Updated Find the cheapest broadband discussion thread

chewyjoint

Hi

I am currently with BT and pay £9.70 per month for 10GB broadband (up to 20 mbps, I actually get 16) and unlimited calls. I pay advanced line rental which works out to £10 per month.

My contract expires in January and they have offered me;

Broadband - £5.50 per month, 18 month contract for 10GB or £8.65 per month for 40GB, 12 month contract.

Unlimited calls £5.15 per month

Advanced line rental £129

How does this stack up to other providers?

black_paw

i have just looked at tesco broadband and phone line and if have mobile phone with them the broadband is unlimited and free !:T
so just pay £13.75 a month ..wonder if anyone has it and whats it like ?

goldenboys_2

I`ve just sidned up for Primus broadband after using their phone only package.Didn`t have any problem using phone override provider 1899 until I signed up for broadband,then I couldn`t use it.Primus customer service says you can`t use override providers on upgraded phone lines.Is this correct or do Primus just want me to use their expensive daytime calls?.If so,anyway around it?

baby_lamb

I hope everyone had a good Christmas.

I'm an existing Plusnet Value user, but seeing all the Plusnet ads on TV for even cheaper broadband, I had a look to see what they had on offer. It seems that Plusnet introduced a cheaper range of products on the 19th Dec, and discontinued the old ones to new customers.

Their cheapest package is now called Essentials, at £5.99/mth. It looks identical to my £6.49 Value product. I thought they wouldn't reduce my charge, but having read some other forums, they do allow you to switch to the new product, so I have just done that online.

There doesn't seem to be any downside other than tying you up for another 12 mth contract, but given that I've already paid my set-up costs, £5.99/mth is hard to beat. So it's a few extra pennies in the pocket for a few minutes work.

===
Edit:

On another forum, user frugalmacdugal spotted that at the time of accepting the change, you are shown the 'new' download speed you will get vs the 'current' one. For me, it's 5Mb new vs 7Mb now. However, I've never managed to get more than 2Mb now anyway. It's interesting to see that the ad for Essentials is 'up to 16Mb', whereas I've had a look at the ad for when I signed up 2 years ago which states 'up to 8Mb'.

I wonder in practise whether they really will throttle back slightly for 'Essentials' customers. According to their download speed page,

portal.plus.net/support/broadband/speed_guide/download_speeds.shtml#essentialsSpeeds

for 'Essentials', download servers are restricted to 5Mb between 8-10pm, and operate at 'Line Speed' at other times.

Broadband speeds have always been a hazy area, but this is certainly something to bear in mind. I've already changed my product but for somebody else, it may be worthwhile to phone them up to get the definitive answer and post on this forum.
===

If you've recently signed up to Value and are still under the 12 month contract, I suspect they won't let you change, but you could ask. Also, I think the pricier products have gone down in price as well but you'll need to do a comparison.

One thing to add is that the new product does not kick in until the next billing date. At that time, I think you need to re-setup any caps you had in place before, eg. I have a zero excess on my 10GB usage so that I don't pay £5 if I go over.

baby_lamb

An update to my last post, according to Plusnet, the speed of 'Essentials' is the same as that of 'Value'. There's a discussion in the Comments section of

//community.plus.net/blog/2012/12/19/unlimited-broadband-is-here/

The author of the article confirms it, although doesn't really explain why users are quoted the difference in speed. What is more useful is a comparison tool that the usergroup has built

usergroup.plus.net/prodcomp1.php

You select two products to compare from the dropdown lists. When I compared 'Essentials' with 'Value', it was identical.

Patr100

Maybe the difference in quoted speed is because regulations have tightened about advertised to actual speeds, since you signed up previously and they are now erring on the side of caution, as you can cancel if estimates prove to be inaccurate, but I don't use Plus Net so am mostly speculating.
Usually you'll get what your line (usually via BT) allows. BB iSPS are more likely to add a cap/acceptable use clause or traffic manage later so the quoted speed is not reduced.

simon2146

ive had bt broadband for years.i pay 14.60p per month off contract.
i cant seem to find anyone who offers a better deal cos they all charge the same line rental more or less plus their charge on top.
problem is,i have the very old speedtouch modem which im sure is giving me a slow connection.
cant use dongle modem,cos the coverage here is not good at all.
any suggestions please?i dont use the landline for calls at all.
thanx in advance,
simon
my postcode is bh257ey

Malti

Goldenboys, I've been with Primus for years and have their max broadband - I've always been able to use 1899 during the day no problem. I don't know how they are preventing you from using 1899.

I was think of changing to Talk Talk - until I realised their "unlimited" essentials package is only 40gb. Can they be done under the trades description act as primus "unlimited" is a far more realistic 100 gig limit.

Anyone know of any other company offering up to 100gig for under £24 a month.

Samknows information:

• 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

Former_MSE_Becca

Malti wrote: »

I was think of changing to Talk Talk - until I realised their "unlimited" essentials package is only 40gb. Can they be done under the trades description act as primus "unlimited" is a far more realistic 100 gig limit.

Hi Malti, thanks for your forum post. As far as I am aware, the new TalkTalk unlimited package is just that, "unlimited". There is a fair usage policy attached to it though, which will restrict peer-to-peer file sharing in peak times: http://www.talktalk.co.uk/legal/fup.html?utype=nonmember

I cannot see anything about a 40GB limit online, but if you have any info, please post it and I'll take a look (and amend the Cheap Broadband guide if necessary).

Many thanks,
MSE Becca

mike_z_3

I have ordered the Primus Line Rental Saver - £111 per year (12 months contract & Free Installation) & Broadband Saver 20GB - £0.99 per month (12 months contract & 7.49 P&P) via MSE but received an email asking me to phone them. A 30 minute wait to get through at 3pm yesterday (possibly due to the popularity of this offer?) and I was told I would be unable to port my number from BT, but no specifics on why not. Its an ex-Telewest number with Orange BB and SamKnows suggests ...

"there is another service on your phone line (e.g. ADSL, LLU, DACS, etc) that would prevent you from ordering a new ADSL connection.
The following services are available in your location:

• BT Wholesale ADSL
• BT Wholesale ADSL Max
• TalkTalk (CPW) LLU
• Virgin Media (Cable)"

Phoned BT and they were helpful but said there was no restriction they could see.

Any other experiences of this or any suggestions on why it can't be done?

P.S. I have also joined Vonage so may look at porting to them if it can't be done with Primus.

Mike