Is Virgin broadband any good??

mummybearx

I'm thinking of moving to Virgin broadband from O2. Currently our broadband is 'okay', not too slow but it seems to crash out quite often, go really slow, not load a page etc.

Reading about Virgin bb, they claim to be superfast due to it being fibreoptic, their cheap package is up to 30mb. I'm currently getting up to 3mb with my phone line.

If I switch will I notice a difference? Will my internet work faster and smoother?? I've never had anything other than internet through my phone line, I honestly don't know if it's worth switching?

usignuolo

Do you mean cable? We have cable. Its generally reliable at 30mb but speeds can drop and the traffic is managed so if you several of you do a lot of streaming, films, sport, iplayer etc on line, you can find it cuts out if you exceed your allowance depending on time of day. BT claim their's does not. Maybe a BT user can comment?

The wifi option does not work reliably with the Virgin superhub, particularly if you are trying to use different pcs around the house. (Laptop cannot connect over wifi from upstairs bedroom for example.) Virgin advise you need to reconfigure superhub into Modem Mode to fix this. (This assume some basic technical knowledge which our Virgin installer did not have.) We have our network cabled up instead.

The biggest problem we have found is running our home network peer to peer ie file sharing locally on our home network. Virgin like BT, seem to define a home network as one supporting multiple simultaneous users. That does NOTt mean the users can communicate locally between each other on their home network, to say, share photos on one computer connected to it. All the pcs are stand alone but connected to the hub so the only way you can share files is in the cloud.

This peer to peer option used to work with our previous Telewest router but apparently this had to be replaced when we upgraded to 30b as it did not support the higher speed. Now we cannot get it to work. Virgin not interested.

mummybearx

Yes, cable is what I mean.

I'm really not clued up on all things broadband related We use a wireless router just now, using our smart phones, ipad, laptop and xbox to access the internet. All from the living room where the router is, never usually from anywhere else in the house.

We watch bbc iplayer and lovefilm using the xbox. Don't download movies or music, just browse the internet, use facebook, use MSE. Just wanting something better than what we have now

mazza111

And I on the other hand have had no problems with it whatsoever. I've never had an ADSL connection so can't compare it. But I've had none of the problems described above. I download quite a lot and have only had my connection throttled once (naughty maz!)

I can pick up my connection from anywhere in the house without any problems whatsoever.

I've been with Virgin media since just after we got rid of 56k modems and got our internet through the tv box Way back when it was NTL. Then Telewest, now Virgin and had very few problems with them in all honesty. Telephone line has gone down a couple of times, but was fixed within 2 days. But that didn't affect the bb speed either

macman

If 3MBps is the maximum that your line can support on ADSL, and that's inadequate for you, then your only options are to upgrade to FTTC (if available) or VM cable.
If your line will support more than 3MBps, then you need to get onto 02 and get your line checked out-which you appear not to have attempted to do.

mummybearx

I have spoken to O2 about it, they and all other providers are saying that up to 3mb is the best I can get due to my phone line and distance from the exchange.

That's why I'm asking if cable is better, will it mean I can get a better speed and quality?

I'm guessing the answer is yes?

mazza111

Yes because the distance from the exchange doesn't matter..

GlynD

Virgin fibre is excellent, as is fibre from any other provider.

mummybearx

Lovely, think that's made my mind up :-)

As always, thank you posters for all your help :T

macman

Cable is not your only option, what about FTTC? Either will dramatically improve your speed.

mummybearx

Just googled to find out what FTTC is. Checked my postcode and have been told that there are no plans for this in my area.

And just found out a friend works for Virgin so can get me friends and family discount, even better :T