Starting the search for a more reliable isp-currently with talktalk?

joemardo1

Hi folks,

Though my contract is not ending until October I am seriously thinking of getting a different ISP, current one is Talktalk, because of speed and disconnection issues. The current price I pay them per mth is great,£18 approx. for line rental, anytime and international calls and broadband, but the speed which is usually 3 MBPS off peak has gone down to the following and I paste from their speedtest page.

Your broadband speed is: 0.29 Mbps

This is pretty good, but your computer or wireless connection might be slowing you down.

If you’d like to experience even faster speeds, you can add our Superfast Fibre Broadband.

Your estimated speed on Fibre is: 40 Mbps

As You may well guess web pages load consdiderably slower and youtube videos are unwatchable. Probably a congestion problem where I live (its unbundled) but I can't see Talktalk rushing to increase capacity.

a few questions,

1 If I was to sign up to fibre is it possible I would get the same congestion as I get now and slow speeds with either Talktalk or another isp?

2 I was on BT pages would cost over £40 per mth (line rental fibre cost anytime calls) though it would be fibre unlimited. What is Sky like as an ISP as I could sign up to them as well?

I have gone on Talktalks members page so heres hoping they can do something as regards disconnections

Thanks for any info
Joe

Robisere

Checkout samknows:

http://www.samknows.com/broadband/broadband_checker

Input your postcode/tel.number and see if Fibre is available in your location. If it is, find out if there is a cabinet on your street, or nearby, which has the BT "Superfast Broadband" logo.

There are 2 ways to get Fibre - Fibre To The Cabinet (FTTC) and Fibre To The Home (or Premises) - FTTH or FTTP.

FTTC is fibre optic cable to the cabinet, then an ordinary copper line to your house, usually via an underground cable, then to the nearest telegraph pole, then to your house via a BT line. Speeds vary, according to and dependent upon, the distance from the cabinet to your home. (Not as the Crow flies, but taking into account the number of supplied properties between you and the box in your home.) It can be quite fast, but if you are only used to line speeds in, say, a rural village like mine, it can be a relatively big improvement. I have FTTC and the download speed before that, was 0.5 Mbps to 1.5. Now it is 5.5 to 7 Mbps.

FTTC/P is supplied via optic cable direct to your home, by Virgin or BT. This supplies the highest speeds.

EDIT: If you are OK with TT, stay with them. If not, I do recommend Plusnet. They can supply FTTC or FTTH.
http://www.plus.net/

joemardo1

Thanks for reply, it would be FTTC I would be getting, I can see a BT green box about 100 metres from my house.

To be honest I think my existing download speed is a bit of a joke at peak times

As stated from Talktalks own speed test and they say that is a pretty good speed.
Your broadband speed is: 0.29 Mbps

This is pretty good, but your computer or wireless connection might be slowing you down.

If you’d like to experience even faster speeds, you can add our Superfast Fibre Broadband.

Your estimated speed on Fibre is: 40 Mbps

Only saving grace is at least I DO have internet access, will start researching a better isp now and just go to the end of my contract with Talktalk to start of October.

As I said before the price I pay per mth is a pittance but the way I feel at the moment I am getting a pittance of a service as well.

Going to check out SKY as well.

Thanks again

Joe