Really should be in the internet forum but need quick responses.

I wasn't going to bother with internet for new house until we had fully settled in. Beds are in, appliances are in (just need toaster, kettle, microwave) and sofas will be in next week.

But given how important the internet is (esp with checking things online, payments, buying things etc) I think I need to get this sorted. The house was connected to Virgin. There appears to be a landline but I haven't checked it (would need to buy a phone!).

Options:

1. stick with virgin, go for basic 50- meg package £29pcm
2. Virgin 100-meg £34pcm
3. Go for BT landline (17pcm) + Plusnet ADSL (6-meg, £12pcm) - £30pcm
4. Go for BT landline + Plusnet Fibre (38-meg, £17pcm) - £34pcm
5. BT landline + other ISP ?

I'll be locked into a 12-18 month contract whatever I choose. Fibre makes more sense these days for streaming Netflix etc.
If the BT line is active, I'll be okay otherwise there's a connection fee. If I go for Virgin BB and phone packages, the line rental is the same as BT.

Why use BT with plusnet ADSL?
Plusnet do their own phone lines. If you pay for a year up front rather than monthly they offer a large discount on line rental.

I'd go Virgin or Plusnet personally. I wouldn't go anywhere near BT.

Plusnet's 38 meg fibre is 14.99 pcm and (I think) half price for 6 months if you take the phone line too.

Been with them 18 years this year (well, Force 9). I haggled them down to £11 a month for the next 24 months for the 38 meg line. I'm getting 62 though!

Virgin here, 50mB for 26.50 (16.50 for 6mths and free install)
it's been very good and no lag whatsoever

I've always found Force9/Plusnet to have good customer service.

From memory it doesn't take BT/Openreach long to deactivate a phone line if it's unsued (couple of months maybe) so if the previous occupants were on Virgin there's a fairly high chance you will have to pay the reconnection fee (somewhere north of £100 IIRC).

Zen phone and fibre here (although the actual line is on the Openreach network). Always very reliable, at least within the limitations of copper cables some pillock thought it would be a good idea to put in behind some horrible stone cladding. Not the cheapest but it's a rolling monthly contract after the 12 month minimum term for the broadband.

I haven't had any problems with BT, aside from one incident where everything went down, but even then I found the customer support to be very helpful.
Maybe I got lucky with the person I spoke to, but then again I am comparing them to my previous isp, TalkTalk, who were, in my opinion, worse than useless.

Virgin. Means you don't have two companies blaming each other and it's not susceptible to any accidents short of the pneumatic drill brigade. Also much better for streaming and we only have the basic package. Either way haggle or look for a friend deal. Ask how much just the net costs and then ask for a neat £15 a month or something, always worked for me at least (dad pays it currently).

The difference between BT and Plusnet's phone is £1pcm. Minimal. I pay for BB at home with parents and pay something like £12pcm for speeds of 3-4 meg.

Plugging some numbers in to excel:
- Going for a joint phone package is always cheaper than paying BT separately (between £15 and £200 depending on ISP package)
- Plusnet appear cheaper but set up cost (installation fees etc) price the packages higher than Virgin (who throw in the set up and router for free).

I've had BT Infinity for 2.5yrs and not had a problem with it.
I'm not telling who to use, you'll work that one out for yourself, just saying that I've not experienced all the issues others seem to have done with BT.

Mark

I know people who've had issues with Virgin and BT. BT own plusnet and I've had great service from them esp when I've had problems with the line.

Ended up going with Virgin basic fibre package only. Will reassess next year. Don't need phone line (who does with mobile?).

We do. Mobile signal is terrible at our house.

Question. Do BT still have stupid bills? When we were with them a decade or so ago you could either pay the correct amount every quarter or a fixed amount every month. We moved so we could pay exactly what we owed every month just like any mobile contact.