Mobile Broadband Vs BT Broadband

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brucemillar

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Help Please.

Where I live BT cannot/will not commit to more then .5Mgb Broadband speed. Yes I know it s 2013 and you see ads for BT delivering 20Mgb....

Howver after 12 years of writing, pleading, begging, campaigning we still have BT saying that we need to wait for Fiber to be installed (no dates yet) as the problem is the old copper cable and the distance that we are from the exchange. We are 11Km from the nearest exchange.

I now have a break point in my BT contract and am considering going for a mobile broadband package. Something like a single base station that can connect five devices via wireless.

One of my neighbours is having some luck with "3" for £18pm. He says he gets about 10Mgb and is very happy with that.

Has anybody else had any experience that they would be willing to share that will help me make a decision.

Oh. We live in the wilds of Kent. Equidistant between the M2 & M20 or, Sittingbourne & Maidstone. We have the internal combustion engine here now and also Mr Edison's wonderful electric globe thing(s). Just absolutely pants Broadband.
 
Have a go on your neighbours internet and see if it is sufficient. There are attractive packages from most providers. Could try giffgaff and see how they gos. No contract to tie you in.
 
Broadband may be looked upon a bit like mains gas.

Transco will pipe it in, but at what cost per customer. BT are the same.
It costs a lot of money to dig up the streets and run fibre to the home.

Until BT (or Virgin commit) there is only one option.
 
Is the 3 unlimited? If so sounds a no brainer.
 
Around a year or so ago I bought one of the Three wifi dongles shown here MiFi - Mobile Broadband Wi-Fi Dongle - Three

At the time it was around £80 on a PAYG basis. I use it to connect my laptop, iPad and iPhone when working away rather than pay hotel wifi prices. Since Sep it's been used as the only source of broadband at home due moving and finally arranging for BT to install infinity next month.

At the moment I'm in Jesmond - Newcastle and these are the speed readings on my dongle

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Sometimes I'll buy a 3Gb sim from EBay costing roughly £12 or topping up online via Three costs £15 for 3Gb or £25 for 7GB. Watching YouTube or iPlayer etc its surprising how quickly you can get though the data limit.

I guess it all depends on how good the Three signal is where you live but I'd say its definitely worth considering.
 
Have a go on your neighbours internet and see if it is sufficient. There are attractive packages from most providers. Could try giffgaff and see how they gos. No contract to tie you in.

A mate of mine is using giffgaff and is using his mobile for his internet connection for his laptop and he rang Giffgaff to make sure he could and they as it's totally unlimited and even helped him set it up..
 
Well I bought the 3 MiFi at £18 per month on a two year contract. Now getting 12.5Mb and I'm happy with the package. Beauty is in it's mobility you can take it away on hols etc.

BT refused to move on price sticking to £28 per month for .5mb (Old copper line) So a no brainer really.

Thank to all who helped.
 
Satelite Broadband?

Mic
 
Satelite Broadband?

Mic

The standard satellite dish can only download, but not upload - for upload you still need a telephone line - unless of course you have the Inmarsat/R-Bgan mobile satellite service which is quite expensive...
 
Well I bought the 3 MiFi at £18 per month on a two year contract. Now getting 12.5Mb and I'm happy with the package. Beauty is in it's mobility you can take it away on hols etc.

BT refused to move on price sticking to £28 per month for .5mb (Old copper line) So a no brainer really.

Thank to all who helped.


Only just saw this thread, I have been using the 3 Mifi for a couple of years now on and off and found it great for mobile access and also when visiting relatives etc. If work didn't pay for my Broadband already (BT Total) I would just stick with the Mifi and Phones Wireless

You may find it useful to take the Network lock off the device too assuming its capable. That way you can use a different networks SIM in an area where 3 isn't the best and even consider a PAYG Sim abroad (buy a local carriers Sim)
 
Wow that is some serious speed from mobile broadband - I didn't realise it could be so good.

I sometimes put my o2 mobile SIM in my laptop (has a built in 3g modem) when staying away etc and not wanting to pay hotel WIFI charges and the speed is complete cr*p generally.

For that reason I never bothered upgrading to the iPhone tethering compatible plan. Anyone have any joy using the iPhone tether at decent speeds?
 
Wow that is some serious speed from mobile broadband - I didn't realise it could be so good.

I sometimes put my o2 mobile SIM in my laptop (has a built in 3g modem) when staying away etc and not wanting to pay hotel WIFI charges and the speed is complete cr*p generally.

For that reason I never bothered upgrading to the iPhone tethering compatible plan. Anyone have any joy using the iPhone tether at decent speeds?

Cellular data speeds are so variable that normally it is almost impossible to comment on what somebody will get until they actually try it and of course as this is a technology designed for use on the move, it can only get harder.

The technology is capable of giving 21mbps but it's all down to the distance from the mast, layout of the land and number of other users using the service. It is also impacted by weather.

But if the OP is getting over 10mbps in his house then there is no reason to suspect that will vary too much and 3 have a very good and not too congested network.

Likewise I have found myself (like you) in an airport hotel where the mobile broadband has been unusable on more than one occasion and on more than one network.

Right now I have my iPhone on Vodafone, a MiFi device with a T-Mobile Sim in it, a MiFi device with a Vodafone Sim in is plus a Three SIM in the car which itself acts as a mobile hotspot.

Three always seems to offer the best performance plus if you look on Amazon you can buy a Three 3GB over 3 month PAYG SIM for just £12 (this is what I use for the car and then throw the SIM away and get another every 3 months)

Now I do have tethering on my iPhone (because I don't have to pay extra for the privilege) and it's actually not bad but to be fair, it hammers the battery so using a MiFi device is easier plus it means that when the phone rings, the devices connected to the iPhone don't loose their internet connection because the phone can't do data and voice at the same time.

You may find it useful to take the Network lock off the device too assuming its capable. That way you can use a different networks SIM in an area where 3 isn't the best and even consider a PAYG Sim abroad (buy a local carriers Sim)

This is very good advice.

In my laptop bag I have SIMS for Hungary, Germany, The Netherlands, France, Belgium and I will be picking up a Czech on when I am in Prague next month.

Having plentiful and cheap internet on both my phone and iPad as I move around Europe is a god send and these days it is as simple as walking into a phone shop when you get to your destination airport and walking out online.
 
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^ thanks for the comprehensive insight, very useful.

Yes, I have both O2 (iPhone) and Vodafone (Blackberry) and generally just about usable on the laptop but there is a great variation in the speed. I'm mostly in big cities so presumably just depends on how many other folks in the mast area are using the connectivity.

MIFI sounds like a way forward, esp as it is so cheap. Foreign SIMs for trips abroad an excellent idea! I'll never be without MBClub again on my travels/holidays ;)
 

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