the old 1mb was a fixed speed. The new 8mb deal is using 'rate adaptive technology' (google it if you want more info). Basically, the kit in the exchange continually asseses your line, and provides a speed of connection which is stable for those conditions. If you live next door to the exchange you might (at a quiet time of day) get 8mb. If, like me, you are 6km from the exchange, you may get 3-4mb. Because of contention, the connection will be a lot less than this when the world in the local area are using the net. Extensions in the house also have a significant effect - the advice I was given was to plug my router into the main BT socket, and either go wireless or connect router to PC using and ethernet cable (the way I did it). If you wished to upgrade, a router/modem (which is fast) can be had for 25 quid or so.