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Broadband is a high-speed connection to the Internet, almost 150 times faster than a typical 56k 'dial-up' modem. It is called broadband because it has a much higher 'bandwidth' - much more capacity to receive and send data.

Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line. ADSL is a clever way of getting the most from a standard telephone line. It uses digital compression to squeeze a lot of data through a fairly small wire. Asymmetric refers to the fact that it downloads data much faster than it uploads it (which is perfect for the way most home users use the Internet).

You may have heard about something called Local Loop Unbundling (LLU) and might be wondering what this means. Here is a brief guide.

What is a 'Local Loop'?
The Local Loop in a telephone network (sometimes referred to as the "last mile" of the network) is the bit that connects your home to your local telephone exchange. It refers literally to the copper cables that run from your home to the telephone exchange. So what does 'unbundling' it mean?
"Unbundling" means BT local telephone exchanges are made available to other companies such as TalkTalk,Tiscali,Sky etc. To make sure your broadband service is running on the very latest technology, and to allow them to provide you with broadband, they have been installing new equipment in 1,000 of BT's busiest exchanges.

What does this mean for me?
Unbundling means that your line will connect directly to the broadband providers equipment(ISP). The physical transfer of your line has to be done by BT. Once your exchange is unbundled they'll inform you of the date that BT engineers are due to switch you over to your new providers network.

During the transfer, there may be a short period when your landline and broadband services will be unavailable:
Up to 20 mins for making calls
Up to 4 hours for receiving calls
Up to 20 minutes for your broadband connection
So, this means I'll get 8 Meg broadband?
Yes and no. The equipment is capable of providing speeds up to 8 Meg , but the actual speed you will get depends on a number of factors, such as how far you live from the exchange, the quality of the cabling in your Local Loop, your computer and whether you are using a wireless router . This is true of all broadband service providers.

Rough Speed Guide

NOTE: MaxDSL and 'upto 8Mbps' products may report varied downstream speeds depending on how fast your line can actually connect. Upstream speed may vary with rate adaptation. Other factors may affect the reported speed including ISP network congestion and shared users/programs on your connection.

You can check your current speed here

To ensure you get the best possible speed, for the first few days after you're connected, you may notice your connection speed will fluctuate. This is perfectly normal and is a result of our equipment trying to find the optimum combination of upload and download speeds for your line.

Do I have to do anything?
If you wish to transfer to a different telephone and broadband provider you will need to call your existing provider and ask for a MAC code which you give to your new provider. After that, all the work will be done at the exchange by the BT engineers and they will write to you to let you know when this will happen.

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