# Warning to all British BT Vision-box users!



## Pyan (Jan 3, 2014)

Bloody BT has just, without warning, "upgraded" my VisionBox. Unfortunately, doing this has wiped out *all the recorded programmes on the internal disk* - in my case, about 60 hours of carefully selected and merit-weighed choices over the Christmas period.
Rang BT to complain, but apparently they have no control over when an upgrade is applied - they're very sorry, of course, but that's really not much comfort...


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## thaddeus6th (Jan 3, 2014)

Reminds me of a story a few weeks ago that BT are far and away the most complained about TV provider in the UK.


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## DaCosta (Jan 3, 2014)

When they can't even get their phone lines (internet) working properly it makes you wonder why they even bother branching out...


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## mosaix (Jan 3, 2014)

BT should stick to what they're (relatively) good at - 'phone services.

Very frustrating for you Py. You have my sympathy, if I lost my recordings of City thrashing United 6 -1  or City beating QPR (along with many others) to take the 2012 title I would be mortified.


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## Ursa major (Jan 3, 2014)

DaCosta said:


> When they can't even get their phone lines (internet) working properly it makes you wonder why they even bother branching out...


The money, provided they can keep their customers (which isn't a given).


To be fair, my internet _is_ working (albeit with a lower download rate than usual). *But my phone line isn't working, not for telephony* (which used to be BT's core business). Because of their crap reporting software on the web, I managed to raise two simultaneous fault reports (on 27th December). One of them has been closed, suggesting it's my equipment that's at fault. I've tried the line with three different phones (one brought from elsewhere, so it's unlikely to have been damaged when the phone line failed), and there seems to be no way of telling them this. The other fault is still open and promising me a fix by 21:00 today. (Surely the underlying cause can't be different for the two reports.) I'm not holding my breath as they promised to contact me after 24 hours (i.e. by last Saturday) by email, and they've so far not done so.

I wouldn't mind so much, but the line failed in October 2013, and while this was fixed, the solution obviously was far from permanent.


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## mosaix (Jan 3, 2014)

Ursa major said:


> To be fair, my internet _is_ working (albeit with a lower download rate than usual). *But my phone line isn't working, not for telephony* (which used to be BT's core business).



That is truly weird, U.M. 

This is just a long shot but do you have an ADSL filter between your handset and your socket? Could it be faulty? 

Sorry if you've already thought of that - don't mean to teach my grandmother to suck eggs.


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## Pyan (Jan 3, 2014)

mosaix said:


> This is just a long shot but do you have an ADSL filter between your handset and your socket? Could it be faulty?



If you have just changed to Infinity, Ursa, there shouldn't _be_ any ADSL filters on the line - they're not compatible with fibreoptics, according to the BT engineer that fitted mine...


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## Ursa major (Jan 3, 2014)

I've a highish speed ADSL service (c.21M when working properly), Pyan, not Infinity.


And many eggs have been sucked, mosaix, including swapping filters (and removing the filter entirely, when testing only the telephony), all to no avail.

As it is, I'm more bothered that they gave up on one of the fault reports: I can see that at this time of year (and with the weather being what it is), that they'll have fewer repair staff available, and those people will be working on higher priority jobs; but to just stop halfway and giving up is, in my book at least, indefensible. (I have to wonder whether, if I'd only managed to raise the one fault report as I wanted, they'd have forgotten about my service entirely. )


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## Foxbat (Jan 3, 2014)

I feel your pain Ursa. I had about three weeks of arguments with BT until I convinced them the fault was at their end. One of them even gave me a row for using a different modem. I did it to eliminate possibilities. They said I couldn't use anything but a BT modem on my line. So, I said 'what are you going to do about it?' No answer.

Then I was told I had to take a day off work in order that an engineer could visit me. The guy never came but phoned me to say the fault was in the exchange and had affected about sixty other people. 

All in all, it cost me time, grief and a day's holiday.


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## mosaix (Jan 3, 2014)

Foxbat said:


> The guy never came but phoned me to say the fault was in the exchange and had affected about sixty other people.



In all the time I've had internet access (about 20 years) every single fault I've ever had has been in the exchange but on every single occasion (apart from with my current provider) they have always insisted it was a fault with my computer or in my house.

There was a time when I was working that I had six systems in my house and suddenly one morning none of them could access the internet. I think it was support from TalkTalk that suggested I re-install Windows on all of them.  That was when I changed providers!


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## Ursa major (Jan 4, 2014)

Well, early this morning I awoke to the sound of the phone ringing, then the doorbell: an OpenReach engineer had arrived. He replaced some wiring on the outside of the building (the insulation had been compromised) and restored my phone service. 


It seems I was lucky**: he'd already been to somewhere a few miles away and had checked if there were any other faults in the area, and mine was.



** - Although I wish I'd got to bed a bit earlier. I feel knackered.


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## mosaix (Jan 4, 2014)

Congrats Ursa, although how your internet connection remained unaffected baffles me.


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## Ursa major (Jan 4, 2014)

I _was_ getting a much reduced bandwidth, and the broadband did cut out every so often, as it did (briefly) last night when the rain started (again).


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## Dave (Jan 7, 2014)

Sorry, but I've found BT Infinity to be a vast improvement over the cable we had for years. Thanks for the heads up over the 'upgrade' though. I'll watch out. The service has been generally good. The only problems we have had have been with the old telephone wires themselves. There is apparently a double wire into every house. For phones to work you only need one wire, but for broadband you need both. We have problems with the wiring at the top of the nearest telegraph pole - be it the weather, birds or incompetent engineers - but twice one of the cables was worked loose. It does seem to take ages for them to find and fix the fault and they always try to tell you that the fault lies inside the house (it probably usually does, but when you know for certain that it does not...) I just wish they would sack some salemen and train more engineers.


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## purple_kathryn (Jan 7, 2014)

I had very few problems with BT until I decided to upgrade to infinity.  Which was a complete nightmare (which I won't go into but I ended up writing a letter of complaint and getting money off my next bill)

Then I got the TV service and as far as I'm aware when asking how far the box was from the bt home hub it didn't specify it had to be in the same room so I had a bit of hassle then getting power line adapters

So as long as you don't have to contact them about anything - it's fine in my experience.

Fortunately I don't save my recordings


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## The Ace (Jan 7, 2014)

Right now, I'm glad I'm with Virgin.

BT's fibreoptics haven't reached this far yet, so the only way to get it is through Virgin.


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## Pyan (Jan 7, 2014)

purple_kathryn said:


> Fortunately I don't save my recordings



That's what pi..annoyed me the most. Normally I record due to conflicts, then watch and delete as soon as possible. It was the _timing_ of this update (afternoon of New Years Day!) that was so bad, because of all the choices and prioritising I'd made over the Christmas period.


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## purple_kathryn (Jan 7, 2014)

maybe some will still be available on the various players?


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## Gramm838 (Jan 7, 2014)

pyan said:


> Bloody BT has just, without warning, "upgraded" my VisionBox. Unfortunately, doing this has wiped out *all the recorded programmes on the internal disk* - in my case, about 60 hours of carefully selected and merit-weighed choices over the Christmas period.
> Rang BT to complain, but apparently they have no control over when an upgrade is applied - they're very sorry, of course, but that's really not much comfort...



You recorded 60 HOURS of British TV to watch...u mad bro? There hasn't been 60 hours worth of British TV worth watching since they got rid of the test-card


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## Pyan (Jan 7, 2014)

Gramm838 said:


> You recorded 60 HOURS of British TV to watch...u mad bro? There hasn't been 60 hours worth of British TV worth watching since they got rid of the test-card



Heh...

To be fair, a lot of it consisted of films that I didn't think I'd be able to stay awake until 3am to finish. Oh, and _CSI_s. And _New Tricks_. And _Jonathan Creek_s...


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## Ursa major (Jan 7, 2014)

At least in the case of the various CSIs, there's a more than good chance that you'll be able to catch them again, and again...








...and again.


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## jastius (Jan 8, 2014)

i was going ro suggest running over the exterior phone line with the lawnmower.. they are responsible for exterior work.  then when it still didn't work inside they do come in and fix more things... 
you have much more patience then i do ursa. i would have been at it with the lawnmower back in october...


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## Ursa major (Jan 8, 2014)

I'm not sure running a lawnmower over slabs (which sit on enough concrete and foundation to easily bear the weight of a car) would have much effect on the line, which pops out of the gtound (and the concrete) right next to the house. The problem was with the line which led from there, across the front of the house (pinned to the wall, about six inches above the ground), then in through a hole into the lounge (living room). Some of the insulation on that line had perished and was letting water in when the wind blew hard and it was raining (which has been the case for the last few weeks).


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