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How long between installation of cabinet and FTTC availability?

grahamt
Rising Star
Posts: 599
Thanks: 37
Registered: ‎05-04-2008

How long between installation of cabinet and FTTC availability?

Does anyone have a best guess about how long it takes between the installation of an FTTC cabinet and making the lines it serves available for FTTC? I'm asking because about ten days ago a new cabinet (a bit smaller than the ones I know to be FTTC but otherwise a similar shape) appeared next to what I believe is the cabinet that serves my house. The BT FTTC checker is still saying 'due to be connected by 30th September' - a date put back from last December, then March, then June - but I know this can change at short notice.
I'm wondering what are the chances of being able to order Plusnet Fibre before the free installation offer expires.
Graham
12 REPLIES 12
phil4
Grafter
Posts: 244
Registered: ‎13-12-2007

Re: How long between installation of cabinet and FTTC availability?

My cab was installed about 7minths prior to go live.
grahamt
Rising Star
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Registered: ‎05-04-2008

Re: How long between installation of cabinet and FTTC availability?

Thanks for the info.
That's depressing! Still, it probably means I don't have to worry about whether I'll just miss the cutoff date for free installation.
Given that I don't download lots of video, it may not be worth switching anyway. On the other hand, the installation charge plus a year's extra subscription fee is probably not much more than the cost of getting Openreach to fit a new master socket, and I'd have the extra speed and usage.
Graham
jelv
Seasoned Hero
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Registered: ‎10-04-2007

Re: How long between installation of cabinet and FTTC availability?

Does https://www.btwholesale.com/includes/adsl/main.html give you any useful information?
jelv (a.k.a Spoon Whittler)
   Why I have left Plusnet (warning: long post!)   
Broadband: Andrews & Arnold Home::1 (FTTC 80/20)
Line rental: Pulse 8 Home Line Rental (£14.40/month)
Mobile: iD mobile (£4/month)
phil4
Grafter
Posts: 244
Registered: ‎13-12-2007

Re: How long between installation of cabinet and FTTC availability?

We each have different priorities and the like.
I had a 1.5Mb connection prior to FTTC, which was stable but slow.  Most of the time you could just about cope with it, but on occasions it caused problems, such as downloading firmware for iphone, which would timeout after a few hours.
My original FTTC date was Dec 2010, that got moved to March, then Sept, then back to April.
If you already have a fast enough line, then the realistic side of me says why pay more.  Me, I didn't really, I just lived with the slowness hoping something would come along one day.  It did, and I'm happy now.
Heloman
Grafter
Posts: 519
Registered: ‎30-07-2007

Re: How long between installation of cabinet and FTTC availability?

My cabinet was upgraded to FTTC in early April. B/T originally gave an availability date of May 31st, but it has now slipped to June30th
However, I am currently on a Value package with download speed of 3.2 MB which is quite adequate for what I need. Fibre would nearly triple the cost, so I probably won't bother....
billnotben
Community Veteran
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Registered: ‎23-09-2010

Re: How long between installation of cabinet and FTTC availability?

FTTC is a long way off here but as you say most peoples speeds are already adequate for their needs.
The only advantage I can currently see for fibre is in say streaming video to your TV. But then you would also need a very large usage allowance to make that viable.
knowdice
Rising Star
Posts: 381
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Registered: ‎25-04-2008

Re: How long between installation of cabinet and FTTC availability?

FTTC has made a BIG difference here, we were on the edge of ADSL reach getting just over 1mbs on a good day, with some locals only getting 512K
This is an area cabled for Virgin, so BT clearly wanted a slice of their business...
Now on 34mbs  Cheesy
grahamt
Rising Star
Posts: 599
Thanks: 37
Registered: ‎05-04-2008

Re: How long between installation of cabinet and FTTC availability?

Jelv - The link you gave is to the BT FTTC checker which, as I said, is still saying 'by Sept 30th'. But thanks.
Graham
Strat
Community Veteran
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Registered: ‎14-04-2007

Re: How long between installation of cabinet and FTTC availability?

Presumably no different from the spreadsheet available here https://www.btwholesale.com/pages/static/Community/Broadband_Community/21CN_Broadband_Availability.h...
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Luzern
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Registered: ‎31-07-2007

Re: How long between installation of cabinet and FTTC availability?

Quote from: phil4
.... about 7minths prior to go live.

But was it one of the first to be installed or later in the series of installation? I cannot believe they would so all at once.
No one has to agree with my opinion, but in the time I have left a miracle would be nice.
phil4
Grafter
Posts: 244
Registered: ‎13-12-2007

Re: How long between installation of cabinet and FTTC availability?

Well, the go live was April 6th, and it was installed about 7 months earlier, so neither the start, nor the end.
WWWombat
Grafter
Posts: 1,412
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Registered: ‎29-01-2009

Re: How long between installation of cabinet and FTTC availability?

My cabinet appeared, like many others locally, around September/October last year - and was down to have power-related roadworks alongside all the others (visible on our council website) in October. Our exchange was originally due to go live at the end of Q3 2010, but it slipped to Q4.
In the end, the exchange was publicised as accepting orders in November 2010, but none of the cabinets seemed to actually be live at first. That changed in mid December, when most cabinets went live, and orders started being accepted, with installation dates at the end of December.
Unfortunately, my cabinet seemed to get delayed. It needed 2 more sets of roadworks in February & March (both seemingly power-related), and went live itself at the end of March. In fact - 2 months ago exactly - which is how long my FTTC order has been in place (which is a different nightmare).
The dates reported by the DSL checker stayed at Dec 31st until mid-December, when they made 7 changes in less than a week, varying through Mar 2011, June 2011, Sept 2011, and Dec 2010 (but not in that order), as well as disappearing sometimes. They finally changed to March 2011 and sat there until mid-March, when they changed to June 2011. Then, on March 23rd, they changed back to a go-live date of March 25th.
That means the majority went live around 3 months after installation, while mine was 6 months.
All-in-all, watching the date changes go back 3 months only a week before-due, twice, was a very frustrating experience, and one I complained to BT's CEO about.
So be prepared for some amount of frustration at the dates... especially if you are hoping to match some other cutoff date. I was aiming to get onto the original FTTC trial - and if i lived 100yds away, I'd have made it  Roll_eyes
Plusnet Customer
Using FTTC since 2011. Currently on 80/20 Unlimited Fibre Extra.