TalkTalk vs Openreach

Hi all

I've been attempting to move from Be to TalkTalk fibre but had conflicting stories.

TalkTalk have said my cabinet isn't enabled and that they wouldn't be able to provide fibre for me. They also said I have to be a TT Broadband customer for 3 months before I can be considered for the fibre 'boost' package.

On the openreach checker (and according to a BT engineer I jumped when I saw him working) FTTC is available to my house with an approx line length of 4800 feet / ~1.5km.

Just wondered if anyone had any experience with the conflicting stories and whether a manual order can be placed on TalkTalks end or whether that isn't the case with FTTC?

Also, does anyone have a predicted speed for a line of my length? The checker says 28Mbps, but from other posts I have seen the estimates can be conservative.

Thank you

Which checker(s) have you used?

My estimate from the BT Wholesale checker was and is 28.9/6.4Mbps. I get a 40000/10000kbps sync.

Does it have to be TalkTalk? There are many others. What do their checkers say?

On that checker I get the following:

"...downstream line speed of 27Mbps and upstream line speed of 5.8Mbps."

It doesn't have to be TalkTalk, my main draw to them was the price and the truly unlimited packages. I know BT Infinity 2 offers unlimited, but I've heard bad things about their traffic shaping?

If anyone has any more info the BT traffic shaping then I'd gladly look at them. I've been happy with BE for a long time so I've not really looked around - hence don't have a vast amount of knowledge with who's good and who's not.

At the moment, (although I didn't go with them), BT Infinity is probably the best bet for most, barring perhaps TT who have only just entered that market. I haven't seen any reports here of traffic shaping on BT except that P2P can be hit quite hard, and things can slow down in the evenings.

The other FTTC suppliers so far are listed on this page of my website, and there is a link on that to a spreadsheet by orly and yarwell summarising the features and base prices of them all.

I suggest, even if you don't go any further, you try entering your phone number on one of their sites and see if it looks as though you can order. If you can, then it would seem TT are just taking things slowly at the moment.

As for having to be a customer for even a short period, to be "considered", what??????

Edited by RobertoS (Mon 15-Aug-11 22:30:17)

P2P isn't really a direct issue, it's not something I really use. I do a lot of downloading from a variety of sources - I DJ in my spare time so I get a lot of mix sets as well. You say BT slows down in the evening, does it drop a tremendous amount?

As you say, BT and TT stand out with cost vs. package options. I am able to order on BT's website without any problems so I am going to assume its TT's end in terms of their website displaying May 2011 still.

Post deleted by Sadoldman

Hey jack - yo' so swell, yo' so swell, and yo' posts must smell - *Cho' deleted!! Ch'all deleted!!

Er.. Apologies for my crepe singe-ing people, I am on **^F_IR_E!^!!^!!_! - I could go _oⁿ - but I won't.

*You-are [US Slang]
**Attempt it if you can.

Sounds like TT are just a bit behind getting the latest updated data for your cab from BT Wholesale. I would expect that by the time you've connected with them, you'll have the fibre boost option available in your online account. I think you or the call centre agent miss-understood the 3 month consideration as your online account will show a fibre boost option the minute the BTW data says your line is good to go.

I think you have a super subtext. Your problem soon will be worn out [] keys .

<sub>No, key,s are {/^fine}. Oh... darn it!

False alarm - I used a MacBook-Pro furrit (k, m'/ 'y' i5 b12ok3D, 54me 45 m'/ lower c453 5[s],3[e], 4nd [a] X[x] - '/ h45 it brok3n???

100% immaculate MBP / PC / iPhone / Telephones / Home / Self here.

^*Soapbox^_</sub>Mode_-ON

Yes, People, you too can become as sqweekily_clean as Me, with a good Dr.[TCP], and the Right-Chuss POWER of Tweaking!

^*Soapbox_Mode-OFF

AHRR, that be roit_noyce!