Getting broadband

[Russell griffiths]

So I’m a complete noddy when it comes to technology, so please go gently. 

I want a good internet connection in the NEW house, so my limited knowledge is this, I have a BT line coiled up hanging on a rusty nail by the boundary this used to run the phone in the cabin we removed to build the NEW house. 

 

The OLD house we live in is next door this has a good broadband connection that I am happy with, we receive this from BT via a normal phone line hanging in the air, we pay approx £50 a month for line rental and internet. 

 

So I spoke to BT and I can connect the old line to the NEW house for a £70 reconnect fee plus whatever tariff I choose for phone and internet. 

 

So question really is, if a BT line is available is it best to just stick with BT, 

can another supplier send broadband down a BT line, does it work like that???

 

can I get a dish thing??? Any good ??

can I mount a 20 foot tall pole in the corner with an aerial on top and pick it up from a passing ufo???

 

 

thoughts please. 

 

Russ. 

[Gooman]

£50 a month? You're being ripped off.

 

Any broadband supplier can deliver your broadband service using your fixed, wired line (they're not BT lines anymore - they belong to OpenReach). BT is just one of those suppliers. And you can switch between them to get the best deal on offer once you're out of contract.

 

Check out MoneySavingExpert's free comparison service on broadband here (and get a better price on your existing service while you're at it): https://broadband.moneysavingexpert.com/?_ga=2.42879077.1386909857.1564388750-249517201.1538478553

 

The only golden rule (IMO) is to avoid TalkTalk like the plague. Awful reputation for customer service.

[Temp]

Openreach (a BT subsidiary) manage the network supposedly independently from the rest of BT. All other phone and broadband providers use the Openreach network to deliver their service. The exception being companies that use a cable TV network.

 

My recommendation is to pay the fee to get reconnected by BT/Openreach (without signing up to a new contract) but then shop around for the best phone/broadband deal you can get. Some offer a TV package delivered over broadband as well if you want that.

 

If the telephone pole is on or next to your land you could consider running an underground cable from your house to the bottom of the pole. Leave enough coiled at the bottom to reach the top with spare. Ask them to connect that for you.

Edited August 2, 2019 by Temp

[SteamyTea]

56 minutes ago, Russell griffiths said:

I want a good internet connection

What do you actually mean by this.

Do you want a reliable connection, a fast connection, or one that can be used to download lots of data.  You can have any combination, except the first one.

You can also check out the local exchange to see what you can actually get as a maximum.  My neighbour pays for a 20MB line, be we can only get 5MB.  Keep telling him, but he thinks he is on a good deal.

I use my mobile phone for all my internet stuff, except when I steal my neighbours.  There are times when it is a bit slow, but generally better than when I was hard wired.

I say hard wired, actually they swung about so much in the wind, that it was not unusual to loose connection 50 or 60 times a day.

26 minutes ago, Gooman said:

avoid TalkTalk

As they use the OpenReach stuff, they had the same problems, old creaking infrastructure and even older, more creaking technicians.  I found the pricing good.  Much better than my neighbours on Sky.

If you have a problem with TalkTalk, they tell you to pull the junction box apart and disconnect your phone.  Pillocks.

Edited August 2, 2019 by SteamyTea

[ProDave]

As others.  Plusnet seems to be the cheapest. Just mention the Plusnet price and BT should match it. If you don't go to Plusnet.

 

But before you do that look at mobile options.  In particular Three's all you can eat data sim.  If only we had three 4G coverage here I would likely switch to that.  the only 4G we have here is EE and they don't offer anything similar (yet?)

[Vijay]

For good fast fibre internet, you can easily be paying less than half of what you're paying mate. Looked at this last week for a friend and with cashback, it was something like £22 a month

[Russell griffiths]

Just to clarify, we pay £29 for internet, the rest is line rental and free weekend calls. 

[ProDave]

I pay BT £35 for line rental, broadband and a mobile phone SIM.

[SteamyTea]

1 minute ago, ProDave said:

mobile phone SIM

Does that allow you to connect to other BT customers WiFi when you are out and about?

[Onoff]

20 minutes ago, SteamyTea said:

Does that allow you to connect to other BT customers WiFi when you are out and about?

 

As an aside to that quirk of BT's service:

 

We're on a crappy wired connection here speed wise but noted the other night that next door's WiFi signal is not far off as strong as ours.

 

After a bit of time in the old interweb I came across a utility called Connectivity Dispatch PRO:

 

 

Seems it pulls together all available wireless internet connections and increases your speed. Paid for unfortunately but it got me thinking. My boy, on his desktop is always whinging about the speed of his wired connection, having left behind a super fast Virgin connection at his uni digs. I wonder if, with a wireless WiFi adapter plugged in he could combine next door's WiFi? Ideally with a free utility! 

[ultramods]

If you haven't done so already make sure your address is registered with the royal mail, otherwise you won't be able to order a line or broadband.

 

I have recently gone through this process. BT installed physical equipment before we had the address registered with Royal mail. Even after the address was registered with royal mail when I called my preferred broadband provider, Zen Internet, they couldn't see the address on their system. I wen't back to BT Openreach who said they should be able to see it, this went on for about a week. Then I thought I would try our current provider Plusnet (for rented flat), I could find our new address on their website when I searched for a new phone line service, but not broadband. Gave Plusnet a call and they said that we had to arrange phone line through them first, once phone line was set up they would then automatically order the broadband/Fibre service. FYI Plusnet have been owned by BT for a few years now.

 

[SteamyTea]

1 hour ago, Onoff said:

Seems it pulls together all available wireless internet connections and increases your speed.

And steals all your data, worse still, it may confuse BuildHub with another, much more popular Hub. 

I still wonder why we need ISPs, why not a large mesh network that is decentralised. Most of us live close to another house, and then you can put relays in phones and vehicles. For to be better than the system we have, eventually.

Seems crazy to me that they are launching thousands of satellites just so I can get access to my email.

[ProDave]

2 hours ago, SteamyTea said:

Does that allow you to connect to other BT customers WiFi when you are out and about?

Any BT landline customer can connect to ANY BT WiFi (identified as "WIFi with FON)

 

You just have to be able to remember your BT logon and password, which is why I rarely use that function.

[ProDave]

1 hour ago, ultramods said:

If you haven't done so already make sure your address is registered with the royal mail, otherwise you won't be able to order a line or broadband.

 

 

Not true. I had no problem getting a BT landline.

 

I am STILL not registered on the Postcode Address File as I refuse to pay the £100 Highland council want to do that.  Our address is on just about every other address database.

[LA3222]

2 hours ago, ultramods said:

If you haven't done so already make sure your address is registered with the royal mail, otherwise you won't be able to order a line or broadband.

 

I have recently gone through this process. BT installed physical equipment before we had the address registered with Royal mail. Even after the address was registered with royal mail when I called my preferred broadband provider, Zen Internet, they couldn't see the address on their system. I wen't back to BT Openreach who said they should be able to see it, this went on for about a week. Then I thought I would try our current provider Plusnet (for rented flat), I could find our new address on their website when I searched for a new phone line service, but not broadband. Gave Plusnet a call and they said that we had to arrange phone line through them first, once phone line was set up they would then automatically order the broadband/Fibre service. FYI Plusnet have been owned by BT for a few years now.

 

I have had similar issues recently but I don't think it is anything to do with being registered with the royal mail but rather an issue with internet providers systems taking ages to update and recognise you have a line etc.

 

My saga:

 

Rang openreach to get stuff for a line, not too difficult, stuff dropped off and I lay line in duct to nearest pole.

 

There is FTTC in the village so I rings BT for a broadband connection.  "Negatory ghost rider, you's got to have a standard connection put in then ring up to upgrade and we will honour the new customer price". Ok....so I gets a standard connection put in.  The engineer who installed my connection is also the chap who ran the wire back to the cabinet, he told me there are FTTC ports available and told me the cabinet no. to mention when ring BT to upgrade to fibre.

 

So far, so good.

 

Rings BT up the next day to upgrade and "computer says no".  Apparently fibre was not available to my address...mcscuse me.  Mention cabinet no. etc and still  no joy.  ?

 

Go onto the openreach website and my address is there but fibre not available.  Wtf.  BT site was the same and many others I tried.  I then emailed openreach to find out why the hell I couldn't get fibre....didnt really get much out of them tbh.

 

A month later, check the openreach site and it says I can get fibre, Ok, check the BT site and it now says I can get fibre so I rings BT up.  After a lengthy chat explaining my saga and talk of honouring new customer price etc, the chap checks his system - "computer says no" ffs!

 

So another month passes and check my BT account and lo and behold the option to upgrade my account online is now highlighted.  So rings BT again, explain the story, got cut off twice and had to repeat the story but now, after all the hassle, I have a FTTC connection at the price a new customer would pay.

 

The only conclusion I can draw is that it takes an age for everything to sort itself on their system.  Not sure if this will help anyone but I'm certain that being registered on the PAF is not necessary.   

Edited August 2, 2019 by LA3222

[recoveringbuilder]

1 hour ago, ProDave said:

Not true. I had no problem getting a BT landline.

 

I am STILL not registered on the Postcode Address File as I refuse to pay the £100 Highland council want to do that.  Our address is on just about every other address database.

Our address with bt is , plot next to, and although we now have a name I wouldn’t want to confuse them by trying to change it.

[Vijay]

4 hours ago, Russell griffiths said:

Just to clarify, we pay £29 for internet, the rest is line rental and free weekend calls. 

 

The price I looked at of £22 odd was for line rental and fast fibre. Call charges were PAYG. IIRC it was an 18 month contract

[ultramods]

1 hour ago, ProDave said:

Not true. I had no problem getting a BT landline.

 

I am STILL not registered on the Postcode Address File as I refuse to pay the £100 Highland council want to do that.  Our address is on just about every other address database.

 

OK, Dave might not be true but it is what I was advised by someone at BT Openreach. We didn't have to pay anything for the address to be registered with royal mail, I did it all online.

 

I did think it odd BT telling me it has to be registered with royal mail considering all the other utility companies didn't require this.

 

[DavidFrancis]

We're currently paying £22/month to Plusnet. This covers line rental, broadband (about 13 Mbps), and all "anytime" calls to landlines and mobiles.

[Dreadnaught]

Personally I am intending to install a fibre-optic cable connection all the way to my new house (FTTP) and not just to the local cabinet (which then have copper wire (or worse aluminium wire) to connect from the cabinet to the house).

 

I have the advantage of being in a central town location and in a town that has lots of FTTP already. 

 

Russell, in your splendid bucolic rural idle it is highly unlikely that any local company can provide FTTP to your location but worth the briefest of checks just in case. If you did have it you would be well future-proofed.

Edited August 2, 2019 by Dreadnaught

[Russell griffiths]

@Dreadnaught good evening, do you know much about these fibre companies, how the contract works between them and the local council or road owner etc, I’m curious as a company called GIGACLEAR has recently installed fibre to the local village, they came down the main road and turned the corner and up into the village, however they stopped 100m from my front door as I wasn’t on the route they planned. 

Im wondering about the legalities of this as my house officially sits in the boundary of that village, do they have a contract to supply fibre to a village, or is it up to them to raise the revenue and put the cabling where it is most profitable and avoid running an extra 100m for one extra punter. 

 

Would like to to find out the legal understanding of their agreement. 

[Dreadnaught]

Oh, sorry Russell, I know nothing about the such legal matters. Perhaps there are others here who might.

 

Notwithstanding, I would certainly contact them and see if you could be connected with FTTP to your new lake house. The price will probably be prohibative but you never know.

Edited August 2, 2019 by Dreadnaught

[PeterW]

Chances are they have a contract to provide coverage to 95% of the village - they can then plan to optimize the route accordingly and ignore outlying properties.