November 2012 saw average download speeds recorded by users of our Broadband Speed Test drop in comparison to the results from October, coming in at 17.1Mb. Average upload speeds remained stable at around 2Mb.
Virgin Media's average download speeds have decreased by 1Mb over last month to 32.39Mb with upload speeds remaining stable at 2.62Mb. BT Broadband takes second place with download speeds averaging at 15.57Mb (a 1Mb increase over last month) and upload speeds of 3.45Mb. Eclipse drops to third place with a 2Mb decrease to 15.1Mb for average download speeds, and a 0.5Mb decrease to 2.75Mb for average upload speeds. Plusnet came in at 4th place with 11.94Mb download, a small decrease in speed since last month.
Orange are now trading as EE, and speed test results only include numbers from their fixed line broadband packages, and not their 4G mobile broadband packages.
Sky Broadband recently launched the new Sky Hub, which claims to be the router with best wireless range of any major provider, based on an independent study. The Hub offers Sky Smart Signal technology which constantly scans for interference in the home and selects the best wireless signal available. It also provides easy WiFi Protected Setup for WPS enabled devices.
Sky+ customers will be able to connect the Sky Hub to their Sky+ Box to access Sky's new On Demand entertainment services, which can also be accessed when out and about with the help of the Sky Cloud WiFi app.
The Sky Hub is provided to new customers as an inclusive part of their Sky Broadband package. Existing Sky Broadband customers can upgrade to the Hub for an introductory price of £39.
We also managed to get our hands on ten Sky Hubs and five Sky Wireless Connectors to give away in a competition that ran until the 6th of December. The lucky winners will hear from us by the 13th of December.
October 2012 saw average download speeds recorded by users of our Broadband Speed Test rise in comparison to the results from September's result, coming in at 18.04Mb. Average upload speed remained stable at around 2Mb.
Virgin Media's average download speeds have increased over last month to 33.43Mb (a 0.5Mb increase) and upload speeds remain stable at 2.17Mb. Fibre to the Cabinet provider Eclipse maintained second place with an impressive 3Mb increase to 17.31Mb for average download speeds, and increased by 1Mb to achieve 3.21Mb average upload speeds. BT Broadband held third place and also increased speeds, with download speeds averaging at 14.4Mb and upload speeds at 3.26Mb. Plusnet came in at 4th place with 12.58Mb download, an increase in speed since last month.
The best performing non-fibre-based provider was again BE and O2 (who share a common infrastructure) in at 5th place with 7.33Mb average download speed over their Local Loop Unbundled ADSL2+ service.
Orange are now trading as EE, and speed test results only include numbers from their fixed line broadband packages, and not their 4G mobile broadband packages.
Students rely on Internet access. Be it registering for courses, receiving important news via email, downloading course content, researching their subject or submitting coursework, much of their work takes place online. Combine this with their usual online activity and social networking, and it becomes vital that they have a good Internet connection available in their digs.
There's a lot to consider when finding and moving into student housing. Signing up for an appropriate broadband package that's suitable for student use on a student budget can be a daunting task. We've put together a new a comprehensive guide to student broadband to help make the research and buying process easier.
The guide covers issues such as contract length, price, considerations of shared housing and the best packages to choose if you enjoy gaming. It also features ten hand picked broadband deals that are especially suited to student households and looks at the strengths and pitfalls of using mobile broadband for student use.
May 2012 saw average download speeds recorded by users of our Broadband Speed Test increasing in comparison to the levels achieved in April's result, coming in at 15.29Mb. Average upload speed increased to 2.29Mb.
Virgin Media's average download and upload speeds have remained stable at 24.34Mb and 2.66Mb respectively. BT Broadband held second place and increased speeds again, with download speeds averaging at 14.56Mb and upload speeds at 3.75Mb. Fibre to the Cabinet provider Eclipse maintained third place with speeds holding steady at 12.94Mb for average download speeds and 2.48Mb for average upload speeds.
The best performing non-fibre-based provider was again BE and O2 (who share a common infrastructure) in at 5th place with 6.44Mb average download speed over their Local Loop Unbundled ADSL2+ service. Plusnet came in at 4th place at 6.60Mb, a slight drop on last month.
March 2012 saw average download speeds recorded by users of our Broadband Speed Test increasing in comparison to the levels achieved in February's result, coming in at 10.73Mb. Average upload speed increased to 1.48Mb.
Increased speeds are likely in large part due to the start of Virgin Media's roll out of double or better speeds for cable customers, which will continue throughout 2012 affecting all but their 100Mb service. Virgin Media's average download and upload speeds have increased significantly by 1.98Mb to 19.63Mb with upload speeds seeing a small increase to 2.48Mb. The trend sees Virgin Media's average download speeds increasing by 4Mb over the last two months.
Fibre to the Cabinet provider Eclipse maintained second place despite seeing a small decrease in average download speed to a 11.51Mb average and upload speeds to 1.77Mb. BT Broadband held third place and made speed gains, with download speeds averaging at 9.47Mb and upload speeds at 1.75Mb.
The best performing non-fibre-based provider was again BE and O2 (who share a common infrastructure) in at 5th place with 6.08Mb average download speed over their Local Loop Unbundled ADSL2+ service. Plusnet came in at 4th place at 7.27Mb, a significant gain on previous months, but this is likely due sign ups for their competitively priced FttC Plusnet Fibre product.
February 2012 saw average download speeds recorded by users of our Broadband Speed Test increasing in comparison to the levels achieved in January's result, coming in at 9.32Mb. Average upload speed remained stable at 1.36Mb.
Virgin Media's average download and upload speeds have increased significantly by 2.3Mb to 17.65Mb and upload speeds were stable at 2.43Mb.
Fibre to the Cabinet provider Eclipse made an impressive recovery from their January drop, increasing their average download speed to a 12.27Mb average and upload speeds to 2.09Mb. BT Broadband also see improvements, with download speeds averaging at 8.57Mb and upload speeds at 1.54Mb.
The best performing non-fibre-based provider was again BE and O2 (who share a common infrastructure) in at 4th place with 6.03Mb average download speed over its Local Loop Unbundled ADSL2+ service.
January 2012 saw average download speeds recorded by users of our Broadband Speed Test increasing in comparison to the levels achieved in December's result, coming in at 8.21Mb. Average upload speed also increased to 1.31Mb.
Virgin Media's average download and upload speeds have increased to 15.33Mb and 2.46Mb respectively.
Fibre to the Cabinet provider Eclipse drop from last months speeds, with a 9.65Mb average download speed and 1.53Mb upload speed. BT Broadband remain stable this month, with download speeds averaging at 7.52Mb and upload speeds at 1.45Mb.
The best performing non-fibre-based provider was again BE and O2 (who share a common infrastructure) in at 5th place with 5.62Mb average download speed over its Local Loop Unbundled ADSL2+ service.
December 2011 saw average download speeds recorded by users of our Broadband Speed Test generally maintaining the levels achieved in November's result, coming in at 7.58Mb. Average upload speed also remained stable 1.16Mb.
Virgin Media's average download and upload speeds have held reasonably steady at 14.24Mb and 2.23Mb respectively.
Likewise, Fibre to the Cabinet provider Eclipse match last months speeds, with a 10.59Mb average download speed and a slight increase to a 1.88Mb upload speed. BT Broadband take a 0.5Mb drop this month, with download speeds averaging at 7.64Mb and upload speeds at 1.3Mb.
The best performing non-fibre-based provider was again BE and O2 (who share a common infrastructure) who retained 4th place with 5.67Mb average download speed over its Local Loop Unbundled ADSL2+ service.
November 2011 saw average download speeds recorded by users of our Broadband Speed Test remaining generally stable compared to October's result, with a 0.45Mb increase to 7.48Mb. Average upload speed also remained stable with a 0.06Mb increase to 1.26Mb.
After an increase in speed last month, Virgin Media's average download dropped quite a bit to 14.30Mb, though upload speeds remain stable at 2.45Mb.
Fibre to the Cabinet provider Eclipse continues to see significant gains, rising to a 10.59Mb average download speed and 1.66Mb upload speed. BT Broadband also saw a healthy speed gain this month, with download speeds averaging at 8.12Mb and upload speeds at 1.44Mb.
The best performing non-fibre-based provider was again BE and O2 (who share a common infrastructure) who retained 4th place with 5.49Mb average download speed over its Local Loop Unbundled ADSL2+ service.
