Can I come back to gfast if I switch to full fibre? Or could someone else take the slot?

SouthLondonUser

I have a gfast contract with TalkTalk. I am quite happy with it, I reliably get 130-150 Mbs download and 20-30 Mbs upload speeds.

I don't really need more; the only reason I'm considering changing is that prices have gone up, and now I can get full fibre for less than the £32 Talktalk will charge me.

My question in this post is not about fibre, it's about gfast only: if I cancel my gfast contract and move to fibre, can I then move back to gfast? Or does the cabinet only allow a maximum number of gfast connections, so if someone else gets a gfast connection, I won't  be able to get gfast again a couple of years down the line? I remember reading something along these lines a while back but I don't remember the details and don't know how reliable (or fake!) that is.

Basically I'm thinking that maybe in a couple of years fibre might be more expensive and I might want to switch back to gfast.

littleboo

g.fast ports are a finite resource so yes, it's possible that they may be unavailable. Also consider that copper based products will be retired over the coming years as Openreach roll out more fibre. You don't say if the fibre is from OR or another provider

iniltous

You may find that once Openreach FTTP is available any change of provider will require the use of the FTTP , even if the speed of the product ordered can be delivered using ADSL/VDSL or Gfast , so basically if you move to FTTP , you won’t be going back to another technology, understandably OR want consumers on FTTP once it’s available, they currently will not force copper to FTTP migration onto consumers, so anyone who doesn’t want FTTP because they are happy on their current copper pair service, needs to remain with that ISP , possibly on an uncompetitive ‘out if contract’ price , but once they have voluntarily switched , or taken a new deal with the current provider that requires going onto FTTP , that’s different,
Once on FTTP why would you possibly want to go back to Gfast ?

SouthLondonUser

iniltous said:

Once on FTTP why would you possibly want to go back to Gfast ?

Price. I don't need the extra speed, gfast is more than enough for me. If in 2 years gfast is cheaper than full fibre, I may want to go back to gfast - but I understand I may not have this option if someone else takes the slot in the meanwhile.

@littleboo Full fibre would be with a different provider: Community Fibre. What do you mean when you say that copper-based products will be retired? That in a few years new customers will be able to sign up to full fibre only, and no longer to copper products? is that the point iniltous made?

BUFF

SouthLondonUser said:

@littleboo Full fibre would be with a different provider: Community Fibre. What do you mean when you say that copper-based products will be retired? That in a few years new customers will be able to sign up to full fibre only, and no longer to copper products? is that the point iniltous made?

By the end of 2025 PSTN will be switched off nationwide by Openreach. Openreach will not be selling any new copper- based cable products/connections from the end of September 2023. 

iniltous

If the FTTP you are considering isn’t Openreach , when ( if you decide to use this Alternative Network FTTP provider ) you reach the point where you can move away from that FTTP provider ,  if OR FTTP isn’t available in your area , and OR are still offering Gfast products then yes you could  move back ,  your original post didn’t suggest it’s an Alt Net FTTP service being considered.
If Gfast is still on offer it’s very unlikely that the Gfast cabinet will have ran out of capacity , it’s much more likely that OR FTTP has become available or Gfast isn’t sold anymore,  if it turns out you cannot move back onto it.
There is no guarantee one way or the other , but spare Gfast   ‘slots’ won’t be the reason if you cannot move back .

SouthLondonUser

BUFF said:

SouthLondonUser said:

@littleboo Full fibre would be with a different provider: Community Fibre. What do you mean when you say that copper-based products will be retired? That in a few years new customers will be able to sign up to full fibre only, and no longer to copper products? is that the point iniltous made?

By the end of 2025 PSTN will be switched off nationwide by Openreach. Openreach will not be selling any new copper- based cable products/connections from the end of September 2023. 

I wasn't aware, thank you. So in 2 years and a half all ADSL will stop working? It seems pretty ambitious to move everyone to fibre in just 2 years and a half

matelodave

AFAIK there isn't exactly a plan to get everyone onto fibre but to get everyone onto IP based networks, many of which could probably be happily served over copper for the last mile depending on the speeds that are required.

A basic phone service over an IP connection doesn't need high speed, it just needs the appropriate equipment.

However what you are asking depends on what the plans are for your area, and in a couple of years what you've got now may or may not be avaialable. Either because there's no capacity, it's been discontinued and switched off of for some other reason. It's not even certain that OR will still be offering G'Fast in two years time

 You could even initiate a change to another provider today, change your mind and find that your line has already been re-allocated and you may not get it back if there was a waiting list.

It would be no different if you decided to transfer to Virgin, once you've been disconnected there's no guarantee that you wont end up at the back of a waiting list or get a worst service if you then decide to change your mind. 

SouthLondonUser

So the switch off means disconnecting landlines over copper and forcing people onto voip - it doesn't mean switching off ADSL and gfast?

littleboo

It's more subtle than that. 2025 is the date for the switch off of the analogue PSTN (phone) network. The replacement is VOIP. You can use VOIP over copper or fibre, so FTTP is not a pre-requisite for the PSTN switch off. If you have a phone line that is used exclusively for voice now, it will be converted to a data connection to support VOIP. 
xDSL ( ADSL, VDSL aka FTTC) are not affected by the PSTN switch off, but as Openreach FTTP becomes available, they will stop selling the xDSL services because there is no point in deploying fibre and then continuing to manage a legacy copper network for longer than is necessary.

iniltous

The PSTN switch off isn’t the same as removing copper pair service, if ( for example ) an order were raised after PSTN switch off for an address that didn’t have access to FTTP , then SOGEA can be ordered , the copper connection from the fibre cabinet to the address is still used , PSTN isn’t involved,
At the moment there is ( apparently ) an issue in that FTTC can provide IP telephony , so someone on FTTC can have a included IP phone  service if they want ( in fact BT are in the process of moving customers onto IP telephony , where the phone plugs into the router ) Gfast which is similar in many ways to FTTC , may not currently offer IP telephony , not a problem for those that don’t want an included phone service with their broadband , but potentially a problem for those that do want IP telephony from the same supplier of their Gfast broadband as currently it’s not offered.