arjacey

Yes, broadband speed does vary depending on where you live. One side of the hill can be quite different to another, let alone differences in larger areas. I guess it would be OK in the cities but out in the sticks it can be difficult.

The spread of houses is different here and so, there are different solutions to providing internet coverage that you may be unfamiliar with in the UK.

Originally, we opted for TIM as the previous owner of the house said it was OK, not as fast as we were used to in the UK (150Mbps!) but was usable to stream TV so we thought it would be OK. The delivery was by telephone wire and our maximum speed was never more than 1.5Mbps, very often much less. We were over 2.5km from the exchange at the end of a long multidrop line, I think. Apparently 7Mbps is the minimum recommended for streaming. Also, when we had a power cut (quite frequently in the winter), the router would disconnect and it would take a call to TIM and several days before it reconnected. Apparently, TIM are bringing a 50Mbps box to the top of our road sometime next year. We'll see.

Although we are quite remote, we have always had 4G. We did consider this as an alternative, and for a while we were tethering to our mobiles when we needed a connection at decent speed (around 22Mbps) but it is metered usage and would work out quite expensive to use it as a platform for watching SD TV and prohibitive for HD TV.

Finally, we installed a radio link from a company called Fidoka (only locally here, I think) which gives us 7Mbps pretty consistently and doesn't disconnect, immediately reconnecting when power is restored. We tried other suppliers but they either they could not find a radio signal covering our house or just didn't turn up for the appointment.

We also considered satellite but, again, the usage is metered (although there may be unmetered usage overnight), and the speeds were better but not that great. Also, installation cost were quite high.

There are some fibre installations happening gradually but, for us, 2km down a lane off the main road with only two neighbours, I don't think this is going to happen.

If you are looking at a rental, it would be good if they already had internet installed so you could see the speed. I also recommend taking a mobile to confirm what coverage you have. (We did this religiously on every house we viewed, except of course, the house that we bought, so the 4G was a relief!)

There are ways and means of getting UK TV here (look for ExpressVPN as an idea of what might be possible) but be aware that this is strictly speaking illegal and the BBC and probably the other broadcasters, are gradually blocking even this method.

Its a weird licencing thing. You will know that you need a licence (only available at a UK address) but even if you have this you are 'not allowed' to watch the channels out of the UK. We subscribe to The Times and this is also true for their embedded video. There is mention of an International Account when you sign up for iPlayer but I haven't been able to find out any more about this.

If you have a friend with a SkyGo token free, that's another way.

We have found that our way of watching TV has changed. Mostly, we download (which you can do overnight if your connection is unmetered) and watch later. We are also considering Netflix and others but, to be honest, TV has become a much less important part of our lives. Once you are here, you probably won't want to know as much as what is happening back in the UK. We do still shout at the Today programme most mornings but it only makes us more pleased that we left!

Or you could always watch Italian TV

Hope this helps.

BRIAN 1

Hi,we don't have a landline as our development is only 10 years old and the infrastructure was never put in.We have Linkem with a small box on our roof,23euro a month unlimited.Cheers,Brian.ps trolls can butt in now,they normally do after I've posted lol.

ononno

So here comes your favourite troll stickng his nose in
I find Netflix worth having for 14 eurines a month because they have brilliant films, series, and documentaries; and I need to something to watch when overseeing a restless misses during the night when that happens.
I have Filmon at 5 eurines a month for recording 4 hours a day of what I like to watch when I can find the time; BBC 6 o'clock news so that I can shout at that Laura whatsit, the two brilliant series Liar and Doctor Foster, and as an avid fan of Corrie, Emmerdale, and Dad's Army. Sad isn't it.
Take care everybody-
Oh, and the connection is tim telecom 'tutto' basic 19 eurines a month.

BRIAN 1

Your'e not a troll,you're a gent.Some come over from other boards and try to be funny.We're even sadder,we watch Corrie,Emmerdale and Eastenders,lol.

GeorgeYoung

Never find anything worth watching on Netflix - all naff American crime series & the like. Hardly any comedy worth watching.

Regarding broadband, when we first moved here, I was working using a mobile internet dongle, which was pretty good. In fact, looking at the offers on here (Piani Internet Abbonamenti: Tutte le Offerte Tre), I might consider moving back to it given the price vs. that of TIM. 30GB is a decent monthly amount, though I would recommend using an internet meter on your current connection to get an idea of what you usually use.

HADENOUGHPIZZA

There is a whole section of Uk series , try using the search function with BBC . They do tend to be older than the ones on Sky though .

GeorgeYoung

How do you mean "search function with BBC"? Every time I search for a specific programme, Netflix doesn't have it but then I am mainly looking for old stuff I miss like Frasier, Seinfeld, Blackadder, etc.

BRIAN 1

Hi,we don't record any soaps,we just punch in the name date and put full episode after and a choice of full shows.org,video dailymotion or youtube come up.We just plug the laptop into tv via hdmi.Cheers,Brian.

arjacey

Good tip! We watched all six seasons of Howard’s Way on YouTube

HADENOUGHPIZZA

Hi in the area where you look up programs using their name you can type BBC and it will pull up a range of things

ononno

Have to say I'm finding Netflix brilliant for my vigil
viewing. I've been following a brilliant crime series called 'Marcella' on my Italian account.On my UK one I found the first series of Doctor Foster, so I'll be watching that too over the next few weeks. Most of these last 58 mins. per episode, which is just right for me. Can't concentrate on anythying that lasts over an hour.
Take care everybody :-)

GeorgeYoung

Ta for that Hadenough, will have a shuftie.

Accetturese

We don't have fibre here, and the ADSL is not quite as reliable as promised
We are on fastweb, thier 25 euro per 4 week package. It goes down most days - but at regular times, like when the kids finish school - but when live we get a good speed, 20mbs on average.
For TV we bought a Humax tivu box that gives us all the Italian channels. Lots of the Italian channels are able to be watched in the language of production, as they transmit that alongside the Italian dubbed version and our box gives us the option of watching in english if it's available.
For english TV and sport, I'm using mobdro. I find it works well most of the time - and if my internet dies I can use my mobile.