Network cards and Virgin media

[AllYourBase]

Virgin media are trying to fob me off with the excuse that I can't get my computer to connect at 20meg because my network card is slowing things down. I have a very new (<2yr old) top spec dell pc with an intel pro 1000 network card and the latest driver. I am getting just under 5meg, which smarts a little when I have been paying for 20. My "cable" and distance is one of the most favourable locally, according to the engineer.

I am loathe to buy a new network card as I think they are fobbing me off - could they be right?

[plowter]

You'll never get 20Mb, you're unlikely to get even 8Mb. The adverts tell you you'll get up to 20Mb.

That is dependent on distance from exchange, number of users and whether the ISP is 'throttling' your connection. If you use P2P filesharing then ISPs restrict your bandwidth.

Try Cybertweak to tweak your connection and then check the speed with Dan Elwell's Speed Test