Which Broadband ISP

Don,

they are much of a muchness. And don't be sucked into the hype about speeds....unless you are next to the telephone exchange you're more likely to get the same as everyone else.

Ryan

Been using Waitrose for the last few months.its fast and fit,no problems at all.also has a Free help line,if needed.
George

I've been with freeview/orange broadband for a couple of years now.
I know they may not be terribly trendy, but I've never had any problems at all.Switch to someone else to save a couple of quid a month? Can't really be bothered. Better the devil you know.
Matt.

Have you tried looking at www.Which.Top10-Broadband.co.uk

Freeview /Orange are a bit picky as to who they will reliably send email to.

I have known of people on AOL and ATTGlobal.net that Orange/Freeserve refuses to send email to.

I have used Plusnet for nearly 4 years and do not plan to move. Support desk is in the UK.

If you have Sky sat it might be worth looking at their Broadband offering, similarly TalkTalk - although their customer support issue is a bit of a problem.

Take a look at the

Thinkbroadband forums

and ask around on the ISP specific forums.

I would thoroughly recommend Zen Internet (and have done to a few friends!). The service is fast and reliable, and customer service/support extremely efficient. They are based in Rochdale and their staff are very knowledgeable.

I have used several ISP's over the years but none have come close to Zen. I have been with them for about 17 months and wouldn't think of moving.

Mark

Zen gets my money too!

Beano

Thanks to all who responded above - very helpful.

I read the Which magazine a few months back and they recommended Waitrose.

However, Waitrose ISP seems to have been swallowed up by BT and no longer seems to be available as a separate offering. Is this correct?

I've never had any problems with Freeview or Orange so will probably just convert to their broadband, along with all the other sheep.......

Again, many thanks

Cheers

Don

quote:

They are based in Rochdale and their staff are very knowledgeable.

Damn won't be able to understand them either!

I've been using BT seems to work most of the time, but support is a nightmare. It's a case of finding someone I can understand and someone at the end who ca understand me!

What are you guys calling fast? I get high 3Mbs low 4Mbs most times. If I recall I'm about 3 miles/5Km from the exchange .

Howard

Big H,
thats fairly close, but the speeds drop the further you get from the exchange. If you are offered or are paying for 8meg broadband unless you are really close what you are getting is more realistic.

Ryan

quote:

Originally posted by Don Atkinson:

Which is the best broadband ISP currently available?

Best depends on your needs.

From your original post do I take it you're on dial-up and don't have anything other than a standard modem?

UKFSN

Rock solid.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Don Atkinson:
Thanks to all who responded above - very helpful.

I read the Which magazine a few months back and they recommended Waitrose.

However, Waitrose ISP seems to have been swallowed up by BT and no longer seems to be available as a separate offering. Is this correct?

......WAITROSE operates independitly within BT.Go to waitrose .com(their supermarket site)and follow the links

Don

For what it's worth, I was in exactly the same situation as you (Freeserve/Wanadoo/Orange dial -up customer).

I went with their (Orange's ) offer (£9.99/month/2GB monthly download limit).

It's OK: much better than dial up, and adequate for my purposes. If you want more sophistication, you pay more.

I really could not be arsed looking around for "better" deals. Whether they will increase the tariff, I don't know, but it's less than I was paying for the dial-up service.

Regards, Allen.

Dial-up to Broadband is like Binatone to Naim

My BT is fine but call centre abroad was a waste of time - too much hassle to change tho

Regards

Diccus

I wouldn't get too hung up on performance - if you're upgrading from dial up, the increase in speed will be mind-boggling. However, I'd think very carefully about your expectations of customer support, where I believe there is wide variation in quality.

I have Orange "free" BB, having signed a mobile phone contract with them about a year ago. It took them well over a month to sort out my connection. Since then it's been down a couple of times. Each encounter with their helpdesk has been a nightmare - easily among my very worst expeiences as a consumer. When the contract expires, I will look elsewhere - most likely in the direction of Zen, as a number of people have already suggested.

quote:

From your original post do I take it you're on dial-up and don't have anything other than a standard modem?

Paul, that's right. But Mrs D wants wireless and so do my kids - none of whom live at home, but disapear to my nearby daughter whenever they visit, just so as they can connect into her wireless broadband.

So I figure I must get wireless braodband, just to stay in the human race............

Cheers

Don

quote:

WAITROSE operates independitly within BT.Go to waitrose .com(their supermarket site)and follow the links

Thanks Full, I'll look them up, Which thought they were very good.

Cheers

Don

Forgot to say - it's not just me:

Orange Complaints

BT charge an ISP to enable a line for ADSL, it's around £50, plus of course you need a wireless router.

Go for an 18 month contract and you'll get free setup and a free router because the ISP know that they have you for 18 months.

If you want more flexibility go for a smaller, generally more friendly ISP where you'll be on a monthly contract so it's in their interests to keep you as a customer. The drawback being you'll have to pay the setup charge and buy a router.

Zen are good, AAISP, Newnet and UKFSN leap to mind as worth a look.

It's worth mentioning that ADSL is now self-install, so basically you get a router and a bunch of microfilters dumped on your doorstep, so I would pay particular attention to the level and quality of tech support offered.

Zen are reliable fast and customer service very good

I have the Orange "Max" package. £24 month including phone calls and a free wireless router.

Touch wood all good so far.

Jono

We've got BT with a hub phone. It generally works fine, but I dread the time when I need to get some tech help.

quote:

Originally posted by Chris Kelly:
We've got BT with a hub phone. It generally works fine, but I dread the time when I need to get some tech help.

The technical support desk in the Brazilian rain forest is extremely good (how is your Brazilian dialect Portuguese?) - well at least they are very cheap.

I use BT broadband and it's fine.

AOL gets lots of stick, but I've never had any serious problem with them. They have an offer on via Carphone Warehouse (I think that CW are the new owners) where you get a free laptop and a free router if you sign up for two years.
Ken