What Provider & What Package? Help Needed!

Digital_Dan

Hi

I would appreciate some help and advice.

I want to cut my monthly phone/broadband bill and also increase my broadband download limit.

Can it be done?

Currently I have my broadband and telephone line rental via BT. My landline telephone calls are routed via another provider - Hive Telecom; formerly known as Euphony Telecom.

My quarterly BT Bills over the last year have been as follows:
July 2013 £108.00
April 2013 £116.98
January 2013 £98.25
October 2012 £98.70
TOTAL = £421.93 (Inclusive of VAT)

The above includes charges for caller display and BT answer 1571 as I always forget to make the minimum number of calls via BT.

In addition I pay a monthly fee of £1.60 to BT. This fee is for so called ‘premium features’ that I agreed to when I first signed up to BT Broadband many years ago. If I recall correctly; one of the features is that I can take my (BT) e-mail address with me to another provider.

So that’s another £19.20 a year that I’m paying to BT.

My payments to Hive Telecom over the last year have totalled £131.53 i.e. they have averaged £10.96 a month. The highest bill was £18.78 and the lowest £4.26 all inclusive of VAT.

I pay all the above by Direct Debit from my bank account.

So my monthly telephony (line rental + Broadband + land line calls) outgoings average £47.72 a month.

For this I am getting BT’s ‘basic’ broadband service i.e. max speed of 16Mbs download speed (in practice 11-12Mbs which seems more than fast enough for BBC I-player) and a 10GB download cap.

Long ago I changed BT’s problematic router to a TP Link one which functions well.

What I would like to do is:

1: Cut my monthly bill by as much as I can without compromising on service or quality.

2: Increase my download capacity from 10GB to unlimited as I would like to use BBC I-player more often and perhaps Netflix also. Getting a YouView box for catch up services is also something that I would consider.

3: I want to keep my existing internet address and continue to access my webmail. Note I don’t download my e-mail to a client I access all my e-mail via BT.

4: I don’t want to have any hassle in changing routers etc. as I am not very technically minded.

At some point I am considering getting a YouView box. Primarily for catch up TV and possibly pay per view films. Sport is not a consideration. So while not essential; if a provider could offer me a YouView box in the deal; that would be attractive. I understand that adding YouView to the mix may not save me money though!

I would rather keep everything under one roof by using a single provider for simplicity sake; but would consider multiple providers if good savings could be made.

I have discounted the idea of BT Infinity (which is in my area) as I think my download speed is already good enough and I don’t want the faff of a router change.

If it’s worth using something like Skype for my telephone calls; then I would also consider that as long as setting it all up isn’t too technically demanding and as long as I could use the service via a suitable cordless handset. I don’t want to be tied to making or receiving calls via my lap top.

I appreciate any help or advice you can give.

Digital Dan


PS. Apologies if I have posted this in the wrong section! Mods please move to wherever is most appropriate.

Cycrow

First, it might be worth working out how much of your payment goes on line rental, how much on the broadband, and how much on the calls themselves, so you know what your paying for each.

But if you want to keep your BT Email, then you might be stuck on BT Broadband, most ISP's wont allow access to thier email if you are not longer with them (there are some exceptions)

So if you stick with BT, your only option would be to upgrade to the BT Broadband to the unlimited package, but this would increase your monthly cost.

Digital_Dan

Thanks for your prompt reply.

From my last quarterly BT bill (£108.15) my line rental is £46.35 (3 x £15.45)

The broadband cost is £51.00 (3 x £17.00) but that is apparently discounted by £2.20 a month.

My calls are via Hive Telecom and average £10.96 per month.

I will have to check with BT as to whether I can take my e-mail with me elsewhere. But I am sure that I was told that I could if I paid for their premium service; which costs me £1.60 per month. Though this figure is never on any bill that I receive from BT.

Thanks for your help.

Digital_Dan

Update:

The £1.60 I pay BT every month is for 'Premium E-mail'

According to BT:

BT Yahoo! Premium Mail

Keep your BT email address and avoid the hassle of telling all of your contacts that you've changed your email. With BT Yahoo! Premium Mail you can keep using your existing @btinternet or @btopenworld email accounts no matter who provides your broadband.

LINK

So it seems as if I can keep my e-mail address should I move to another ISP.

Now the question is; who do I move to? What package do I choose?

macman

Since broadband is exchange-specific, start with an exchange search on https://www.samknows.com for your available LLU providers,

Digital_Dan

[FONT=&quot]Thanks for that; I didn’t think to see what providers were available locally first.
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Anyhow, checking on the site, I get the following list:[/FONT]

The following services are available in your location:

• BT Wholesale ADSL
• BT Wholesale ADSL Max
• BT Wholesale WBC (21CN)
• BT Wholesale SDSL
• BT FTTC
• AOL LLU
• Bulldog LLU
• TalkTalk (CPW) LLU
• Sky Broadband / Easynet LLU
• Tiscali LLU
• WB Internet LLU
• Virgin Media (Cable)

[FONT=&quot]Sadly the link that says “[/FONT][FONT=&quot]Compare Broadband packages and prices at this postcode[/FONT][FONT=&quot].[/FONT]Click here” is not working.


Will I have check each suppliers site individually and compare their packages or is there a comparison site that I can use?


Thanks.

closed

move your email somewhere else, google, yahoo etc, then you can move anywhere. changing routers isn't much of a faff.

https://sales.talktalk.co.uk/info/tv/youview-tv

Digital_Dan

Hi

I really want to keep my current e-mail address but (apparently) as I have 'Premium Mail' I can do so if I move to another provider. Of course I have no idea how I go about it....

I'm really not at all technically minded regarding computers, routers wi-fi networks etc.

I have attempted to change a router in the past and it all went horribly wrong. I have a NAS device attached to my router and six media players plus two Blu-rays and a wireless tablet. I can imagine trying to set up a new network and configuring all those devices becoming a nightmare for me

I'd really want to avoid it if I can.

As I'm using a third party router anyhow; can't I just keep using it if I change provider?:huh:

Cycrow

as you can move to any ISP, you should be able to save quite abit, £17/month for a basic broadband is quite abit.

Just a quick check on BT Broadband, you can get the unlimited package for £15.45 line Rental, and £16 for the broadband. So that already works out cheaper than what you have now.

but there are cheaper places still, and you could take advantage of new user deals.

Plusnet do unlimited for £10/month (half price at £5/month for 9 months)

skys unlimited package is £7.5/month (£3.75 for 12 months)

for the calls, what type of calls do you make and when do you make them ?
there are many deals for free calls to certain numbers and at certain times, if they fit with your calling pattern, that could save you as well

Digital_Dan

Thanks for the info; much appreciated.

You mention Plusnet; but they are not listed as being available in my area according to the link that macman posted. So I'm presuming that they are not available to me? :huh:

for the calls, what type of calls do you make and when do you make them ?
there are many deals for free calls to certain numbers and at certain times, if they fit with your calling pattern, that could save you as well

Regarding my call usage; I consider myself a 'light' user. I would say that I make no more than five or six calls a day at most. Maybe a couple of them in the evening. Most of my calls are a few minutes long; obviously there is the odd exception to this.

I rarely make international calls. At most two a year.

Digital_Dan

Well I'm confused.

According to the 'Sam Knows' link provided by macman; Plusnet and Tesco Broadband are not listed as being available via my exchange. Yet according to the availability checker on their websites; they are! :huh:

OK; a few more questions.

If I switch to another provider:

1: Can I use my existing router? It is a TP Link unit and is less than two years old.

2: If I can use my existing router; do I have to reconfigure it in any way?


3: If I have to reconfigure it; will I have to reconfigure all the Wi-Fi devices connected to it?


4: I currently have BT 'Premium Mail' - I presume I can still use my current BT e-mail address and access my existing web mail in the same way that I do now?


5: I presume that my BT land line number will remain the same?


Finally; I'm looking at Primus-Saver; PlusNet and Tesco Broadband.

How are they regarded? Are they any good or rubbish?


Many Thanks.