Tired of waiting for FTTC... is Virgin a realistic option?

I've had ADSL since back around 2002, but after some early improvements my download speeds have stuck in the region of 2 to 2.5Mbps. That's certainly not bad, and adequate for most purposes, but I would like to get faster downloads (and uploads too). So I was delighted to hear about the rollout of FTTC in Basingstoke, where I live.

However it now turns out that our street is one of the majority that won't be getting FTTC in 2010, and when I wrote to BT I got a cool reply basically telling me to mind my own business. What annoys me most is being kept utterly in the dark - the mushroom syndrome - without any hint as to when I can hope to get faster ADSL.

When all else fails, you start to think the unthinkable. In my case, that means Virgin. Can they really be as bad as they are made out to be? Is their customer service really hopeless? My main concern is the impression Virgin gives of not really being a proper ISP at all. They don't seem to know much about computers, software, or the Internet. When I asked the manager of one of their shops about domain hosting, he had no idea what I was talking about. Is it sensible to think about turning to Virgin, and does anyone know how you go about getting your domain(s) hosted if you do?

Yes, it is a well known fact that BT won't give sufficient rollout plans to potential customers. This makes moving a business or a private home a bit like a gamble, you never really know for sure what kind of telecom services to expect in the new location till it is too late.

I think you should go with Virgin, their speeds are most likely to be much faster faster than ADSL.

As regards hosting you own domain: Just make sure you have a static IP address. However, I think it makes more sense to host your website with a professional web hosting company, separate from whoever is your ISP. You should also consider keeping your domain name registration separate from your web hosting, this way if you change your web host, you just re-point your domain to the new web host's DNS servers.

I'm in a similar position, living in Basingstoke (Chineham) getting ~500kbps but unfortunately no Virgin cable in this part of town. I hoped that FTTC was coming so I could end my daily commute and work effectively from my home office. I have sent a letter to Virgin to encourage them to extend into Chineham - the CATV ducts are already here and I even have the little green pipe popping-up next to my house.

I regard ISPs as being there to deliver packets, so I have never used them for other services. This has two key advantages; you can choose the best provider for each service and you get the freedom to switch ISP without worrying about migration of mail, DNS or other hosting.

I run my own DNS, but I have my MX records pointing to the free standard version of Google Apps: http://www.google.com/apps/intl/en/group/index.html

I used to host my own mail, but with Google Apps I get the benefit of free ActiveSync for push mail, contacts and calendar to my iPhone - without the cost or hassle of running my own system. Google Apps also includes web hosting but I've never tried it.

In reply to a post by TomWelsh:

My main concern is the impression Virgin gives of not really being a proper ISP at all. They don't seem to know much about computers, software, or the Internet. When I asked the manager of one of their shops about domain hosting, he had no idea what I was talking about. Is it sensible to think about turning to Virgin, and does anyone know how you go about getting your domain(s) hosted if you do?

In common with most ISPs they don't host your domain for you, you'll have to purchase hosting from a 3rd party. They offer access to the internet, with email and usenet on the side and that's about it.

To be honest the ISPs that offer to host your domain for you along with your internet access are a minority to say the least.

Regrettably this is the way the mass market runs. I have my hosting done by experts, I purchase my own internet access from Virgin and my Usenet access from another provider. Google provide my day to day email via GMail with aliases from my host.

Many thanks for your replies, which I found very helpful. If I accept that I should only be looking to an ISP to deliver packets, then (and getting other services from specialists)... how about the remaining issue - Virgin's overall quality?

What do you think of its ability to deliver the download and upload performance it promises, reliably and consistently? How about technical support, should it ever be needed?

And is it possible to buy just Internet access, without getting locked in for a year or forced to buy telephone and/or TV services as part of a package deal?

You can get Virgin cable broadband (subject to availability of course) without having to take phone or TV , but it is subject to a 12month minimum term.
e.g. 10Mbits Broadband Only (no Phone/TV) is £15 for 3 months then £20 per month
The info is on their site here with links to the other packages

Hey Tom,

I have to say from my own experience VM are terrible at delivering a good quality service. I�m currently in the process of leaving them because I�ve just spent the better part of five weeks with little to no broadband.

I live extremely close to the VM exchange and I�ve never received anywhere near the speeds they promise. Of course in comparison to what you are already experiencing the speeds I was getting might be what you are after but at best I usually get around 3-4Mbps down and 0.4Mbps up. I�m on their 20MB service and have been since they first introduced it. I can also add that this isn�t a consistent service and at peak times of the day both my upload and download speeds drop considerably.

For the last five/six weeks (and for the third time during 2009) I�ve been consistently experiencing the following service and speeds...

0.74 - 0.9Mbps Down and 0.03 - 0.15Mbps Upload
Anything up to 45% packet loss, Ping of anywhere from 371 - 2015ms and jitter between 646 - 2987ms

At regular times my upload was completely zero and my connection had a complete lack of service. VM customer service never gave a reason for this other than their usual retorts of �high utilisation�. Also, after speaking to other VM users in my area it seemed that they were also lying to each customer telling each of us a totally different story and giving widely varying resolution times and dates.

My service has just about retuned now although it�s still appallingly slow and nowhere near what I used to receive. After phoning to disconnect my service I was offered one month�s free broadband but unless I called them no one at VM would have bothered to contact me regarding compensation.

VM's customer service is also appaling and inept; unless on the odd chance you get to talk to an VM engineer (it seems that every now and then I�ll actually be put through to someone who knows what they are talking about and they are usually VM engineers). Most of the usual staff try to steer you off actually dealing with the problem you phoned up about and when you get down to it very few actually know what they are talking about.

Regarding their deals and packages, I just subscribe to their 20 MB broadband package as I don�t watch TV or need a landline. This costs me a lot of money a month comparably to picking up a VM Deal on TV/Phone/Broadband. VM have never been interested in making this any easier or cheaper for me, even after phoning them to discuss this. From what I can tell they use this as a bargaining tool to get you to pick up their other services eventually dropping your monthly expenditure on their services.

As far as I�m aware the minimum initial contract time is 12 months although I think you can �buy them� out of a contract if you want to leave them during this time but it obviously costs quite a lot to do this.

I�m aware a lot of my problems are very specific to my area but I suppose the best advice I can give is take some time deliberating this, speak to some other VM users in your area and the very best of luck if you do decide to sign up to their service.

they going to let me go on a 3 month contract but I have to waive the free wireless router and pay an extra £2 a month.

VM like BT but in my opinion to a lesser extenct is also a postcode lottery, student areas as an example are typically bad places to use cable broadband.

Your distance to VM's hub location isnt relevant as the cable technology doesnt suffer from distance related performance loss. Or its not supposed to anyway.

I have several properties with internet access in all... Virgin provide the internet in all those with CATV availability. Im moving back to a cable area next Monday and can not wait to get back up to speed. What you have to appreciate is... a lot of people think because it says 50mbps they are paying for a leased line it is merely a burstable service.