Tinker

I know we have had alot of threads concerning broad band but my question is fairly specific.
Does anyone here use ntl Broadband Internet 128k connection and if so what do you think of it. It's obviously not going to be as fast as their 1 meg option but how noticable will the improvement be over a 56k modem? (ps I am aware that their customer service is pretty awful)

Cheers

T

(XP 1Gig OE6 128k ZA AVG blah blah)

What_does_this_button_do?

Technically speaking 128k is 2 x 56k modems.....so it should be twice as quick.

beardy

It is fast enough for me. Noticeably faster than dial up and of course you are on all the time. I have found customer service to be quite reasonable. Certainly for the price it is far superior to unlimited dial up plans.

amanoffewwords

2x56 = 128?

rickity

Agree with Beardy I've been using 128k NTL for a while no great hassel, about 2 outages in 3 months and for the price very good.

Tinker

Thanks for the replys so far, if anyone has any further comments i'd love to hear them.
Just a little background to the query, I have a standard 56k dial up modem connection which I am told by those (apparently ) in the know, even at it's peak isn't a true 56k connection and it is rarely if ever at its peak (for example i'm getting 49.2K at the moment...which again apparently isn't a true 49.2k blah blah... ).
Anyway I got phone call from a friend who told me he had just signed up with NTL for the 128K deal for £xx pm (I promise this isn't an advert) but the deal was that for the first month he had to pay for and receive the 600k connection, having previously been on a standard dial up connection himself, of course he found the 600k connection blisteringly quick and brags about it to his mates.
So the point of the question is to find out peoples actual experiences of 128k broadband vs the 56k dial up before I sign up to something on the basis of an 'advertising' ploy even if it does appear to be pretty good value for money.

Sorry if I have bored you all but I'd appreciate any more info you can offer me

Cheers T

amanoffewwords

I use Telewest's 512k service so do not strictly conform to your requirements for recommendations.

However, I would say that you have nothing to lose and all to gain by switching to broadband for at least three reasons:

1. As you say a normal dial-up line will never perform at 57.6k, unless you are in a lab. Even if you are fortunate enough to get an initial rate of 50k it tends to fluctuate for the duration of the call. This does not happen with cable - if they say 128k, you tend to get 128k throughout. This is not to say that congestion does not happen - it does with Telewest but fortunately it is still a rare event.

2. The price NTL quote on their site is good, considering it is 1 Pound cheaper than AOL charges for their dial-up package, and only 1 Pound more than Freeserve does for theirs.

3. Once the kit is installed you switch to the higher throughput package with no further hardware change (at least that's what happens with TW, so I presume the same applies to NTL)

And if it doesn't work out you can always cancel and get your money back - those are your rights as a consumer.

HTH

outofsynch

When I signed up for NTL, they were giving the first month free. Obviously I elected for the 512 (now 600) option, as the 1 meg wasnt available then.

Waited a month or two enjoying the 'instant internet', and wondering about whether to bother downgrading and saving £10 a month.

Well I just have.. and I cant really see any difference in speed between 512 and 128. Still a lot faster than modem, and the same cost for me (NTL dial-up was £15/mth too).

The best advantage, apart from speed, is freeing up the phone line!

Dr. Bunsen Honeydew

I went for the 128k as it worked out much the same as our rental for a second line along with ntl's (then) free dial up service . We used it for about 6 months and I found the instant access to be a real eye opener, and there was a noticeable speed increase in opening pages. The fact that the connection didn't cut off after a couple of hours was a bonus, and I'd hate to go back to the screeching dial up thing! .
We paid the extra tenner for the 512k service as a carrot to reduce our download hungry son's time in front of the machine and it really makes a difference to speeds (however the effect on junior was to quadruple the amount of cr*p filling the hard drive in the same amount of time!).
I'd definitely recommend the 128broadband option if you are a light surfer' but remember to get a good firewall installed (the free zone alarm is great).

briteandbreezy

Hi Tinker,


I had the ntl Broadband 128k connection installed over a month ago and up to now things are running great!!!

It beats the hell outta dialling up every two hours, which I found a total pain..... and could never go back to now!!!

When I called to ask about installation I was told they had an offer on and were installing free of charge for a limited period, I'm not sure just how long it lasts, maybe you should enquire?

I had several problems with the ntlworld dial up and the service when they first brought that out was abysmal too. They seem to be getting their act together these days.... and their 'customer care' seems to be altogether better than it was!!!

I'd definitely recommend it!


Brite

Tinker

Hi all...I thought i'd post my thanks before this one slides too low down the table.
The descision has been made, I will be in touch with said ISP sometime next week and am looking forward to a faster connection speed.
As I said, thank you all for your opinions, experiences and advice. (although I don't necesseraly see freeing up the phone line as an advantage )

Cheers T