Review: BT Broadband Talk

BT is obviously wary of the impact the VoIP revolution is having on the market it has traditionally dominated.

In an attempt to attract new customers and to lure people away from Skype and the various Sip VoIP providers, BT has released its own version – BT Broadband Talk.

In order to use this service you'll need a BT line and a broadband Internet connection. If you already have wireless router, a simple VoIP phone adapter will be sent as part of the package.

For those who don't currently have a router, a BT Voyager router will be included – wired and wireless options are available.

If you elect not to sign up to one of BT's VoIP plans (detailed below), the wireless router will cost an additional £50.

You will also receive a VoIP phone number beginning with '05'; this is a new phone code specifically for BT VoIP numbers. Whether it's enough to put people off calling you for fear of it being a premium rate number is another matter.

Installing the kit couldn't have been easier and BT has gone to great lengths to make the setup process as simple as possible.

Upon inserting the CD, you're presented with clear instructions as to how to install the router; anyone familiar with wireless routers will be able to skip through most of it.

All the settings on the router are made automatically as soon as you log in to the account via the BT Broadband Talk website.

It's then just a case of plugging a standard telephone into the router and you're away.

Via the web, it's possible to change your calling plan and set up services such as 1471 and call barring.

Unlike many VoIP services, we found call clarity to be excellent and on a par with a standard phone line.

So how does it square up in terms of call costs? Well, there are two plans to choose from.

The first is the Evening and Weekend Plan. This costs £2.99 per month (£2 per month if you're a BT Broadband customer) and gives you free evening and weekend standard calls (ie local and national numbers), with all other daytime calls costing 3p per minute.

The second option, Anytime Plan, costs £7.99 per month for free standard calls at all time.

If you're a BT Broadband customer, you also benefit from a 99p reduction in the monthly cost for both plans.

Furthermore, if you subscribe to BT Broadband Option 4 (£29 per month), the Evening and Weekend Plan comes free of charge as standard.

Just as with standard BT price plans, you'll start being charged at the standard rate should any call last over an hour during your free period.

The cheapest line rental option from BT (which you'll need, since a BT line is required for this service) is £11 per month, making the total cost for the Evening and Weekend Plan £13.99, and £18.99 for the Anytime Plan.

This compares favourably with BT's standard Option 2 (£16.50) and Option 3 (£25.50) landline calling plans, which have the same free periods as the two VoIP plans.

However, the real savings are with the international service, with calls to many countries costing just 1.25p per minute.

Compared with other VoIP services, BT's 3p per minute UK landline charges are at the higher end of the scale. With Skype Out, the same calls are 1.4p per minute, while Sipgate charges 1.19p per minute.

You can see a full list of the call charges (including international rates) on BT's website.

As with all VoIP phone services, should your broadband connection go down, so will all your phone access.

BT is quick to point out this will mean you can't access the emergency services and even provides a set of stickers to place on your VoIP phones to warn people.

Overall we were impressed with BT Broadband Talk. It's easy to set up, has good call clarity and everything you need comes in one package.

Only being able to have a number staring '05' is a pain, but once it becomes better known that '05' numbers are for VoIP phones it won't be such a problem.

Call charges are, in general, more expensive than with other VoIP providers, but BT may well rectify this as demand increases.

If you want a simple, hassle-free VoIP service, BT Broadband Talk is definitely worth considering.

System requirements:

Broadband Internet connection
BT phone line