Broadband package reviews: FAQs
Broadband is fairly easy to install
What do I need to get home broadband?
You'll need a home broadband modem, router, or wireless router – a piece of equipment you connect to your home phone socket that enables you to access the internet. Some broadband ISPs provide modems, routers or wireless routers free of charge in exchange for signing up to a 12 or 18-month home broadband contract.
Most broadband ISPs provide a free installation disc and one or two microfilters. These are small devices that plug into your phone points and split the phone signal (there are two sockets – one for broadband and one for your phone) to let you receive calls and access the internet at the same time. You can buy extra broadband microfilters from around £4.
Home broadband installation
Once you've run the broadband installation disc, just plug the broadband modem or router into your computer's USB port and into the phone socket via a microfilter. Don't be put off if this sounds daunting – most Which? members we've asked find home broadband easy to install.
Installing Virgin Media's cable broadband might require an engineer's visit but, if you already have cable TV, you can install broadband simply by linking your computer to your set-top box.
What speed is home broadband?
Home broadband can be anything from 10 to 150 times faster than a dial-up internet connection. Broadband ISPs quote maximum download speeds: your home broadband service will almost certainly be slower, particularly at busy times.
Broadband data transfer speed is measured in Kbps (kilobits per second – one kilobit is 1,000 bits) and Mbps (megabits per second – a megabit is 1,000,000 bits).
Will I actually get the broadband speeds I see advertised?
The actual home broadband speed you will receive depends on a number of factors, such as how far your phone line has to stretch from the nearest telephone exchange, the quality of the line, and the contention ratio of the home broadband service (see below). So you may not always, or even ever, get the advertised broadband speed, particularly for home broadband services advertised as up to 8Mbps or higher.
Can I check what home broadband speed my phone line can support before I sign up?
If you have a non-cable phone line, go to the Broadband ASDL Availability Checker and enter your phone number – it will give you a provisional guide on what home broadband speeds your phone line should be able to support based on where you live.
To find out more about how to get the right broadband internet connection speed, have a look at the Which? advice on how to boost your broadband speed.
And how do I find out what home broadband speed I’m getting in practice?
Try broadband speed checkers Speedtest.net or Thinkbroadband.com – your broadband speed results may vary by time of day, and accuracy will be affected by anything else you’re doing on the computer.
Is there any software I can download to speed things up?
Onspeed costs £24.99 a year and claims to increase dial-up and home broadband (up to 2Mbps) speeds by compressing web pages and emails so they load more quickly.
Why is home broadband upload speed slower than download speed?
Most home broadband users download more than they upload, so it’s more important for broadband download speeds to be faster, and this is the speed broadband ISPs usually advertise. Surfing from page to page, reading emails and watching online TV are all downloading. Adding photos to a social networking site such as Facebook, or sending emails, are uploading.
Upload speeds can be as low as 0.256Mbps, so check in advance if you think you’ll find slow broadband upload speeds restrictive.
Is broadband internet always on?
With some home broadband services, you're connected to the internet as soon as you turn on your computer. Others require you to log on. Either way, it's much quicker than dialling up.
So can I stay online for as long as I like with home broadband?
Unlike dial-up packages, broadband services don't limit the time you spend online. Instead, most broadband ISPs charge a monthly fee and let you download or upload a certain amount of data.
Some ISPs offer unlimited use. These are usually subject to fair usage policies (fair usage policies place restrictions on your broadband use if you are deemed to use broadband 'excessively') but are likely to be a problem only for very heavy broadband users.
You can find out how high a broadband usage limit you need using the Which? broadband usage calculator.
Why can't I find information on my home broadband ISP in the Which? compare products results pages?
The Which? broadband review provides details of more than 130 home broadband packages from 23 broadband ISPs that we have customer satisfaction ratings for, plus a selection of other broadband ISPs that offer services we think you should be aware of in order to make an informed decision.
Other home broadband packages may be similar in terms of price and broadband features, but we have no evidence of what the service is like in practice.
My home broadband provider has increased its charges. Is it allowed to do this?
Most contracts allow broadband ISPs to increase prices by a certain amount, though there's often a clause to say they have to let you know in advance and allow you to break the contract if the increase is significant.
If I have a complaint about my broadband ISP, what should I do?
In the first instance, a broadband complaint should go through the ISP's internal complaints procedure.
If that fails, after eight weeks from the date of the original broadband complaint (verbal or written), you can take the broadband complaint to the telecommunications ombudsman (Otelo), or the Communications & Internet Services Adjudication Scheme (Cisas). Every broadband ISP must belong to one of these complaints schemes. You can also try the Internet Service Providers Association (ISPA), if your ISP is a member.
Keep records of all written and verbal communication with your broadband ISP.
What should I do if my home broadband ISP goes into administration?
Which? Legal Service has the following advice:
If a broadband ISP goes into administration You may need to wait and see what happens next. It's possible that a buyer for the broadband business may be found and that your home broadband contract will continue on the same terms as before.
If a new company does step in but then tries to change the terms of your phone or home broadband agreement You will need to look back at your original broadband terms and conditions to see what changes they allow to be made. If they allow the price of the broadband service to be increased, they should also give you the right to withdraw from the broadband contract if the new price is too high compared with the price originally charged by your broadband ISP. If they allow characteristics of the service to change – if they place a cap on your previously unlimited download facility, say – you should again have the chance to say that you want to bring the arrangement to an end.
If no buyer is found and your broadband ISP goes out of business The broadband ISP is in breach of contract by failing to provide the internet service you'd contracted for. You'd have no obligation to pay for broadband services you aren't and won't be getting. You could also try to claim back from the ISP any extra it costs you to get a comparable service elsewhere, but in practice it's highly unlikely you'll get any compensation from them.
If you had signed up to an annual or longer broadband contract and you were paying with your credit card You may have a claim against your credit card company. If the total amount that you were to pay under the contract with your broadband ISP was more than £100, you may be able to argue that Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 makes your card provider jointly responsible for the breach of contract and it should meet any additional broadband costs that you have incurred.
If your ISP has gone out of business and you are no longer getting the service you've contracted for and you are paying for your service by direct debit You should ask your bank to cancel the the direct debit immediately. The Direct Debit Guarantee allows you to do this and also says that if your bank in error pays any money out under the direct debit, it has to pay you the money back.
Sign up to Which? Legal Service for less than £1 a week to get unlimited, personalised legal advice from expert Which? lawyers on anything from broadband contract issues to parking fines.
I've been told I can't get broadband internet because my telephone exchange hasn't been set up for it. What can I do?
You may be able to get broadband via cable, if you live in an area that has it – check whether your area has cable.
Alternatively, you could consider mobile broadband or satellite broadband. See Features explained for more.
What are the broadband 'contention ratios' I see mentioned in information about broadband ISPs?
The broadband contention ratio is the maximum number of people a broadband ISP will allow to share a broadband connection at the same time. The higher the contention ratio, the more people in your neighbourhood could be connected – and the slower your download speed.
Some ISPs use broadband 'traffic shaping' rather than contention ratios, which may mean that you'll find speeds restricted at peak times – especially if you're a heavy internet user.
Home broadband services are most commonly capped at 50:1, which means you'll never share a home broadband connection with more than 49 other households.
How can I protect my home broadband connection from computer viruses?
One of the biggest risks of being online comes from files you download, which could contain computer viruses, but hackers are also finding increasingly innovative ways of getting access to your system.
So it's really important you protect yourself from these threats by installing anti-virus and firewall software on your computer and updating it regularly.
You should also look for a broadband ISP that offers security features, such as spam filters. To find out how to keep the information stored on your computer safe, see the Which? guide to encrypting data on your laptop or watch the Which? video guide to protecting your PC from spyware.
Need help understanding computer security jargon? See our guide to understanding PC security terms.
How do I switch to a different broadband ISP?
If you want to switch ISP but aren't quite sure where to start, take a look at the Which? guide to switching ISP, which explains how to change broadband provider or how to upgrade from dial-up to broadband.