Broadband help

[chicagononsense]

My broadband is with BT. It's good but really expensive. I live rurally so it's not always been possible to get good broadband. That's changed in the last couple of years.

Part of BT means having a landline and paying for it. I do not remember the last time I made a phone call. In fact, I don't have a handset connected now.

My BT account says the following

Your normal available download speed will be between 49-55 mbps.

Your normal available upload speed will be between 14-15 mbps.

Minimum guaranteed download speed will be 45 mbps.

So I've looked at various comparison sites. They give me average speeds like 63mb with talk talk or 67mb with Vodafone. Sky is 59mb.

How do I work out what is compatible and, is it possible to have broadband without a phone line?

Please speak to me as if I'm 8. This confuses me. Thanks.

I live in an area with Fibre To The Premises (FTTP) which is supplied without a landline by BT.

Most broadband companies have a postcode checker to see if they can supply you.

Go on a comparison website, stick in your postcode and boom options provided for what can be delivered in your area.

There are providers out there that can give you internet without a landline but they actually tend to work out more expensive than getting a landline and internet.

For comparison I currently pay around £20 including landline for 60mbps

My broadband is Fibre with BT.

The options I’ve mentioned above are via broadband choices website. Some say fiber. Some say super fast.

I'd really just be concerned about the download speed ... Around 60 is grand for general every day useage.

Make sure you get cashback on Quidco or similar as it's still one of the things you can get a decent return on 😎

@chicagononsense

The broadband almost certainly comes down a phone wire/fibre to your house. This is owned by Openreach. (Being rural it's unlikely you'll have other full fibre options like virgin)

You can then choose a company to provide the broadband service. BT used to say you have to have a phone line service with this. They now say you do not have to- though it may not be any cheaper without the phone.

Basically you need to choose a supplier, and can now choose one without a phone service.

And the 'fibre' or 'super fast' is because Openreach/BT are not always clear.

There are 2 ways to get fast internet:

1. fibre to a roadside cabinet, then copper wires to your house. This is fibre to the cabinet (FTTC) and the further you live from the cabinet, the slower your speeds due to the wiring.
2. full fibre. This is fibre that goes right to your house - fibre to the premises (FTTP) and can give very fast speeds (100mbps+)

What companies can offer you in terms of speed depends totally on your wires, and where you live. If you want to know
You can ask BT if you're FTTC or FTTP

How much do you pay a month just for broadband & phone?

@poshme

And the 'fibre' or 'super fast' is because Openreach/BT are not always clear. There are 2 ways to get fast internet:

1. fibre to a roadside cabinet, then copper wires to your house. This is fibre to the cabinet (FTTC) and the further you live from the cabinet, the slower your speeds due to the wiring.
2. full fibre. This is fibre that goes right to your house - fibre to the premises (FTTP) and can give very fast speeds (100mbps+)

What companies can offer you in terms of speed depends totally on your wires, and where you live. If you want to know
You can ask BT if you're FTTC or FTTP

Thank you. It’s to the cabinet.

Does that mean I have to continue with a phone line because I am to a cabinet rather than the house?

You need to remember that whoever you buy your broadband service from (except Virgin), they will be using the same network infrastructure from your house to the local BT exchange. There will be BT, talktalk, Sky etc routers in that exchange that your physical connection will plug into, and from those routers the traffic is connected via another piece of BT infrastructure (fibre) to a regional hub an then onwards to the trunk networks & the rest of the Internet.

Virgin has it's own local infrastructure which is basically the cable TV network. Of course you can also connect via the 3G/4G/5G cellular network, the same one used by mobile phones.

Guaranteed download speeds are usually measured from your house to the exchange, it doesn't mean that a provider can guarantee the speed of a connection from your house to any internet site.

A few years ago we were entirely reliant on copper for our broadband so no fibre and basically using the old phone infrastructure. Lots of companies said they offered better speeds than we were getting but in reality we were limited by the infrastructure. If you aren't getting the maximum your package provides then it's the infrastructure limiting you. If you are then it's the supplier setting limits.
Fortunately a supplier put fibre in and we were able to upgrade.

@poorbuthappy

How much do you pay a month just for broadband & phone?

£56 which is ridiculous when I see what others can provide.

No you should be able to get a broadband only package now. I think ofcom told BT off for insisting on people having a phone as well (but I might have imagined that)

I just did a search on BT. For FTTC you should be able to pay about £28 for a broadband only service.
Full fibre meg fats speeds (900mbps) is £55.

OP I suggest you phone BT and tell them you don't want a phone line, and you're considering leaving for another company. See what deals they offer. Don't decide anything, check online you can't do better before you sign up.
And if you change companies, read customer service reviews first.

Thank you. My contract is due to finish in July. We stuck with BT because they gave us BT Sport for £5 a month. We are big MotoGP followers and this is the only way to watch. I’m definitely going to shop around and this thread has given me great advice so thank you.

OP i am rural with copper phone line and fibre which comes from the local exchange two miles away.

The further from the exchange, the slower the broadband.

You won't get a faster service with another supplier on the same fibre to the box that BT gives.
Also we left BT for Vodafone and they are totally awful, the WiFi box gives a terrible signal and we ended up needing three boosters in comparison to the one booster we needed with our BT box.

@actiongirl1978

OP i am rural with copper phone line and fibre which comes from the local exchange two miles away.

The further from the exchange, the slower the broadband.

You won't get a faster service with another supplier on the same fibre to the box that BT gives.
Also we left BT for Vodafone and they are totally awful, the WiFi box gives a terrible signal and we ended up needing three boosters in comparison to the one booster we needed with our BT box.

Thanks. It’s not a faster speed we need, it’s a more competitive monthly cost. A few people locally have said the same about Vodafone so I’m not going with them. I am actually due to renew phone contracts in August so looking at switching from Vodafone to giffgaff then.