Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

The last I saw of the £15.99 300k was on the usual flyer for "brand new customers only" that they send to everyone including existing broadband customers - and that said £15.99 per month for a year, £17.99 after.

The mention of £14.99 is a new one on me - the only thing that seems to be on offer to existing 300k users unhappy to move to what is now 1/10, instead of 1/6 of their previous cap, is "pay the same, stay the same, and no chance of rejoining that tariff if you do upgrade".

And the 1Mbit tariff cap is one they have to be seriously enforcing, otherwise I'm sure the majority on 750k would say "thanks very much" for a 33% speed upgrade and a price drop - though that would save on swapping Pace STB's for Samsung or adding SACM.

From what was said elsewhere, if you are a 750k user with a Pace STB, you may well have to remind them you want the upgrade, and getting a rocksolid Samsung to replace an incredibly flaky (Red crash button) Pace would be a bonus.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Whereas I do know when and how but aren't interested in discussing it outside of ntl employees who are allowed to know, sorry.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Show off :PP:

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Yes pursued they informed me something about oversubbed upstream as of today
__________________

Bill are you being kept in the dark:p:
__________________

Someone has fixed the problem getting better upload and speed than before yet it was 22k earlier on today .


:confused:

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

I bought my NTL cable internet package early on, and chose the option to buy the modem to save money in the long run. So I basically spend £20 a month for the 750 connection rather than £25, although I was told on the support line - after an hour of waiting - that I will probably lose this soon, with no modem replacement unless it falls down the stairs. Although they also told me I wasn't registered at the time and that my connection would stop any minute, and they didn't know how it was still going (was connected for years, and was quite funny when we then waited for it drop out for a few minutes - and it never did), so you can believe anything :) .

Anyhows, NTL at the time pointed me at a website to get the modem, which I believe they did for purchase or hire (you had an option on the website if I remember rightly), and you had no option but to pick the Motorola Surfboard SB4100, which has worked fine during all speed increases.

Since this post indicates you have to have a Samsung modem to access the 2mbit speeds, is this also true for the Motorola? I gather that pretty much no-one got the Motorola from NTL, but all web searches seem to indicate it can handle 38mbits. So unless there is another issue other than max speed, will the Motorola be fine for the new speed increases, or will I need a new modem? In which case do I need to chuck it down the stairs, or will NTL give me a new one FOC?

Cheers

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

I have a Terayon TJ210, and would like to know the same as the poster above me. Will this cope with the speed changes? I'm pretty sure it will, it's coped fine with the previous upgrades. (512k > 1Mb > 1.5Mb)

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

The surfboard CM's will work fine with the new speeds (in fact, all existing SACM's will).

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Really? So what was the "Samsung" earlier in the post?

Cheers

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

The samsung refers to people who get their BB via the STB (TV Set Top Box) instead of via a Stand Alone Cable Modem.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

So as I'm on a Pace box, do I have to wait for an engineer to come round and fit a samsung box? Would I get a refund on my service if I have to wait a few years til someone from NTL gets off their backside and actually comes round to fit one? I'd assume so seeing as I'd be paying for a service that is not 'as decscribed' Again. (still waiting for them to fix the sound they cocked up two years ago)

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Would be lame if NTL started blocking people on the business lite package, if NTL will sell residental 3mbit at 37.99 40gig all day cap and not allow that type of customer to sign up to business lite 34.99 peak time cap only and free domain then trading standards will probably investigate this and I would expect NTL to do one of the following.

1 - Allow anyone to sign upto business lite
2 - Increase the price of Business Lite
3 - Decrease the price of 3mbit Residental Tier
4 - Make the residental cap peak time only (wont happen)

If you disagree with me please explain why.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

just a small point , have you ever thought about ditching ntl ???? , because all you seem to do is bitch about it ;)

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Do the business prices include VAT?

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

To disagree, I would first have to actually understand what you are talking about. :confused:

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Ah, I guessed the samsung was the STB. Excellent. Love having nothing to do with NTL support. I've never had any problem with the service, but support in Bracknell area has truly sucked over the years. I'm not having a go at NTL overall here; I've heard other areas are fine. But Bracknell is truly terrible (ie. everyone I've ever met).

Thanks for the info BTW.

Cheers

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

It depends. If you're currently on 300k, you'll get upgraded to 1Mb, still running through the Pace box. If you're currently on 750k, you'll need to ring up to arrange the upgrade to 2Mb and an engineer appointment to swap the box.

AFAIK, the processes have not yet been put in place to allow a box swap for the new speeds.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

for BT, yeah right, they're even worse.

Just for the record, I like ntl. My only complaints are, the sound on my tv is screwed cos some muppet thought the alarm was more important. And secondly, the time they take to fix things.

Anyway, thanks for your really helpful comments (find a sarcastic smiley and stick it somewhere useful)

I rang cs and spoke to the usual 'person who knows less than me' and will get my box changed due to faulty sound so I should be ready for the upgrade as well.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

so ntl are useful then ;)

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Thats a bit unfair he might be right, remember not everyone has the same experierence with NTL .
Some get fobbed off

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

fair comment , but i am certain that i would have got any problems i had sorted long before now :)

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

I disagree if I have worked out correctly what you are getting at.

1. Why should they, it is a business service for business use, not residential.
2. Why increase it, NTL have set the price at what they are happy with. In general, business use would be very much lower than the residential use of some residential customers. Business Lite is dearer than residential services at the same speed.
3. Why? The price of the residential service is based on a model of expected usage of residential customers. It is cheaper than the equivalent speed business package.
4. Why? NTL are marketing a residential product which is aimed at users with a specific usage pattern. If the product doesn't suit your needs then look for one that does.

NTL market one set of products for residential users and another set of products for business customers. They each have specific terms and conditions. Why would Trading Standards want to become involved?

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

because its like a shop selling a can of beans for 25p to one class of customer and 15p to another class, I believe this kind of practice is illegal and is against open market laws. This is probably why other isp's allow residental customers to sign up to business packages.

Business Lite is cheaper then residental not sure where you getting your info from.

http://business.ntl.com/product_solu...band_lite_1500

"4. Why? NTL are marketing a residential product which is aimed at users with a specific usage pattern. If the product doesn't suit your needs then look for one that does."

I was looking at one until you told me I wouldnt qualify for it, due to some stupid clause been added to it.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

The business and residential services are two completely different products.

Even your can of beans example would not be illegal in British law. There are many outlets that sell products to both retail customers and business customers with different prices for the two.

Business Lite does look cheaper on the face of it until you fully read the pricelist. The business prices are quoted ex VAT whilst residential prices are quoted inclusive of VAT. Add 17.5% VAT to the £34.99 price and work out if that is less than £37.99, or more. ;)

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Can you change the software from the last upgrade so that the volume is back to +6 then?

Didn't think so. ;)

Stay on topic anyway, people don't wanna hear you bitching.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Pot, kettle, black, no-one likes pontificating or hypocracy.

I don't really see the relevance of CR2's volume issue in this conversation either directly or in relation to the services that networks (completely different unit from those who write said software) provides.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Who appointed you as a mod then ?

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Just been on the phone to NTL and they would have changed me to a business packaage no problems and i told them that it was because i am wary of the proposed capping. They still have no problems with me transferring, now i am just wary of signing a 2 year contract with ntl.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Did you say anything about phone lines, and did they mention a VAT code? I'd jump over to the business line in an instant, if i didn't have to change anything to do with my phone lines, rental and call charges are both higher on business phone lines. I just wanna keep the phone lines i have now, and change ONLY my Broadband.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Wouldn't the same apply with the business contract as with the home onethough, where if they change terms you can cancel immediately?

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

No doubt they would say and do that, but think about it. You will have to sign a contract which will stipulate the terms and conditions of your use of the service. You sign that 2 year contract and use your new business service as a residential service and .............wooooops.............Dear Mr Doofy, we note that you are using your business connection in contravention of #x of our terms and conditions. Please cease that activity at once or we will have no option but to terminate your contract. Please note that if we do terminate your contract for this reason that you will still be liable for the payments which would have been due upto the end of your 2 year contract. This scenario may or may not happen. Only you can decide after having read the terms and conditions if you are willing to take the risk.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Well the risk is... they may get cut off. 'Think about it' is that really such a big risk for getting a service they are happy with?

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

It is if they come after you for payment of the rest of your two year contract at over £40 per month and after you have paid over £100 for installation.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

It's not likely though is it.

New STB for speed increases
 

Hi all

i'm sure i heard somewhere that the PACE 1000 stb's couldnt manage more than a 1 meg connection. As i'm currently on the 750k service i'll go up to 2 meg. So assuming my (pace 1000) stb cant cope will NTL offer me a replacement or is it up to me to pester them until they do. (or could i downgrade to the 1 meg service, save money and keep my existing box :dozey: )

Re: New STB for speed increases
 

Phone 'em up and book in an installer for a new samsung box, or a SACM, or of course just stick to 750k :)

New 'Superspeed'
 

We have just been informed of the following....

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

Good news. Nice to see the 25 quid upgrade fee has been waived. Well done NTL :tu:

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

aye, tis very good news.
i'll definately be sticking to 300k. a 3gb cap simply isn't enough - but i can fully understand their reasoning behind the cap amount.
:)

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

I know the upgrades wil start on the 14th of March or close to that date,
What I would like to know is. Will the upgrades be like last time, where they are completed in batches, and some poor people had to wait months to get there free upgrade.

Or will they all be done at once ? (on the 14th)

I am sure some NTL devlopment guy could write a script where he could add all the MAC ID'S and then run the script to upgrade everyone simultaneously,

I have read some where before that all they have to do is send a command to the modem to upgrade the damm thing, what takes them so long,

I just hope its not like last time, becasue we down here in the south (Dorset) had to wait months last time, its a nightmare,

cheers

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

Will the 1.5mb users be upgraded automaticlly too ? doesnt mention this in the offical press release... or have I miss read it ?

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

Thank you NTL, that'll do nicely :)

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

Oh great, I WILL have to change ISP then since I can't stick with my 300K :(

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

Its crazy, how can the 300k product have a 30g allowance and the 1mb only having 3gb, this just doesnt make sense to me ?...

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

Yes..

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

Nice to see that 3mb service has now been capped at 30gb instead of the original 40gb quoted...when will they ever stick to what they first say!

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

NTL are complete <removed> dont think about people who download and upload alot, <removed> idiots. I have 300k and download/upload about 1/2 GB a day, with a 1MB connection, i would have reached 3GB in a few hours!

Edit (Paul): I don't care how upset you are - you will not use that language in this forum again

Sorry, is telewest broadband available in Leicester? They're so much better than NTL, NTL should learn from them.

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

Interesting ...

Must admit I have not followed all this (the threads have been too long). But since I am happy with the 1.5 Mbit speed at present, I can not see why I WILL NOT want to downgrade to the 2Mbit service - actually gain more speed, for less cost ?!?

The only slight problem I see is that I think the new 2Mbit service has a lower upload (by 50K) than the current 1.5 Mbit service (250K). However I'm not sure the increased cost is worth it ?

Wonder what others will think?

Mark

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

Except at the mo they still don't have technology in place to monitor the caps, that will be coming soon :)

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

So it will be a soft cap in the first place with restrictions to follow later in the year. The options are open for them to have several different possibilities on reaching the cap. There could be a reduction to a lower speed or extra bandwidth available at a cost. Perhaps that is what they mean by metered broadband later in the year that was in the media presentation. One thing that is worrying for higher usage customers is that the usage allowance is 1 Gb per day for both 2Mb and 3Mb customers. This is a lowering of the suggested cap for 3Mb users. Additionally 1Gb per day is nothing like as good as 30Gb per month if it ever becomes strictly enforced. We will have to wait until hard cappins announced before we really know what is going to happen. A lot may depend on how customers use the increased speeds whilst the cap is still soft.

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

Yes you can.

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

300K customers will not be upgraded automatically, as some customers may not wish to have the higher speed service with a lower monthly usage limit. However, they can still upgrade for free by calling Customer Services

Phew!

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

There's a thread about the cap here.

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

Would rather have AOL with 512K and unlimited bandwidth at the same price than NTL's 300K and 1GB per day :(

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

:LOL: They probably think a great deal about people who download and upload a lot which is why they are having to put usage restrictions in force.

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

Don't hold back will you sir.

Simple answer is actually they do think about it, but if you want to use heavy duty bandwidth you'll have to start paying for it. Increasingly in the UK the precedent is charging for the amount you download and upload, not the speed that you download at.

If you're planning on hammering your connection best consider paying more to get more.

Likewise Scott if on 300k and 1GB/day is too little for you should really consider upgrading, that's taking the Michael a bit using a connection on 2:1 basis.

Soft caps to begin with, keeping the current AUP guidelines :)

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

Scott, if you go here, AOL appear to be saying their connection is actually a 1 Meg one... http://www.aol.co.uk/products/broadb.../?promo=228937

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

No need to get ADSL then "until later this year". 2007 then. :p

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

I really wouldn't bet on that one, later this year means later this year, and not a hell of a lot later this year either.

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

I'm looking forward to my new speed :)

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

That's the gold package, the Silver package is the 512K version at £17.99 per month.

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

Well in the space of 6 months i've gone from 600k to 750k now i'll be on 2meg for the same price. so all round a winner on that front.

Although hang on according to ntl i've been disconnected and have no services yet my cable modem is happily plodding along.

**NIEL could you pm me the customer services manager for the north regions email addy as my phones been off for nearly a month ( although ntl think its been 2). My account is £90 in credit and their new harmony system decieded it had not got my payment and cut me off.

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

Nice to see they will be sticking with the current 1GB a day cap for the higher speeds :)

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

According to AOL, Gold is the only package available on NTL.

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

If you click on the "Order Online" on the Silver package, you can see in big blue letters at the bottom where it says "Can I get AOL in my area?" saying:

AOL offers Broadband over a BT telephone line or through an ntl cable connection.

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

ah, but the registration pages on aol.co.uk, only offer the Gold package on the ntl network. not the other two
:)

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

So when can 300K start to phone CS for there upgrade

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

I'm using the .co.uk website? :confused:

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

well, the UK version webpage, same thing really...

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

When I used to be with NTL I took part in a test in the Guildford area for short term 'turbo' broadband connections. You could have a couple hours a day where your speed was about 3 times the normal speed. As part of this test users could go to a page connected to their account, which told them how much they had downloaded/uploaded. It had totals for the days, week etc. That must be over 18 months maybe even 2 years ago, so they obviously have some means to collate this info. They had it almost 2 years ago for that test.

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

Yes - but that was a trial - they don't have the equipment to monitor installed for everyone.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

i am idly wondering if all of this is going to be a way of milking money out of ppl that are not tech savvy :erm: , i was thinking along the lines of --- you have exceeded your bandwidth allowance for the month and it is going to cost you £ÃÆ ’‚£Ãà¢Ã¢â€šÂ¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚£Ãƒââ‚ ¬Å¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚£ for the extra you have used :disturbd: , or am i waffling :Yikes: :D :D :D

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

They obviously can though and I don't think it will be too long after these upgrades that they will be in place.

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

end of the year I think.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Probably go something along the lines...."You have exceeded your bandwidth allowance for this month, but if you'd like to pay us an additional £x then we can turn you on again to your normal speed for another limited number of gigs"
__________________

Majority of existing subscribers probably won't be affected, until more people get into streaming movies or whatever. Some will go due to using too much, but I think it will affect new sign-ups more than anything. I have friends who are not too computer savvy. They have signed up for broadband and even though they don't use a huge amount of bandwidth, they were put off going with ADSL suppliers who had any form of cap.

Re: New 'Superspeed'
 

sure i have seen this in the post


300K customers will not be upgraded automatically, as some customers may not wish to have the higher speed service with a lower monthly usage limit. However, they can still upgrade for free by calling Customer Services

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

I really cant see the point in anyone paying £37.99 a month for the same usage allowance when they can pay £25 a month a still download a gig in just over an hour.The cap should be at around 47 gig a month when comparing services.

I will be downgrading to the £25 service saves £13 a month which can be spent elsewhere.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

I must admit that as things stand, I'm considering moving to the new 2M service and saving £156 year.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

So does anybody know when us on the 300k should phone up and upgrade

I personally think its a great free gesture on behalf of ntl they didnt have to do it did they

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Oh man. I hope they don't do the enforcing as 1Gb/day as indicated in that post. 30Gb/month would be better. I sometimes download more than 1Gb/day but hardly ever go over 30Gb/month. They should either allow unused gigabytes to roll-over (i.e. say I only download 400Mb one day, the unused 600Mb would go on top of the 1Gb for tomorrow), OR check the totals at the end of the month. Both would have the same affect, and also at the end of the month work out the same as checking daily - but it would give valued ntl users a little bit of headroom and make us happier overall I think. If these caps end up being 1Gb a day and they end up being enforced every day, then I'm off. Even if I end up with BT who enforce on a monthly basis. I don't want to leave ntl, they've been good to me, but this issue alone would cause me to go.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

I donââ‚Âà ‚¬ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚¢t download a lot if I do at all; I browse the web, buy the odd item and play games on it as well as the old e-mail.



Iâ₠¬ÃƒÆ’¢â€žÂ¢m settled on getting this upgrade from my 300K to 1M, but in all seriousness if it was uncapped Iâ₠¬ÃƒÆ’¢â€žÂ¢d have spent the extra and gone for 2M but with that cap Iâ₠¬ÃƒÆ’¢â€žÂ¢d probably download a lot more on the 2M so just keeping with the 1M is a preventative measure.

good that we now have a date for this, i would have hoped they could have e-mailed us to ask what we were doing and we could just e-mail back to upgrade.:tu:

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

If you're worried about hitting the 30Gb cap on 2Mbit, you sould be even more worried about hitting the 3Gb cap on 1Mbit.

The top tier service, given the same quota for 3Mbt as for 2Mbit, now looks like even worse value - the biggest jump in price, for only 50% more speed and no more capacity - RUBBISH! There really shouldn't be anyone left on it, as if you were on 1.5Mbit and downgrade, you're still going faster, and saving money.


One suggestion that needs taking to NTL...

Why not a 1Mbit/15Gb tariff, lets say priced as £19.99 (or some variation of) as an alternative to replacing PACE with Samsung for the 750k users when they demand their upgrade - THEY may not be marketing it, but I'm sure this and other forums will rattle the sabre.

I'd consider something with a bit more than 3Gb, priced inbetween the bottom and middle tier.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

too right .. as I mentioned earlier. Move UP from 1.5 to 2.0 but move down by £13 a month. Seems to me totally obvious!!

Mark
;)

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

I'm all agreeing with that. At the moment the 1.5mb has that edge over the 750k being double the speed, but now only 1/2 faster it isn't as attractive.

4mb definately but 3mb - i'd have to think about that one.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

I think if you are at all worried about the cap and lets face it in the world of Internet radio, Internet TV, Game demos approach 1GB, patches, Trial versions of software and not to mention all the background traffic that may count to your totals (not clarified). You better start looking at alternative ISPs. There are plenty of other ISPd offering comparable services for the same price. Central Point Broadband offer 2Mb DSL for £35.49 and 1Mb for £25.99. With BT trialling speeds upto 8Mb/s and moving all the BT retail customers upto 2Mb as standard (with a usage cap). It won't be long before all ther ISPs follow suit. By the end of the year 2Mb will be an entry level service with 8 or 4 being 'un capped' services being widely available.

NTL will be left behind as the users who want the quickest, fastest, latest thing won't be with NTL to jump onto the next product. What is the point of NTL offering a 6Mb/s or 8Mb/s cable service in the future. The only reason someone wants a large 'bandwidth' service is to download large files or to get larger files quicker. Latency isn't a problem. So if everyone who is fed up with all the crap and talk about CAPS then just cancel the service and move your custom elsewhere.

NTL will get left behind as when they launch the next set of bandwidth products in a few years the customers who always want that new thing will have left and already be on a fast and un restricted DSL service.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

A true expert in the industry speaks.

Let me know when you come back down to Earth and we'll continue this discussion.

Although I'd hope that the trends from both BTWholesale and various DSL ISPs towards usage based charging rather than speed based charging would be a hint.

2Mbit being an entry level service is absurd considering 40% of people connected to DSL enabled exchanges can't get it.

PS Central Point suck, tiny VISP reselling Telefonica circuits who've had various wonderful issues with contention thanks to selling uncapped 2Mbit on the cheap.

I believe one of our members here enjoyed their service until someone else on his exchange took the service, then the fact that there was only a 2Mbit pipe between them and both could max it out began to show.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

:LOL: Your being gentle tonight :)

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Not sure whats going on in NTL exec's heads at the moment but this is going to have a mass of people downgrading to the middle tier losing them £13 revenue monthly from each of them, there is nothing to motivate me to use the 3mbit instead of 2mbit its a maximum 33% higher burst which I am unlikely to achieve in my congested area with the same cap.

On the subject of business lite since businesses dont pay vat the product is still cheaper, but even in my case I have to pay vat I dont care I am quite willing to spend more for a better quality of service, £40-45 for whats on offer there no problem for me.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

I have only heard good things about central point but there you have it. You can't please everyone. There are alternatives, UK Online, HomeChoice, Karoo and Bulldog all offer services higher than 512kbps. More will follow with the BT announcements.

I do think that speeds are going to increase and yes usage based charging will become commonplace. I just don't like the idea of clock watching or byte watching.

What happens when my line reduces to 56Kbps the whole quality of the internet is affected. What is the point in signing up for 'high' bandwidth services or using things like SKYPE if 3/4 of the way through the month they become problematic or un-usable due to bandwidth throttling.

What about all those new applications that are just round the corner? They will all require high bandwidth links. NTL already plan to start providing copies of just-run TV episodes with their VOD product. Last year BBC stated they wanted to put their entire TV programme archive on the Internet. There are loads of possibilities. I am not against a CAP but lets have a realistic one. What is the point in increasing the speed so you can market a product that downloads those ITUNES in half the time than it did on your 1.5Mb/s service. That plays on words implying you can get twice your ITUNES content then before. Then NTL place a cap on the service so you can't actually use the service as much as you wanted to.

the advert for 1.5Mb/s on http://www.home.ntl.com/icat/broadband states "More than 25x faster than standard Dial-up Internet. Perfect for heavy internet use, playing games and downloading music, film and software".

We have had no details on what will be counted towards the cap. Broadcast traffc, ICMP.

I monitored by cable traffic stats using SNMP for 1 day and my usage totalled 135MB in 24Hours. When no one was using the Internet. So that is over 10% of a 30GB allowance before downloading anything. Ever wondered why the lights still flash on the cable modem when your PC is switched off?

Even PLUSNet provide better allowance on their services.....

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Broadcast traffic will not be counted (how could you say a broadcast is directed at a particular user?), so that constant stream of DHCP and ARP spam isn't going to have any effect on usage allowances.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

I haven't seen that announced. The broadcast traffic is still directed to a MAC address. So it may not be counted. What about the next virus that tries to propogate by scanning the network and sending TCP SYNs to every device. What happens when 100 NTL customers get infected (not many from the userbase) and start scanning to propogate. is that counted?

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

I'm not sure how 'broadcast' traffic can be 'directed to a MAC address'. By definition, it wouldn't then be 'broadcast'. :shrug:

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

We don't know how usage is counted or how it can be checked - yet this is being rollout out in about a months time.

I would have though that all traffic would be counted using the MAC address as that is the only thing that is constant.

The MAC address of your SACM is the only thing that is unique to me as a customer. IP addresses change through DHCP so can't be relied upon. So if the CISCO Policy-Map is just counting traffic rates then it will count everything directed to your mac address. If a virus or someone pings an entire subnet and then start trying to open connection that may be counted to your totals. As soon as traffic reaches the 30GB magic number then the Cisco router would throttle traffic to that MAC address at 56kbps.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Just a question have we had a poll to see if people want extra speed.
To be honest it seems a bit daft to do it if people do not want it .

Is there any sensible market reason for it seems daft to change something for the sake of it

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

Erm, ya FF:FF:FF:FF:FF:FF

Own up which unfortunate bod has that MAC address on their cable modem :p: (NB under the Cisco policy mapping this wouldn't actually count towards any user's traffic anyway, only unicasts are).

While we're at it who's saying that a policy map is being used on each uBR, and indeed that uBR then not only counts the traffic but then implements the throttling? There are SO many reasons why this would be a bad idea, as well as a PITA to implement if not impossible.

Policy maps exist for static throttling through layer 3/4 means or using NBAR and protocol recognition, not dynamic throttling based on a database of usage and MAC addresses.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

The reason would be a commercial reason. You could ask BT the same question. All companys whoever they are try to sustain a advantage over there competitors. Give me a company that would not attempt to improve on its competitors

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

People do want it, Wanadoo increased speeds free while capping and saw massive DSL growth. That poll was/is not representative of the wider public, most do want higher speeds and aren't bothered by capping.

*Waits for the inevitable 'you're wrong because I think you are' despite the fact the figures on growth from Wanadoo are fairly clear evidence, someone's opinion is obviously far more reliable (not directed at anyone in particular just the way forums are!)

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

That was my point. If you disagree with the cap. Then cancel your services and move to another ISP that is offering an unmetered service. When the next round of speed upgrades come round. in a few years that 3Mb/s service may become 6Mb/s.

If all the current 3Mb/s users have left because of the CAP. NTL will find itself with no-one to buy into the next latest and greatest offering.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

I would, but I'm still awaiting an email from AOL :erm:

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

I'd be happy to pay the price they're going to be charging for 3Mbit capped, and have uncapped 2Mbit.

ntl need to start listening to their customers before it's too late and they don't have any to listen to.

Re: *ALL* Speed Upgrade Discussion In Here Please
 

That's odd, I have only used 41.66 Mb (combined upload and download) since midnight last night and I have been using the net. :confused: I think somebody or something is telling porkies. If your estimate of traffic going through your connection is correct then nobody on the 1Mb tier with a 3Gb per month usage allowance would be able to ever switch their PC on. :)