Totally OT Nerdy Question .....

Am getting fed up with the time it takes me to do anything on the web so am considering Broadband.

Anyone got it or have any views on the pros and cons?

Comments

  • Had it about six months and have never looked back.

    I have the NTL service which costs me around aquid per month more than my old dial-up.

    The connection I opted for is the 128k,which although not the fastest,still makes dial up look lke it's standing still(which it usually is).
  • It also frees up the phone without needing a seperate line.Mrs DM is most happy about this ,DM is not.
  • I have an ADSL line from BT; it runs at 512K, which rather than being the distance of one of those "ultra" races, indicates that it's around 10 times faster than a modem (assuming the modem was operating at maximum speed, which usually isn't the case). Unlike cable modems, you are guaranteed this speed too; cable modems' speed can drop if your next-door-neighbour uses the connection at the same time!

    After having used ADSL for about a month I can only recommend it. Assuming the servers on the other end can cope, downloading is laughably fast (a 6Mb file takes less than 2 minutes!). The Web is blink-and-you'll-miss-the-load-time fast, except on sites which are very popular - in which case the limitation is with their servers anyway.

    In summary, I can wholly recommend ADSL (from a reputable supplier, I hasten to add - there are a lot of fly-by-nighters offering discounts!)
  • Hi Murf, not up late enough to catch you as usual.

    DannyM, I've got bog standard NTL with emphasis on the bog. If you don't mind me asking what are the actually prices of the standard and broadband you're paying
  • Livving in the 'sticks' I can not get yet - so i hate you all ;o)

  • BK,

    I am paying 15.99 per month the 128k.

    I think that the 512k is around 25.00 per month and the 1 meg is 50.00(my pound sign has packed in on my keyboard).

    I find that the connection that I have is more than adequate for general surfing and downloads are much quicker.Most single track mp3's come down in around 2 minutes depending on the time of day.

    I was paying 14.99 for unmetered dial-up but was forking out a fiver a month for an extra phone line.By switching to BB I am actually saving money.
  • Had my BT broadband for 15 months now and most of the time it is fine.

    Some of the problems I have seen are 1) occasionally dropping the line. 2) Sometimes difficult to reconnect. 3) tech support poor (same probably applies to most companies!). 4) At busy times the speed can drop due to sharing the bandwidth with other users (rare) - DannyM see small print. 5) Sometimes slow but this is normally due to the internet network being pushed to its limits (mostly to the USA sites)

    Overall though it is well worth it as in my case I often need access to to 500K+ downloads of data sheets for work.
  • Same here Wild Will. Recently there was a local email rumour going around that if we registered interest and BT got 200 people they would consider it. Last time I looked 11 had registered, including us!
    Still, we're lucky to have electricity I s'ppose.
  • Thanks for the comments guys. Looks like I'll have to go for it. Time to go and spend hours comparing the providers.

    BK - A rare daytime visit. The main reason I'm usually here so late is that my connection seems marginally (microscopically) faster late at night or early morning when I'm usually asleep having stayed up too late! If I go for broadband I'll be able to visit during the day and join in some of the threads real time :)
  • BarklesBarkles ✭✭✭
    I've got to look into this!1
    Sounds great.
  • Keith,

    I understand about the bandwidth thing but this is also the case with dial-up.When there are a lot of users online things slow down whatever type of connection you have.

    I have found the NTL support line to be very good.I am not plugging them too much though as in other respects they are far from perfect.

    When using forum software software such as this,the BB connection allows for instantanious response with almost zero re-load time.

    Over time the connection may become slower(as more users catch on)but market forces will drive down the cost of higher spec connections ehich should even things out.

    This is getting a bit nerdy :-)
  • I've just looked at www.bt.com
    Can't get Broadband yet (but at least none of my mates can either - so no smug grins there !)

    Just enter your phone number and it will tell you if it is available. If not, then register and when it hits the target to make it worthwhile, they might give it to ya.

    Target for my area is 450 - and 101 people have registered so far. So any neighbours reading this - please register ! ;-)
  • OOOohh - I can get Broadband from NTL !
    Monthly fees :
    £25 for 600kb
    £15 for 128kb
    £35 for 1Mb !

    Hurrah ! Where is my piggy bank ?
  • I live 4 miles and work 6 miles from our County town and can't get BB at either place!!
  • Even more nerdy if you are on broadband and not aware of this, please use a firewall. Broadband exposes you to the internet and a firewall will stop anybody else accessing your machine. You can get a free firewall from Zone Labs (www.zonelabs.com).
    Hope that helps.
  • Hi

    I've had broadband for about a year and have just upgraded to 1mb. I get mine from Telewest and have had no hassles at all, touch wood. I invested in Norton Internet security package as I wanted to control advertising, virus and cookies. It's amazing how many people try to hack your system.

    Would find it very difficult to go back to dial up now.
  • I also am on telewest 1mb BB connection and would stress the advice to get the protection of a firewall.
  • We've got BT broadband at work & the difference when I get home is v. frustrating - feels like you have to crank the wheel to get the thing started. Unfortunately can't really join in realtime at work as my screen is overlooked! (Still surreptiously got site open quite a lot though).
  • Have had a cable modem for about two years now. We had a problem with our modem for a week and had to use a dial-up while waiting for it to be fixed. The difference is extremely noticeable! It is painful to go back to dial-up after being spoiled with a fast connection. Don't really notice any drop in service if my husband and I are both accessing the cable modem simultaneously.
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