Tiscali Broadband, Talk & TV - Option 1 Broadband Bundle

Tiscali Review | Review of Tiscali Broadband, Talk & TV Option 1

IT is difficult not to burst into song when thinking about Tiscali’s incredible new broadband, phone and digital TV bundle.

Good value? There's an understatement

Good value is an absolute understatement when you consider what Tiscali has thrown into this package: a fast, reliable up to 8Mb broadband connection, free weekend phonecalls, free line renta, free wireless modeml and… drum roll please… Tiscali’s surprisingly excellent digital TV package.

All this for less than most people are paying for a broadband connection alone.

Anyone looking at this Tiscali TV bundle is almost certainly most interested in Tiscali’s revolutionary digital TV service.

For the very first time in the UK, we can now receive digital TV over our broadband connections as part of a bundle (BT were doing it first, but only as a standalone product).

TV over broadband

TV over broadband? Does that mean you have to watch Tiscali’s digital TV on your computer screen? Not at all, Tiscali simply deliver the TV service through the same copper wires that brings your broadband.

By the way, in case you're wondering, there is more to it than just that. A broadband line alone wouldn't be enough to simply carry TV signals, but Tiscali has inherited the proprietary Homechoice technology which, you may remember from a few years ago, was a much vaunted alternative to the then NTL (now Virgin Media service).

Your own Personal Video Recorder (PVR)

You’ll get a free Tiscali set-top box that plugs into the phone socket the same way your broadband modem does (also free from Tiscali, by the way).

The Tiscali TV service offers over 60 digital TV channels, including Sky One - the holy grail of the digital digital TV world that was so unceremoniously lost by Virgin Media, as well as a wealth of digital radio stations.

Huge video-on-demand catalogue

Tiscali’s digital TV service also boasts the UK’s biggest video-on-demand service with over 1000 pay-per-rent films available at any time. There are also TV shows and music on demand.

It’s not all pay-per-rent though, Tiscali also allow you a free catch up service of the last week’s TV.

Exellent broadband

Tiscali’s bundled broadband package is a solid and reliable affair.

You get up0 to 8Mb speeds, a free Tiscali wireless router and unlimited downloads, within the confines of a reasonable fair use policy.

While Tiscali has taken a lot of stick for the reliability of their broadband service in the past, our inbox over the last few months has been significantly lacking in complaints about the service.

Free weekend calls

Back to the package, you'll also get free weekend phonecalls with Tiscali’s bundled Weekend Talk home phone package. Calls at other times are very reasonable at 4p per minute in the day time, and 1.5p in the evening.

Incredibly you also get free phonecalls to 10 international destinations, including the USA and Australia.

If you want free calls at anytime, you can pay a few more pounds per month for Tiscali Broadband, Talk & TV Option 2.

Free line rental

If you are not gob-smacked enough by Tiscali’s incredible value broadband, phone and TV bundle, get your laughing gear around Tiscali’s free line rental!

You will have to be in a Tiscali enabled broadband area to get this package. You can check this during the signup process.

	Tiscali Broadband, Talk & TV - Option 1 is currently offering £15.99 for the first 3 months. Also FREE line rental (worth £126).

A little more detail

Broadband

			Special Note..	Any good?
Package Name:		Up to 8Mb	-
Connection Type:		ADSL	-
Max Speed:		8Mb	-
Usage Limit:		Unlimited	Fair usage policy applies
Hardware:		Wireless Router	-
Anti-virus Protection:		No	Email security does include anti-virus email checker. Regular Anti Virus software available from £2.50 per month
Firewall:		No	-
E-mail Account:		Yes	Up to 10 email addresses
Webspace Provided:		Yes	100MB of webspace
Domain Included:		No	-
Backup Dialup:		Yes	0844 backup dialup
Consoles Supported:		All major consoles supported	-

Home Phone

Package Name:		Weekend Talk
UK Weekend Tariff:		Free to UK landlines
UK Evening Tariff:		1.5p per minute (same as BT)
UK Peak Tariff:		4p per minute (same as BT)
International Tariff:		Free to 10 international destinations including USA & Australia

TV

Package Name:		Variety Pack
Included Channels:		Over 60 digital channels
Optional Channel Add-ons:		Add additional mixes, including adult channels (from £6)
Video on Demand:		Yes, UK's biggest video-on-demand service
Pay Per View:		Movies, TV shows and music videos
Record TV / TV Hard Drive:		Yes
Hardware:		Tiscali Set Top Box
Extras:

Payment, Installation and Contract

Payment Method(s):		Direct Debit / Credit Card
Activation Fee:		£30
Installation:		Free
Minimum Contract:		12 months
Line Rental:		Line rental must be taken with Tiscali (free)
Support:		Free online support, otherwise 10p per minute support line (5p for calls from Tiscali Talk landline)

Actual User Ratings

At a Glance

Our Rating
Max Speed	8Mb
Usage Limit	Unlimited
Monthly Price	£19.99
Set Up Cost	£30.00
Min. Contract	12 months

	Bundle details:
	Phone: Weekend calls to UK landlines
	TV: Choice of 60 TV channels - including Sky One - (plus 19 radio channels)
	Mobile: Not included

	It is best suited for:
	Web users looking for a superb bundle who don't want full-on digital TV, but want something better than Freeview along with a good broadband connection and free weekend phone calls.

Customer Reviews

Add your own review of Tiscali broadband...

Remember, the customer reviews below are subjective (and are not the opinions of ChooseISP.co.uk).

No name given from writes... 30/04/2008

"If you require a stable, fast connection, or play online video games, use a bit torrent client to download video music ect, or expect a reasonable level of customer service, or technical support, do not use Tiscali as throttling of p2p clients is active each day. The connection is interleaved giving latency issues (online gaming) 24/7. Yes they are cheap but I wish I had chosen a diferent ISP and would have gladly payed more for a good service level on all the fronts."