Virgin

[Final Maxim]

keep getting letters from virgin asking me to switch to them, usually i throw them away but i read it today.

i can get broadband 30mb and landline for half the price i currently pay with BT (landline) and BE Broadband (broadband).

would you switch?

im really happy with BE, not had a single issue since ive been with them, but the half price and 2x-3x faster download speed is appealing.

thoughts? experience with virgin?

 

[TheEvilGiraffe]

They keep popping sh*t through the door telling me I can get a billionty&one MB internet and cable TV.. Go online, 'You're not in a cable enabled area'.

Brilliant.

 

[Inactive]

They keep popping sh*t through the door telling me I can get a billionty&one MB internet and cable TV.. Go online, 'You're not in a cable enabled area'.

Brilliant.

Lol that's just cruel!

 

[Final Maxim]

[h=3]Your home isn’t in a cable area[/h] That means we can’t give you fibre optic broadband, or TV.
But we’d love to give you great Virgin Broadband down your phone line (our National broadband). It’s available in most places in the UK.


-.- /closethread

 

[MikeoftheQuays]

Used Virgin for a few years. They were fine right up until we started running into problems... Then they were awful. Truly dreadful. Their customer service in general absolutely f**king stinks. But then again so does BT's IMO so I guess it depends on what kind of problems you get and who you end up dealing with.

 

[SC03OTT]

I've got it. Has been pretty much spot on since I got it some, ooo, 6 years ago. Been down once. And yeah, their first line 'technical help' are very poor. Maybe check to see if any of your neighbours have VM? Get their opinions?

 

[TheEvilGiraffe]

[h=3]Your home isn’t in a cable area[/h]

LOL !

 

[Adam.]

I've got it. Has been pretty much spot on since I got it some, ooo, 6 years ago. Been down once. And yeah, their first line 'technical help' are very poor. Maybe check to see if any of your neighbours have VM? Get their opinions?

You on the 100 Scott?

 

[oska]

I recently switched back from Sky and they sent me a Tivo which I didn't want, also charging me £5 a month extra for the pleasure. Phoned up customer services and they managed to switch me back to what I signed up for and gave me £30 credit. Only on their basic broadband but it's very quick.

 

[SC03OTT]

You on the 100 Scott?

Nah, 30.

 

[mantis946]

We moved from sky to VMEDIA a few months back, the modem/router is truly appalling - In the last 6 months we've had 6 engineers visit, they have replaced the modem, all the connectors in the house and the connectors outside the house. The only thing they have left is to dig up outside to see if there are any issues there.

We've had two solid days of no internet access at all including this morning. We've spoken to the tech department and they (Even after saying it's the entire house effected) connected to one of the house computers to mess with the modem settings - It cured the issue for an hour.

When the service works its good, the current modem is the biggest pile of **** I've ever used (Even when you stick it in modem mode and use your own, the speeds half)

Normally I would write this off as "Unlucky" however the other half's family has started doing it and my mates connection is flaky at the best of times.

 

[Josh Youare]

I was with virgin for a few years and we switched to bt because the customer service is so sh•t. We had many occasions when the Internet went down for hours without any explanation.
We called them to fix the phone line and after 3 irrelevant letters and 8 weeks of waiting we gave up! The cancellation guy thought it was the funniest thing he ever heard (temper was lost).
BT have been great so far.

 

[Lynne172Cup]

Used to be with virgin and didn't have any problems (non cabled area) UNTIL we moved house, literally 10mims down the road. They said we couldn't keep the package we were on and had to pay more!
Help desk useless!
So, I asked if a new contact would be started, "no we'll just add to ur existing package and your not locked in for x number of months", we said ok until we could have a look around.

Big mistake, they had started a new contract for 12 months and when I called to cancel wanted cancellation fee, to which I queries the previous statement from them, the answer? That is incorrect information and no one hear would say that. Well they did!

Ended up they were going to waive the fee as act of good faith.

So, then took ages to get MAC code, and finally we were with BT, the end, or so we thought....

Received letter asking why we had cancelled Direct Debit as they had a final bill to pay. I said no we don't, so they said it was cancellation fee of £30!
Argued a lot and finally asked them to confirm in writing doo could write to complaints dept. received this and they somehow managed to fabricate a bill which, inc VAT added up to exactly £30. Queried that and they said not a cancellation fee it's what we were due. Bullshit!
Ended up paying it just to get rid of them.
Tried complaints dept and got bog standard letter saying according to our records ur accounts are up to date thank you for contacting us!

Gave up!

 

[Adam.]

Used to be with virgin and didn't have any problems (non cabled area) UNTIL we moved house, literally 10mims down the road. They said we couldn't keep the package we were on and had to pay more!
Help desk useless!
So, I asked if a new contact would be started, "no we'll just add to ur existing package and your not locked in for x number of months", we said ok until we could have a look around.

Big mistake, they had started a new contract for 12 months and when I called to cancel wanted cancellation fee, to which I queries the previous statement from them, the answer? That is incorrect information and no one hear would say that. Well they did!

Ended up they were going to waive the fee as act of good faith.

So, then took ages to get MAC code, and finally we were with BT, the end, or so we thought....

Received letter asking why we had cancelled Direct Debit as they had a final bill to pay. I said no we don't, so they said it was cancellation fee of £30!
Argued a lot and finally asked them to confirm in writing doo could write to complaints dept. received this and they somehow managed to fabricate a bill which, inc VAT added up to exactly £30. Queried that and they said not a cancellation fee it's what we were due. Bulls**t!
Ended up paying it just to get rid of them.
Tried complaints dept and got bog standard letter saying according to our records ur accounts are up to date thank you for contacting us!

Gave up!

lol'd.

 

[Munson]

Had a few problems over the years but nothing life threatening.

Currently getting 100mb down and super reliable.

 

[Deany]

Our VM is pretty useless 25% of the time, wireless doesnt work on the router, and now its started dropping out between 2am and 10am for no reason, did it yesterday and today. were supposed to be on 50mb cable the speed varies wildly even if theres just me in the house.

on the flip side they changed the terms of contract without telling us so we can get out the contract for free (that took 5 hours on the phone to get that info) customer service is appaling, had 2 people hang up on us, were on hold for 4 hours over 3 seperate calls made at the same time. useless.

 

[Munson]

I have my Superhub in modem-only mode, with a Cisco Linksys E4200 doing routing detail. Flawless victory.

Although yeah I know how it feels when you are getting poor service.

Try using a wired connection and/or fixed IP addresses. Whilst not a long term fix, it will at least help to isolate the problem. I personally never had any real issues with the Superhub (besides poor wireless range as it turns out) but I know they are regarded as pretty crap routers.

 

[Nickson]

I have my Superhub in modem-only mode, with a Cisco Linksys E4200 doing routing detail. Flawless victory.

Although yeah I know how it feels when you are getting poor service.

Try using a wired connection and/or fixed IP addresses. Whilst not a long term fix, it will at least help to isolate the problem. I personally never had any real issues with the Superhub (besides poor wireless range as it turns out) but I know they are regarded as pretty crap routers.

NEEDED!

We have literally just been upgraded to 100.. I came home to find the router ripped out and that 'Superhub' installed..

Spent a few minutes setting things up, printer, NAS etc etc.

Everything was fine until the wireless kept dropping.

Then the web interface wouldn't load... So on and so forth.

Now sourcing a new router and run the 'Superhub' modem only. POS.

Wired is fine, but it is absolute w**k when it comes to wireless.

EDIT: Speeds aren't bad either! 105Mbps down the the other day!

 

[Munson]

FYI the Linksys E4200 is a monster router. Totally flawless connectivity. Never once had to restart it. Just pure speed 247365 with all connected devices. Always.

 

[oska]

Would I need a specific router if I was to use the Superhub in modem mode? I have one of these that I used to use a few years ago http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B000BYR4PY/?tag=cliospnet01-21 and only on their basic 30Mbps but seem to get about 32Mbps when hard wired. I assume it can handle what it states at 125Mbps but I'm not very technical.

 

[Munson]

You can use pretty much any router with the Suerhub, but of course the specifications will determine the performance of your wireless network. My advice (from experience) is always buy the best router you can possibly justify. It will save you money in the long term.

 

[Adam.]

Linksys > all other routers IME.

Linksys are Cisco...say no more.

 

[oska]

I've no real need. My work laptop and HTPC is hardwired anyway and I don't have a problem with that. Just thought it may work as it's just sitting in a cupboard. To be fair it was faultless when I was with Virgin before but that was when it was only 10Mbps.

 

[MikeoftheQuays]

I insisted my parents forked out the extra on a decent quality Cisco router. Worth every penny. It's been absolutely bomb-proof. 2 wired and, at last count, 8 wireless devices attached to it and it just works. All day, every day.

 

[Munson]

For sures. My Cisco also looks lovely, and the build quality is amazing. Then again it wasn't cheap, but buy cheap buy twice.

 

[oska]

Well, tried my little Buffalo and the difference is astounding. Through my shitty work AT&T connection on wireless I could get about 3Mbps, now get 8Mbps. Wired has gone up from 8Mbps to 12Mbps. Normal wireless without my work connection has gone up to 21Mbps. I can also get wireless at the end of the garden where I could barely set foot out the back door before. My HTPC wired connection has gone up too for some reason. Shitty "Super"hub, cheers for the heads up.

 

[cava83]

For sures. My Cisco also looks lovely, and the build quality is amazing. Then again it wasn't cheap, but buy cheap buy twice.

Sadly, it doesn't get great reviews on Amazon, as most users complain about the wireless range or frequent disconnections, sometimes these reviews make you think if they are somewhat retarded. It's good to hear you have not found any issues.

The Asus top tier products are good too, like the Dark Knight.

 

[Brand86]

My parents have Virgin, I have Sky - both good. I did have BT and they are the WORST company I have ever dealt with. Absolutely shocking products, service and prices. I was lied to, not given any support and couldn't cancel my contract despite internet not working properly.

Ironic also that no one I spoke to there was British either (apart form a horrible pushy and aggressive Scottish sales person).

Moral is - Sky or Virgin or anyone good, BT bad!

 

[...]

Linksys > all other routers IME.

Linksys are Cisco...say no more.

Not entirely true , cisco own Linksys and the products are still for the domestic market and are the same quality etc when they were just linksys .

If you want rock solid performance then your right in saying cisco , i would look at an 800 series small business router , ours has been flawlwess for 3 years with zero downtime (also thanks to BE )

Going back to the OP , we have a similar dilemma , not the cost but the fact BE won't have fibre till 2013 at the earliest , if then so we are going BT infinity untill be sort out fibre and we will switch back , i would avoid virgin like the plague especially after you have had BE as the experience is totally different .