Should I switch from O2 to BT /

I'm just wondering if anyone else had the same sort of issue? I'm with O2 on the old legacy package, £18pm and unlimited - approx 9.5mb/s speed. I'm wanting to switch to fibre but the BT line checker only estimates 10.7Mbps for £26pm

Is the line checker generally on the conservative side, and would I realistically get a faster speed? My cabinet multiplier is 2.69. Have others been given a low estimate but received much better?

Hi,

I've just had BT Infinity installed and my estimate was 37Mbps and on installation I got 65Mbps!!

What is the line checker estimating for the ADSL/ADSL2+ based services?

BT Retail sometimes does not like to install Infinity if the estimate is below 15 Meg, they offer a product that is physically the same, but called something else. Helps keep Infinity speeds for advertising high.

Generally the Openreach checker errs on the conservative side, but I would not bet my life on it. As of the 100's we see regrading perhaps 1 or 2 get just the estimate or lower. Best thing you can do is pace out distance to the cabinet and figure out the line length for yourself

I'll go hunting for the cabinet !. I've not seen one about other than a few streets away and I doubt that will be supplying the entire neighborhood. Seems to be an abundance of VM cabinets

Your exchange is ADSL enabled, and our initial test on your line indicates that your line should be able to have an ADSL broadband service that provides a fixed line speed up to 2Mbps.

Our test also indicates that your line currently supports an estimated ADSL Max broadband line speed of 5Mbps; typically the line speed would range between 3.5Mbps and 7.5Mbps.

Our test also indicates that your line should be able to have an ADSL2+ broadband service that provides a fixed line speed up to 2Mbps.

Our test also indicates that your line currently supports an estimated ADSL2+ broadband line speed of 6Mbps; typically the line speed would range between 4Mbps and 8Mbps. Our test also indicates that your line could support an estimated ADSL 2+ Annex-M broadband upstream line speed of 1Mbps and downstream line speed of 6Mbps; typically the downstream speed would range between 4Mbps and 8Mbps.

Our test also indicates that your line currently supports a fibre technology with an estimated WBC FTTC Broadband where consumers have received downstream line speed of 10.7Mbps

So looks like they've just taken the low estimate from ADSL2+, so you could talk of the range being 10.7 to 20 Mbps for the FTTC service, if you multiple the high and low for ADSL2+.

if your getting 9mbps now then i think 25 (sync) would not be unreasonable kind of speed to expect imo.

But they are completely unrelated. ADSL is dependant on line distance to exchange while FTTC on distance to cab. There is no correlation.

Aluminium could be a factor too.

There is no correlation between Cu & Al either.

i didnt say there was but considering how vdsl2 works vs adsl2+ distance wise double the his current sync speed should be possible ...actually very likely imo.

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

There is no correlation between Cu & Al either.

What correlation? FTTC speeds are affected by aluminium lines.

Well, been up and down and all around and cannot find cabinet P5. My mum lives about 10 doors up the road and on cabinet 19, which is the only one I can find in the area. It maybe the reason why the quoted speed is so low - the cabinet must be some distance away if I can't find it.

One more question - are all the cabinets supplying FTTC actually modified internally or do they get a new cabinet at the side of them. The one supplying my mum's house has a new one at the side and they erected a new pole, although no cables from it yet.

Anyway, asked for my MAC this afternoon. They guy at O2 didn't even offer a retention, just seemed to accept that they can't compete with fibre and no further questions asked. I get the impression that O2 are used to this now the way the numbers are dropping. Shame really since the service has always been very good

Edited by jakdos (Wed 05-Dec-12 21:20:13)

If the new cabinet at your mums does not have any slots in casing for cooling then may not be a FTTC cabinet.
Usually no need for a telegraph pole either, as the link to the old cabinet is done via underground ducting, and same with power supply.

All FTTC to date, has mean a new cabinet being placed with 50m of the old one

In reply to a post by jakdos:

One more question - are all the cabinets supplying FTTC actually modified internally or do they get a new cabinet at the side of them.

Here's some pictures:
http://www.robertos.me.uk/html/street_cabinets_etc.html

The one near me looks like this:
http://www.robertos.me.uk/html/bt_furniture_2.html

but its in a side road to my original PCP which is one of these:
http://www.robertos.me.uk/html/bt_furniture_1.html

Pics of cabinets for identification.