View Full Version : Cancelling after less than one day.
My activation date was the 28th of sept but there was a problem at the exchange which BT had to send someone out to fix.
Anyway, I get a text this morning from BT saying it'd be fixed and I could use broadband. Yay!
I connected my router up and connected "now connected at 7.7mb/s" even better i thought, Decided to jump on my PS3 to do some online gaming which I'd sorely missed only to find my ping was much higher.. I thought it might be the servers so I try downloading a demo from the PSN and left it to download for 2-3 hours, I came back and it was still on 23%!!
I hit the web in search of why my connection was so slow, and then find out about the 4pm to 12am trap.
Basically from 4pm to 12pm my internet is entirely useless for what I do. Virgin Media is a scam. Offering "unlimited" broadband yet they limit it when most people are using it! Kids come home from school, around 4, then off to bed before 12, same goes for adults only they're home from work! Charge you the price of high speed broadband when really you're getting crappy speeds!
Sure it's fine for the average user who just wants to browse the web for a few hours but for someone who wants to download movies, music or play games it's entirely useless for 8 HOURS.
The reason I went with Virgin is because I saw their advert about how great it was for gaming, but on battlefield 2, I'm getting pings of 200ms on servers where I was getting 20ms. I work during the day so playing it when there is no cap is out of the question.
In short, Absolute joke of an ISP, I'm canceling soon as I wake up tomorrow and switching to BT.
Stupid me for not reading up on this blatant act of daylight robbery.
myblueocean
01-10-2007, 23:06
I'd just like to add, I haven't got the internet service yet, but from checking back here some times. A lot of major technical probs happening...Urm, is your webspace working ok?
gkhewitt
01-10-2007, 23:16
Does the bandwidth trap even count for ADSL connections? I was under the impression it was for cable lines only.
I've had massive trouble with DSL lines in the past, my cable line (now onto the 3rd premises with one) has always been rock solid, although other peoples' experiences will differ.
nope it applies to all, scratch that about switching to BT, after doing some more reading Ive come to the conclusion they sound just as bad.
I'm switching to ADSL24 who are getting raving reviews, 30gb peak cap and 300gb off peak cap for £20 p/m and there is no way I'd use that much.
it's rated number 2 on this site.
http://www.dslzoneuk.net/isp_ratings.php
I guess I was just so desperate to get broadband back (i went two months without it and was DEPRIVED of online gaming (yes i have no life:()) I fell into the trap of signing up for a crappy commercial ISP! Thank god I can cancel it!
here are speed tests ive done, nearly 2 hours apart.
https://www.cableforum.co.uk/images/local/2007/10/40.png
https://www.cableforum.co.uk/images/local/2007/10/41.png
Does the bandwidth trap even count for ADSL connections? I was under the impression it was for cable lines only.
I've had massive trouble with DSL lines in the past, my cable line (now onto the 3rd premises with one) has always been rock solid, although other peoples' experiences will differ.
last i checked, the STM is only on the cable side, secondly, my connection is far from useless during the STM hours and pings are perfectly fine.
nope it applies to all, scratch that about switching to BT, after doing some more reading Ive come to the conclusion they sound just as bad.
I'm switching to ADSL24 who are getting raving reviews, 30gb peak cap and 300gb off peak cap for £20 p/m and there is no way I'd use that much.
it's rated number 2 on this site.
http://www.dslzoneuk.net/isp_ratings.php
I guess I was just so desperate to get broadband back (i went two months without it and was DEPRIVED of online gaming (yes i have no life:()) I fell into the trap of signing up for a crappy commercial ISP! Thank god I can cancel it!
here are speed tests ive done, nearly 2 hours apart.
https://www.cableforum.co.uk/images/local/2007/10/40.png
https://www.cableforum.co.uk/images/local/2007/10/41.png
I've had ADSL24 for about three weeks now (so not very long), but my impression so far (I'm syncing at max speed, BT profile 7150):
Speeds are fine before 10 pm (when off-peak starts). Between 10 and 12 pm don't expect more than 2MB. Weekends can be patchy, speeds have varied between 2 and 5 MB so far.
What I find really good about ADSL24 is the fact that their MD is an active poster and contributor on their forum. If you've got a problem James will pop up, and offer a solution, or at the very least an explanation.
For me my VM cable connection was (slightly) more reliable, but ADSL24 do have a refreshing approach to Customer Service.
slowcoach
02-10-2007, 01:51
Virgin (like all other non-LLU ISP's) use BT equipment so unless you go with someone who has an unbundled service installed within your local exchange your service will be exactly the same, even then if you have a poor line you will still have issues.
For most people ADSL is pathetic due to the fact it is transported on a system originally designed to just send/receive Morse Code.
TraxData
02-10-2007, 06:07
last i checked, the STM is only on the cable side, secondly, my connection is far from useless during the STM hours and pings are perfectly fine.
VM Adsl has STM, and its ALOT worse than it is on cable.
If you pass the limit on ADSL your limited to 512k for A WHOLE WEEK.
VM Adsl has STM, and its ALOT worse than it is on cable.
If you pass the limit on ADSL your limited to 512k for A WHOLE WEEK.
STM is a Cisco uBR technology, how is that applied to a Virgin ADSL connection that is serviced from a non unbundled BT exchange???
AbyssUnderground
02-10-2007, 08:21
When are people going to learn that speed tests are NOT an effective way of measuring your line speed?
When are people going to learn that speed tests are NOT an effective way of measuring your line speed?
I've given up stating that, there are none so deaf etc.
xspeedyx
02-10-2007, 11:08
it quite funny when I have been stm'd my connection seems to run so much quicker is great lol
Well I've just phoned customer service to ask for a MAC code and got through to a guy called "Martin" Who sounded like he'd just been picked off the street and told to talk to people phoning up. He was telling me all lines ISP's are the same and it would make no difference if I was to change ISP. Great way to try to keep a customer.
I told him that during the times I use my net most it's entirely useless and that for me, Virgin is poor service and basically what I said in the first post.
He gave me the number for cancellations and I got through to a woman who sounded more at home on a sex chat line. When I gave her the account name, which is "christopher lee" she said "ohh have you been in any more horror movies"...followed by a long pause and then "riiiight" by me. She said I'd have the MAC code in a few days (but i have the feeling I wont and will have to phone them again) and asked which provider I was moving to, I told her ADSL24 and she said as long as its not Sky or Talk Talk I'll be fine.
---------- Post added at 15:34 ---------- Previous post was at 15:32 ----------
When are people going to learn that speed tests are NOT an effective way of measuring your line speed?
Maybe not so, but I tried downloading the FM08 demo 3 times between 7 and 10pm, every time I didnt get more than 20kb/s
Then around 3am I tried again and was at 500kb/s download speed until it got to around 70% then it went down to less than 100kb/s and didn't break that again.
I'm prepared to take the risk with ADSL24, customers don't lie and it looks like ADSL24 > VM by a long shot.
xspeedyx
02-10-2007, 15:48
I agree vm are having problems but 10mb had these problems so give it time and should all be sorted out
VM Adsl has STM, and its ALOT worse than it is on cable.
If you pass the limit on ADSL your limited to 512k for A WHOLE WEEK.
care to give a link to some proof of that? or shall i expect a "someone told me so" response?
TraxData
02-10-2007, 17:29
care to give a link to some proof of that? or shall i expect a "someone told me so" response?
Quote straight from VM's T&C's (which they updated very recently tho not many noticed)
Monitoring traffic:
Well each week we'll monitor how much data our Broadband customers download during peak times only. We measure this in kilobytes (KB). Peak times run from 4pm till midnight. We then add up the total amount of data downloaded over the week per customer. We then rank the list of customers, heaviest users first. From this list, we pick out the top 5% of heaviest users over the week. We reserve the right to traffic manage these customers during peak times. Traffic management lasts for just 1 week and is only applied during peak times (4pm till midnight).
Traffic Management:
For the small number of customers who are in the top 5% of heaviest users, our traffic management solution will temporarily set download speeds to no lower than 512Kbit/s. This limit is applied daily, 4pm until midnight, for 1 week.
During off-peak periods our traffic management solution will automatically reset download speeds back to their full speed.
Each week we review our top 5% heaviest peak-time users over the previous 7 days. We then update the refreshed customer list to our servers for traffic shaping.
Speed limit:
Even for the small number of customers whose service is traffic managed there is a limited impact. At 512Kbit/s a customer can still download around 50 music tracks in an hour as well as watching the odd streamed video. And don't forget, outside peak periods we reset the Broadband service back to its original speed.
There are still no limits to how much customers can download. We believe in unlimited downloads and will not cap the amount of data you download over your Broadband service.
Quote straight from VM's T&C's (which they updated very recently tho not many noticed)
<snip>
from that its a bit different to what you said. that says it will be limited to no lower than 512k which is a lot different to limiting to 512k, and its only limited during the peak hours not 24/7.
would be interesting if i was on vm adsl seeing as anything over 512k is rated as "unlikely" for our location :p:
TraxData
02-10-2007, 17:39
from that its a bit different to what you said. that says it will be limited to no lower than 512k which is a lot different to limiting to 512k, and its only limited during the peak hours not 24/7.
would be interesting if i was on vm adsl seeing as anything over 512k is rated as "unlikely" for our location :p:
VM like to twist their words, trust me, pass that limit and your stuck with 512k for a full week¬
Peak hours? sorry thats as bad as 24/7 as peak hours is the ONLY time people are actually home.
slingading
03-10-2007, 12:12
Maybe not so, but I tried downloading the FM08 demo 3 times between 7 and 10pm, every time I didnt get more than 20kb/s
Then around 3am I tried again and was at 500kb/s download speed until it got to around 70% then it went down to less than 100kb/s and didn't break that again.
I'm prepared to take the risk with ADSL24, customers don't lie and it looks like ADSL24 > VM by a long shot.
Your judging Virgins service on an attempt to download a newly released demo at a time when the servers are going to be getting hit hard, bit hasty if you ask me mate ;)
I've given up stating that, there are none so deaf etc.
Hear hear!
Wake up people!!!
Ok look you may want to defend VM to their dying death, but for me, VM is crap. The service is crap when I need it most and the customer service is crap.
I was using FM as an example, I could go on to list the numerous youtube videos, rapidshare downloads and various other things that download at crap speeds during 4pm and 12am, which is when i use the internet most.
Gaming is impossible, as is anything that isn't just basic web page viewing.
I joined VM for their "unlimited download and uncapped speeds" as they have advertised. But it feels like I have been lied to and conned.
You can tell me "well i get great speeds so VM is great" all day, but at the end of the day, the service is far below the standards for me and unworthy of my hard earned money.
Oh and as a side note, I tried downloading the BF2142 demo from the blueyonder site and didn't exceed more tha 30kb/s. Real great huh?
---------- Post added at 16:18 ---------- Previous post was at 16:17 ----------
Your judging Virgins service on an attempt to download a newly released demo at a time when the servers are going to be getting hit hard, bit hasty if you ask me mate ;)
I was using it as an example.
tobylee - leave VM ASAP the world will be a better place and it frees up some bandwidth for the rest of us ;)
alferret
04-10-2007, 15:19
SNIP!
I joined VM for their "unlimited download and uncapped speeds" as they have advertised. But it feels like I have been lied to and conned.
Im still trying to find where VM state that they have "uncapped speeds" AFAIK all teirs are capped to an upper limit.
---------- Post added at 15:19 ---------- Previous post was at 15:18 ----------
tobylee - leave VM ASAP the world will be a better place and it frees up some bandwidth for the rest of us ;)
:clap:
Your judging Virgins service on an attempt to download a newly released demo at a time when the servers are going to be getting hit hard, bit hasty if you ask me mate ;)
Also, don't forget that you are relying on the server at the other end. It's no good you having a fantastic service if the other end can't cope!
lol
---------- Post added at 15:51 ---------- Previous post was at 15:51 ----------
Im still trying to find where VM state that they have "uncapped speeds" AFAIK all teirs are capped to an upper limit.
---------- Post added at 15:19 ---------- Previous post was at 15:18 ----------
:clap:
You gone yet Toby?!?:monkey:
I'm on my way, awaiting a MAC code to come through.
Like I said, you might all have a good service, but I do not.
Also; I was using FM as an EXAMPLE. Which means there have been other things that have been downloading at ****ty speeds, even streaming youtube videos takes forever.
Enjoy your "excellent" service guys, the way I see it, there's 1 customer happy with their VM service to every 20 that aren't.
If they were so great why is this forum full of complaints?
Because happy people don't complain.
I am sorry you have had bad service, and I hope you find the service you want elsewhere.
They are all the same, speed test's are not proof of speed,(is anyone listening).
Look here: http://broadband.nildram.net/transfer-allowance-policy/
Look at this one, look at the please note near bottom of page: http://www.zen.co.uk/Broadband/S_Business/zen-8000-pro.aspx
http://www.cableforum.co.uk/board/12/33621864-oversubscribed-area-killing-my-internet-gaming.html#post34408342
Like i have said they are all the same, and to be fair to them there will always be people who go over the top with the usage so some kind of management is needed. You need to look around at the different providers and look at there usage policy's,(that's if you can find them).
---------- Post added at 19:28 ---------- Previous post was at 19:12 ----------
I'm on my way, awaiting a MAC code to come through.
Like I said, you might all have a good service, but I do not.
Also; I was using FM as an EXAMPLE. Which means there have been other things that have been downloading at ****ty speeds, even streaming youtube videos takes forever.
Enjoy your "excellent" service guys, the way I see it, there's 1 customer happy with their VM service to every 20 that aren't.
If they were so great why is this forum full of complaints?
Tha'ts like asking, "why do so many customers complain to you", Reply "thats because i work in the complaints department". This forum is for the good and bad points of VM, for info and advice, so obviously it's going to look grim when reading it.
personally i would of fixed my internet connection :) i love investigating whats gone wrong
personally i would of fixed my internet connection :) i love investigating whats gone wrong
You've lost me a bit on that one?
Like i have said they are all the same, and to be fair to them there will always be people who go over the top with the usage so some kind of management is needed. You need to look around at the different providers and look at there usage policy's,(that's if you can find them).
I really don't see how 20-25 minutes of downloading at your full speed can be classified as over usage.
350MB on M, 750MB on L and 3gb on XL is ridiculous and it really needs to be increased, especially on the M and L. I can understand the 20mb connections causing slow down with 3gb being downloaded every 20 mins, but how can 750MB and 350MB in 20-25 minutes slow it down in comparison to that.
If anything they should increase the limits so we can atleast get 1 hour of usage at full speed during peak times.
Mick Fisher
10-10-2007, 19:54
I really don't see how 20-25 minutes of downloading at your full speed can be classified as over usage.
350MB on M, 750MB on L and 3gb on XL is ridiculous and it really needs to be increased, especially on the M and L. I can understand the 20mb connections causing slow down with 3gb being downloaded every 20 mins, but how can 750MB and 350MB in 20-25 minutes slow it down in comparison to that.
If anything they should increase the limits so we can atleast get 1 hour of usage at full speed during peak times.
It would be even better if VM would identify and cull those who abuse the service, including those using cloned modems. When this has been accomplished perhaps Traffic Calming (my pet term :) ) would not be required.
However accomplishing this must be more expensive for VM than going down the STM or upgrading the network route so for the foreseeable future we will all be STM'ed unless we can find an alternative supplier or the regulator gives ISP's a mighty kick up the rear sometime in the New Year. I wouldn't hold your breath waiting for my last alternative :( although the thought of it does make for a pleasant reverie. :)
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