Thanks for your comments everyone. I think it's clear that the TalkTalk home package is not properly unlimited, but that's fair enough for the price - providing they don't go silly with the restrictions. As it happens I don't use p2p or torrent at all but I am always wary of what other stuff they slow down on the sly (or even, what effect their packet shaping system has on the overall connection).

I've been on the phone and provisionally signed up with all the additional "special discount for you" nonsense.

What is the procedure to get them to put me FASTPATH?

Did you also perhaps consider Zen Active which might be available as a 21CN WBC service on your line together with a possible retention discount?

Or would the price and the100GB usage be too much of a limiting factor?

BT are only offering 20CN 8Mbps to my exchange. TalkTalk are the only ones who have unbundled it and they are offering upto 24Mbps. Unfortunately.

Some months I go very slightly over 100GB, by the time I pay for the 2GB bonuses or whatever it then works out the same.

If Zen/BT could tell me when/if my exchange would be put on 21CN then I would hold off, but at the moment I have no reassurance (a situation where being transparent would retain my custom!)

In reply to a post by Pipexer:

BT are only offering 20CN 8Mbps to my exchange. TalkTalk are the only ones who have unbundled it and they are offering upto 24Mbps. Unfortunately.

Some months I go very slightly over 100GB, by the time I pay for the 2GB bonuses or whatever it then works out the same.

If Zen/BT could tell me when/if my exchange would be put on 21CN then I would hold off, but at the moment I have no reassurance (a situation where being transparent would retain my custom!)

TT looks like your best bet then - when considering partial LLU resellers prices such as uno Pro 24 75GB (unmetered off-peak), etc.

In reply to a post by Pipexer:

As it happens I don't use p2p or torrent at all but I am always wary of what other stuff they slow down on the sly (or even, what effect their packet shaping system has on the overall connection).

You'll not notice a slowdown then (or at least shouldn't). The packet shaping system if anything will make your experience even better as people using torrents etc wont be slowing you down. Whereas if this wasn't restricted you run the risk of being slowed down by excessive downloaders on p2p.

In reply to a post by Pipexer:

As it happens I don't use p2p or torrent at all but I am always wary of what other stuff they slow down on the sly (or even, what effect their packet shaping system has on the overall connection).
What is the procedure to get them to put me FASTPATH?

If you don't use p2p, then consider it a blessing in disguise that talktalk throttle this (albeit dynamically). It basically ensures that all other protocols run at line speed at all times. This is one of the reasons why i joined talktalk so that i don't get peak time slowdowns on http downloads, gaming and online video streaming (Netflix USA).

Once you have your TT account number register on the TT forums and ask to be put on a "24FSNR6" profile - this also lowers your SNR to 6db from TT's default of 12db as well as putting you on fastpath. This can be done on the same day as you go live...i had my line profile changed within 2 hrs of going live via the TT forum....none of this 10 day waiting nonsense which some isp's try to fob you off with.

As usual....welcome to the UK's most hated ISP

is maybe worth mentioning that P2P isn't a protocol, and most of us will use P2P rather than the server/client model in a variety of ways during our monthly computer use.

I can confirm that bittorrent is throttled for me, mostly on Sat and Sun after 7pm.

However, I have noticed no throttle on the WPN protocols.

Others say the NNTP protocols are unthrottled (newsgroups) though I don't use them myself.

In reply to a post by Myth:

is maybe worth mentioning that P2P isn't a protocol, and most of us will use P2P rather than the server/client model in a variety of ways during our monthly computer use.

I can confirm that bittorrent is throttled for me, mostly on Sat and Sun after 7pm.

However, I have noticed no throttle on the WPN protocols.

Others say the NNTP protocols are unthrottled (newsgroups) though I don't use them myself.

There do seem to be the occasional throughput slow downs with TT full LLU - I was round at my cousins place last night and we were trying to stream an iPlayer HD video which wasn't buffering adequately, at least 3500Kbps is required for smooth playback of iPlayer HD yet my cousin's throughput is normally in excess of 7000Kbps. His pc is capable of playing 1080 30p ~5Mbps YouTube videos without any problems so there may have been some congestion effecting or a throttling of the iPlayer stream?

of course iPlayer and youtube are server/client transfers, but what you said is relevant to the OP.

I've noticed iPlayer doesn't buffer while paused, so you can't even store up a bit of buffer.

But, I've had no problems iPlayering the F1 on a sunday evening, but getting the torrent rarely works till 11pm or later. I don't think these are HD streams but my connection throughput is about 3mbps max

In reply to a post by Myth:

of course iPlayer and youtube are server/client transfers, but what you said is relevant to the OP.

I've noticed iPlayer doesn't buffer while paused, so you can't even store up a bit of buffer.

But, I've had no problems iPlayering the F1 on a sunday evening, but getting the torrent rarely works till 11pm or later. I don't think these are HD streams but my connection throughput is about 3mbps max

I personally get ~11Mbps throughput 24/7 so never have any problems streaming iPlayer HD. Downloading an iPlayer video file comes down at the same speed also both with Ubuntu and Windows.

However since streaming an IPlayer video uses very little buffering the actual transfer speed needs to be only slightly more than the variable bit rate of the video (to include overheads), so perhaps the effects of congestion will be more apparent on a normally slower throughput of say 7Mbps or less?