A Breath of Fresh Air (02 Broadband)

Member Name: SWSt

Product:	02 Broadband
Date:	14/05/09 (80 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Reliable, competitively priced, excellent FREE customer service

Disadvantages: Not available everywhere, cheapest rates only available to existing O2 customers

Just about every aspect of broadband can vary - price, availability, speed of connection, reliability, download limits and so on. Then, of course, there's the fact that you can get bundled packages, offering a combination of broadband, TV and phone services. This makes it incredibly difficult for the average consumer to choose which supplier to use.

So, let me make things simple for you. If you are just looking for straightforward broadband, go to the O2 website and sign up for the Standard package. That's my basic recommendation. If you want to know, feel free to read on. Otherwise what are you waiting for? Get signing up. And no, I'm not on any sort of commission for saying this!

I've been with O2 now for just over seven months and have never once regretted my decision to use them. They are one of the cheapest providers on the market, with their standard package starting at £12.23 per month. If you have an O2 mobile, though, you get the package for just £7.34 a month, which is even better.

In order to qualify for the reduced price, you need to buy a £10 top-up at least once every three months (if you're a Pay As You Go customer). That obviously raises the price a little bit, adding on around £3 a month to the cost. But let's face it, most of us probably top up more than that anyway, so this isn't an issue.

The level of service is excellent too. O2 offers the industry average of "up to 8 Megabytes (MB), although in reality you'll probably never get close to this. The speed you actually get will depend on things like the quality of your line and how far from the exchange you are - but this is true of all broadband. Even so, I've been impressed with the speed of the connection. In my current house, I get speeds of around 3.5MB, which is well short of the potential top speed, but fine for my needs.

Another important factor which led me to O2 is that their standard package is unmetered. Many companies in O2's price bracket impose limits on how much data you can download, with extra charges if you exceed your monthly allocation. Such limits are confusing and daunting for users. Exactly how much is 2GB and how do you know when you have used it up? With O2, you can surf the web to your heart's content, send as many emails as you wish, view video content or stream TV programmes and not have to worry. Of course, it's still subject to a vaguely defined "fair usage policy", but this is really only there to catch people who seriously abuse the system.

Signing up for O2 is easy and can be done online by phone using (Shock! Horror!) a free-phone customer service number. I ordered mine online and it only took around 10 minutes and was hassle free. O2 are also very good at keeping the customer informed of the progress of their order At every stage of the process, O2 sent a text to the mobile number I had provided confirming what was happening and how long each stage was likely to take

When everything was ready to go, setup was a doddle, too. The package comes with a wireless router and CD-ROM which you just put into your PC and follow the on-screen instructions. Even a novice can be online in around 15 minutes

The instructions you receive strongly advise you to use the installation CD-ROM, which I did. If I have to set it up again, though, I probably won't. There was nothing particularly tricky and anyone who has set up a wireless network and router before may prefer to do it manually. The CD-ROM does install additional software on your computer which monitors your connection and automatically tries to fix and report any problems. This is helpful for novices, but personally, I don't like programmes connecting without my permission, so would have preferred to be given the option of whether or not to install this. Just occasionally, the software causes a bit of system slowdown as it whirrs into gear, but this is not a frequent issue.

Reliability-wise, I have never experienced any problems. I have experienced no downtime when I have been unable to connect and the speed seems pretty consistent. With my previous supplier, there was often a noticeable slowdown in speed during the early evening when demand was at a peak. There have only been a handful of occasions when I have noticed that with O2.

This alone would be enough to recommend O2, but what really seals the deal is its superb customer service. Normally, trying to resolve a problem with a telecommunications company is a nightmare of Kafka-esque proportions. Certainly, the main reason I left my previous supplier (Tiscali) was down to its appalling customer service.

With O2, it's simple. You pick up the phone, they answer. You explain the problem, they sort it out. Customer service as it should be. On the few occasions when I have needed to contact them, my call has usually been answered within a couple of rings. There's been no waiting in queues listening to atrocious "music" even when I have phoned at peak times. I've spoken to a friendly and efficient human being in the UK and the issue has always been resolved by the time I've hung up. Better still, the helpline is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week and is free if you use a or an 02 mobile. In these days of expensive 0845 and 0870 customer (no)help lines, that is a huge bonus and O2 should be applauded.

By now, you must be wondering what the catch is and there are a couple to bear in mind.

The biggest issue relates to availability. The O2 Standard package is not currently available in all areas and if you live in one of these "blackspots" you can only get the O2 Access package. This isn't as good value for money at £17.99 and is limited to a speed of 2GB. Personally, I don't think this is worth considering, as there are cheaper deals available.

As with many other suppliers, you also need to commit to a minimum 12 month contract. Even so, O2 are more flexible than their competitors. With most suppliers if you move house, you can't take the package to your new address, but still have to see out the twelve months, paying for a service you can't use. O2 will transfer your service to a new number/address for free once in a 12 month period. If you need to do it a second time within 12 months, there is a £50 charge, so you'd need to weigh up whether it is worth the cost.

I can't recommend O2 highly enough. Good, reliable service, easy to set up and outstanding customer service. Assuming it's available in your area, you'd be mad to consider anything else.

Basic Information
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O2 Home Broadband
Tel: 0800 230 0202
http://broadband.o2.co.uk/home/index.jsp

© Copyright SWSt 2009

Summary: The best ISP I've ever used