Unlike the fixed rate you had previously, Max really means anything between 0 and a bit less than 8 Mbps, depending on network load. So what benefits do you expect to see from "upgrading"?
Anyhow, the deed has been done, so lets take it from where you are.
The 10 day "training period" is to allow equipment at your local exchange to assess the quality of your line. You may see wild fluctuations in speed. What you have observed is probably not abnormal. Frequent router disconnections may be interpreted as line drops; if possible, do
not switch off your router during the training period.
A static IP address is unimportant, unless you are running a server. Actually, there may be benefits in having a dynamic IP address, but I won't elaborate.
Pipex has broken a promise?
Why am I not surprised?
