It could also be that as you can download a lot of games now (rather than buying them on discs) direct to the console, you won't be subject to any extra monthly usage charges (if you are on unlimited).

Being on fibre should mean lower pings which would benefit gamers.

There was an article a few months back about gaming usage on PlusNet - http://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2013/09/isp-plu...

In reply to a post by s_yates:

Yes, I get a whole load of contradictions from their "support" staff too. I have had an ongoing ticket with Plusnet for 16 months and getting nowhere fast. The support is sporadic, generally useless and more interested in fixing the short term problems for their "customers" as those are the ones to impact their statistics the most.

They don't treaten to ban me, just offer to let me terminate the contract with them early and take my problem somewhere else.

I'm fully with you on this blimsta.. I wouldn't wish them on my worst enemy.

I Totally agree with you , I was with Plusnet for over ten years and the last few years have been a night mare and I'm really pleased I migrated to EE who I have nothing but praise for them ,
I found everything too much trouble when I was with Plusnet , there are 1or 2 people who are helpful but I found most of then did not care less which is a shame as when I first joined them they were great but I found the service till I left them in May Very Poor .
And their claims in my opion misleading they even kept sending me email threatening me saying there were to many emails stored even though im with gmail and unlimited downloads and not stored not their systems and I was paying alot as a business customer with fibre which was expensive as they said that they don't offer fibre for business customers but they still charge me for it so I changed to EE and save alot each month and a much better connection /router .

Having read most of this, I have changed my mind about persuading a neighbour to give them a try.

The fact that they are part of the BT Group did worry me, how did they get the Which best ISP?

Surely it is time someone put together a portable line tester [rentable if expensive] that could pinpoint problems? A friend was always having problems with his broadband [another Isp to those mentioned] it frequently went off at weekends for some weird reason but since changing his router the problem disappeared.

Trying to pin down broadband problems is like wrestling with smoke and unscrupulous people [ no names] will take advantage.

In reply to a post by headscratcher:

Having read most of this, I have changed my mind about persuading a neighbour to give them a try.

The fact that they are part of the BT Group did worry me, how did they get the Which best ISP?

Maybe because the rest are worse?

In reply to a post by headscratcher:

, how did they get the Which best ISP?

Surely it is time Trying to pin down broadband problems is like wrestling with smoke and unscrupulous people [ no names] will take advantage.

Because people voted for them...

Then again who trusts "Which"... A so called consumer group. Who tag you into taking a "FREE" booklet and then charge you anything from £1 to £19.99 for exactly the same product afterwards... Of course depending on the offer at the time....

You router gives stats as to what is happening on the connection.

But you have to remember that faults that come and go are always going to be hard to resolve. As well as most likely being related to something in the local area (neighbours etc) rather than a actual fault with the line.

I've persuaded three people to try PlusNet in the last year and they're all delighted. Two came from other ISPs and found the online and especially the phone help top class. One of these had an especial problem of coming from a 45-year-old hard-wired phone system, which threw every other ISP, including BT, when they asked about upgrading this old, socketless system, PlusNet got BT to upgrade at no extra cost, plus they got the vintage phones back to sell!

Which? get their reliability, customer service, etc. results simply by inviting their members to fill in a survey about their ISP. PlusNet have always been better than OK in these surveys of tens of thousands of people, but this last time, USERS (not Which?) voted them top for customer service and value.

Of course, as someone else has pointed out, every ISP has a small (or with some ISPs bigger) percentage of problems. This can be a poor in-home line system, a poor link to the cabinet, old copper to the exchange (my problem) or a trunk problem - or the ISP may be doing its job badly - they all have at least a few poor employees. What separates the best, like PlusNet and Sky, from the rest is the consistent good service

What sets PlusNet out from the rest is their transparent attitude to general faults (it's all posted online as it progresses) and their superb service help in person, by ticket or by phone. A few years ago (I've been with F9/PlusNet since three months after they started up) I began getting erratic & poor signals and went through the same rigmarole that this thread is highlighting. But I trusted PlusNet to be working on my behalf and they (1) got BT to check my house to pole line - it was OK; and (2) after all tests resolved nothing, PlusNet persuaded BT to reconnect our line at the exchange, without charge. This was a fix, maybe because I have a very old copper line (maybe 80 year old to the exchange) and I think the exchange terminals had corroded. I use BT phone, and BT never suggested any solution until PlusNet pushed them.

I re-evaluate my contract every year, and (what is it) 20? years with PlusNet are because they've been a star all this time. BTW, although BT now own them, they appear to run completely independently.

Edited by deleted (Mon 06-Jan-14 23:44:44)

As a Plusnet Forum Moderator I might be considered by some to be biased.
However I have been a satisfied Plusnet customer for 10 years with no problems.
I can't really comment about the efficiency of CSA responses to my calls for help as I've never had to make any.
All I can see is the dedication that Plusnet support puts into solving customers' problems particularly under the kind of duress I might walk away from.

Shame on you, John! With all your great, useful & accurate comments on this thread, I'd have thought you'd treat Which? like you do others. Which? is a non-profit charity that has spent 50 years on the basis of honesty and neutral testing, comments and campaigns, despite the attempts (especially in the 50s and 60s) by manufacturers to throw dirt at them.

Their starter offer for new members is standard for the magazine business: a free report (sometimes a trial issue or other goodie) plus three months' free issues, provided you sign a DD or similar contract for monthly issues. You can cancel whenever you like. How is this dishonest, as you're suggesting?

And 'so-called' consumer group? They are recognized nation-wide and internationally as THE Consumer Group, such that even the government, banks, car industry, supermarkets, etc. have to answer them when they make public statements. And they tend to have an automatic seat on any body looking at consumer issues, if they want it. That's hardly 'so-called'!

Is that the same Which which has apparently rated Windows Defender over all the other Security Packages http://www.which.co.uk/technology/software/reviews/s... whereas the reputable independent testing organisations rate it dead last for protection
http://www.av-test.org/en/tests/home-user/windows-8/...
http://www.av-comparatives.org/dynamic-tests/