BT Phone going digital - Forcing an ISP change?
Discussion
Who are the go-to ISPs now? They need to do both phone and internet.
I'm sure this has been mentioned before, but I'm not sure quite what to search for so... Here goes. Apologies if its a bit muddled, I'm kinda working this out as I go, and its a bit stressy and noisy in my head right now.
I'm pretty much a full-time carer for my elderly dad and live in the family home to look after him. At the moment, our home phone is with BT and is still on the analogue system. Dad pays for this (line rental+calls). Internet is via Plus-Net FTTC, which I pay for. As part of the Plus-Net deal, I received a free .co.uk domain, which I use a lot for the email address.
A few days ago, BT sent a letter saying that we are very shortly being moved over onto a digital phone, which will require the phone being plugged into the router via a dongle. However, it seems the phone provider and internet provider now have to be the same company, and BT are pushing pretty heavily to move to their service. This is a pain in the bum as it might well mean losing my domain. It also feels like being rail-roaded and forced into changing to their ISP, which doesn't feel right.
I was going to move the phone to Plus-Net, in order that I would keep my domain+mail. But it seems Plus-Net don't do phone any more, and redirect you to sister company EE (yes I know BT owns them both) who are offering a 2-year Full Fibre 150Mb/s (125/30 guaranteed) for £28 (rising £32, £36...) with phone at £13/month with unlimited calls, so £41 total. I guess this is a decent deal, but finding another good ISP+phone provider is kinda frying my brain. Keeping the same phone number is essential.
Any recommendations for suppliers? Also, I'm not seeing any mention of line rental on EE's site, would we still be paying BT in addition to the phone charges?
It seems Plus-Net are moving subscribers domains and email to Greenby (free for 2 years, then charged) but I haven't heard anything from them about it yet.
Any info that can help me focus down on this is much appreciated! Cheers.
I'm sure this has been mentioned before, but I'm not sure quite what to search for so... Here goes. Apologies if its a bit muddled, I'm kinda working this out as I go, and its a bit stressy and noisy in my head right now.
I'm pretty much a full-time carer for my elderly dad and live in the family home to look after him. At the moment, our home phone is with BT and is still on the analogue system. Dad pays for this (line rental+calls). Internet is via Plus-Net FTTC, which I pay for. As part of the Plus-Net deal, I received a free .co.uk domain, which I use a lot for the email address.
A few days ago, BT sent a letter saying that we are very shortly being moved over onto a digital phone, which will require the phone being plugged into the router via a dongle. However, it seems the phone provider and internet provider now have to be the same company, and BT are pushing pretty heavily to move to their service. This is a pain in the bum as it might well mean losing my domain. It also feels like being rail-roaded and forced into changing to their ISP, which doesn't feel right.
I was going to move the phone to Plus-Net, in order that I would keep my domain+mail. But it seems Plus-Net don't do phone any more, and redirect you to sister company EE (yes I know BT owns them both) who are offering a 2-year Full Fibre 150Mb/s (125/30 guaranteed) for £28 (rising £32, £36...) with phone at £13/month with unlimited calls, so £41 total. I guess this is a decent deal, but finding another good ISP+phone provider is kinda frying my brain. Keeping the same phone number is essential.
Any recommendations for suppliers? Also, I'm not seeing any mention of line rental on EE's site, would we still be paying BT in addition to the phone charges?
It seems Plus-Net are moving subscribers domains and email to Greenby (free for 2 years, then charged) but I haven't heard anything from them about it yet.
Any info that can help me focus down on this is much appreciated! Cheers.
Look at Andrew’s and Arnold £1.20 +vat a month for a voip line. Plus calls.
You can have your number transferred for £15 I believe.
You will need to buy and configure the handsets or voip adapter if you wish to use the existing phones.
I’d suggest setting up a test line first if keeping your number so you are clear on the process before moving the existing line.
Also how is your broadband presented is it fttc or fttp?
This could also have a impact on delivery.
You can have your number transferred for £15 I believe.
You will need to buy and configure the handsets or voip adapter if you wish to use the existing phones.
I’d suggest setting up a test line first if keeping your number so you are clear on the process before moving the existing line.
Also how is your broadband presented is it fttc or fttp?
This could also have a impact on delivery.
Start with the overall plan, before you worry too much about the detail.
I'd suggest you focus first on how technically skilled you are. Are you happy managing the additional complexity of multiple separate providers for email, domain, voip and broadband? If not, which ones are you happy to bundle together?
The fundamental here is that Landlines are dying off. Before you go into the rabbithole of complexity - do you REALLY need a landline? Pretty much any mobile phone contract these days has unlimited calls to UK landlines, paying on top for a landline and calls is going to push the costs quite a bit.
If you must have house-phone-like handsets , BT sell a cordless handset that will connect to your mobiles via bluetooth, and then work much like the traditional house phone.
"ooh, everyone's got that number, can't get rid" - OK, buy the cheap PAYG landline service, and only use it for incoming calls. Combined with the phones above, that works. (my own aged and technically inept mother does exactly that and now saves about £20 a month on "landline" calls)
And getting rid of the landline number is not as hard as you might think. There'll be a handful of regular contacts, and a bunch of great-aunts and the like who never use it anyway...
There's a few ways to do this, but here's one possible route,
Landline -> VoIP easy - BT or Sky both offer digital voice services that are more integrated into the service. You pay them, and plug your phones in the router they supply.
Landline -> VoIP cheaper but trickier - AAISP as above are about the cheapest going, but you have to change to VoIP adapters or handsets, manage the migration, etc.
I would personally avoid EE for a digital voice service (they do offer it), as they have an answer machine that cannot be switched off, ever. That's a PITA.
Domain - migrate it out to a provider like IONOS.
Email - easy - pay IONOS a few quid a month on top for email services too if you need several email addresses.
Email - cheaper but trickier - use Purelymail for email services.
I'd suggest you focus first on how technically skilled you are. Are you happy managing the additional complexity of multiple separate providers for email, domain, voip and broadband? If not, which ones are you happy to bundle together?
The fundamental here is that Landlines are dying off. Before you go into the rabbithole of complexity - do you REALLY need a landline? Pretty much any mobile phone contract these days has unlimited calls to UK landlines, paying on top for a landline and calls is going to push the costs quite a bit.
If you must have house-phone-like handsets , BT sell a cordless handset that will connect to your mobiles via bluetooth, and then work much like the traditional house phone.
"ooh, everyone's got that number, can't get rid" - OK, buy the cheap PAYG landline service, and only use it for incoming calls. Combined with the phones above, that works. (my own aged and technically inept mother does exactly that and now saves about £20 a month on "landline" calls)
And getting rid of the landline number is not as hard as you might think. There'll be a handful of regular contacts, and a bunch of great-aunts and the like who never use it anyway...
There's a few ways to do this, but here's one possible route,
Landline -> VoIP easy - BT or Sky both offer digital voice services that are more integrated into the service. You pay them, and plug your phones in the router they supply.
Landline -> VoIP cheaper but trickier - AAISP as above are about the cheapest going, but you have to change to VoIP adapters or handsets, manage the migration, etc.
I would personally avoid EE for a digital voice service (they do offer it), as they have an answer machine that cannot be switched off, ever. That's a PITA.
Domain - migrate it out to a provider like IONOS.
Email - easy - pay IONOS a few quid a month on top for email services too if you need several email addresses.
Email - cheaper but trickier - use Purelymail for email services.
Edited by shtu on Wednesday 10th June 09:49
Also look at Zen:
https://www.zen.co.uk/
Not the cheapest but they have very good UK based support & can offer FTTC plus Digital Voice (the same as BT) for the phone line.
When you say a free Plunet domain is it registered & administered by you so you can transfer it?
Are you using the PlusNet email service or do you use the free domain with GMail or similar? I think Zen still give you a zad@zen.co.uk email address but the tricky bit is updating all of your existing sites that use the Plusnet address. I'd strongly recommend creating a GMail email & start the proceed of transferring everything over to that. It can take a long time to find everything because you need to find all the hidden & unused recovery email addresses & update them otherwise you won't be able to do it after moving if you are using a PluNet address.
You might find that letting PlusNet move you to Greenby & just getting over the change & then going elsewhere is the least disruptive route. Also make sure you & your father are registered as vulnerable users by BT & PlusNet.
https://www.zen.co.uk/
Not the cheapest but they have very good UK based support & can offer FTTC plus Digital Voice (the same as BT) for the phone line.
When you say a free Plunet domain is it registered & administered by you so you can transfer it?
Are you using the PlusNet email service or do you use the free domain with GMail or similar? I think Zen still give you a zad@zen.co.uk email address but the tricky bit is updating all of your existing sites that use the Plusnet address. I'd strongly recommend creating a GMail email & start the proceed of transferring everything over to that. It can take a long time to find everything because you need to find all the hidden & unused recovery email addresses & update them otherwise you won't be able to do it after moving if you are using a PluNet address.
You might find that letting PlusNet move you to Greenby & just getting over the change & then going elsewhere is the least disruptive route. Also make sure you & your father are registered as vulnerable users by BT & PlusNet.
Mr Pointy said:
Also look at Zen:
https://www.zen.co.uk/
Not the cheapest but they have very good UK based support & can offer FTTC plus Digital Voice (the same as BT) for the phone line.
When you say a free Plunet domain is it registered & administered by you so you can transfer it?
Are you using the PlusNet email service or do you use the free domain with GMail or similar? I think Zen still give you a zad@zen.co.uk email address but the tricky bit is updating all of your existing sites that use the Plusnet address. I'd strongly recommend creating a GMail email & start the proceed of transferring everything over to that. It can take a long time to find everything because you need to find all the hidden & unused recovery email addresses & update them otherwise you won't be able to do it after moving if you are using a PluNet address.
You might find that letting PlusNet move you to Greenby & just getting over the change & then going elsewhere is the least disruptive route. Also make sure you & your father are registered as vulnerable users by BT & PlusNet.
This every day! I've been with Zen about 26 years now. Always there and always helpful. https://www.zen.co.uk/
Not the cheapest but they have very good UK based support & can offer FTTC plus Digital Voice (the same as BT) for the phone line.
When you say a free Plunet domain is it registered & administered by you so you can transfer it?
Are you using the PlusNet email service or do you use the free domain with GMail or similar? I think Zen still give you a zad@zen.co.uk email address but the tricky bit is updating all of your existing sites that use the Plusnet address. I'd strongly recommend creating a GMail email & start the proceed of transferring everything over to that. It can take a long time to find everything because you need to find all the hidden & unused recovery email addresses & update them otherwise you won't be able to do it after moving if you are using a PluNet address.
You might find that letting PlusNet move you to Greenby & just getting over the change & then going elsewhere is the least disruptive route. Also make sure you & your father are registered as vulnerable users by BT & PlusNet.
With Zen here too, and have been for decades - superb service.
I'm in a similar process at the moment with my elderly father, and there is no way he'll be giving up his landline! He's been with Zen for a long time for broadband, but still with BT for phone, so I'll be taking him through the fairly simple migration from BT to Zen for it all - as Zen do exactly what you are talking about, their VoiP is £7.50 a month in addition to their broadband, and their Fritzbox routers are superb.
If you are thinking about porting your landline number to A&A or another VoiP supplier first, be aware that if you initiate it from the VoiP supplier, it'll terminate your BT account (if everything comes through that one "line") and therefore your broadband. It'd be better (and far more straightforward) to migrate the broadband and landline to the same provider and allow them to migrate the landline number and provide a VoiP service for you at that point. Then if you want to later on, port that number elsewhere for a really cheap service with A&A.
Transfer the domain to a quality registrar, which will also be inexpensive, like Domaincheap or Porkbun. Zen will hold domains for you too. You could just move the domain to third party provider with free e-mail forwarding (both the ones I mention above provide this), then forward all e-mails to say a GMail or iCloud account depending what is more convenient. You'd only be paying a v modest amount for the domain. Or you could pay a bit extra for "real" email service (POP/IMAP box) on the domain.
I'm in a similar process at the moment with my elderly father, and there is no way he'll be giving up his landline! He's been with Zen for a long time for broadband, but still with BT for phone, so I'll be taking him through the fairly simple migration from BT to Zen for it all - as Zen do exactly what you are talking about, their VoiP is £7.50 a month in addition to their broadband, and their Fritzbox routers are superb.
If you are thinking about porting your landline number to A&A or another VoiP supplier first, be aware that if you initiate it from the VoiP supplier, it'll terminate your BT account (if everything comes through that one "line") and therefore your broadband. It'd be better (and far more straightforward) to migrate the broadband and landline to the same provider and allow them to migrate the landline number and provide a VoiP service for you at that point. Then if you want to later on, port that number elsewhere for a really cheap service with A&A.
Transfer the domain to a quality registrar, which will also be inexpensive, like Domaincheap or Porkbun. Zen will hold domains for you too. You could just move the domain to third party provider with free e-mail forwarding (both the ones I mention above provide this), then forward all e-mails to say a GMail or iCloud account depending what is more convenient. You'd only be paying a v modest amount for the domain. Or you could pay a bit extra for "real" email service (POP/IMAP box) on the domain.
There's already been some great advice here, which I'll endorse, having similarly had to find a switch to digital VOIP. I'm sure Zen would be a safe and seamless way to go; I eventually went for a much cheaper broadband option from EE, and went to Andrews & Arnold for the VOIP as recommended above.
It all works great now - but be warned it does require some techie aptitude, to set up a Grandstream adaptor for the handsets. (Speaking as a septuagenarian, mind...!)
It all works great now - but be warned it does require some techie aptitude, to set up a Grandstream adaptor for the handsets. (Speaking as a septuagenarian, mind...!)
Thanks for the great advice. Zen sounds like a good option. A bit more than EE, but a UK support line is particularly nice to have. Pretty sure Zen were around back when I had Demon dial-up, and they seem to have a decent reputation. Which is unusual with ISPs!
At the moment it is FTTC, but so far as I can see, which ever provider is selected, it will be going FTTP.
As mentioned, Zen do host, and it looks like I can transfer my domain. I never delved into that size of things, but if it helps, this is what I see on the Plusnet config page:
Retaining the original phone number is non-negotiable. We do have quite a few friends and distant family that only know the BT number, and with those people getting older... Well, lets say it is important that they can get hold of us on the number they have known for decades. I'm not after pushing for the cheapest deal, so a monthly payment of £7:50 (or £17:99 unlimited) is fine, certainly in the medium term.
I get my email via my <domain name>.co.uk account which connects to Plusnet's server. Lots of stuff is subscribed to that, and I have used it for a lot of work related things over the years, so keen to keep the email access.
Ideally I can get them to transfer me to Greenby sooner rather than later, which may be too late!
At the moment it is FTTC, but so far as I can see, which ever provider is selected, it will be going FTTP.
As mentioned, Zen do host, and it looks like I can transfer my domain. I never delved into that size of things, but if it helps, this is what I see on the Plusnet config page:
Retaining the original phone number is non-negotiable. We do have quite a few friends and distant family that only know the BT number, and with those people getting older... Well, lets say it is important that they can get hold of us on the number they have known for decades. I'm not after pushing for the cheapest deal, so a monthly payment of £7:50 (or £17:99 unlimited) is fine, certainly in the medium term.
I get my email via my <domain name>.co.uk account which connects to Plusnet's server. Lots of stuff is subscribed to that, and I have used it for a lot of work related things over the years, so keen to keep the email access.
Ideally I can get them to transfer me to Greenby sooner rather than later, which may be too late!
Zad said:
Thanks for the great advice. Zen sounds like a good option. A bit more than EE, but a UK support line is particularly nice to have. Pretty sure Zen were around back when I had Demon dial-up, and they seem to have a decent reputation. Which is unusual with ISPs!
At the moment it is FTTC, but so far as I can see, which ever provider is selected, it will be going FTTP.
As mentioned, Zen do host, and it looks like I can transfer my domain. I never delved into that size of things, but if it helps, this is what I see on the Plusnet config page:
Retaining the original phone number is non-negotiable. We do have quite a few friends and distant family that only know the BT number, and with those people getting older... Well, lets say it is important that they can get hold of us on the number they have known for decades. I'm not after pushing for the cheapest deal, so a monthly payment of £7:50 (or £17:99 unlimited) is fine, certainly in the medium term.
I get my email via my <domain name>.co.uk account which connects to Plusnet's server. Lots of stuff is subscribed to that, and I have used it for a lot of work related things over the years, so keen to keep the email access.
Ideally I can get them to transfer me to Greenby sooner rather than later, which may be too late!
Once you have sorted a plan, do give some thought to using Internet company's email addresses. Much less risk of closing down or sudden change if you use Gmail or alternative. I know transfers will be a PITA but better to think about it earlier than being forced if/when they decide to stop offering this or you want to move to another Internet provider who doesn't offer domain service. At the moment it is FTTC, but so far as I can see, which ever provider is selected, it will be going FTTP.
As mentioned, Zen do host, and it looks like I can transfer my domain. I never delved into that size of things, but if it helps, this is what I see on the Plusnet config page:
Retaining the original phone number is non-negotiable. We do have quite a few friends and distant family that only know the BT number, and with those people getting older... Well, lets say it is important that they can get hold of us on the number they have known for decades. I'm not after pushing for the cheapest deal, so a monthly payment of £7:50 (or £17:99 unlimited) is fine, certainly in the medium term.
I get my email via my <domain name>.co.uk account which connects to Plusnet's server. Lots of stuff is subscribed to that, and I have used it for a lot of work related things over the years, so keen to keep the email access.
Ideally I can get them to transfer me to Greenby sooner rather than later, which may be too late!
I went through this with my Dad earlier in the year. Dad didn't need broadband (freeview TV and doesn't have a computer) so I looked at all options.
If you just want to replace the landline telephone I can recommend Home2Phone. They provide a small router with a SIM card, you plug your existing landline phone into the router and away you go. Home2Phone can port your old landline number if you want to keep it. Costs about £15/month and it's what we went with.
If you want to broadband you need to check as quite a few BB providers no longer offer a phone connection. Even if you go the BB route check the prices, doing your landline through Home2Phone might still be cheaper than what the BB provider will charge to add a phone to the package.
If you just want to replace the landline telephone I can recommend Home2Phone. They provide a small router with a SIM card, you plug your existing landline phone into the router and away you go. Home2Phone can port your old landline number if you want to keep it. Costs about £15/month and it's what we went with.
If you want to broadband you need to check as quite a few BB providers no longer offer a phone connection. Even if you go the BB route check the prices, doing your landline through Home2Phone might still be cheaper than what the BB provider will charge to add a phone to the package.
I can't comment on the website and domain side of things but I have just moved my combined broadband and traditional analogue phone contract to a new setup with VOIP and it was all pretty seamless and easy.
Like the OP I had my broadband and telephone line with Plusnet. Contract was due to end and like you I discovered the only way to keep my phone line with them was to move to an EE contract. And to be honest, the EE thing they offered was utter bobbins on price.
I contacted Andrews and Arnold and they were incredibly helpful and advised on the best way to proceed. Basically I logged onto my Plusnet account and opted for a new broadband only contract for 36 months. This was on a Friday and the 'upgrade' was scheduled to happen on the following Wednesday.
Sure enough at around 6pm on Wednesday the landline went dead so the switch over had completed.
I then went straight onto the A & A website and placed an order with them, entering my old phone number into the system as part of the process. This was the advised way of proceeding for ease of porting my old number and ensuring I maintained my broadband connection throughout.
It took about 5 working days for A & A to setup my account and port the old number over. This meant I was without a landline for about 7 days in total, but that was planned for and expected.
My broadband is now £22.99 a month (it does increase every year in March).
My A & A phone line rental is £1.80 a month plus call fees.
A & A charged £12 for the porting and setup of the new account / system.
I did buy a new VOIP phone as I was not happy with my old cordless unit. I also purchased a Grandstream HT802 analogue telephone adaptor from Amazon (be careful of second hand units, many are locked to a provider and although they can be unlocked, it is a bit of a pig. Ask me how I know!).
I purchased this because I have a couple of old 1960's rotary dial phones I wanted to keep using if possible.
Despite the myriad of options, setting up the Grandstream was actually pretty straightforward. There are loads of guides and help available online. I can still use my classic phones and even the old 'pulse' dialing from them still works and places and receives calls through the adaptor box to the world. Nice.
So now I have my new VOIP phone connected to a LAN port on the router and a second LAN port on the router connected the Grandstream ATA that in turn connects to my old existing house wiring and allows continued use of my classics. All ring as they should on incoming calls and if left unanswered A & A's answer machine service takes the call and emails me the message within seconds.
Overall, I'm very impressed so far. A & A are extremely knowledgeable and helpful. The setup was easy and the account pages online are VERY simple in their design. They are very security conscious and you get email notifications of when a device connects to your account. This is triggered any time your homes IP changes (such as a power outage or a refresh from your ISP that causes your public IP to change). Most of the time this is just cautionary but it's nice to be informed just in case some nefarious individual is trying to spoof their way onto your account.
This does read as a bit of a sales pitch I accept, but I'm in no way connected with Plusnet or A & A, just a satisfied customer.
Like the OP I had my broadband and telephone line with Plusnet. Contract was due to end and like you I discovered the only way to keep my phone line with them was to move to an EE contract. And to be honest, the EE thing they offered was utter bobbins on price.
I contacted Andrews and Arnold and they were incredibly helpful and advised on the best way to proceed. Basically I logged onto my Plusnet account and opted for a new broadband only contract for 36 months. This was on a Friday and the 'upgrade' was scheduled to happen on the following Wednesday.
Sure enough at around 6pm on Wednesday the landline went dead so the switch over had completed.
I then went straight onto the A & A website and placed an order with them, entering my old phone number into the system as part of the process. This was the advised way of proceeding for ease of porting my old number and ensuring I maintained my broadband connection throughout.
It took about 5 working days for A & A to setup my account and port the old number over. This meant I was without a landline for about 7 days in total, but that was planned for and expected.
My broadband is now £22.99 a month (it does increase every year in March).
My A & A phone line rental is £1.80 a month plus call fees.
A & A charged £12 for the porting and setup of the new account / system.
I did buy a new VOIP phone as I was not happy with my old cordless unit. I also purchased a Grandstream HT802 analogue telephone adaptor from Amazon (be careful of second hand units, many are locked to a provider and although they can be unlocked, it is a bit of a pig. Ask me how I know!).
I purchased this because I have a couple of old 1960's rotary dial phones I wanted to keep using if possible.
Despite the myriad of options, setting up the Grandstream was actually pretty straightforward. There are loads of guides and help available online. I can still use my classic phones and even the old 'pulse' dialing from them still works and places and receives calls through the adaptor box to the world. Nice.
So now I have my new VOIP phone connected to a LAN port on the router and a second LAN port on the router connected the Grandstream ATA that in turn connects to my old existing house wiring and allows continued use of my classics. All ring as they should on incoming calls and if left unanswered A & A's answer machine service takes the call and emails me the message within seconds.
Overall, I'm very impressed so far. A & A are extremely knowledgeable and helpful. The setup was easy and the account pages online are VERY simple in their design. They are very security conscious and you get email notifications of when a device connects to your account. This is triggered any time your homes IP changes (such as a power outage or a refresh from your ISP that causes your public IP to change). Most of the time this is just cautionary but it's nice to be informed just in case some nefarious individual is trying to spoof their way onto your account.
This does read as a bit of a sales pitch I accept, but I'm in no way connected with Plusnet or A & A, just a satisfied customer.
I think if I had a bit more time, and if things were a bit more "normal" around here, then I would jump to an IP Phone. I can't afford for the phone to be out of action though; for example, today there was a call from the GP, and from a hospital department. There are other people in similar roles who also have the home phone as primary contact, and I can't really contact them all (indeed I don't know them all).
I have had a Gmail account since beta test, and use it quite a lot, but for work reasons I really need email via my domain. Many suppliers and other companies won't talk to a generic account, and having an email account with an appropriate business domain name avoids all the hassle there. At the moment my Gmail redirects to my domain mailbox, which is then downloaded to Thunderbird on the PC.
For interest, the prices I am being quoted are (prices rounded up to the pound):
EE: No set-up charge.
(24 months) 150Mb (30Mb up 125Mb down min) £28 (Rising to £32 then £36 etc)
300Mb (min 50Mb up 250Mb down) £32 (rising £36 then £40)
Phone: £2/month rolling contract, or £13/month with unlimited calls
No hosting so far as I am aware.
(So £41/month for 150+unlimited phone.)
Zen: £15 set-up
(24 months) 100Mb (Estimated 105, min 18 up 55 down) £33 /month for length of contract
Also offering 500 and 900 (70/250 and 105/500 min) at £39 but hub and cable limit me to 100Mb per wired node anyway at the moment.
Phone: £7:50/month (1000 mins) or £17:99/month (unlimited UK calls)
Domains: £12:99 / year, Hosting: £8:39 / month
(So £51/month for 100Mb+unlimited phone which adds up to £120/year more)
For hosting/email, one of the posters on the Plusnet forum has suggested https://www.mythic-beasts.com/hosting - never heard of them but they look pretty inexpensive. Anyone know anything about them?
I have had a Gmail account since beta test, and use it quite a lot, but for work reasons I really need email via my domain. Many suppliers and other companies won't talk to a generic account, and having an email account with an appropriate business domain name avoids all the hassle there. At the moment my Gmail redirects to my domain mailbox, which is then downloaded to Thunderbird on the PC.
For interest, the prices I am being quoted are (prices rounded up to the pound):
EE: No set-up charge.
(24 months) 150Mb (30Mb up 125Mb down min) £28 (Rising to £32 then £36 etc)
300Mb (min 50Mb up 250Mb down) £32 (rising £36 then £40)
Phone: £2/month rolling contract, or £13/month with unlimited calls
No hosting so far as I am aware.
(So £41/month for 150+unlimited phone.)
Zen: £15 set-up
(24 months) 100Mb (Estimated 105, min 18 up 55 down) £33 /month for length of contract
Also offering 500 and 900 (70/250 and 105/500 min) at £39 but hub and cable limit me to 100Mb per wired node anyway at the moment.
Phone: £7:50/month (1000 mins) or £17:99/month (unlimited UK calls)
Domains: £12:99 / year, Hosting: £8:39 / month
(So £51/month for 100Mb+unlimited phone which adds up to £120/year more)
For hosting/email, one of the posters on the Plusnet forum has suggested https://www.mythic-beasts.com/hosting - never heard of them but they look pretty inexpensive. Anyone know anything about them?
Zad said:
For hosting/email, one of the posters on the Plusnet forum has suggested https://www.mythic-beasts.com/hosting - never heard of them but they look pretty inexpensive. Anyone know anything about them?
Fairly widely recommended for small users, not used them personally.I'd certainly consider them for a one-stop domain + website + email.
Zad said:
I think if I had a bit more time, and if things were a bit more "normal" around here, then I would jump to an IP Phone.
I may be stating the obvious here but you do realise whatever option you go for, it will be an IP phone. Providers aren't able or allowed to offer traditional analouge lines and contracts any more.We stayed with BT and used their digital voice phones which worked fine.
What was hopeless was trying to use my old desk phone through a digital adapter - it only rang 50% of the time and on calls the other person's voice would regularly drop out for a few seconds. The adapter was pretty close to the router so shouldn't have been a wireless issue.
We've just renewed the contract and dropped the phone part as we were pretty well only getting waves of spam calls. We both have a few medical issues and doctors and hospital etc generally call mobiles first now, even when we had the landline.
What was hopeless was trying to use my old desk phone through a digital adapter - it only rang 50% of the time and on calls the other person's voice would regularly drop out for a few seconds. The adapter was pretty close to the router so shouldn't have been a wireless issue.
We've just renewed the contract and dropped the phone part as we were pretty well only getting waves of spam calls. We both have a few medical issues and doctors and hospital etc generally call mobiles first now, even when we had the landline.
Captain_Morgan said:
You also need to be aware that while most migrations happen without issue, there are many cases of phone lines being lost when moving from a hardline to voip.
Yes - ours disappeared for two weeks. What made it worse was they couldn't put a message on the line either, it just appeared to ring out. Broadband worked fine. Got BT executive complaints involved. They made all the right noises but it still took two weeks, exactly as we'd been told at the beginning.Captain_Morgan said:
You also need to be aware that while most migrations happen without issue, there are many cases of phone lines being lost when moving from a hardline to voip.
It s useful to consider this and ensure you a plan in case this happens.
Very sensible advice. Worst case is obviously losing a number but planning for disruption is a good idea. You can't ensure a backup mobile number goes to everyone who might ring but getting that alternative number on a GP or hospital patient record is worthwhile. For instance...It s useful to consider this and ensure you a plan in case this happens.
Mrs Harpoon's parents moved to FTTP and ported their PSTN number to the provider's digital voice service (can't remember if they went to BT or EE). They had a few weeks of problems with incoming calls. If the caller was also on FTTP (digital voice) their phone rang but a call from somebody ringing on a traditional PSTN line didn't even ring. A routing issue somewhere but you are at the mercy of the provider to sort it.
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