Telewest Blueyonder - The Internet access equivalent to good sex! (Telewest)

Member Name: DJBorley

Product:	Telewest
Date:	31/12/02 (577 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Always on, high speed internet access

Disadvantages: Can go down with extreme weather

I've always been the type of guy to stick with what I know. I grew up using BT phones, so I choose BT as a supplier. Sky was the only Satellite company around when we bought our first dish, and they still have my custom to date. My rule of thumb is that, once a company makes a mistake (which every company does sooner or later), it's how they respond to that mistake which determines if I take my custom elsewhere. However, when I went to get Broadband installed, BT was not offering it in my area, and so I was forced to look elsewhere.

I had previously had Telewest as a digital satellite supplier when I moved in with my girlfriend, and the constant irritation of frozen screens, sound problems and general "down time" with their service, coupled with pretty bad customer service, meant that pretty soon, Sky were once again supplying me with a multitude of channels. Hence my hesitation in signing up to their broadband service.

If you're an internet freak, who just can't stand not being online, then this connection, which is 24 hours always-on, is ideal. If you're the type that downloads lots of files, you will see pictures download in seconds, MP3's download in minutes, and large video clips download in a couple of hours. Although the service occasionally goes down (don't even think of trying to access it when you have 100mph winds ripping up trees and generally playing havoc with the exchange), it is a lot more reliable than connecting via a standard 56K modem.

I was torn. Telewest Blueyonder came recommended from my family, but did I want to stick with a 56K modem, paying £15 per month for what had become sub-standard access via an ISP and keep well away from Telewest? Or did I stump up an extra £15 per month to suffer Telewests attempt at Broadband internet access? If ever a company has redeemed itself in my eyes, then Telewest have!

A quick visit to the Blueyonder.co.uk website saw me tapping in
my postcode to check availability in my area. As luck would have it, our house was eligible, so, armed with my in-laws subscription details, I clicked on the "Refer A Friend" button and started to fill in a few standard details - I was filling this in on behalf of my in-laws, so I apologise if it sounds a bit backwards - I had to enter the name, email address and a quick message to the person who was being referred (which in this case was me), and then I had to enter some more bulk standard details of the person who was doing the referring (i.e, my in-laws) This was their names, addresses, Phone number, account number, inside leg measurement... Well, maybe not the last one, but you get my point!

A swift click on the Submit button, and a short time later I was emailed with details of the service. Another couple of clicks saw me tapping away an email to Blueyonder, asking them to contact me, and within a couple of days, following a phone call to confirm a convenient delivery time and the cost of the service, I had a guy tacking a cable through my lounge.

As my house already had the correct junction box to run the cable through (which had to be connected by Mr Blueyonder Installation Man - hereafter called Mr BYIM - from the outside), it knocked the best part of 15 minutes off of the installation time, so from start to finish the whole job of tacking the cable neatly around the living room, drilling through the under stairs cupboard, and then through to the kitchen, and also setting up the new modem took a little over an hour. Mr BYIM was polite and helpful, asking express permission before drilling anything, and consulting us as to where and how we wanted the cable run. He also took time out to show us how the system worked, and answered a seemingly endless array of questions.

The beauty of it all is that, as I had been referred by existing Telewest customers, I received half-price installation (£25 instead of £50), and the referre
rs themselves received £25 for the referral.


The total cost of the service, which allows you to download at speeds of up to ten times that of a standard modem (i.e, in excess of 512K), is just £30. As I said before, I was paying £15 with my old ISP, which quickly got dumped. If you have other Telewest services (Digital TV or phone) then the price drops to £25 per month. You can even upgrade to 1Gb connection (twice as fast as standard Broadband) for an extra tenner per month.

This service is a must-have for me now, and the only time I would consider changing is if another company drastically cut the cost of their Broadband service, and even then I would think twice before moving on.

If you're interested in the service, you can get the details at Blueyonder.co.uk, or if you want a referral to take advantage of the half-price installation, drop me an email or a Guest book entry, and I will obviously be glad to refer the service to you (after all, I'll be making £25 from it too!)

With the holiday season just gone, I think I can safely say that Blueyonder is for life, not just from Christmas!

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