In reply to a post by dspillett:

With Zen you will see a lot less by way of traffic shaping and other throttling than you will with PlusNet.

Long story short, I'd probably suggest:
1. PlusNet if cheap is particularly important
2. Zen or A&A for something a bit more reliable (though PN is probably reliable enough) and unshapped
3. Zen if the connection might be used much during the traditional working day, A&A otherwise

As a former Zen user and current Plusnet user, I have to disagree. Zen's service is fine, and with the exception of traffic management (each suer is different), Plusnet's current service is no worse. I wouldn't say Plusnet if cheap is important, but I would say if no traffic management is important, and in that case, there's always a level up for an extra fiver with Plusnet and get better priority on their networks. The only time Plusnet seems affected for me is the 7pm to midnight and that's only with streaming.Others' mileage will vary, as everyone uses different aspects of the web. BBC's streaming will perhaps be affected, but that ought to be 2 Meg at peak times, but other services will not be affected if used at the same time.

I liked Zen, but the cost for what I got was too much in the end.

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

I think you have it right by thinking about Plusnet. Bear in mind it is a monthly contract. I believe even if you take the annual contract you can get out of it by paying the deferred setup charge. Check with them about that.

It's monthly, but I'm pretty sure one has to pay for any of Plusnet's kit if cancelling within first 12 or 18 months (I forget the term). If you use your own kit, no probs.

Plusnet'sTraffic Management guide

Plusnet's Traffic Management Policies

You can get the Pro Add-on for £5 if I remember correctly. As Roberto says, it's unlimited after midnight, so planned downloads needn't count in the monthly limits.

For a sync of 8128, you should be on a profile of 7150 with speeds of 6 to 6.5 Meg.

Found the pertinent bits.

http://www.plus.net/residential/faqs.shtml#contractS...

12. What contract and setup options are there?

Fibre broadband has an 18 month contract. Standard broadband comes with either a 12 month or a 'no annual contract' option:

Fibre broadband - 18 month contract: Comes with a wireless router (P&P £4.99). If you leave within 12 months, you must pay for the cost of the router (£40) and an early termination charge for each remaining month of your contract. Between 12 and 18 months, you'll just need to pay the monthly early termination charges.

Standard broadband - 12 month contract: Choose a wired or wireless router (P&P £4.99). If you decide to leave in the first 12 months we'll ask you to pay back the cost of the router (£20 and £40 respectivley).

Standard broadband - No annual contract: You pay for your router up front, meaning you have the freedom to leave at anytime with just 10 days notice. A wired router costs £20 and a wireless router costs £40.

Standard broadband has a £25 charge for broadband activation. But, if you add our Home Phone service to a 12 month broadband contract you'll get free broadband activation.