New build fttp first ISP

I'm moving into a new build in a few weeks and it's got an fttp box built in. I'm looking the an fibre isp, does it matter who it is with it being the first ISP on the line?

I'm looking at different options but leaning towards Zen on the 100mbps package. There will only really be me using it so won't really need much more speed and I know I will get good support if I ever need it from what I've heard.

I could get BT for the same price and they say 150mbps but they have a guarantee of 100mbps so I assume it would spend most of its time around that speed.

The other option was talktalk they have a decent speed for the price but I've always said I would never go with them.

Is it definitely Openreach FTTP? If so then the service from most of the available ISPs will be pretty much equivalent. The speed on FTTP doesn't adapt like it does with ADSL and FTTC so what you get is what you pay for - obviously in the real world the throughput may be influenced by the ISP's own capability to handle the traffic but you are very unlikely to see any noticeable effect of that.

If the FTTP is provided by a non-Openreach provider (this is usually the case where the builder has done an exclusive deal with a provider) then your choices will be (a lot) more limited.

BT Retail, Sky, TalkTalk, Uno, Pulse8, IDnet, AAISP, Zen, Aquiss and EE.

I went with Sky because I have a TV package with them. Superb service I must say. Ultra low pings and always get 140Mbps +

Just a note, some ISP's like Sky for example only offer 150. Others offer up to 900.

check with vodafone talk talk to see if they provide fttp over city fibre

you need to check with your developer first to find out who they did an deal with for the FTTP , either with Openreach or someone else - depending the answer to that question will determine what options you have for a provider

Yea it's definitely with openreach. I know there's a few options but with BT for example there's a package called full fibre 100 (so I would say it's 100mbps) but download sped says 150mbps which seems contraindicated but the stay fast guarantee is 100mbps also.

The other think I don't like about BT is they increase the price by a couple of percent every year in April even if you're in contract. Do sky do this as well?

In reply to a post by wolvesmad:

BT Retail, Sky, TalkTalk, Uno, Pulse8, IDnet, AAISP, Zen, Aquiss and EE.

I went with Sky because I have a TV package with them. Superb service I must say. Ultra low pings and always get 140Mbps +

Just a note, some ISP's like Sky for example only offer 150. Others offer up to 900.

With you saying about ping on Sky, are you a gamer as well? How's it been for that, any issues? I wouldn't need more than 150 as it's not a family full of devices. Oh the other thing about sky as well is they force you to use their router which I really don't want to do so that kind of rules them out to be honest.

The BT 100 package is 150Mbps. They advertise it as 100Mbps to account for potential congestion but I was on the package for a year and any speedtests I did were up towards the 150Mbps. I guess also by advertising it this way it might encourage some users to opt for a more expensive tier. I wouldn't expect really to get any worse performance from BT on the package than from any other ISP advertising it as 150.

BT isn't increasing the price by a couple of percent any more - this year it is 4.5%. They now plan to do inflation + 3.9% so I would expect next year it could be a fair bit higher assuming inflation kicks in following Covid restrictions being reduced.

In reply to a post by ian72:

The BT 100 package is 150Mbps. They advertise it as 100Mbps to account for potential congestion but I was on the package for a year and any speedtests I did were up towards the 150Mbps. I guess also by advertising it this way it might encourage some users to opt for a more expensive tier. I wouldn't expect really to get any worse performance from BT on the package than from any other ISP advertising it as 150.

BT isn't increasing the price by a couple of percent any more - this year it is 4.5%. They now plan to do inflation + 3.9% so I would expect next year it could be a fair bit higher assuming inflation kicks in following Covid restrictions being reduced.

Yea it's quite a jump, same thing happens with my EE sim. I know Zen is slower and a bit more expensive but it will stay the same, and you get English support.

Who did you go with after BT? And are you still with who you went to?

Still with BT but upgraded to the 300Mbps package.

I am a gamer but only on the Xbox Series X, not PC.

My pings to BBC are around 6ms and stable.

I get around 14ms on Battlefield servers which I believe are hosted in Germany.

Here is my BQM -

My Broadband Ping


You don't have to use their router. I am using my own Asus RT-AC68u. You just need a router that is MER / DHCP Option 61 capable.

Edited by wolvesmad (Tue 16-Feb-21 16:54:59)

In reply to a post by wolvesmad:

I am a gamer but only on the Xbox Series X, not PC.

My pings to BBC are around 6ms and stable.

I get around 14ms on Battlefield servers which I believe are hosted in Germany.

Here is my BQM -

My Broadband Ping


You don't have to use their router. I am using my own Asus RT-AC68u. You just need a router that is MER / DHCP Option 61 capable.

There's a lot of spikes on that BQM. Oh OK good to know you can use some routers then now. You don't have to use the sky router at all then, not even in modem mode?

There will be, it has been a very busy connection the last couple of days.

In terms of new fttp installs, do they require and engineer visit? And therefore take quite a while seeing as openreach have stopped all that with the current lockdown? Meaning I wouldn't be able to get broadband until that changes.

An engineer visit is required if there is no ONT present in the property.

I've just been looking at the Vodafone website and put the postcode in to see. It had 6 different packages but said to order please call as it can't be done online at the moment. I thought the packages were just generic so I called them up.

They told me that I can get gigafast 200 at £32p/m or gigafast 500 at £38p/m. It seems too good to be true as anyone else at that speed of up above £55. I thought it was just city fibre doing those speed at that price but he said openreach as well.

Anyone with experiences of gigafast Vodafone?

I can't answer the question, but the price might be a bit like retention deals, each sales person having a monthly target for signups and a budget of discounts to hook the punter.

(Just a guess, but it is near the end of the month. Some reps will use theirs up early, others have some spare).

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

I can't answer the question, but the price might be a bit like retention deals, each sales person having a monthly target for signups and a budget of discounts to hook the punter.

(Just a guess, but it is near the end of the month. Some reps will use theirs up early, others have some spare).

These were the prices on the website and I confirmed them on the phone so it's prices available to everyone. The more I've read about it I'm thinking Zen is the way to go though.