would like to change my broadband supplier but really need to keep my old POP3 email addy for business purposes. Anyone know if they can be ported to different suppliers by getting a mac code etc? Currently paying £20 a month for pretty slow internet. Would be happy with Plusnet if I can keep my old email address.

The email address I’m guessing is linked to the BB suppliers domain for example user@virgin.com

The problem is that the MX record for virgin.com will point to their mail server that you use to pickup your mail. The best you could do is see if you can setup a forward from that address and that’s if they let you keep access to it after you stop giving them money.

If you’re using your own domain on the other hand, just download the emails, change the MX records and do the swap.

If you’re not using your own domain…maybe it’s time you should!

I’d set up a gmail account and tell everyone of your new addy, in the meantime hang on to your current ISP for a couple of months and have gmail collect the @isp email to give everyone chance to change

I took out a hosting package from my old broadband suppliers for about £10 a year and that keep my old me@their.com email addy active. But ideally what I should have done was just set up my own domain.

Of course you mean IMAP right?

If I ran a business I’d pay for email on my own domain rather than my ISPs free bollocks. From a consumer PoV as well, I always wonder why people wouldn’t choose to do it themselves rather than using 123kjas@broadband.myisp.com

Sadly you’re stuck with your ISP if you want to keep the address. It’s one reason they give you “free” email etc, it keeps you there longer because you can’t be arsed with the hassle.

If you’re not using your own domain…maybe it’s time you should!

Then allow some time to make the changeover. Once you have your own domain name you can take it where you like and will not have this problem again.

For my business I have my own domain – much less hassle and looks professional.

However at home I have changed ISP’s three times and as a result have an @tesco.net, @f2s.com and @sky.com e-mail address, first two pop3 last one IMAP. Outlook is configured to collect all 3 but will only send from the current one (Sky). It is probably 10 years since I paid tesco anything – certainly pre broadband, but the e-mail addresses all still work. So I am not sure you will have a problem, and people will get used to your new e-mail as you begin to send with it.

As the others here say, you need to break away from the supplier email addresses. I had my own (vanity !) domain name for a while (£60 pa) but now just use gmail (free). Google offer domain hosting now.

A domain doesn’t need to cost you much more than a few quid a year. Email prob 50p to a quid a month. All in, no more than 20 quid a year if you do it right

My .co.uk domains cost me approximately £6 a year and I use google apps for free for my personal email and a 123reg mailbox for my business email costs about £1 per month. Google apps for free is fine though.

If you’re using it for business purposes, you really should consider ditching it for your own domain irrespective of whether you can port it or not. Nothing screams professionalism quite like a free email account.

As others have said you probably can’t move it, but if its BT, you can opt to keep the e-mail address going. I think it costs around £2 per month for it, then you can just forward it to a new address permanently.

http://www.ukreg.com/ – .co.uk is £2.95 per year.

The domain name is cheap, yes a few pounds, but the mail hosting is what costs, I’ve never seen email hosting for £1 a month

jambalaya – http://www.123-reg.co.uk/email-hosting/ (I’m going to guess that’s the price if you buy a year up front as that’s how it usually works). It’s not exactly Microsoft Exchange but it is enough for 90% of people

and google apps can be had for free with email hosting for up to 10 users (it was 50 when I signed up).

Don’t confuse google apps with gmail BTW, google apps can use your domain name.