All speed and little substance?
Superfast 50MB broadband might seem desirable - but will the average user actually benefit from it?
Fans of online gaming and internet users hoping to download hit movies in minutes, such as this winter's bestseller Mamma Mia!, will welcome the launch of the UK's fastest-ever broadband service last week. But experts say that for the majority of us, Virgin Media's 50MB-per second-connection - which is nine times speedier than the industry average - is an expensive and unnecessary luxury.
The growth in popularity of social networking sites, the BBC iPlayer and downloads of movies and music, is making many of us heavier internet users, and providers are expected to start bombarding us with faster broadband packages over the next few years.
"Until high-definition content is readily available on services like iPlayer, there is limited use for Virgin's high-speed option," says Michael Phillips, product director at BroadbandChoices.co.uk. "But give it a year or so, and it's entirely plausible that we could be watching the World Cup in high definition by streaming this on to our computers, and that is when services like this could come into their own."
If you are keen to take advantage of super speeds, it may also be worth waiting until they are more cost-effective. At present, the Virgin service comes at a price for cash-strapped consumers: on a standalone basis, the connection will cost £51 a month, or £35 if users also subscribe to a Virgin phone line for an extra £11 per month, with a £50 connection charge.
Also, Virgin's network is only available to around half the UK's homes, and the company lacks the billions of pounds needed to install its fibre-optic cable across the rest of the country. As a result, many householders will have to wait for BT, which provides the majority of the country's broadband access through its telephone network, to provide them with a similar speed level.
BT has been upgrading its existing copper-wire network and, earlier this year, chief executive Ian Livingston announced that his company plans to spend £1.5bn over the next four years building its own super-fast fibre-optic lines to connect 10m homes to boost broadband speeds.
However, you can get half the speed for half the cost to provide all you need, says Andrew Ferguson, editor of Thinkbroadband.com. For example, Be There - owned by mobile company O2 - offers a speedy 24MB/s service which is also substantially cheaper at £17.50 a month, while O2 offers 20MB/s broadband to its mobile phone customers for just £9.79 a month.
The actual speeds that customers can expect to achieve may be an entirely different matter, as recent research by Ofcom, the industry watchdog, shows that nearly a quarter of households do not get the broadband speeds for which they have paid. However, from this month, customers will get better information about the speed of their connection, as a code of conduct came into force. Providers must give customers an accurate estimate of the speed their line can support and offer a cheaper alternative if one is available without penalty if the actual speed is a lot lower. Providers accounting for 95% of broadband users have signed up to the voluntary code, but if it is not followed Ofcom may introduce a mandatory version.
It is worth taking advantage of online speed checkers by putting in your postcode on websites at BroadbandChoices.co.uk and Thinkbroadband.com. Anyone who finds they are getting a slower connection than they were promised should contact their service provider, which will run a line test. "All providers have had complaints about speed, although Virgin is best placed to deliver superfast speeds because of its unique cable network," says Phillips. "But customers can often resolve any speed issues themselves by checking settings on their computer and their router."
While Virgin Media's cable connection should mean customers suffer less speed problems, experts say said that its superfast service would be dramatically slowed if customer numbers grew and the network became congested. "If lots of people take up the service, they might find that at 3am they can get 49MB/s, but at 8pm on Friday night this falls to just 5 or 10MB/s," says Ferguson.
If you don't know what connection speed you have, how long the contract runs for or how much it costs if it is bundled into your phone bill, contact your supplier and ask for these details. If you have had broadband for more than a year, chances are you will no longer be tied into a contract and can shop around for a better deal. And with broadband providers keener than ever to keep your business, you might even be able to negotiate a better deal with your existing provider rather than move away.
Depending on how often you use the internet, and what you use it for, there are a range of speed and download options to choose from to suit you. If you are a light user and use your connection only to surf the web and send emails occasionally, the most basic package will suit you. A medium user will probably find an 8MB speed package sufficient for using the internet daily for surfing and email and occasionally downloading music or video clips, with O2 being the most cost-effective and reliable provider for the average user. Finally, a heavy user - typically somebody who downloads games, or a household where many people are sharing a connection, such as student houses - may need up to 20MB.
Often, bundled deals offer the best value. These combine two or more products, such as broadband, home phone and TV, for one monthly charge. Yet, generally, a bundle will only be right for you if you use all the products it includes.
Beware of charges
When considering price, you also need to consider flexibility. Providers may hit you with a "minefield" of charges for moving home, such as activation and cease charges, explains Andrew Ferguson of Thinkbroadband.com. "They could charge you £20 for effectively cancelling and starting a new contract at your new address, even though you are staying with the same provider, as well as around £40 for activating the line, on top of other fees," he says. "But you can often negotiate these down." Smaller providers such as Madasafish are particularly prone to these charges, although some, such as Zen, include a home mover service in its contracts so you aren't penalised for moving.
Harriet Meyer
The Observer, Sunday 21 December 2008
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2008
Superfast 50MB broadband might seem desirable - but will the average user actually benefit from it?
Fans of online gaming and internet users hoping to download hit movies in minutes, such as this winter's bestseller Mamma Mia!, will welcome the launch of the UK's fastest-ever broadband service last week. But experts say that for the majority of us, Virgin Media's 50MB-per second-connection - which is nine times speedier than the industry average - is an expensive and unnecessary luxury.
The growth in popularity of social networking sites, the BBC iPlayer and downloads of movies and music, is making many of us heavier internet users, and providers are expected to start bombarding us with faster broadband packages over the next few years.
"Until high-definition content is readily available on services like iPlayer, there is limited use for Virgin's high-speed option," says Michael Phillips, product director at BroadbandChoices.co.uk. "But give it a year or so, and it's entirely plausible that we could be watching the World Cup in high definition by streaming this on to our computers, and that is when services like this could come into their own."
If you are keen to take advantage of super speeds, it may also be worth waiting until they are more cost-effective. At present, the Virgin service comes at a price for cash-strapped consumers: on a standalone basis, the connection will cost £51 a month, or £35 if users also subscribe to a Virgin phone line for an extra £11 per month, with a £50 connection charge.
Also, Virgin's network is only available to around half the UK's homes, and the company lacks the billions of pounds needed to install its fibre-optic cable across the rest of the country. As a result, many householders will have to wait for BT, which provides the majority of the country's broadband access through its telephone network, to provide them with a similar speed level.
BT has been upgrading its existing copper-wire network and, earlier this year, chief executive Ian Livingston announced that his company plans to spend £1.5bn over the next four years building its own super-fast fibre-optic lines to connect 10m homes to boost broadband speeds.
However, you can get half the speed for half the cost to provide all you need, says Andrew Ferguson, editor of Thinkbroadband.com. For example, Be There - owned by mobile company O2 - offers a speedy 24MB/s service which is also substantially cheaper at £17.50 a month, while O2 offers 20MB/s broadband to its mobile phone customers for just £9.79 a month.
The actual speeds that customers can expect to achieve may be an entirely different matter, as recent research by Ofcom, the industry watchdog, shows that nearly a quarter of households do not get the broadband speeds for which they have paid. However, from this month, customers will get better information about the speed of their connection, as a code of conduct came into force. Providers must give customers an accurate estimate of the speed their line can support and offer a cheaper alternative if one is available without penalty if the actual speed is a lot lower. Providers accounting for 95% of broadband users have signed up to the voluntary code, but if it is not followed Ofcom may introduce a mandatory version.
It is worth taking advantage of online speed checkers by putting in your postcode on websites at BroadbandChoices.co.uk and Thinkbroadband.com. Anyone who finds they are getting a slower connection than they were promised should contact their service provider, which will run a line test. "All providers have had complaints about speed, although Virgin is best placed to deliver superfast speeds because of its unique cable network," says Phillips. "But customers can often resolve any speed issues themselves by checking settings on their computer and their router."
While Virgin Media's cable connection should mean customers suffer less speed problems, experts say said that its superfast service would be dramatically slowed if customer numbers grew and the network became congested. "If lots of people take up the service, they might find that at 3am they can get 49MB/s, but at 8pm on Friday night this falls to just 5 or 10MB/s," says Ferguson.
If you don't know what connection speed you have, how long the contract runs for or how much it costs if it is bundled into your phone bill, contact your supplier and ask for these details. If you have had broadband for more than a year, chances are you will no longer be tied into a contract and can shop around for a better deal. And with broadband providers keener than ever to keep your business, you might even be able to negotiate a better deal with your existing provider rather than move away.
Depending on how often you use the internet, and what you use it for, there are a range of speed and download options to choose from to suit you. If you are a light user and use your connection only to surf the web and send emails occasionally, the most basic package will suit you. A medium user will probably find an 8MB speed package sufficient for using the internet daily for surfing and email and occasionally downloading music or video clips, with O2 being the most cost-effective and reliable provider for the average user. Finally, a heavy user - typically somebody who downloads games, or a household where many people are sharing a connection, such as student houses - may need up to 20MB.
Often, bundled deals offer the best value. These combine two or more products, such as broadband, home phone and TV, for one monthly charge. Yet, generally, a bundle will only be right for you if you use all the products it includes.
Beware of charges
When considering price, you also need to consider flexibility. Providers may hit you with a "minefield" of charges for moving home, such as activation and cease charges, explains Andrew Ferguson of Thinkbroadband.com. "They could charge you £20 for effectively cancelling and starting a new contract at your new address, even though you are staying with the same provider, as well as around £40 for activating the line, on top of other fees," he says. "But you can often negotiate these down." Smaller providers such as Madasafish are particularly prone to these charges, although some, such as Zen, include a home mover service in its contracts so you aren't penalised for moving.
Harriet Meyer
The Observer, Sunday 21 December 2008
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2008
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