BT TV Question?

WanderingWalter

First off I am in the middle of ditching VM after 4 years of being a fibre customer. I can't fault the service but I didn't really get a decent deal offered for staying with the again, and for the deal they did offer they wanted me to agree an 18-mth contract which was not practical, since I might move in the near future.


Now it seems BT, Sky, PlusNet etc. all offer Fibre where I live, normal ADSL BB is too slow which is why I took on VM when I did.


At the moment it looks like BT are offering me the best deal, £29.99 for unlimited fibre and for an additional £10 I can add a TV Box. I ditched the VM Tivo 12 months ago and have not missed not having a recordable box, been using a NOW TV box for catch up etc.


If I got with BT I get the £125 pre-paid MC offer plus £80 through TCB if I take the TV which means I would pay £39.99 P/M for 12 mths.


If I take just Fibre it would be £29.99 plus £60 through TCB and the £125 pre-paid MC offer.


Sorry this is long winded, quick question. Currently my VM set up is the router is next to the TV so I have a strong connection to the TV and NOW TV box, I just rely on wi-fi for my laptop (which barely gets used in another room) and my mobile / tablet.


Just me living here.


My BT sockets are in every room, with the master socket being in the spare room where my laptop lives. Do I have to plug the BT Smart Hub into the master socket to get the best connection or can I plug it into the BT socket in the living room, then run an Ethernet cable to a TV box and TV etc.


If I have to use the master socket, the fair enough, but BT want to sell me them extended kits for the TV box, for an additional £20, but I have a TP Link Powerline going spare from when I was with SKY, would that do the trick so I can save £20!


Sorry for so many questions. I need to save as much money as possible on the outgoings for this!


BT are offering a 12mth contract which is better in case I move house in the next 12 mths, I don't wanna be tied into an 18-mth deal.


I've ruled out SKY, even with the introduce a friend offer of £125 pre-paid MC for me and the person introducing me, they want £50 a month!


Help, any advice gratefully taken!

Buzby

Firstly, none of them gave you 'fibre' (it was all upstream of your copper connection) so a misnomer - even Virgin, although they don't use xDSL technology. Why leave VM -you can roll on and leave when you wanted? You're complaining about a minimum term that is rewarded, but has to be paid for if you terminate. The solution is not to change - especially when none of the other suppliers even get close to 200Mb (VM's maximum).

If you want a slower service, plug your router into any available socket, but you need filters in all the other active sockets you plan to use.

WanderingWalter

I don't need mega speeds of 200mb, 50mb is more than enough.

Virgin were the only people supplying Fibre when I initially joined, BT and the others only started to offer it last year.

A new supplier will give me an incentive to change, whereas VM clearly do not want to keep my custom.

Question still stands about whether a TP Powell inevitable would work.

Tigsteroonie

WanderingWalter wrote: »

If I have to use the master socket, the fair enough, but BT want to sell me them extended kits for the TV box, for an additional £20, but I have a TP Link Powerline going spare from when I was with SKY, would that do the trick so I can save £20!

I don't know if the TP Link would work but steer clear of the ones that BT supply, they are cr@p. We signed with BT two years ago, had the Router in the hall (bottom of stairs) "linked" to their TVBox only 5 metres away, no solid walls between; and it couldn't cope. We would get frequent freezes on the 'extra' channels they supply, rendering most unwatchable.

Got out of the contract at the earliest opportunity (when they introduced a charge for a previously free channel). It wasn't worth paying for something we couldn't rely on to watch or record.

Funnily enough our NowTV box (upstairs, through two walls) never had a problem with connectivity to the router.

VisionMan

Yes your Hub will need to be directly connected to your master socket, If this isn't physically possible an Openreach installer will connect them via a high speed Data Link Cable. Here, have a read of this -

http://bt.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/37163/~/what-is-a-bt-infinity-data-extension-kit%3F

thescouselander

The advice is usually to use the master socket but I've found I can use any socket in my house without any reduction in sync speed. It all depends on your wiring and the only way to find out what works is to try it.

VisionMan

thescouselander wrote: »

The advice is usually to use the master socket but I've found I can use any socket in my house without any reduction in sync speed. It all depends on your wiring and the only way to find out what works is to try it.

Indeed. Which the installer will do once he arrives. Its not a problem either way.

WanderingWalter

Tigsteroonie wrote: »

I don't know if the TP Link would work but steer clear of the ones that BT supply, they are cr@p. We signed with BT two years ago, had the Router in the hall (bottom of stairs) "linked" to their TVBox only 5 metres away, no solid walls between; and it couldn't cope. We would get frequent freezes on the 'extra' channels they supply, rendering most unwatchable.

Thanks for your reply, it was really helpful.


I've opted to avoid the TV Box for now, thinking on it if I remember correctly a relative had it and it was rubbish!


I've taken fibre and calls for £29.99 per month and by signing up this morning rather than yesterday the TCB payout has gone from £60 to £70 plus the £125 pre-paid MC!

WanderingWalter

VisionMan wrote: »

Indeed. Which the installer will do once he arrives. Its not a problem either way.

BT don't actually send an installer, you have to set it up yourself, which I am happy to do. They just need to reactivate an old line I once had here.

WanderingWalter

thescouselander wrote: »

The advice is usually to use the master socket but I've found I can use any socket in my house without any reduction in sync speed. It all depends on your wiring and the only way to find out what works is to try it.

Thanks for that, will try!

littleboo

WanderingWalter wrote: »

Thanks for your reply, it was really helpful.


I've opted to avoid the TV Box for now, thinking on it if I remember correctly a relative had it and it was rubbish!

I've recently upgraded from the old style BT Vision black box which was a bit flaky and sluggish, although we had got used to it. The new Youview box is excellent, the difference is night and day.