.9Mb/s up) = £27/month
SDSL on Plus.net (2Mb/s down, 2Mb/s up) = £215/month

Cash-Strapped.T32 wrote: »

If you don't mind me asking, why do you associate LLU with shoddy service & extra charges?
Is it because you had to ring up your ISP to get them to enable LLU, resulting in some kind of "service" charge?
Do they treat it as cancelling the contract & taking out a new one, or something?

I wish I could remember all the details of the nightmare, but it was a few years ago. We had problems with the phone line and broadband. The ISP blamed the telco, the telco wouldn't phone us back or contact BT. The ISP did contact BT who (allegedly) confirmed that the problem was with the telco and that they could easily fix it... but the telco hadn't asked and they wouldn't speak to me as I wasn't their customer.

Then BT charged us about £70 to replace the equipment in the local exchange as the telco had tampered with it. The telco said that this was in their terms, but there was NO mention of the price. I tried to get them to refund us, but they said it was a standard BT charge and therefore nothing to do with them. Argh!

And then... when I wanted to change ISP, I couldn't because most other ISPs required a BT phone line! So I had to change the phone line first, then the ISP... I can't remember the details (as I said) but I was without an Internet connection for a couple of weeks.

Never again!