Hi,

I live in an house that suffers from very slow broadband speeds. This is due partly due to the distance from the exchange, partly due to the poor wiring (I think).

Speeds are between 2 – 0.5 mbps upload, often under 1 mbps.

Efforts to resolve so far:

BT contacted more than once. Engineer from Openreach has been out to re-stablise line. Went slow again soon after.
Lodged a complaint with BT. Not getting anywhere. They have suggested it is wireless interference.
Investigated fibre optic – not available locally until end of 2015.

Does anyone have any bright ideas? Is satellite broadband worth it? I need the internet speed for work, but would also be a bonus to be able to download stuff/surf the net in good time.

I would ditch the phone, but the wife will want to keep it.

Upload is generally rubbish. What are your download speeds.

I have a mobile WiFi device which works well and my 4G phone is sometimes faster than BT broadband but they are no substitute for land based and can get very expensive very quickly. Satellite Broadband is for when you have no other choice and when you have a deep pocket.

4g phone used as a ‘modem’?

jambalaya, Sorry, that was my download speed.

Test earlier today was 0.712 mbps.

Would prefer a fixed connection, rather than a mobile.

Your distance from the local exchange and the number of other people also using it will be your limiting factors as far as speed is concerned.

Just been through a similar exercise via Plusnet & BT. Cleaning behind the master socket helped, as did then relaxing the front of the master socket. BT chap then did a connection and line test and result came back with a poor connection on a pole about 50metres away , yes, we have overhead wires. Cutting a moderately long story, once this line was fixed, and the line stabilised ( why do these lines have to get used to being used for Broadband is beyond me), our average speed has ‘rocketed’ from our intermittent 0 – 2Mbps to 2.5mbps.

This country sure does lead the way to ensuring all of us enjoy super fast pron…

Some areas are covered by community wireless , generally this means a roof mounted 5GHz point to point link.

Boundless communications cover parts of rural lancashire so have a look if their is a similar setup in your area.

@gribble, blimey that is rubbish. Would certainly complain and see if you can get an engineer out as per story above. If you do have decent mobile coverage 3G or if possible 4G mobile Wifi dongle will be better but check prices and see if it’s worth it

This is the sort of thing I have Mobile Wifi Dongles

Have a similar problem in our area BT seem to ration or prioritise who gets a ‘reasonable’ download speed depending on how recently you last complained but recently average seems to be in the 0.6-1Mbps. Tried changing to our local wireless provider (W3Z) but they can’t get a line of sight to any of their aerials. We struggle with 3G coverage (its heavily weather dependent) & I am fairly sure G4 coverage is none existent. There are no plans to upgrade the cabling to glass fibre (The neighbouring village has been promised it within 5 years but they are 2-3 miles from our village). Seems like we are out of options

The frustrating thing is that we aren’t that remote just in a hilly area.

How far out are you. We are over 6 miles from the nearest exchange and on the bit from the main road to the farm is over half a mile of ancient twin copper cable with about 15 splices on it due to trees breaking the line over the years. We still manage a stable 1.2 mbps (which is more than the postcode indicators would sugest is possible. We have installed the amplified faceplate and removed all extraneous wiring in the house. Mobile is not an option either as we need to drive 4 miles to even get a 2G signal!!

Any property further up the line from us are now using satellite BB but it is a pretty poor alternative and is very expensive if you want/need unlimited downloads