Best ISP

will13 · 22 Dec 2011 at 01:01

Hi guys, hoping you can help.

I'm going to be moving soon, and need some advice on the best ISP for reliability, speed and ping, also the area I'm moving too doesn't have fibre optic line yet (also don't know if it'll have it anytime soon either)

I know I'm not going to get a ultra fast line but I'd still like to have a 1 that doesn't drop out or lag a lot.

Looked at BT, can get a good deal on phone, Internet and TV with them, Plusnet also seem good with there gaming addon, and theres also Sky and Virgin, who like BT I could take a good package out with.

Thanks for any help guys, its my first time doing this (Never had to worry about it before

)

will13 · 22 Dec 2011 at 01:10

MissChief said:
i find Sky to be excellent.

Are you on there normal line or fibre optic?

will13 · 22 Dec 2011 at 01:14

MissChief said:
normal DSL line. Sky's Fibre trial is ongoing atm. I do live very close to my exchange (less than 1KM) so get a full 20 meg.

Ah thats good to know thanks, and Lol at your edit

Edit: Huh according to a website the nearest exchange is in the village I'm moving too, but theres nothing above ADSL there

will13 · 22 Dec 2011 at 01:56

Orcvader said:
Which exchange is it? If you can't get Sky LLU then Be or O2 LLU are also good choices.

You can check what's avaliable at your exchange here: http://www.samknows.com/broadband/exchange_search

Its this 1

http://www.samknows.com/broadband/exchange/MYKIL

Its a small village not to far from where I live now, just parents decided to move

And theres no LLU at all, just ADSL (not even ADSL2+)

will13 · 22 Dec 2011 at 02:10

Orcvader said:
Wow... well that really limits to what you can have...

And on the page it says this:

Well, I guess the only good option I can recommend is BT?

Your telling me, didn't think it'd be this bad tbh, dunno if I'll even be fine on XBL, PSN and PC

will13 · 22 Dec 2011 at 02:18

Orcvader said:
Well, it's only 639 buildings connected to the exchange. So in theory assuming the equipment's good it won't be too congested and it should be stable enough. Since you're already connected to the exchange, how do you find the connection at the moment? Moving closer should help with the latency/speed.

I think I'm connected to a different exchange at moment since it can get LLU

http://www.samknows.com/broadband/exchange/MYBNN

I guess it'll be fine, just have to wait longer for things to download

will13 · 22 Dec 2011 at 02:29

Orcvader said:
Oh man, and that exchange's got an FTTC date too! Not to mention it can get Sky LLU! Meanwhile the exchange you're moving to is left in the dark... BT better get that FTTC rolling out faster.

Yeap, don't think parents will stay here just for me and my fibre optic though

(they hate this town)

1 thing that worries me is I'm reading about problems with BT capping there ADSL between 5pm-1am and people having problems on XBL

will13 · 23 Dec 2011 at 00:18

BuZ said:
BT/BT Infinity, best packages and management. 40Mb/s down and 10Mb/s up on Fibre, along with good traffic management .

Will the traffic management affect gaming at all though or just downloading?

will13 · 23 Dec 2011 at 01:40

Mana said:
BT infinity if you can get it

Can't, like I said I can only get ADSL (so only up to 8mb'ish)

will13 · 23 Dec 2011 at 03:59

opethdisciple said:
It doesnt affect gaming. (BT Infinity)

BE are a good ISP. But I switched to BT, becuase it was overall cheaper and I was more than doubling my speed.

When BE get a fibre solution of their own, then I may be tempted to switch back.

Ah that's good then

MissChief said:
I love that no one has read anything the OP has said and has recommended anything and everything he can't get.

Haha its fine

Anyway narrowed it down to BT or Plusnet with the Pro addon

Leaning towards Plusnet since they seem better suited, and they have no cap from 12-8am for not much more

will13 · 24 Dec 2011 at 01:05

HangTime said:
If you want something a bit off the wall maybe consider an entanet reseller as they are very stable for gaming and let you disable interleaving. I'm with Vivaciti and have found their tech support pretty rapid (and UK based). If you take a Business package it is unlimited 8pm-8am and all weekend, one of the better bog standard <8mbit ADSL packages on the market IMO.

Obviously depends a bit on how much you are swayed by cost, personally paying £23/month doesn't bother me at all, I was one of the very early adopters of 2mbit ADSL around 8-9 years ago and it cost me £58/month . If something like BT Infinity was available here I'd happily pay say £80/month.

Thanks HangTime, that sounds good, and no £20-25 is fine for me, I'll take a look at them

will13 · 24 Dec 2011 at 01:32

Dimple said:
I'm on Virgin and it has been superb for at least 10 years.

Are you on ADSL or fibre Dimple?

will13 · 24 Dec 2011 at 06:18

billyboyd said:
I'm on a rural exchange and only get ADSL Max (up to 8MB). But regading ISP i have been with Zen for about seven years now, but in that seven years i have never known them to go down and they have been honest and reliable.
None of this traffic shaping malarky either, you get a set amount of GB to do what you want with.
They are expensive but you pay for what you get.

Anyway just throwing another ISP in the hat and sharing my experience, good luck!!

Hmm this is getting a tough choice, at first Plusnet seemed to be the best overall, but both Vivaciti and Zen look good

One quick question about Zen, is it unlimited usage in off peak times?, didn't see any mention of it on there website

will13 · 24 Dec 2011 at 17:53

Orcvader said:
Implying he can get Sky and Virgin .

Zen, IDNet and ADSL24 are very good and very stable but they cost a lot. From what I've heard they have brilliant customer support too.

It depends on how much your parents feel like paying, but I'm guessing they'll prefer the cheaper Plusnet option.

It‘ll be me that's paying since I'm the one that wants a good ISP (there not really bothered about ping times and such

)