Recommended provider on Tyneside (near Gateshead exchange)?

Like many forum contributors, I'm coming to the conclusion that Demon Internet now offers poor value for money and does not care about its customers. I've considered switching to Virgin or BT but am reluctant to go to Virgin as it means drilling more holes in the walls for cables, and potentially more cables snaking around the living room (we already have too many).

I'm looking for speeds of at least 6Mb (my line can evidently support 7) and a decent data allocation (Demon gives me 60Gb per month) at a price of no more than £23 per month. Download speeds on Demon average between 1 and 2Mb on a connection advertised as "up to 8Mb", which I think is down to lack of bandwidth for customers on the same feed.

Can anyone recommend a provider in this area that gives them good service and would allow me to keep the BT line?

If this is your exchange I would have a look at the LLU provider BE Broadband and see if there is asuitable package for your type of internet use.

If it's not your exchange still use the exchange search tool and see what is available.


Edit :- of course if you have Sky TV then you can get Sky LLU as part of a bundle deal

Edited by Apprentice (Sun 16-Jan-11 19:55:32)

Thanks, Alastair. Gateshead is my exchange - I live less than a mile from the location on your link and it tells me I could get up to 14Mb. This certainly looks like better value if the service is reliable. Is this the same company as o2? I've just been looking at their offering and their packages look very similar, if slightly more expensive. I think I read somewhere that they were the same...

I think I read somewhere that they were the same...

O₂ bought BE for their BB network, and both ISPs use that network.

O₂'s BB products have been revised recently and the traffic going over the network is managed/shaped.

BE's products are not traffic shaped at all.

As Apprentice says. be and O2 used to be nearly tghe same, with O2 being the prefrred option for many for a number of reasons.

The new O2 packages are dramatically worse. Fortunately for those of us already there we are allowed to stay on our great legacy packages.

Have a look at what I say about both in my ISP Tips section.

The great thing here is the choice, depending on your demand.

BT 21CN upto 20Mbps - some come with free overnight and weekend usage
Opal based for upto 20Mbps with great value landline included
or O2/Be Based which depending on reseller, can be of great performance.

This choice allows you to match your budget or demand.

Edited by deleted (Thu 20-Jan-11 02:52:58)

In reply to a post by NationsurfUK:

The great thing here is the choice, depending on your demand.
...
This choice allows you to match your budget or demand.

That post looks like you are trying to sell your re-seller services.

As a pedant I wish you had used the word "requirements", "desires" or "needs". Not "demands".

As a searcher for truth, I'd like to know if you are the first O2-based reseller, as I'm not aware of any. There are of course several Be resellers, but if that is what you are then you are the first to describe that as O2-based. Some of your packages do look to be incorrectly described Be-based ones.

As for FTTC, in the UK it is Fibre Optic, not "Fiber" Optic, and you state you provide a free VDSL router. Errr - no you don't! Even if you did, it wouldn't be much use on a VDSL2 service.

There's probably a lot more wrong with your site, for example in your "Pro" LLU product description, (I assume Pro is an abbreviation for "Professional"), you have the word "dpwnload". Ummm. Professional? .

Far more important than that of course is that there are no details of your Limited Company if there is one. Otherwise, as a Sole Trader or Partnership those details should be on your website.

Nor is there any mention that I have seen of membership of any ADR service, an OfCom requirement of ISPs, which you certainly cannot avoid (as a reseller) without declaring the names of the companies you are reselling and their statuses in that respect.

I'm also confused by his website, after the brief glance as is warranted.

What the hell is "Free Overnight & Weekend Usage" under BB? Is it free BB use which is a given unless "Free" is meant to be "Unlimited". Or is it free phone use? There is no mention that any Call Plans are included esp. as 3 (Compare our Packages) products don't include landline and the one that does doesn't have "Free Overnight & Weekend Usage"

Also the products under Compare our Packages don't agree with those under Products -> BB; neither titles, prices & quantities.

Nationsurf: Who are we? We're Nationhost, Are we schizophrenic?

Hi RobertOS

First of all, We're not trying to market or spam our products on this forum, We're simply offering our opinion to a post. Can't fault that there is great choice on this exchange.

We see it as demand (or desire, needs or requirements but technically we're talking the demand for bandwidth, The networks on offer provide a wide range of quality, speed and usage choices via a wide range of isp's, partners and resellers.

Our website has a few errors, it was a rushed job due to designer issues prior to launch and work is being done to resolve all errors. Proof checks should have been done, we can only apologise for confusion and resolve as soon as possible.

We are operating as a sole trader, (Listed In T&C's) becoming a partnership or incorporated shortly. I shall make this bolder on our website as suggested.

All our required independent complaints commissioner details are listed here, via linked on contact us page & make a complaint link via the footer. We'll also make this clearer.

Complaints Commission Details (PDF)

Myself, Ryan or Edd will be using this username, Once again, i apoloise for any confusing or doubt.

Thanks
Chris

Edited by deleted (Thu 20-Jan-11 02:53:55)

Do you want us to have to contact O2 and inform them that they have a firm claiming to resell o2 broadband?

A massive difference legally between o2 broadband and Be Wholesale products.

My mistake.

A big one. A reseller that dosn't even know which company's products they are reselling . Your Landline page also says

Landline:
BT Wholesale Network

Ummm. If you mean it is Wholesale Line Rental I think you will find that is a BT Openreach product, not BT Wholesale. Confusing, I know. I had it wrong for ages.

I see your "Contact Us page now gives ownership details, but the domain registration seems to be to yourself as a non-trading individual. I doubt if Nominet would be happy with that.

The 10 years experience stretches the facts I think, as it implies 10 years providing this type of service. But lots of people spin like that. The domain seems to have been registered November 2010. Even Nationhost is only 2007. Or does it mean 10 years since you started work?

Fair bit of catching up to do on the website, though I accept you have corrected some of the things I pointed out earlier . However in your Resellers post you say "Also see other thread for Companies House or ADR memberships details". What Companies House details? You are a sole trader, and neither Nationsurf nor Nationhost are limited companies.

I wish your websites (.co.uk note!) would use UK English, not American English. As in "center" on this Nationhost page, and the aforementioned fiber/fibre.

I think you should charge a consultation fee for future any advice to Nationsurf unless they send you something in the post for your efforts

Johnny B

Thanks to Apprentice/Alastair for his suggestion of Be, and to RobertoS for clarifying a couple of points.

As Be look much better value than Demon and meet my requirements, I have got my MAC from Demon (needed all my assertiveness when they tried to persuade me - TOO LATE - to stay) and have signed up with Be. I've been given an activation date a week from today, so will let you know here how it goes.

Sorry, that last Anonymous post was from me! Was sure I'd logged in already...

Great. Let us know how it goes.

(Regulars never log out. You get a warning message after a while though as a tbb buffer fills up and the "unread" counts start screwing up. Then you have to log out and in, which clears it, and by then you've forgotten your password .... )

The 10 years experience stretches the facts I think, as it implies 10 years providing this type of service. But lots of people spin like that. The domain seems to have been registered November 2010. Even Nationhost is only 2007. Or does it mean 10 years since you started work?

Fair bit of catching up to do on the website, though I accept you have corrected some of the things I pointed out earlier smile. However in your Resellers post you say "Also see other thread for Companies House or ADR memberships details". What Companies House details? You are a sole trader, and neither Nationsurf nor Nationhost are limited companies.

Didn't want to hijack the post however as you guys are thorough, i'll explain.
Some regard experience purely for a single trade or expertise, however our experience is of a collective figure for Edd, Jamie and Myself.

My experience is from network installation and system support, thus my knowledge of broadband and telephony products are limited. However the other partners have ISP, Customer Services and Technical experience.

Regarding the timescale, I began trading in 1999 and have been privately hosting websites and applications ever since. We've added more and more services retrospectively with public launches for Hosting in 2007 and Broadband in 2010.

I'm not claiming to be anything we're not. Thanks to everyone spotting the mistakes, these are being rectified as soon as possible.

Anyway, Back to the post subject, you cannot argue the fact that this exchange has great choice. Goodluck

Read your PM - click the flashing icon up towards the top left.

After a week with Be, I don't regret leaving Demon at all. So far, the difference has been like night and day. My average speed shows in speed tests as 9-10Mbps. I was supposedly getting about 2 with Demon (on a perfectly good line and paying for "up to 8Mb"). Downloads now are generally 10 times faster - files that took half an hour on Demon are here in about 3 minutes on Be! I've used Be's call centre once, I was put through after about a minute and the person at the other end was genuinely helpful! And all this for a few pence less than I had to pay Demon.

One happy bunny then!

Or maybe more than one in the household.