[Advice]Sky Unlimited Fibre vs Plusnet Unlimited Fibre

Chronictank · 9 Jan 2013 at 13:51

Sorry for this i know its been asked many times but I can't really find threads that answered all my queries to my satisfaction.
Plusnet is a hefty 18 month contract so I don't really want to go into without seeking some advice.

Asking people on both services what their expriences are so I can decide,
How do you find the reliability?
How is the performance during peak times on both services?
Have you had any issues, or are there things i should look out for?

Usage profile is a moderate downloader, heavy VPN access, i would like a nice Gaming experience

I have narrowed down my choices to the following packages due to their international call packages:
Based on monthly payments

Plusnet Fibre Unlimited

Costing
Minimum contract 18 months
Unlimited Fibre Broadband (estimated line speed 27Mbps) £ £19.99
Talk Anytime International £6.00
Line rental £13.99 (£10.49 12 month contract)
Voicemail (1571) Free
Monthly total £29.98 (£26.48 with 12 month line rental)

Advantages:
- Plusnet is essentially BT, so *potentially* higher speeds
- Better bang per buck

Disadvantages:
- Traffic Prioritization, however with the Unlimited Fibre product is not hard capped just shaped
http://www.plus.net/support/broadband/speed_guide/download_speeds.shtml
Prioritization table can be found here:
http://www.plus.net/support/broadband/speed_guide/traffic_management.shtml
To see what times things are managed on various packages: http://usergroup.plus.net/prodcomp1.php
- Costly to switch as your switch-over cost is based on per-month-of-subscription remaining

ISP Review Scores
ISP Review
160 Reviews, 4.5/10
Services 39%
Support 39%
Speed 42%
Value 47%
Review Centre
2/5 (410 Reviews), 26.3% recommended

Sky Fibre Unlimited

Costing
12 month contract
Sky Fibre Unlimited (estimated line speed: 27.1Mbps) £20
Sky Talk Anytime £5
Sky Line Rental £14.50
Voicemail (1571) Free
Caller display Free

Monthly total £39.50

Advantages:
No traffic shaping

Disadvantages:
Router is supposed to be terrible for wireless, not *that* big a deal as i have a repeater anyway
Seeing quite a few reports of slow-downs during peak times

ISP Review scores:
ISP Reviews
7.5/10 (84 reviews)
Services61%
Support54%
Speed64%
Value71%
Review Centre
1.9/5 (608 Reviews), 28.3% recommended

Is sky really worth the extra £10-£13 or so?

Imy · 9 Jan 2013 at 14:41

Did you include the caller display charge for Plusnet?

bremen1874 · 9 Jan 2013 at 14:42

To me Sky's offer only really makes sense if you want their TV as well.

Chronictank · 9 Jan 2013 at 14:49

Imy said:
Did you include the caller display charge for Plusnet?

It was free with sky so added it, I haven't included it with Plusnet no

KIA · 9 Jan 2013 at 18:18

andy_mk3 · 9 Jan 2013 at 22:51

bremen1874 said:
To me Sky's offer only really makes sense if you want their TV as well.

Don't have Sky TV but Sky Fibre is ideal for me! Pretty sure I'm paying £31 a month for it.

MissChief · 10 Jan 2013 at 00:27

Where did you read about Sky's router being bad for wireless?

bertles86 · 10 Jan 2013 at 06:57

The newest Sky router is actually quite robust. Nonetheless they do still lock them, so you cannot replace it with a router of your own.

For that reason alone, I say go with Plusnet.

$anch3z · 10 Jan 2013 at 07:09

The router can be unlocked - a quick google will tell you that. Sky all the way imo

Imy · 10 Jan 2013 at 10:16

So the Sky router is by default locked so it can only be used with Sky ISP but this can be undone by replacing the firmware.

How does that relate to not being able to use your own router with Sky? (serious question)

ChrisD. · 10 Jan 2013 at 10:27

If you ever have to call up for a fault you'll have to put the standard router/firmware on. I'm not with Sky so not sure how much of a hardship it is to switch over etc.

Imy · 10 Jan 2013 at 10:35

Like that are they? I'd find that annoying.

Chronictank · 10 Jan 2013 at 11:21

I went with Plusnet in the end after people reporting slow-downs on sky in my area whereas BT people seem to be ok.

Fingers crossed PN will be ok

Thanks all

bobpullen · 10 Jan 2013 at 11:21

Chronictank said:
Sorry for this i know its been asked many times but I can't really find threads that answered all my queries to my satisfaction.

Worth a read through the thread here if you've not already seen it.

Best regards,

Chronictank · 10 Jan 2013 at 11:24

MissChief said:
Where did you read about Sky's router being bad for wireless?

Pretty much every forum where i was finding out about how the service was with Sky

Chronictank · 10 Jan 2013 at 12:37

I am signing up with the knowledge the line is being Prioritized, however given the state of play with sky in my area (slow downs during peak periods) i would rather my normal traffic chug along normally

@bobpullen
With prioritization say as an example for educational purposes

On my network (not plusnet side)
Computer a: downloading usernet files
Computer b: playing games

at the moment my router is set up to priorotize the traffic as i have no shaping on my current provider, with plusnet (as i will get a new router) will this be done on your end so i don't need a solution on my side anymore?

bobpullen · 10 Jan 2013 at 12:40

Yes, our side should handle that for you.

Best regards,

ChrisD. · 10 Jan 2013 at 13:19

Chronictank said:
I am signing up with the knowledge the line is being Prioritized, however given the state of play with sky in my area (slow downs during peak periods) i would rather my normal traffic chug along normally

Sky FTTC slow down or ADSL slow down? As they are different.

Chronictank · 10 Jan 2013 at 13:40

MilanoChris said:
Sky FTTC slow down or ADSL slow down? As they are different.

Sky FTTC, they are on fibre
It only happens during peak times, rest of the time they say the service is great (based on 2 people i know who have subsequently switched to BT)

ChrisD. · 10 Jan 2013 at 14:14

Chronictank said:
Sky FTTC, they are on fibre
It only happens during peak times, rest of the time they say the service is great (based on 2 people i know who have subsequently switched to BT)

I have to admit, it's the first I've read of this.