New NTL customer questions

[Mashrok]

I'm about to sign up for the NTL 4mb connection having cancelled my Tiscali contract and was wondering if anyone would mind answering a few questions before I sign up?

1. What cable modem is generally supplied by NTL for broadband only customers? i've looked around the forums and it sounds like it might be one called NTL250? If this is the case does it come with an RJ45 socket to connect to a router?

2. I'll be signing up to the 4mb connections which is £17.00 for 12 months and £25 afterwards but I can't seem to be able to find out how long you must stay with NTL for after the 12 months is over? It looks like you could in fact leave NTL after the first 12 months if you want, but being the pessimistic bugger that I am, I'm sure there must be a hidden clause somewhere to keep customers from ever leaving NTL.

3. If the NTL250 is supplied with an RJ45 to connect a router up to, can anyone recommend a router with a good signal range? Having wasted a few hours of my employers time I can't seem to find any mention of signal range when reading reviews about wireless routers. I would likely need the router to transmit through 3 walls without losing its signal if possible.

4. NTL are advertising their broadband as unlimited and their FUP appears to show the connection really is unlimited! Having signed up for Tiscali Unlimited service which is in fact very limited I have trouble believing their NTLs claims, but is it true?

[quadplay]

Hi Mashrok, and to CF!

1. New ntl broadband installations use an ntl:250 Cable Modem made by a company called Ambit. It has both USB and Ethernet connections.

2. 12 months is the minimum contract. You're free to leave any time after that with 30 days notice.

3. In my experience, most routers are much the same when it comes to signal range. I'm sure others can help you more on this subject though as I don't use wireless regularly at home!

4. It's entirely true for the moment! There's no hard-and-fast limit on how much you can download/upload via an ntl broadband connection. However, it is subject to Fair Use, so if your usage starts to impact on other customers your connection might be restricted (to a slower speed, for example).

Hope this helps!

[MovedGoalPosts]

to Cable Forum

1) You will normally get the ntl250 modem The modem has an ethernet (RJ45) port. It supports only one direct connected device at once, i.e. a single computer, or a router. When swapping the connected device you must power down the modem or it will not recongnise the change.

2) 12 months contract after which you can cancel with 30 days notice (phone ntl:telewest, give your excuses and await the retentions team trying to keep you on - follow up any cancellation by confirmation in writing to guard against odd "computer doesn't do what it's been told" issues).

3) Many people have got on well with the Linksys WRT54G series routers. But Netgear and Belkin do so to. You may need to experiment with the channel settings. Try to place the router in a central location, reasonably high, and not in a corner of a room for best service. There are ways of setting up booster stations, if you find signals are too poor

4) Yes it is unlimited use (no caps). However traffic shaping is a real possibility, especially if you are using p2p type applications.

[Mashrok]

Thanks very much both of you for your quick replies, much appreciated

One further question with regard to the possibility of having my connection limited due to overuse, If you're on NTLs bad customer list and they limit your download speeds, is this permanant as long as you stay with NTL or do they let you have a normal connection once your bad download habits stop?