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Limited versus Unlimited packages.

venquessa
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Registered: ‎22-01-2014

Limited versus Unlimited packages.

Up until recently I would have steered well clear of unlimited packages as they are obviously lying and I was right 9 times out of 10 and the 1 time out of 10 I was wrong the company went bust or became too slow due to over-use by torrentors and p2ps.
My idea was that, if I pay for a fixed limit of bandwidth then I have more clout to complain when it runs slow.  I know what I'm getting and it doesn't sound "too good to be true".
So, I'm now back again looking at the Broadband packages and wondering why I am paying more than the "Unlimited" package for a "Limited package".  The fact I over ran my usage 4 times at Christmas because I found "Heros" on NetFlix while off work for 2 weeks also motivates me towards the unlimited packages.
Can anyone suggest any reason why staying on the limited package is better than the unlimited one which is currently cheaper?
Paul
12 REPLIES 12
AndyH
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Re: Limited versus Unlimited packages.

http://www.plus.net/support/broadband/speed_guide/traffic_management.shtml
Quote from: venquessa
Up until recently I would have steered well clear of unlimited packages as they are obviously lying and I was right 9 times out of 10 and the 1 time out of 10 I was wrong the company went bust or became too slow due to over-use by torrentors and p2ps.
My idea was that, if I pay for a fixed limit of bandwidth then I have more clout to complain when it runs slow.  I know what I'm getting and it doesn't sound "too good to be true".

Slightly confused by what you said. Who was/is lying and who went bust?
As for a fixed limit of bandwidth - do you mean a leased line? This is the only way of guaranteeing a fixed level of bandwidth for all services 24/7.
Oldjim
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Re: Limited versus Unlimited packages.

No but also check whether your exchange is Market 1 as this could affect the calculation depending on your current product http://usertools.plus.net/exchanges/
venquessa
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Registered: ‎22-01-2014

Re: Limited versus Unlimited packages.

Apparently it's Market 3.
First when I say "Limited" I mean total bandwidth per month, eg, I currently have a 120Gb usage limit.
What I mean by avoiding unlimited packages in the past is that they simply were not unlimited.  Or at least they were Unlimited**. with aggressive fair use policies.  The rare unlimited packages without fair use were swamped within a matter of months and speeds fell rapidly.  Today they seem at least to have open and honest traffic prioritization charts so you know in advance what will happen if you are heavy using BitTorrent for example.  In the past "Fair Use" often meant slashing your overall speed for weeks if you downloaded heavily.
Right now the only reason I would be considered a heavy user is going on "Binge watches" on Netflix and that doesn't happen all that often, but on a limited package it can be quite painful at the end of the month when the over-run is changed at £1 a Gb.
Looking at the unlimited packages I see that I may need to move my phone line to Plus Net, though I'm not sure.
I could also I suppose go to Fibre, but... to be honest, I get about 1Mbyte per second here and that's more than enough.
So my question is more about terms or use and about hidden issues with unlimited when compared to a limited package.  In essense, why is the 120Gb limited package more expensive than the Unlimited package?

Cheers
Paul
EDIT:  And historically ADSL supported fixed line speed.  I realize that line speed and download speeds have all but been decoupled with ADSL 2+ and you generally just connect at the exchange speed these days.
Kelly
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Registered: ‎04-04-2007

Re: Limited versus Unlimited packages.

Premium (which I presume you are on) is more expensive simply because it's older and hasn't been updated.  Unlimited is a superior package and you shouldn't see any problems.  Move to it and come here and yell if you have any issues and we'll have a look.
Kelly Dorset
Ex-Broadband Service Manager
venquessa
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Registered: ‎22-01-2014

Re: Limited versus Unlimited packages.

This little gem worries me... not only because I think I read the UK Government is frowning upon it currently.
"Provide a service relative to the amount each customer pays in terms of usage allowances and experience"
Source: http://www.plus.net/support/broadband/speed_guide/traffic_management.shtml
venquessa
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Re: Limited versus Unlimited packages.

Quote from: Kelly
Premium (which I presume you are on) is more expensive simply because it's older and hasn't been updated.  Unlimited is a superior package and you shouldn't see any problems.  Move to it and come here and yell if you have any issues and we'll have a look.

Thanks Kelly.  I'm close to taking the plunge.  Package switches happen at the end of billing period (end of month) don't they?
dvorak
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Re: Limited versus Unlimited packages.

Yes package switch is on your billing date, I'm on unlimited and have never noticed any slow down effects no matter how much data I've used
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AndyH
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Re: Limited versus Unlimited packages.

Online streaming from the likes of Netflix/iPlayer/LoveFilm/Sky Go is pretty bandwidth intensive (a lot more than people think).
If you're on ADSL with 1Mb/s - then you're way below the requirements for the HD streams. I would certainly consider fibre if you like to watch online videos.
120Gb a month seems like a lot, but break that down to 4Gb a day - in this day and age, that is not much. If you're regularly going over your usage, then moving to an unlimited package seems like a no-brainer to me. I would imagine the cost difference might even be in your favour? I don't believe you have to take the phone to PN if you want unlimited, but there is an additional £1.50 a month charge if you do not.
(Edit: I am also on unlimited and happy to post any speed tests or sample downloads at peak times to show I don't see any slow downs)
Kelly
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Re: Limited versus Unlimited packages.

Usually yes.  If it's urgent we can look at doing an upgrade mid period, but it's manual and can sometimes be messy.
That line basically is explaining the difference of experience you'll see on a lower tier package, e.g. essentials in comparison to unlimited.  (Essentials has rate limits at peak on P2P/Usenet, and some of the traffic are in lower prioritised queues)
Kelly Dorset
Ex-Broadband Service Manager
Oldjim
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Re: Limited versus Unlimited packages.

Quote from: AndyH
Online streaming from the likes of Netflix/iPlayer/LoveFilm/Sky Go is pretty bandwidth intensive (a lot more than people think).
If you're on ADSL with 1Mb/s - then you're way below the requirements for the HD streams. I would certainly consider fibre if you like to watch online videos.
The actual quote was
Quote
I could also I suppose go to Fibre, but... to be honest, I get about 1Mbyte per second here and that's more than enough.
which is 8Mbps
venquessa
Dabbler
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Re: Limited versus Unlimited packages.

Indeed.  Or more conservatively around 10Mbit/s once you include protocol layer headers etc.
The units of storage and bandwidth are so often miss understood.  The acronyms of Kbps and Mbps are often miss understood in particular, because the b could stand for "bit" or "byte".
I try and remember to use Mbit/s, Kbit/s etc. or Mbyte/s Kbyte/s for bandwidth to avoid confusion.  I use Mbit/s when discussing line speed and MByte/s when discussing the end product usable speed as the application see it.
jim:quote
PeeGee
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Re: Limited versus Unlimited packages.

Quote from: venquessa
The acronyms of Kbps and Mbps are often miss understood in particular, because the b could stand for "bit" or "byte".

Surely not Shocked  I suggest the real cause of confusion is the sloppy attitude of people using "mb" when they mean "MB"  as well as "router" for a combined "modem-router" too (or to/two) Wink
Plusnet FTTC (Sep 2014), Essentials (Feb 2013); ADSL (Apr 2009); Customer since Jan 2004 (on 28kb dial-up)
Using a TP-Link Archer VR600 modem-router.