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#91
Broadband, Internet & General Computer News & Discussion / Re: Took the plunge...
Last post by Tacitus - Jan 31, 2026, 10:20:12Quote from: nowster on Jan 30, 2026, 12:09:11If you're on FTTC (VDSL) all that will happen is that the dial tone will disappear off the line. IDNet will have to make sure that the DSL isn't cancelled with the phone line. Essentially your line will become SoGEA (Single order Generic Ethernet Access).That's pretty much what I thought. Moving the Broadband shouldn't present a problem, it's the tie-up with the phone service that could be difficult. I currently have a FritzBox and a Gigaset N300A which have been working without problems for a while now. The Gigaset should do VOIP so it may not be too difficult, although iDNet keep saying they won't support any of that and I'm on my own. I expected that since I've always used my own router since I first moved to iDNet, but they do seem to be emphasising they'll only support their own supplied kit rather more than they used to.
Quote from: nowster on Jan 30, 2026, 12:09:11OpenReach can then reclaim the copper pair from the exchange to the cabinet, but probably won't take the cable to the scrap yard until some time after everyone's off it.Doubt that will happen for a while. The obvious thing would be to remove the copper when they install full fibre, but I doubt that will happen anytime soon.
#92
Broadband, Internet & General Computer News & Discussion / Re: Took the plunge...
Last post by nowster - Jan 30, 2026, 12:09:11Quote from: Tacitus on Jan 30, 2026, 11:28:25That is certainly expensive but does look rather better than many of the alternatives.We got ours during the Black Friday deals when it was "only" £399.
Quote from: Tacitus on Jan 30, 2026, 11:28:25One other point. At present I'm on part fibre. Will the move to all IP involve a modem change? My feeling is it won't, that's only necessary with a move to full fibre and the installation of an ONT. Just need to be clear.If you're on FTTC (VDSL) all that will happen is that the dial tone will disappear off the line. IDNet will have to make sure that the DSL isn't cancelled with the phone line. Essentially your line will become SoGEA (Single order Generic Ethernet Access).
OpenReach can then reclaim the copper pair from the exchange to the cabinet, but probably won't take the cable to the scrap yard until some time after everyone's off it.
#93
Broadband, Internet & General Computer News & Discussion / Re: Took the plunge...
Last post by Tacitus - Jan 30, 2026, 11:28:25That is certainly expensive but does look rather better than many of the alternatives.
One other point. At present I'm on part fibre. Will the move to all IP involve a modem change? My feeling is it won't, that's only necessary with a move to full fibre and the installation of an ONT. Just need to be clear.
One other point. At present I'm on part fibre. Will the move to all IP involve a modem change? My feeling is it won't, that's only necessary with a move to full fibre and the installation of an ONT. Just need to be clear.
#94
Broadband, Internet & General Computer News & Discussion / Re: Took the plunge...
Last post by nowster - Jan 29, 2026, 15:53:49Quote from: Tacitus on Jan 29, 2026, 15:08:08TBH I don't really use the landline much nowadays, it's mostly the mobile but the signal at home is poor so I'm wondering whether a UPS might be a good idea. We don't often get complete power failures but in bad weather they do happen.We've got an Ecoflow Delta 2 battery pack (1kWh) here. Not cheap though!
There are 12V barrel connector outlets on the back which power the OpenReach ONT and the Grandstream ATA. The router is 5V USB, so that's powered off the USB sockets on the front.
With nothing else connected it runs for over 2.75 days. Switching on the mains outlets (even with nothing connected to them) drops that down to under 2 days.
Hooking up an old car battery to its solar panel socket adds another 18 hours of runtime. A newer deep discharge caravan type battery would probably last a lot longer.
I have it set for the slowest charging rate off mains (200W, about 5 hours to fully charge from flat) which should help with battery longevity. On the other hand, the old car battery took a couple of days to recharge from flat.
Last year we were off for over two days in Storm Darragh (with about four hours at night before it died again) and nearly three days completely off in Storm Éowyn. No mobile signal from any network during Storm Darragh either.
At that point we had an APC UPS but it only lasted 4 hours, so its use had to be rationed. The landline was still PSTN then and the hard wired phones kept working throughout.
#95
Broadband, Internet & General Computer News & Discussion / Re: Took the plunge...
Last post by Simon - Jan 29, 2026, 15:45:54Quote from: Tacitus on Jan 29, 2026, 15:08:08TBH I don't really use the landline much nowadays, it's mostly the mobile but the signal at home is poor so I'm wondering whether a UPS might be a good idea.
Have you tried WiFi Calling for the mobile? I also have a poor signal at home and that's certainly improved things for me.
#96
Broadband, Internet & General Computer News & Discussion / Re: Took the plunge...
Last post by Tacitus - Jan 29, 2026, 15:11:58My sister, also with iDNet is in a slightly different position. She's on ADSL but can go full fibre with a handful of suppliers. The phone and line are with BT Openreach.
I think best for her would be to have a new full fibre line with Openreach and then transfer the phone number. Given the age of her phones it might be best to go for a new DECT setup as I'm not sure a Grandstream would be able to power the ring circuit. Still that's up to her.
I think best for her would be to have a new full fibre line with Openreach and then transfer the phone number. Given the age of her phones it might be best to go for a new DECT setup as I'm not sure a Grandstream would be able to power the ring circuit. Still that's up to her.
#97
Broadband, Internet & General Computer News & Discussion / Re: Took the plunge...
Last post by Tacitus - Jan 29, 2026, 15:08:08Thank you for the replies. My guess is the easiest thing would be to have one of the Grandstream converters, probably the single port. If iDNet supply it, then it should be plug and play.
If it is a one month contract then I can sit back for a while to see what happens. As @nowster says I'm not restricted to a single supplier so I could always move the phone at a later date. TBH I don't really use the landline much nowadays, it's mostly the mobile but the signal at home is poor so I'm wondering whether a UPS might be a good idea. We don't often get complete power failures but in bad weather they do happen.
I'll have a word with support and see what they have to say.
One thing that I am curious about is why just about all the VOIP suppliers use Yealink for their DECT offer. Is it cheap, better or what? Gigaset have always been decent but in the UK they don't seem to make any headway in the business world. Neither do AVM (Fritz) although I suppose they are aimed more at the domestic market.
If it is a one month contract then I can sit back for a while to see what happens. As @nowster says I'm not restricted to a single supplier so I could always move the phone at a later date. TBH I don't really use the landline much nowadays, it's mostly the mobile but the signal at home is poor so I'm wondering whether a UPS might be a good idea. We don't often get complete power failures but in bad weather they do happen.
I'll have a word with support and see what they have to say.
One thing that I am curious about is why just about all the VOIP suppliers use Yealink for their DECT offer. Is it cheap, better or what? Gigaset have always been decent but in the UK they don't seem to make any headway in the business world. Neither do AVM (Fritz) although I suppose they are aimed more at the domestic market.
#98
Networking & Routers / Re: Asus RT-AX57 router drivin...
Last post by nowster - Jan 29, 2026, 14:58:14Nowadays there are only three useful channels on 2.4GHz: 1, 6 and 11.
If you have a smartphone you can get a WiFi scanner app which can show the locally used channels and the relative strengths of the signals on those channels.
Even 5GHz is getting crowded in some places.
If you have a smartphone you can get a WiFi scanner app which can show the locally used channels and the relative strengths of the signals on those channels.
Even 5GHz is getting crowded in some places.
#99
Broadband, Internet & General Computer News & Discussion / Re: Took the plunge...
Last post by nowster - Jan 29, 2026, 14:53:31When you switch to VoIP you aren't restricted to using the same telecoms provider as provides IP connectivity to you.
I decided to use A&A which has no bundled hardware requirements and costs £1.80/month (after a £12 switching fee) versus IDNet/UBoss at £6/month. It does require you to know what you're doing though, but there are extensive configuration guides in their wiki.
One good thing is that VoIP contracts tend to be month-by-month rather than longer term, so you're not locked in to one if you have trouble with them.
I decided to use A&A which has no bundled hardware requirements and costs £1.80/month (after a £12 switching fee) versus IDNet/UBoss at £6/month. It does require you to know what you're doing though, but there are extensive configuration guides in their wiki.
One good thing is that VoIP contracts tend to be month-by-month rather than longer term, so you're not locked in to one if you have trouble with them.
#100
Networking & Routers / Re: FTTC TO FTTP router settin...
Last post by nowster - Jan 29, 2026, 14:37:04When switching, I asked IDNet to keep the same login details. It then became a matter of moving a cable from one ethernet socket to another. (We were using a separate DSL modem in pass-through mode, with a separate router, so one PPPoE link was the same as any other.)