Is there an official Plusnet specific guide to the end of copper lines

[#1]

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@Dan_the_Van wrote:

When I joined Free-Online back in 2003 included on my package I had a VoIP product. Can not recall the year (been a few) plusnet discontinued the service and transferred the VoIP customer base if I recall correctly to Vonage.

I gave using VoIP at that time as it didn't seem to work very well on a slow ADSL connection.

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I can't remember whether PN initially had a VoIP service when I joined in 2002 on, ISTR, 500Kbps ADSL, but I started using VoIP seriously around 2005-2006 and that's about the time I started using 'PlusTalk' (I think it was called).  ISTR I also upgraded to MaxDSL around that time, and using a DrayTek Vigor 2800Vg VoIP router the service always worked well for me, other than a few hiccups initially whereby my monthly minutes allowance didn't renew correctly and required manual correction for a couple of months.  Those PN inclusive minutes were a great help in avoiding BT telephone charges and I've been using multiple VoIP accounts ever since.

ICBW but after some time the VoIP service was sub-contracted to Gradwell Communications, and was eventually taken over by them on a 'separate paid for basis' when PN ceased providing it as an inclusive service on certain account types.

Edit; typo

[#2]

@RobPN 

It's probably clear to you my memory of events has faded a bit, so thank you for taking the time to fill in the gaps; my journey with Free-Online is much the same as yours I starting with dialup modem, I moved to 500Kbps ADSL at some point.

The maximum speed I achieved with ADSL was 2Mbps, long line with copper and aluminium cable, VoIP didn't work for me very well.

[#3]

I agree with you whole heartedly. Some clarity would be very much appreciated. Thanks for all the replies on this thread, even those that were a little over my head. I think that once I'm out of contract with PN at the end of next year I'll be looking for the cheapest possible broadband (landline based) that I can get; just hoping that there'll be a choice; I may even do away with the land line altogether.  In any case I will port my landline number to a Voip provider; who that will be I don't know but A&A as suggested in one of the replies has good reviews.

[#4]

Starlink was expensive and the ping was awful (huge & variable). It started off great but soon went downhill. At the time EE was also expensive and unreliable even with one of those stick to the glass window antenna. It was my gamer child that organised it & it wasn't good enough so they then went for Starlink which also didn't work out so they are now using our fixed wireless which isn't the quickest but it's stable, has low ping and is therefore usable.

An aside re ee: we have just had a bad experience with ee. We had cheap very basic legacy contract with Tesco (O2) for our mobiles which were adequate for our needs although we had actually been out of contract for years with no price increase. In April, Tesco told us that the price would go up annually by a percentage + r/cpi. Well that was a rip off for the miniscule amount of call/data/texts on the packages. So we decides to move to SPUSU (ee) for £2.90pm each, much less than we'd been paying for a better package. It was a complete and utter disaster; reception outdoors was poor to non existent and indoors it was worse. If you did actually connect a call both parties sounded like drunk Daleks with a speech impediment and were unintelligible. So less than 48hrs after signing up with SPUSU we were back with O2 via GiffGaff and normal good service was restored. It is costing us £6 each a month but this is still slightly less than Tesco for a much better package; more than we'll ever use. EE isn't great here, operating on higher frequencies (worse penetration of walls/trees), plus the loss of 3G which is more stable than 4G doesn't help. Being remotley rural has it's downsides as well as it's plus sides.