cancel
Showing results for 
Search instead for 
Did you mean: 

Is an upgrade to fibre a worthwhile move?

Santiago
Grafter
Posts: 3,291
Thanks: 2
Registered: ‎10-08-2007

Is an upgrade to fibre a worthwhile move?

I just got a leaflet in the post informing me that Fibre is now available in my area. I have checked the website and my exchange is "accepting orders"
Having just looked through  the Fibre area of the forum and seen that many people are having all sorts of problems perhaps I would be better off not bothering with the upgrade?
17 REPLIES 17
Oldjim
Resting Legend
Posts: 38,460
Thanks: 787
Fixes: 63
Registered: ‎15-06-2007

Re: Is an upgrade to fibre a worthwhile move?

Depends on what speeds you are getting on ADSL
In my case it will be an almost nobrainer going from 3.4Mb to about 30Mb when it arrives later this year
dvorak
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 29,473
Thanks: 6,623
Fixes: 1,482
Registered: ‎11-01-2008

Re: Is an upgrade to fibre a worthwhile move?

i went from 6 to 60 and stability has improved immensely.
even after a wobble with the install i'd still do it again  as the improvements are that good.
Customer / Moderator
If it helped click the thumb
If it fixed it click 'This fixed my problem'
cajef
Grafter
Posts: 208
Registered: ‎20-07-2007

Re: Is an upgrade to fibre a worthwhile move?

I have been on unlimited FTTP for nearly two years my speed is always stable and the connection has never dropped once, I would not want to ever go back to ADSL.
tijara33
Pro
Posts: 1,360
Thanks: 50
Fixes: 6
Registered: ‎22-06-2012

Re: Is an upgrade to fibre a worthwhile move?

It all depends on how you use the internet. If your main use is for checking emails & online shopping then I wouldn't bother.
However, if you want to stream TV, download movies or heavens forbid, play games, then yes, it is worth the upgrade. Don't be put off by the moans & groans on the forum, they are incredibly isolated incidents. Like 99.9999% of PN's fibre customers, for 2.5 years I have received a superb service. My change from ADSL to fibre was, like most customers, a painless experience & the engineer was present for less than 20 minutes.
Since then my connection has been much more reliable than ADSL. It is worth mentioning that the PN fibre router isn't anything special for a lot of customers. It again depends on your layout & your requirements.
Terranova667
Pro
Posts: 1,511
Thanks: 125
Fixes: 5
Registered: ‎19-02-2014

Re: Is an upgrade to fibre a worthwhile move?

Well for me it's been a mixed bag I went from a very stable 4Mb ADSL connection with BE with no DLM , to a Fibre connection of 65Mb with DLM with Plusnet back in the begining of March 2014, at first it was simply great everything was perfect a rock solid line awesome speed then less than three months later everything went wrong.
I had a drop due to a supposed line fault knocking me down to 59Mb three enginner visits and no faults found, speed doesn't return I'm told Cross talk is mostly to blame for that being the case, I then since had a further 2 drops again due to supposed line faults although none are found by Enginners knocking me down to my current 50Mb, DLM has banded my line stoping me from going above 60Mb even if speed was to rise back up again which it hasn't,  i'm still above my estimate despite it being cut from 67Mb down to 37Mb so BTO / BTW / Plusnet wont do anything and it's not even been a year yet.
I don't want to sound like a total doom monger I'm just letting you know it's not always plain sailing, Fibre is far more prone to Crosstalk and DLM intervention that can simply knock your speeds down and keep it there and there is nothing you can do about it when it does, If your happy knowing that then go for it, I would still get fibre knowing what i know now even though it can be so damn annoying at times.  
Santiago
Grafter
Posts: 3,291
Thanks: 2
Registered: ‎10-08-2007

Re: Is an upgrade to fibre a worthwhile move?

Thanks for your comments. I have 5.5Mb on ADSL which is very reliable. However my family want to download the whole internet every day so the benefit of a fibre connection is attractive.
I suppose nothing tried, nothing gained so I think I will go for it.
I take the point about the plusnet router, any suggestions about which to buy?
StephenM
Grafter
Posts: 65
Registered: ‎21-11-2014

Re: Is an upgrade to fibre a worthwhile move?

It depends if you like taking risks or not.
My experience is that I had a constant 5Mbps with ADSL no matter what the time was.
I 'upgraded' to FTTC and I get speeds as low as 0.5Mbps at peak times.
The support seems good if you are having problems configuring your router e.t.c.
In my case it's likely that there is an issue with BT's infrastructure but Plusnet don't seem to have enough leverage with BT to get it sorted.
Oldjim
Resting Legend
Posts: 38,460
Thanks: 787
Fixes: 63
Registered: ‎15-06-2007

Re: Is an upgrade to fibre a worthwhile move?

Regarding the Plusnet router - you may get the 2704n and it is severely locked down see http://community.plus.net/forum/index.php/topic,136407.msg1197086.html#msg1197086 http://community.plus.net/forum/index.php/topic,135846.0.html
I already have an ADSL one and it is useless for me so went back to the TG582n
Kremmen
Aspiring Pro
Posts: 559
Thanks: 15
Fixes: 5
Registered: ‎13-04-2013

Re: Is an upgrade to fibre a worthwhile move?

I upgraded to fibre because my upload speeds were deteriorating down to 0.2Mbps on average and causing my security camera issues. In my case, being on an ally estate and being the opposite side from the cabinet, I'm only getting 17 / 2.5 Mbps on average. However I did the maths and for double the price I've quadrupled my speed. Makes downloads noticeable faster.
Let's be careful out there !
thesawdust
Grafter
Posts: 384
Registered: ‎28-10-2013

Re: Is an upgrade to fibre a worthwhile move?

@tijara33 - fibre for gaming isn't any better than some ADSL. I've got a ping of 8ms and speeds of 16-18mb but on my plusnet line i get lowest of 13ms no matter what gateway etc (FTTC)
Reason this line hasn't been converted to PlusNET. Latency is a key role in gaming  Smiley
ajbrown1965
Grafter
Posts: 121
Registered: ‎27-02-2009

Re: Is an upgrade to fibre a worthwhile move?

I switched to fibre 2 years ago having been on ADSL for several years before that. Apart from a massive increase in speeds all my connection problems with ADSL disappeared. I can honestly say the only time I've had a problem was actually my fault, I reset a password incorrectly and locked myself out. The PN helpline sorted it in about 30 seconds!
Do bear in mind what has been said before in this thread. The vast majority of customers don't post on these forums because they never have a problem!
JayG
Pro
Posts: 1,145
Thanks: 143
Fixes: 6
Registered: ‎30-10-2011

Re: Is an upgrade to fibre a worthwhile move?

Quote from: Oddball
Thanks for your comments. I have 5.5Mb on ADSL which is very reliable. However my family want to download the whole internet every day so the benefit of a fibre connection is attractive.

You sound like exactly the sort of user(s) who would benefit from fibre.
I asked the same question last year, but I live on my own so no-one is sharing my ADSL connection which I use mainly just for surfing, and the consensus was that there would be little to be gained by swapping to FTTC, which is probably just as well as every time I check availability it has slipped further into the future.  Roll_eyes
As others have pointed out these forums tend not to be frequented by the vast majority who have no real problems with either their ADSL or FTTC.  Wink
tijara33
Pro
Posts: 1,360
Thanks: 50
Fixes: 6
Registered: ‎22-06-2012

Re: Is an upgrade to fibre a worthwhile move?

Re routers, there are several threads on here about that subject. Personally I use the Asus RT-N56U dual band router which happily covers a large 4 bedroom house. I'm no techie but it was very straightforward to set up & is readily available below £70.00.  Smiley
http://www.amazon.co.uk/367/dp/B004TPWRSK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1422963308&sr=8-1&keywords=asus+rt-...
Gus
Aspiring Pro
Posts: 3,236
Thanks: 26
Fixes: 3
Registered: ‎31-07-2007

Re: Is an upgrade to fibre a worthwhile move?

Quote from: thesawdust
@tijara33 - fibre for gaming isn't any better than some ADSL. I've got a ping of 8ms and speeds of 16-18mb but on my plusnet line i get lowest of 13ms no matter what gateway etc (FTTC)

But if you try to host fibre is a big help with its faster upload speed, that and it can and does help with ping if on a long line.  You are lucky for it to be so low and must live next door to your exchange.
FTTP 500 regrade from Tues 28th November