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UK Broadband information
The page contains information and advice about Broadband in the UK
What is Broadband?
A broadband connection (ADSL) provides high-speed
Internet access over a standard phone line. The advantage of a broadband
connection over the older dialup service, is that Broadband is considerably
faster, and is 'always-on', meaning that once you're logged on, your
PC is online until the PC is turned off again.
Broadband offers high-speed Internet access and allows telephone calls and a permanent Internet connection
to share a single phone line simultaneously.
What do I need?
- Broadband coverage in your area. Each broadband provider allows you to enter your phone number or postcode to check availability. A basic test is done on your line, and when you sign up, a more comprehensive test is carried out.
- A Broadband (ADSL) modem. These cost from around £50 (PC World) - although many providers, including BT Broadband bundle a free modem with their service.
- Microfilters. When Broadband is enabled, the broadband signal is available via any extension socket in your home as well as the main point. You'll need to use a filter to cut out the Broadband "crackle". You need a filter on every phone socket that has something plugged into it - such as phone handsets, fax machines and your Sky box.
UK Broadband Internet Providers
Below is some information on the major suppliers of broadband in the UK:
Package |
Available nationally |
Download speed (up to) |
Monthly payment2 |
Phone support call rates |
No. free security features |
Usage guide3 |
Internet calls available |
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| BT Total Broadband | 
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| AOL |
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| Tiscali |
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| Orange Broadband |
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 5
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| 5
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| Virgin Media |
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Notes: 1. Calls charged at 0845 rates (up to 4p per minute on the BT Network). Mobile and other network costs (non-BT telephony provider costs) may vary. 2. Standard subscription price per month. 3. This is the total amount of data you can download (receiving emails, web pages and files) or upload (sending email and files) through your broadband connection each month. 4. A Fair Usage Policy applies to prevent over use of the service. 5. 8Mb cannot be offered UK wide although lower speeds should be possible.
BT Total Broadband - BT offer three packages with speeds of up to 8 Meg. BT has the largest Broadband infrastructure in the UK, and they were voted top Broadband provider by BBC Watchdog viewers in March 2007. Special offers: BT are offering a range of extras to encourage people to make the switch to Broadband. Currently they're offering:
BT offers the following Broadband options:
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Sky Broadband |
In July 2006, Satellite TV firm Sky Digital entered the broadband marketplace, offering free broadband to subscribers of its satellite TV service. They're offering three packages:
Sky also offers a wireless broadband router, and a year's free McAfee Internet Security For full details of Sky's offering, go to www.sky.com/skycom |
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Virgin Media formed in February 2007, seeing Virgin.net, Telewest and NTL cable joining into one company. They offer three broadband options, with no download restrictions:
Virgin Media's Broadband services include:
For more details, go to www.virginmedia.com. |
Be Broadband is not the most well known name, but they have a great selling point - Speeds of up to 24 Meg. That's faster than BT and even Virgin Cable. The number of exchanges supporting Be Broadband is growing (slowly). Prices to join the Broadband revolution start from £14 a month for lightening fast Broadband. Check if Be is available in your area at www.bethere.co.uk. |
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In April 2006, TalkTalk launched "Free Broadband for life" for customers of their home phone tariffs. There are a number of different tariffs - best value seems to be Talk 2, which offers:
This package costs £5.89 a month, in addition to the line rental of £10.50 a month. Compared with BT's £26.49 a month (BT line rental and BT broadband). Visit www.talktalk.co.uk for details and to check coverage. |
Former favourite of ours, Tiscali offers two Broadband packages, to keep it simple:
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Installing Broadband
If you're looking to get Broadband, you'll need to be in an area of broadband coverage, have signed up with a company to give you Broadband, and have a Broadband modem.
Once you have signed up for your account, there's normally around a five day wait, while your provider makes the appropriate changes to your phone service at your local phone exchange. After that, you'll be switched on to Broadband. Here's a summary of what happens next:
If you don't have a Broadband modem, you'll hopefully have requested one - if you've gone with BT Broadband, you'll probably be sent a BT Home Hub (pictured). The modem will probably be posted or couriered to you.
Once you have your modem and it's your activation day, here's what you'll need to do to connected:
- Start up the PC, and install the supplied software - it's the modem drivers for the Broadband modem
- Plug the microfilter into the phone socket (you also need microfilters for other handsets/equipment in your house, as above)
- Plug the modem's phone lead into the ADSL port of the filter
- Plug the modem's USB lead into a spare USB port on the PC
- From the start menu, start up the supplied software, and enter the account details supplied by your broadband provider. You should just have a username and password - unlike a dialup account, there's no phone number
Summary of setup
 |
 We looked closely at Broadband in Show 17 of our online tech radio show. Listen to the show online, or download it to your MP3 player. Listen to Show 17 | Latest Show | More Info |
Frequently Asked Questions
Broadband Links
- Broadband FAQ - Your questions on broadband answered
- Mobile Internet - How to get high-speed Internet on the move
- USB Modems - Info on high-speed Broadband dongles for your laptop
- ASDLGuide Speed check and Bandwidthplace - Check the speed of your broadband connection
- Broadband coverage - See what's going on at your local exchange
- Wifi Webcam - Details of how to get a wireless webcam up and running
- For details of connecting to the Internet from a PDA / handheld computer, select: Pocket PC, Psion, Symbian OS / Nokia or Palm
- Voice over IP - Discussed in Show 8 of our podcast
- Vonage - For cheap voice calls over the Internet
- Click
here for information on dial-up ISPs
Is this page correct? Something wrong or missing on this page? Report a site problem If you're looking for help, please don't use this option - instead use our forum |
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