Telephone/broadband question

We're moving in 13 days, woo hoo!  So I was considering getting a phone-cableTV-broadband Internet package but it turns out that no company offers all three in my postcode. NTL seems to have the best package deal reates for phone and broadband Internet taht suit my needs.  But it says I need a BT line to start.  So does that mean I should first call BT and subscribe? If so, do I just get the absolute cheapest plan possible, and then call NT get my long distance and broadband hooked up?  Or do I need to get a BT phone pacakge too?   

As for Internet, most seem to have a choice of 512K or 1G or 2G, and then they are in turn broken down by amount of bandwith you can use.  I have Comcast here in DC and I have no idea what speed it is. But Ive never been charged a bandwith usage fee (unlimited I assume, since my computer is on 24/7).  NTL charges only 16 quid a month for unlimited local calls and 512K modem, but Im wonderin whether maybe that's too slow.  Thanks.

But it says I need a BT line to start.  So does that mean I should first call BT and subscribe? If so, do I just get the absolute cheapest plan possible, and then call NT get my long distance and broadband hooked up?  Or do I need to get a BT phone pacakge too?   

There are many parts of the country in which BT is still the only option for the "local loop" (that's what we call the actual pair of wires which runs from your home back to the local central office).    So if you're in one of these areas, you'll need to get a basic telephone service from BT (e.g. their basic "Option 1" package).

As for Internet, most seem to have a choice of 512K or 1G or 2G

I think you mean 1 or 2 M (mega, not giga). 

I have Comcast here in DC and I have no idea what speed it is. But Ive never been charged a bandwith usage fee (unlimited I assume, since my computer is on 24/7). 

Not necessarily.  The connection may be up 24 hours a day, but you're not actuall transferring data over the link all that time.

512K modem, but Im wonderin whether maybe that's too slow. 

It's more than enough for general use, unless you are going to be transferring huge amounts of data, such as a lot of very large image/video files, huge file archives etc. 

We are on NTL, but close to a populous area; therefore, don't need the BT exchange.

I would recommend the 1Mbit or 2Mbit broadband.  If you use the net for simple browsing and email, downloading or sending the occasional file, then their bandwidth limits will more than cover you.  Besides, they aren't that rigorous about checking limits either.  They only seem to go after high volume, serial downloaders (loads and loads of MP3s or movies, etc).

We had the same problem as you apstyle. We wanted to have the whole package with NTL but they couldn't do it in our area.  Our phone is with BT (which I'm not that happy about but it's ok) and our broadband is with Bulldog. It's the same price as BT but you get 2mb instead of 1 mb.  Their customer service is terrible though, the only time you can get through on the phone is on Sunday mornings when they are supposedly closed. The rest of the week you just get a message telling you they're busy and to call back later. 

I use Tiscali.co.uk......no problems.... quick, responsive, free modem and connection and 14.99 per month for 1MB, 19.99 for 2MB, customer service is good too

WatchDog did a whole 1/2 program on NTL and it's products AND customer service and it was well,.....less than encouraging.

aaahhhh celtic don't say that

we're getting it installed the 24th...for 10 quid a month for a year for 1MB, i couldn't turn it down...

Hey, maybe you'll be happy with them as obviously some here are, I just know in my neck of the woods a lot of people are put off by them and some of their practices, especially billing....I did find the WatchDog program quite interesting though because it identified the exact problem my brother-in-law was having with them at the time (overcharging) which they put down to "interoffice structual changes", only problem with that excuse was that WatchDog spoke to customers that were doing battle with them over suspicious billing practices for more than 18 months....hopefully they've cleaned up their act.....Don't worry about it, you've got enough on your plate for now without worrying about something that may be a moot issue  .....I do know however that they are struggling, hence the reason for the package deal that they're now offering.

I had Comcast in Alexandria, VA before moving here 2 months ago.  You are most likely on 3.5 or 4 Mbs now so dropping down to 512 Kbs will be a huge difference to you.  I would not recommend starting below 1Mbs and you should ask if it is possible to upgrade if you are unhappy.....should not be a problem.

Also, from my recent experience, I had to wait until my phone line was connected before I could order broadband so that they could test the line.  Once ordered from BT, it took 12 days for my "installation appointment" in which I was told I had to be home from 8am to 6pm to meet the "engineer."  It turns out that you get a knock on the door from a Royal Mail delivery man and you get your modem and installation kit in a box and do it yourself.  I found this extremely frustrating as I waited nearly 2 weeks for this when I could have picked up the box if they would establish some distribution points.  I think it is just an example of typical UK customer service and the general acceptance of poor/slow service here.

This site is useful for comparing services available in your postcode.
http://www.broadbandchecker.co.uk/

A lot will ride on exactly where you'll be living.  There are many places more distant from the central office where 512kbps is the fastest you'll be able to get (and there are places where DSL just isn't available, period).

Badger, thanks for the advice and cool website. I punched in my postcode and it gave me a bunch of options for ADSL, cable and Satetellite broadband.

What's ADSL? I assume one travels over regular phone line, and cable is over cable TV lines like I currently have with Comcast?

My postcode only has 2 options for cable broadband (NTL and Telewest) and one for sattelite (AVC). The rest were ADSL (BT, Tiscali, Homechoice, AOL, Virgin, Wanadoo, Onetel and BT-Yahoo).

ADSL = Assymetric Digital Subscriber Line.     

It's a broadband signal sent over the same pair of wires as your regular telephone line.  The assymetric tag refers to the fact that the data traveling to your home is at a higher rate than that you send from it.

BTW, both Telewest and NTL are looking 10Mbit upgrades.  NTL is expecting to roll this out by the end of 2006 and Telewest by early next year.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/08/11/telewest_broadband/

See the bottom of the page for links to more articles.

I've added a brief note regarding ADSL and filters to the Technical Issues thread:

http://talk.uk-yankee.com/index.php?topic=12567