Best Suped-up, kick tookis Internet in the UK

Okay that title should say it all.  This whole pay by the minute phone and internet oddness in the UK has me a bit perplexed.  I want fast non- dial up connection for the best price and reliable.  This is more important to me than TV.  So what can you guys recommend?  What are good UK companies price wise, customer service wise etc.  

I have posted this elsewhere, but figured it might get a response in here faster.  

I don't really know of any plans where you have to pay by the minute for access to the internet, not to say they don't exist though.

I have stayed with AOL over here. I like it and they have broadband. www.aol.co.uk for their broadband prices.

You pay for the minutes you are actually connected and using the phone line. At least that is how it is at our Uncles house.

So the 1MB connection is what we would have here?

Pay by the minute?  No, no, no, you don't want that, love.  

We use BT Yahoo Broadband with a flat fee of about £15 per month for unlimited access and all sorts of neat-o extras.  Here's a link:

http://www.btyahoo.com/nbupgrade

Edited to add - Apparently, I tell a lie!  The Broadband we have is actually about £30 per month...but it's still a pretty good deal!

See that's the whole thing . . . I don't want to be worried about how long I am online.  I felt so bad at his house as I know those phone minutes are ticking away.  

Okay so  one vote for BT and one for AOL.  Any others?  Are there any good package deals?
Like phone, DSL and international calling?

We have that with Bell South.  Also do you purchase or own wifi modem or rent it from them?  Sorry so many questions....

I asked a similar question to this a few weeks ago, and someone told me that they offer cable and DSL as well.  I hope so, since I'm with Comcast here and I love the connection speeds.  I'm definitely there with you about this being more important than T.V.!  

In terms of Broadband, I'm doing my homework right now.

We currently have BT and are happy with them, but thought I'd look around since we're in the process of a move.

1)

Bulldog offers a 2 Mb line at a very reasonable price.  They have AllTime (same speed 24 hours a day) and PrimeTime (High speeds at off-peak times (evenings and weekends) and average speeds durring the day.)   Had they offered PrimeTime in our area we absolutely would have gone with their 2 Mb Primetime as it's much cheaper than a 1 Mb BT line.

That being said, they have a hefty connection charge (on their AllTime 1 Mb (the best pkg in my area)) that they're not willing to waive... there is no trial period... and if you move within the 1st year, you have to pay something like £120 to move your service.  (Outside the first year, you pay £50+).  

I called them today and here was our conversation,

"I've called BT and NTL and they don't have the hefty connection charge.  Do you ever have specials on that?"  
"No."  
"Ok, then I think we're going to go with one of them"  
"Okay"
-click-      

Nice.....

2)

ntl: has service that's very comperable to BT.  It's cheaper at £34.99 and still offers the free install, free transfers, etc.  Plus, if you say, "Can you waive the ____ fee" they're willing to haggle... and I want a company that will fight for me!  Unfortunately ntl: doesn't service my area, so it wasn't even a choice for me.

3)

BT is more expensive.  Their 1 Mb line is £39  (Bulldog was £33) but it has free installation, free to transfer, known company, and as of when we got installed the first time, a 30 day trial period after install.

------------------

I'd be willing to try Bulldog if we could get the 2 Mb line, but since we can't, I'd rather go with the company I know and trust.  The extra bit monthly is offset by the free install, transfers etc. and I have had no reason to abandon BT.

Hope that helps!!

<edit>

About the wifi thing, I'm 99.9% sure you have to purchase your own wifi equipment with any of these three.  I know we had to for BT, I know ntl: doesn't provide it and I'm willing to bet Bulldog doesn't either.  Most will provide you with a standard broadband modem, though.

Has anyone tried Telewest broadband?  I was looking at their bundle package of t.v., phone & broadband and it sounded decent price-wise.

We have the 2Mbit connection with Telewest. The basic cable package, which is still about 50 more channels than I ever watch, and the phone. We pay about £75 per month, but we very rarely use the phone...spend about £1 on phone calls per month.

£50 for broadband (2Mb...the 1Mb was £25)
£10 for monthly phone rate
£15 for TV channels
(we also have a price break for paying by Direct Debit)

The only complaint I have about Telewest is the installation. It could be that they were having teething trouble...we've had it four years and they were pretty new then. Getting the appointment set up for installation...once installed, no trouble. Extremely little downtime. A connection that is probably the fastest in the world. And we use Macs, Windows- and Linux-based computers, a house-wide intranet, WiFi...sometimes there can even be 11 people using the internet at the same time here.

Words can't express how much I love it.

That's awesome...thanks Lisa!  If I move to a place where there isn't already someone using another service (I'm looking for a roommate) then I'll definitely talk to Telewest!  Thanks again!

Vnice, not sure what you'll get in Plymouth as the southwest is sometimes the redheaded stepchild when it comes to the modern amenities in life! I know that here in Exmouth I can't get Telewest or ntl though Plymouth could be different as the coverage is getting oddly patchy as all the companies expand.

I'm going to be trying Bulldog. Was literally planning on calling them in the next few minutes. Despite some of their drawbacks, they are the cheapest for me right now. I REFUSE to pay over £25 for broadband! They do give you a modem (a special they are running now). I'll keep you posted on progress if you're interested. When are you moving here?

In the next few months balmerhon.  Like I said TV is a low priority and decent internet is way up there.  

This is a good link for broadband:

http://www.internet-magazine.com/isp/selector.asp

You'll still need to do your homework to compare prices and availability in your area but it's a good starting point.

I called Bulldog and they also have a connection fee on top of the monthly fee. Since I use Mac, they also say I 'need' to buy an ethernet router so they are looking like a bad option now.

My next 2 options to try are MacAce.net and Virgin.net. Will keep you posted!